Sakamoto Ryōma (January 3, 1836 – December 10, 1867) was a skilled swordsman, visionary samurai, and political activist from the Tosa Domain who played a pivotal role in Japan’s modernization during the Bakumatsu period. Coming from a low-ranking samurai background, he adopted the alias Saitani Umetarō to oppose the Tokugawa Shogunate, working to end feudalism and restore power to the Emperor. A staunch advocate of democracy and Japanese nationalism, he successfully brokered the Satchō Alliance, uniting the Chōshū and Satsuma domains against the shogunate. Ryōma was assassinated in Kyoto in 1867, just before the Boshin War and the dawn of the Meiji Restoration.