Chris Perry, Author

Category: Japanese History

  • The Third Unifier – Tokugawa Ieyasu. Part Three.

    The Third Unifier – Tokugawa Ieyasu. Part Three.

    After the disastrous Battle of Mikatagahara in January 1573, contemporaries might have been forgiven for thinking that Tokugawa Ieyasu was finished. His army had been defeated and scattered, several important fortresses had fallen, and Takeda forces were camped deep inside his home province of Mikawa.

    The Battle of Mikatagahara was a disaster from which Ieyasu might not have recovered.

    Fate, however, was on Ieyasu’s side. Though Mikatagahara had been a catastrophe, the Takeda would prove unable to take advantage of their victory. Not long after the Battle, Takeda Shingen, arguably the most formidable warrior of his day, fell ill (some sources say he was wounded in battle, though later stories of Ninja assassinations are likely mythological).

    With their leader bedridden, the Takeda campaign stalled. They tried to keep the full extent of his illness secret, but when Shingen died in May, the once-mighty Takeda army began a full retreat from Mikawa. The Art of War writes that a general should know his enemy, and Ieyasu, student of war that he was, seems to have realised that something was amiss.

    An image depicting Shingen’s illness. He was arguably the most formidable warlord of his day, and his death was a huge strategic boon to the Tokugawa.

    Under Shingen, the Takeda were aggressive and highly capable, but after his (still secret) death, Ieyasu identified several weaknesses and launched a counter-attack, the success of which effectively confirmed his theory that Shingen was gone. With the momentum swinging back towards the Tokugawa, several clans that had defected to the Takeda switched sides again, and Ieyasu was able to swiftly regain the strength lost at Mikatagahara.

    Shingen’s successor, Katsuyori, has been remembered as a poor imitation of his father, though much of what was recorded about him was written by his enemies. In the short term, however, Katsuyori and Ieyasu were fairly evenly matched, and throughout 1574 and into 1575, they traded blows, with the momentum shifting back and forth.

    Takeda Katsuyori. Though perhaps unfairly maligned in later writings, he would prove unable to live up to his father’s legacy.

    Ieyasu had something that Katsuyori didn’t, however, a powerful ally. The death of Shingen had removed a serious (possibly existential) threat to the ambitions of Oda Nobunaga, and in 1575, he was finally able to dispatch significant forces to support Ieyasu’s ongoing campaign against the Takeda.

    In early 1575, Takeda forces once again advanced against Mikawa province, laying siege to the strategically important Nagashino Castle. Sources suggest that the Takeda invested the castle with 15,000 men, whilst the defenders numbered only 500. Despite the disparity in strength, the fortress was situated in terrain that made it difficult for the Takeda to bring their full forces to bear, and for a time, the garrison held out.

    The site of Nagashino Castle as it appears today.

    The situation changed dramatically, however, when the garrison’s food supplies were burned. In response, a messenger, Torii Suneemon, slipped through Takeda’s lines and made it to a combined Oda-Tokugawa army that was supposed to have numbered some 38,000 men (30,000 Oda and 8,000 Tokugawa, which goes some way to demonstrating the power dynamic in this ‘alliance’.)

    Suneemon then tried to return to Nagashino to inform the garrison that help was on the way, but he was instead captured by the Takeda. Katsuyori offered him a deal: if he told the garrison that no help was coming, he’d be set free. Instead, Sunemon shouted that relief was on the way, and the garrison should hold out, for which he was crucified in full view of the walls.

    A later (and somewhat dramatised) depiction of Suneemon exhorting the garrison of Nagashino to keep resisting.

    When the Oda-Tokugawa forces arrived two days later, the garrison was still holding out, and the Takeda turned to give battle. Although the Battle of Nagashino is one of the most famous and decisive battles of the Sengoku Jidai, scholars disagree on what actually happened. Nagashino has long been famous for Nobunaga’s innovative use of massed firearms, with thousands of foot soldiers firing in a three-rank system that kept up a constant hail of fire that decimated the Takeda’s famous cavalry charge.

    The exact number of firearms and the tactics used are still debated, but what is known for sure is that Nagashino represented a blow to the Takeda Clan from which they would never recover. In the aftermath, both Ieyasu and Nobunaga moved to take advantage, extending their control over Suruga and Totomi Provinces, and boxing the Takeda up in their traditional home in Kai and Shinano Province (modern Yamanashi and Nagano prefectures)

    An 18th-century depiction of the Battle of Nagashino, with the Oda-Tokugawa forces on the left, and Nagashino Castle on the far right.

