Ishigaki

Ishigaki is an island of the Yaeyama group, far southwest of Okinawa. In the fifteenth century its local chiefs competed for power, and Oyake Akahachi emerged among the strongest. His opposition to tribute demanded by the court at Shuri brought a royal expedition against Yaeyama in 1500. Akahachi was defeated, and the Ryūkyū Kingdom strengthened its control over the islands, though rivalries among local leaders continued.