Born in Osaka, son of the Confucian scholar Rai Shunsui; the next year his father entered the Hiroshima domain's service and he grew up in Hiroshima.
He studied for about a year at the Shōheizaka academy in Edo.
He fled the domain without leave, was brought back and confined to a room at home, where he began writing history.
He served as head pupil at Kan Chazan's school in Bingo.
He moved to Kyoto and opened a school, also gaining fame for his poetry and calligraphy.
He travelled through Kyushu, meeting people across the region.
He presented the Nihon Gaishi, a history of the warrior houses, to Matsudaira Sadanobu; it was later widely read by late-Edo activists.
He died in Kyoto.
Matsudaira SadanobuHirose Tanso
Satō IssaiHirata AtsutaneZusho HirosatoMamiya RinzōHirose TansoAizawa SeishisaiNinomiya SontokuŌshio Heihachirō
People of the Edo period ・ People by period
Based on facts found in textbooks and biographies. Uncertain points are marked as such.