    Though Ieyasu had been on the winning side, the victory over the Takeda would mark the time when his relationship with Nobunaga ceased to be an alliance of equals. There was no disputing Nobunaga’s power by this point, and the resources at his disposal dwarfed anything Ieyasu could deploy. Consequently, in the aftermath of Nagashino, Ieyasu found himself a vassal to the Great Lord.

    Perhaps the best evidence of how far the relationship had shifted came in 1579, when, on Nobunaga’s order, Ieyasu had his wife and eldest son put to death on suspicion of conspiring with the Takeda to arrange Nobunaga’s assassination.

    Ieyasu’s first wife, Lady Tsukiyama.

    The long-held theory was that Lady Tsukiyama, Ieyasu’s wife, and his eldest son, Nobuyasu, were indeed conspiring with the Takeda. Some sources portray Lady Tsukiyama as a scheming, evil woman who seduced men into joining her plot, whilst Nobuyasu is said to have been a cruel, vindictive psychopath who committed acts such as shooting random peasants dead during festivals for no reason other than that they danced poorly.

    The catalyst for their death was apparently Nobunaga’s daughter, Tokuhime, who just so happened to be married to Nobuyasu. It is said that she hated her mother-in-law so much that she concocted the entire plot to have both of them removed.

    Ieyasu’s eldest son, Nobuyasu, who was either a traitor, a violent lunatic, the victim of a vindictive wife, or a combination of all three, depending on who you believe.

    There is another school of thought that suggests Nobunaga had nothing to do with the incident and that Ieyasu and Nobuyasu were instead engaged in a long-term feud. Nobuyasu, apparently supported by his mother, is said to have defied his father’s orders and even been plotting open rebellion, with or without the support of the Takeda.

    Faced with such a direct threat to his authority, Ieyasu sought the advice of his overlord, Nobunaga (who also happened to be Nobuyasu’s father in law), who is said to have instructed that, as the matter was an internal family affair, that Ieyasu should do as he thought best, resulting in the execution of Lady Tsukiyama, and Nobuyasu’s seppuku.

    Whether Nobunaga gave the order or Ieyasu acted on his own initiative, this incident highlights the situation Ieyasu faced in the late 1570s. Subordinate to Nobunaga’s power, and insecure at home, despite his successes, there was still no reason to believe that Ieyasu was going to be anything other than a footnote in another man’s story.

    Ooooh, foreshadowing!

    Sources
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%BE%B3%E5%B7%9D%E5%AE%B6%E5%BA%B7
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E7%AF%89%E5%B1%B1%E6%AE%BF
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%9D%BE%E5%B9%B3%E4%BF%A1%E5%BA%B7
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%95%B7%E7%AF%A0%E3%81%AE%E6%88%A6%E3%81%84
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E4%B8%89%E6%96%B9%E3%83%B6%E5%8E%9F%E3%81%AE%E6%88%A6%E3%81%84
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%AD%A6%E7%94%B0%E5%8B%9D%E9%A0%BC
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%AD%A6%E7%94%B0%E4%BF%A1%E7%8E%84

  • The Third Unifier – Tokugawa Ieyasu. Part Two.

    The Third Unifier – Tokugawa Ieyasu. Part Two.

    The Battle of Okehazama in 1560 saw Tokugawa Ieyasu’s masters, the Imagawa, dealt a serious blow at the hands of Oda Nobunaga. In the aftermath, Ieyasu began asserting his independence, and in 1562, the so-called “Kiyosu Alliance” between Ieyasu and Nobunaga was formalised.

    The mon of the Tokugawa.
    百楽兎 – 投稿者自身による著作物, CC 表示-継承 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1056853による

    The Imagawa, however, were down, but not out, and Ieyasu’s position was far from secure, despite his new alliance. In 1563, the “Mikawa Ikko-Ikki” Rebellion broke out, and in early 1564, when the Imagawa announced their intention to crush Ieyasu, several of his vassals in Mikawa switched sides, joining the Ikko-Ikki or else rising against Ieyasu in anticipation of an Imagawa attack.

    The name “Ikko-Ikki” suggests that the uprising was similar to other religiously motivated risings that occurred throughout Japan during this period. Indeed, the focal point seems to have been several temples in Mikawa; however, some scholars now suggest that the uprising was motivated more by economic reasons, and some even go so far as to say that Ieyasu may have provoked the rising, or at least took advantage of it to cement his control of Mikawa Province.

    A later depiction of the Battle of Azukizaka. Ieyasu is the figure on the white horse on the right.

    While it’s impossible to know for sure, Ieyasu did much to boost his own reputation in putting down the rebellion. At the Battle of Azukizaka (sometimes called the Battle of Batogahara) in January 1564, Ieyasu led his forces in crushing the rebels, despite ferocious fighting. The story goes that Ieyasu charged the enemy fearlessly, and came under heavy gunfire, with several rounds penetrating his armour, but leaving him uninjured, inspiring his men, and leading some rebels to switch sides.

