Kenshiro Abbe
| Kenshiro Abbe | |
|---|---|
Kenshiro Abbe, ca. 1963
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|
| Born |
15 December 1915 Tokushima Prefecture, Japan |
| Died | December 1, 1985 (aged 69) Tokushima Prefecture, Japan Stroke |
| Style | Aikido, Judo, Kendo, jukendo and others |
| Teacher(s) | Kinnosuke Ogawa, Morihei Ueshiba |
| Rank | 8th dan judo, 6th dan aikido, 6th dan kendo, and others |
| Spouse | Keiko Abbe |
| Children | Junko Abbe, Noriko Abbe, Yayoi Abbe |
| Notable students | Kenneth Williams, David Williams Henry Ellis |
Kenshiro Abbe (阿部 謙四郎 Abe Kenshirō?, 15 December 1915 – 1 December 1985) was a prominent Japanese master of judo, aikido, and kendo. He introduced aikido to the United Kingdom in 1955, and founded the Kyushindo system. Abbe was a graduate of the Budo Senmon Gakko, having studied judo and kendo there. Following an illustrious early career in the martial arts, he served in the Imperial Japanese Army before and during World War II. He then trained in aikido under its founder, Morihei Ueshiba, for a decade. Abbe held dan ranks in several martial arts, most notably 8th dan in judo, 6th dan in aikido, and 6th dan in kendo. After introducing aikido to the UK, he established several Japanese martial arts councils there during the late 1950s. He returned to Japan in 1964 and remained there for most of the remainder of his life. There are contradictory accounts of Abbe's final years, but it appears that he was in poor spirits and poor health towards the end.
Abbe was born on 15 December 1915 in a village in Tokushima Prefecture, on the island of Shikoku, Japan. He was the son of Toshizo Abbe, who was the local school's headmaster and a kendo instructor, and his wife, Kote Abbe. The couple had four sons and five daughters, and Abbe was the youngest child in the family. On 4 September 1919, when Abbe was not yet four years old, his father drowned in a flash flood while training in the mountains. A young schoolteacher, Manpei Hino, subsequently became a father figure for the young boy and introduced him to the martial arts, including sumo. Abbe went on to become a local school champion in sumo.
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