The Revenge of the Forty-Seven Ronin, also known as the Ako Incident, is a famous and controversial account in Japanese feudal history.   The 47 ronin of the Ako clan vowed revenge after their master,  AsanoNaganori Asano Takumi-no-Kami Naganori, was sentenced to death by seppuku for attacking a Shogunate official named Kira Yoshinaka.  More than a year later, the ronin launched an attack at the officials mansion, and successfully avenged their master.  The attack was reported to the daimyos widow by Terasaka Kichiemon, who was one of the assailants.  The ronin subsequently committed seppuku.  The story was popularized in Japanese plays, movies and television, and was the subject of thorough discussion by critics and historians.  As noted by a Japanese scholar, the story of the 47 ronin was considered a national legend (Kanadehon, 2002).  Questions arose as to whether these leaderless samurai acted in accordance to the warrior code of honour, the Bushido.

Law vs. Morals
Among the issues concerning the Incident, the issue that sparked intense debate among intellectuals and critics alike is whether the forty-seven ronin acted righteously in killing the perpetrator of their masters death.  Even several officials were sympathetic to the plight of the avengers.  However, Ogyu Sorai, in his memorial of advice to the Shogunate following the surrender of the forty-six, said he approved of their righteousness, but he recognized the need to preserve the law of the realm.(McMullen, 2003, p. 6).   This became the basis for the Shogunates punishment of the avengers, as well as a source of negative criticism of the warriors by noted Confucianist scholars.  They noted the assailants lack of respect for law and authority. Since Asano attempted to kill Kira himself, then there should be no revenge for criminals who were rightly punished.  Other writers view the attack as act of absolute loyalty and obedience to their master and that the forty-six would default on the great righteousness of their lord if they did not consummate his purpose to kill Kira (McMullen, 2003, p 11).  

Bushido vs. Revenge
Another issue on the affair is whether the act of the ronin adhered to the teachings of Bushido.  Yamamoto Tsunetomo, author of the Hagakure, surmised that the ronin had taken too much time to wait before killing Kira and had not taken into consideration the possibility of Kira dying.  He points out that  the right thing for the ronin to do, according to proper Bushido, was to attack Kira and his men immediately after Asanos death  He concluded that the Ako Incident was a good story of revenge, but not of Bushido. (Hagakure, pph 26 ch. Kodansha 1979).  However, Yamamotos assessement  does not reflect the tension between the authority of a centralized regime and regionalized baronial autonomy.  Confucianist principles borrowed from ancient China became distorted as it formed the core of the warrior code.  Being a warrior state, honor was a motivating force, as was the case with such feuds in Early Medieval Europe (McMullen, 2003, p. 2).