    In the aftermath, Ieyasu banned the Jodo Shinshu sect of Buddhism in Mikawa, only to lift the ban in 1567, just a few years later, lending credence to the argument that the fighting had never been about religious issues but about political control of the province.

    The Honshuji Temple, one of the focal points of the rebellion, as it appears today.

    Before 1566, Ieyasu’s family name was Matsudaira, but around this time, he petitioned the Emperor to change it to Tokugawa. The exact reasons for this are related to the complex (and often impenetrable) genealogies of the Minamoto and Fujiwara Clans, from whom Ieyasu claimed descent. You may remember that Minamoto and Fujiwara were the names of two of Japan’s most ancient and illustrious families, and it was a big deal to claim descent from them.

    This would become much more important later, as only a member of the Minamoto could become Shogun (technically), but that was still decades in the future. At the time, the name change was probably more closely associated with prestige and a desire to assert independence from the Imagawa, with a new name symbolising a new era for the clan.

    Takeda Shingen.

    In 1567, Ieyasu further strengthened his alliance with Nobunaga by marrying his eldest son to Nobunaga’s daughter. However, they were both just nine years old at the time, so the marriage was a political rather than conjugal union. The next year, Ieyasu dispatched forces to support Nobunaga’s march on Kyoto, and in December, he made an alliance with Takeda Shingen and launched a joint invasion of Imagawa territory.

    The attack was a success, but the relationship between Ieyasu and Shingen fell apart almost immediately. According to Tokugawa accounts, it had been agreed that Ieyasu would take Totomi Province, and Shingen would take Suruga. However, it wasn’t long before Takeda forces were also crossing into Totomi, in direct violation of the agreement (which may never have existed to begin with).

    Suruga and Totomi Provinces.
    By Ash_Crow – Own work, based on Image:Provinces of Japan.svg, CC BY 2.5, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1691864

    Ieyasu then sought the support of the Hojo Clan, and their Lord, Ujiyasu, who had his own ambitions for the former Imagawa territory. Together, they successfully pushed the Takeda forces back, and in 1570, Ieyasu moved his base from Okazaki Castle in Mikawa Province to Hikuma, which he promptly renamed Hamamatsu, in Totomi. Later that year, he would further prove his value as an ally of Oda Nobunaga by supporting his campaign against the Azai-Asakura Alliance, fighting in the rearguard in the defeat at Kanegasaki, and then providing important reinforcements at the victorious Battle of Anegawa in July.

    In 1571, the alliance would be sorely tested, as the last Ashikaga Shogun, Yoshiaki, sought to rally forces in opposition to Oda Nobunaga, with the ultimate goal of restoring his family’s position. The Anti-Nobunaga coalition (which was, importantly, not necessarily pro-Ashikaga) included the forces of the Azai-Asakura Alliance, the powerful temple of Ishiyama Honganji, and Takeda Shingen, among others.

    Ashikaga Yoshiaki

    In the aftermath of the defeat of the Imagawa, Hojo Ujiyasu, who had favoured an alliance with Ieyasu against the Takeda, died and was replaced by his son, Ujimasa, who reversed his clan’s diplomatic position and reestablished the alliance with Shingen. At this point, Yoshikai, seeking to take advantage of the pressure he was now under, sought to gain Ieyasu’s support, offering him the position of Kanrei or deputy Shogun in exchange.

    Ieyasu refused this offer and chose to retain his alliance with Nobunaga; in response, Takeda Shingen launched an invasion of the Mikawa and Totomi Provinces in September 1572. Leading 20,000 troops, Shingen crossed the Aokuzure Pass, and with the help of several defections amongst Ieyasu’s retainers, swiftly gained control of northern Totomi.

    A later depiction of the Takeda Army advancing into Totomi Province.

    Meanwhile, a separate force invaded Nobunaga’s territory in Mino, meaning that when Ieyasu called for aid, none was readily available. Ieyasu was forced into an impossible situation; his forces were heavily outnumbered by the advancing Takeda, and a pitched battle would almost certainly end in defeat. On the other hand, if he retreated or even stayed on the defensive, he faced the prospect of losing support from his retainers, some of whom had already proved they were willing to switch sides.

    The Takeda headed towards the strategically important Futamata Castle, and Ieyasu had no choice but to try to head them off. The advance guards of both armies clashed at the Battle of Hitokotozaka, and the Tokugawa were soundly beaten, causing them to retreat to the relative safety of Hamamatsu, and giving the Takeda a clear path to lay siege to Futamata, which fell shortly afterwards.

    The remains of Futamata Castle.
    CC 表示-継承 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=427661

    In the aftermath of this disaster, still more Tokugawa retainers switched sides and joined the Takeda, and it was assumed that Shingen, whose army, strengthened by defections and reinforcements, now stood at around 30,000 men, would march on Hamamatsu. Instead, the Takeda forces bypassed it entirely. It has been suggested that this was a ploy to lure Ieyasu out of the powerful fortress, giving Shingen the opportunity to destroy him in the open.

    If that was the plan, it worked, and despite urging from his retainers to remain in Hamamatsu, Ieyasu was emboldened by some long-awaited reinforcements from Nobunaga and decided to march out and intercept the Takeda. The result was the disastrous Battle of Mikatagahara, in which the Tokugawa were decisively defeated, with Ieyasu himself only being saved by the bravery of his retainers, who fought a rearguard action so ferocious that Ieyasu was allowed to escape, and the Takeda were convinced to call off the pursuit.

    A later depiction of the Battle of Mikatagahara

    The winter of 1572 saw the Takeda forces camping deep inside Tokugawa territory, whilst Ieyasu himself was holed up in Hamamatsu, his army scattered, and his prospects looking very bleak.

    A painting of Ieyasu supposedly made after the defeat at Mikatagahara. Traditional history suggests that Ieyasu commissioned the painting as a reminder of the defeat and a warning against future arrogance; however, this account doesn’t appear in any sources before the 20th century and is now generally believed to be apocryphal.

    Sources
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%BE%B3%E5%B7%9D%E5%AE%B6%E5%BA%B7
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E4%B8%89%E6%96%B9%E3%83%B6%E5%8E%9F%E3%81%AE%E6%88%A6%E3%81%84
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E4%BA%8C%E4%BF%A3%E5%9F%8E%E3%81%AE%E6%88%A6%E3%81%84
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E4%B8%80%E8%A8%80%E5%9D%82%E3%81%AE%E6%88%A6%E3%81%84
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    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%87%91%E3%83%B6%E5%B4%8E%E3%81%AE%E6%88%A6%E3%81%84
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%A7%89%E5%B7%9D%E3%81%AE%E6%88%A6%E3%81%84
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%8E%9B%E5%B7%9D%E5%9F%8E
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    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%B0%8F%E8%B1%86%E5%9D%82%E3%81%AE%E6%88%A6%E3%81%84_(1564%E5%B9%B4)
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E4%B8%89%E6%B2%B3%E4%B8%80%E5%90%91%E4%B8%80%E6%8F%86
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    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%9C%AC%E5%AE%97%E5%AF%BA

  • The Third Unifier – Tokugawa Ieyasu. Part One.

    The Third Unifier – Tokugawa Ieyasu. Part One.

    If the bird will not sing, wait for it to sing.

    The third, and ultimately, final unifier was born Matsudaira Takechiyo in December 1542. His father, Matsudaira Hirotada, is a somewhat mysterious figure, with several theories about the events of his life, and even his death, but what is known with (relative) certainty is that the Matsudaira Clan were the lords of Okazaki Castle in Mikawa Province, which is where Takechiyo (from now on, referred to as Ieyasu) was born.

    At the time of his birth, the Matsudaira Clan were a relatively minor family in the service of the more powerful Imagawa. This was an era of constant civil war, and plots, subterfuge, and outright betrayal were common. To pre-empt this, in 1547, when Ieyasu was about five, he was sent to the Imagawa capital at Sunpu (in modern Shizuoka) as a hostage to secure his father’s loyalty.

    A modern reconstruction of Sunpu Castle.
    江戸村のとくぞう – 投稿者自身による著作物, CC 表示-継承 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=95206213による

    The boy’s escort was entrusted to one Toda Yasumitsu, who promptly betrayed the Imagawa and instead had Ieyasu sent to Oda Nobuhide. Quite why Yastumitsu did this is debated, with some sources saying he sold Ieyasu for 1000 gold pieces (some say 100), and that the Imagawa promptly attacked his castle, and destroyed his family (though other sources say the Toda held out for a year or more).

    Other sources say that the whole thing was actually a ruse arranged by Ieyasu’s father, who had secretly agreed to swear fealty to the Oda and had sent his son as a hostage as proof. It is also suggested that this was the first time Ieyasu met Oda Nobunaga, though historians debate whether the meeting actually took place.

    Oda Nobunaga, who may (or may not) have met Ieyasu during his time as a hostage.

    Despite the somewhat murky circumstances, Ieyasu’s time as a hostage would not last long, as his father soon passed away (the exact date and circumstances are debated), aged around 23-24, and the Lord of the Imagawa, Yoshimoto, arranged a hostage swap that saw Ieyasu brought to Sunpu, where, despite now being the nominal lord of Okazaki, the Imagawa meant to keep a close eye on him.

    This is another page in Ieyasu’s history that the sources disagree on. Some suggest he was still a hostage, whilst others point out that, as the Lord of Okazaki, he was a direct vassal of the Imagawa, and instead, his residence in Sunpu was part of a wider policy of keeping vassals in a central location. Either way, Ieyasu was hardly kept in the dungeons, and in 1557, he married Yoshimoto’s niece, Lady Tsukiyama. (Tsukiyama is a place near Sunpu; her real name is not recorded.)

    Lady Tsukiyama, Ieyasu’s first wife. Her real name may have been Sena, but that name doesn’t appear in the records until 1740, 160 years after her death.

    A marriage to a close relative of Yoshimoto boosted Ieyasu’s standing within the clan, but it may also have played a part in the Imagawa’s own ambitions. For decades, the Kira Clan, descendants of the Ashikaga Shoguns, had held a preeminient position in Mikawa Province. Though not officially governors (shugo) of the Province, their illustrious descent meant that, at least in terms of lineage, they were equals to the Imagawa.

    As we have seen dozens of times before, however, during the Sengoku Jidai, the prestige of an illustrious name wasn’t what it had once been, and the real power in Mikawa lay with the Matsudaira. By binding Ieyasu more closely to his family, Imagawa Yoshimoto sought to use this power to assert Imagawa control over the Province at the expense of the Kira and the other Mikawa Clans.

    Mikawa Province.
    By Ash_Crow – Own work, based on Image:Provinces of Japan.svg, CC BY 2.5, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1683118

    These ‘other clans’ weren’t all that happy to see the Imagawa take over, however. Much like the rest of the realm, the minor lords of Mikawa were an independent-minded bunch and were more content to rule themselves. An initial outbreak of rebellion was crushed in 1557, only to begin again a year later. This time, Yoshimoto dispatched Ieyasu to play a part in putting the rebellion down, and he got his first taste of battle at the Siege of Terabe Castle in March 1558.

    Ieyasu earned praise from Yoshimoto and some of his vassals for his diligent approach to warfare. Later records suggest that he recognised that simply taking Terabe Castle wouldn’t be enough to fully subdue the rebels, so he set about burning the castle town and then several other settlements nearby. This may not sound like praiseworthy behaviour to you and me, but Yoshimoto was so impressed he rewarded Ieyasu with land and a shortsword.

    Imagawa Yoshimoto

    With the rebellion in Mikawa crushed (for now), Ieyasu turned to securing his position as future lord of Okazaki and eventual master of the whole Province. The problem was that Ieyasu was still largely a stranger to the Mikawa Clans. He had been absent from the Province for most of his young life, first a hostage of the Oda, and later residing in the Imagawa Capital at Sunpu.

    To resolve this, Ieyasu issued a seven-point decree outlining his relationship with his vassals. This decree was significant because it made it clear that, should Ieyasu’s vassals feel that he is ruling badly or ignoring their advice, they could appeal to Ieyasu’s father-in-law, Sekiguchi Ujizumi, who remained a powerful figure within the Imagawa Clan hierarchy, suggesting that, at least as late as 1559, Ieyasu intended to remain loyal to the Imagawa.

    A later depiction of a battle in Mikawa Province. Like many minor clans at the time, the warriors of Mikawa were a fiercely independent bunch who would fight viciously to preserve that independence.

    Since the time of Ieyasu’s Grandfather, the Matsudaira of Mikawa Province had been involved in a long-term conflict with the Oda Clan of neighbouring Owari. When the Mikawa and the Matsudaira came under the Imagawa banner, their new overlords inherited the conflict.

    During the rebellion in 1556 and 1558, Oda had supported the anti-Imagawa forces, and Yoshimoto, weary of their interference, made the decision to crush them once and for all, which would have the added bonus of clearing his path to Kyoto. In preparation, Ieyasu was ordered to lead the vanguard and attack several border forts.

    The site of Otaka Castle as it appeared in February 2014.
    Tomio344456 – 投稿者自身による著作物, CC 表示-継承 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=86415730による

    He captured two forts and then lifted the siege of Otaka Castle, making it his temporary base. However, news arrived that Yoshimoto had been defeated and killed in a surprise attack at Okehazama. At that, Ieyasu retreated back to Okazaki to plan his next move. Historians debate whether Ieyasu intended to betray the Imagawa right away, or if the decision was a reaction to events, but in early 1561, he attacked Ushikubo Castle, an Imagawa stronghold in Mikawa, signalling his change of allegiance.

    It is generally accepted that Ieyasu’s change of heart was brought about by the decision of the Imagawa’s new Lord, Ujizane, to prioritise fighting against the Takeda and Hojo, over the Oda, leaving Ieyasu to fend for himself against Oda Nobunaga, who was very much in the ascendancy after his surprising victory at Okehazama.

    A 19th-Century depiction of the Battle of Okehazama, showing Imagawa Yoshimoto (the figure on the left) facing his demise.

    The long standing animosity between Mikawa and Owari meant that neither side found it easy to stomach making peace, however, with Nobunaga facing serious issues against the Saito Clan to the north, and Ieyasu having to deal with the vengeful Imagawa, both sides swallowed their pride, and, in 1562, agreed to the so-called Kiyosu Alliance, bringing into existance one of Japanese history’s most important partnerships.

    Sources
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%BE%B3%E5%B7%9D%E5%AE%B6%E5%BA%B7
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  • The Second Unifier – Toyotomi Hideyoshi. The Final Chapter.

    The Second Unifier – Toyotomi Hideyoshi. The Final Chapter.

    In 1591, with dominance of Japan secured, Hideyoshi announced his intention to invade Ming China, via Korea, launching the first of two campaigns to subjugate the small kingdom. We’ll take a look at these invasions in more detail later, but in summary, the Japanese landed with a force of some 160,000 veteran warriors and achieved a series of quick successes against the Koreans.

    A contemporary Korean image of the Japanese attack on Busan.

    However, Chinese intervention turned back the invasion, and ultimately led to a stalemate that ended in a negotiated peace in 1593, that saw Japanese warriors remain in the fortresses they have built in the south of the peninsular, from which they would launch a second attempt in 1597, which would end when political changes at home saw the Japanese leave, with both sides declaring ‘victory’.

    Meanwhile, Hideyoshi, who had ordered the invasion but did not travel to Korea himself, was facing problems closer to home. In 1591, his brother, Hidenaga, who had been an important military and political supporter, died. This was followed in short order by Tsurumatsu, Hideyoshi’s two-year-old son and heir, throwing the succession into doubt.

    A stylised image of Tsurumatsu, who was only two when he died.

    In response, Hideyoshi adopted his nephew, Hidetsugu, as heir to the Toyotomi family, and (presumably) eventually to supreme power. This arrangement endured until 1593, when one of Hideyoshi’s concubines, Lady Yodo, gave birth to a second son, Hideyori, whose arrival was apparently widely celebrated.

    That is, widely celebrated by everyone but Hidetsugu, whose position was now under threat. In 1595, rumours began to spread that Hidetsugu was plotting rebellion, and a delegation, led by Ishida Mitsunari, was sent to his residence to investigate. He wrote a five-page letter declaring himself innocent of the accusations, which was promptly delivered to Hideyoshi.

    Toyotomi Hidetsugu

    Hideyoshi then summoned his nephew for an audience, but when Hidetsugu arrived at Fushimi Castle, as ordered, he was denied entry and instead told to shave his head and become a monk. Hidetsugu apparently complied, retiring to Mount Koya. However, even this was not enough, and on August 20th, 1595, an order arrived demanding Hidetsugu commit seppuku.

    Hidetsugu swiftly complied, but even this did not satisfy Hideyoshi, who went further and ordered the deaths of Hidetsugu’s entire family. In the end, 39 people, including children, wives, and concubines, were beheaded at Sanjo Kawara, in Kyoto, and dumped in a mass grave. Some sources say that the commoners who came to watch were so disgusted with the manner of the executions that they began hurling insults at the magistrates responsible, and in the aftermath, a memorial stone dedicated to “Hideyoshi’s Evil” was erected.

    A 19th-century depiction of Hidetsugu committing seppuku. Even his death did not spare his family from Hideyoshi’s wrath.

    Theories around why Hideyoshi ordered his nephew’s death, and why it was carried out with such thorough brutality, have swirled since the moment Hidetsugu’s head was struck off. A common view is that Hidetsugu really was planning to rebel, or at least Hideyoshi believed he was, and the purge that followed was simply ensuring no one survived to take revenge.

    Another theory is that Hidetsugu himself had earned a reputation as a violent lunatic, routinely hacking people down in the street, and even being known to take potshots at commoners with a musket, earning him the nickname the “Killing Regent”. Modern scholars are generally sceptical of this reputation, however, citing a lack of contemporary sources referring to what should have been a fairly well-known situation.

    A much later depiction of Hidetsugu (top left) taking potshots at passersby. Images like this served to discredit Hidetsugu’s memory, but sources from his lifetime make no mention of such behaviour, except in reporting rumours.

    An addition to this theory is that Ishida Mitsunari, and his associates, deliberate sought to slander Hidetsugu in the eyes of Hideyoshi, though again this is now widely seen as a latter invention, written by authors in the Edo Period, decades after the events, and writing at a time when there was active interest in painting both Hideyoshi, and Mitsunari in a bad light.

    All of this paints Hideyoshi in an increasingly tyrannical light, and subsequent events in his reign would not help matters. In 1596, the Keicho-Fushimi Earthquake struck the area around modern Osaka, leading to widespread damage and the deaths of more than a thousand people. Earthquakes are nothing out of the ordinary in Japan, but damage to several temples around Kyoto prompted an inspection by Hideyoshi himself.

    A 19th-century depiction of Hideyoshi during the Keicho-Fushimi Earthquake.

    At the Hokoji Temple, Hideyoshi had ordered the construction of a “Great Buddha”, which was said to be over 19m tall, making it one of the largest in history. However, in order to speed up construction, Hideyoshi is said to have ordered the construction changed from the traditional bronze to wood. When the earthquake struck, the Buddha was badly damaged as a result of its lighter construction.

    It is said that Hideyoshi, enraged at the damage caused to so expensive a monument, took a bow and shot an arrow into the Buddha’s forehead. Such an act of sacrilege was widely condemned, but scholars disagree over whether it actually happened, as the only sources (again) come from much later. The contemporary sources only say that Hideyoshi, upon inspecting the damage, ordered the Buddha and the hall containing it to be dismantled.

    A sketch by Dutch merchant Engelbert Kaempfer, showing the great Buddha as it appeared in 1691.

    On a side note, both structures would be reconstructed by Hideyoshi’s successor, Hideyori, and the re-consecration of the site would indirectly lead to the downfall and destruction of the Toyotomi Clan in 1615, but that’s a story for another time.

    As we’ve discussed previously, Hideyoshi had issued an order expelling Christian missionaries from Japan back in 1587, but it had generally gone unenforced. That changed in 1596, when the Spanish Galleon, San Felipe, wrecked off the coast of Shikoku. In the immediate aftermath, the local lord (who happened to be a Chosokabe) confiscated the ship’s cargo, and the Spanish complained to Hideyoshi.

    A European Ship in Japanese waters around the late 16th Century.

    It seems that Hideyoshi himself didn’t much care about the confiscated Spanish treasure; however, one of the crew aboard the San Felipe, a man known as de Hollandia, proved to be a bit of a blowhard. He boasted to the local Japanese authorities that the Spanish Empire was vast, and he produced a map of the world to prove his point.

    The Japanese were shocked that the Spanish holdings were so extensive, and when they asked how Spain had come to acquire such territory, de Hollandia made the fateful mistake of claiming that missionaries had gone in first to convert the population, who then served as a vanguard for the Conquistadors who followed.

    The classic image of a Conquistador, this one in Seville, Spain. Though the Conquistadors were very successful in the Americas and the Philippines, they never set foot in Japan, though Hideyoshi had reason to fear they might.
    By CarlosVdeHabsburgo – Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=24964604

    Hideyoshi may not have cared about treasure, but he was definitely paying attention now. He took the silver for himself and then ordered all Spanish Friars in Osaka arrested, along with several Japanese converts. In the end, 26 were taken to Nagasaki and publicly executed

    1596 also saw the restart of conflict in Korea, when negotiations with the Chinese broke down, and Hideyoshi ordered a second invasion, dispatching 140,000 men to reinforce the garrisons already in place. This time, instead of attempting to take the whole of Korea, Hideyoshi planned a more limited campaign, advancing into Gyeongsang Province and securing defensible positions there to serve as staging grounds for another round of conquest later.

    An image depicting the fighting around Ulsan, site of some of the fiercest battles of the second invasion.

    By late 1597, however, Hideyoshi knew he was nearly done. His son and heir, Hideyori, was just a child, and he knew that his succession was far from guaranteed. In order to guarantee a peaceful transfer of power, he summoned five powerful Daimyo to Fushimi, making them swear to rule the realm as a Council of Regents (or Elders) until Hideyori came of age.

    The five regents were Ukita Hideie, Maeda Toshiie, Uesugi Kagekatsu, Mori Terumoto, and Tokugawa Ieyasu. Of the five, Ieyasu was far and away the most powerful, though he was not strong enough to oppose the other four directly, especially the venerable Maeda Toshiie and Mori Terumoto. This was presumably the point, however, as Hideyoshi wanted to create a council that was made up of men strong enough to rule, but not strong enough to rule alone.

    The Council of Five Elders, from left to right: Tokugawa Ieyasu, Ukita Hideie, Maeda Toshiie, Uesugi Kagekatsu, and Mori Terumoto. Of the five, Ieyasu was the most powerful, and it became the task of the other four to rein him in.

    Hideyoshi passed away in August 1598, and the order he had done so much to create would not long outlive him. The council he had created fell apart within a year, following the death of Maeda Toshiie in 1599 and the political manoeuvring of Tokugawa Ieyasu, who won the decisive Battle of Sekigahara in 1600 and was declared Shogun in 1603.

    Though Hideyori would never rule in his own right, he would continue on as a living example of Hideyoshi’s legacy, but he would eventually fall foul of the rising power of the Tokugawa, and Hideyoshi’s line would come to an end in 1615, though, once again, we are getting ahead of ourselves.

    Sources
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E8%B1%8A%E8%87%A3%E7%A7%80%E5%90%89
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    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%96%B9%E5%BA%83%E5%AF%BA%E9%90%98%E9%8A%98%E4%BA%8B%E4%BB%B6
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    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yodo-dono
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  • The Second Unifier – Toyotomi Hideyoshi. Part Five.

    The Second Unifier – Toyotomi Hideyoshi. Part Five.

    In 1586, the powerful Tensho Earthquake brought about a temporary halt to Hideyoshi’s campaign to subdue the entire realm. In the aftermath, he had made peace with, then accepted the formal submission of Tokugawa Ieyasu, and now turned his attention to Japan’s southern island, Kyushu.

    Kyushu.

    As we’ve looked at in previous posts, the most powerful clan in Kyushu at this time were the Shimazu, who were on the verge of conquering the entire island, and were putting enormous pressure on their long-term rivals, the Otomo, who reached out to Hideyoshi for help. Hideyoshi responded by issuing a ceasefire order, the sobujirei, though scholars disagree if this was an order issued on a case-by-case basis, or a formal law brought in my Hideyoshi.

    Regardless of the legal basis, the Otomo swiftly agreed, but the Shimazu remained defiant, with the head of the clan, Shimazu Yoshihisa, going as far as suggesting that the Shimazu, a clan with its long and proud lineage, would never submit to a peasant ‘upstart’ like Hideyoshi. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Hideyoshi didn’t take kindly to this and so ordered the invasion of Kyushu, officially in support of the Otomo.

    A statue of Shimazu Yoshihisa. He was the head of a proud clan and believed he had no reason to fear the ‘upstart’ Hideyoshi. He would be proved wrong.
    Ginger1192 – 投稿者自身による著作物, CC 表示-継承 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=24854517による

    At first, Hideyoshi seems to have tried to avoid committing his own troops to the invasion, instead relying on forces provided by the Mori, Chosokabe and their vassals to do the bulk of the fighting. This strategy may have been wise from a manpower preservation point of view, but the Shimazu proved more than capable of living up to their lineage, defeating the initial landings and giving Hideyoshi the proverbial bloody nose in the process.

    Much like the independent clans of Kii Province and the Chosokabe of Shikoku, however, the Shimazu were about to learn that Hideyoshi was a different kind of ruler, able to marshal resources that even the might of Kyushu could not hope to match. Taking the field himself, Hideyoshi is said to have amassed an army of some 300,000, with all the requisite supplies and resources to support such a massive force.

    Ashigaru. Far from the popular image of massed ranks of ferocious samurai, armies in the late Sengoku Period were largely made up of semi-professional troops armed with firearms, spears, and mass-produced swords.

    This was possibly the largest army ever assembled in Japan before the modern era (though sources vary), and the Shimazu were swiftly overwhelmed. It is important to note that, despite the overwhelming advantage in numbers, Hideyoshi’s force was not a single, massive bludgeon. He had proven himself a skilled strategist, able to deploy significant force in key areas, using innovative tactics to wear down defenders and capture strategic castles and other territory, rarely relying on brute force to break enemy forces.

    The Shimazu, much like the Chosokabe before them, fought bravely, but they were outmatched from the start, and eventually, Yoshihisa, who had claimed his clan would never submit to an ‘upstart’, was forced to seek peace. The terms were harsh; the Shimazu were forced to give up almost all of Kyushu, and were confined to Satsuma Province in the southwest of the island (in the western half of modern Kagoshima Prefecture).

    Satsuma Province.
    By Ash_Crow – Own work, based on Image:Provinces of Japan.svg, CC BY 2.5, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1691755

    The rest of Kyushu was divided up amongst Hideyoshi’s supporters, with the Otomo (who the invasion had nominally been in support of) receiving some, but not all of their lands back.

    It is at this point that Hideyoshi turned his attention to a group that have only been briefly mentioned thus far, but who had a significant presence on Kyushu, the Jesuits. We’ll have a detailed look at Portuguese activities in Japan in their own post, but to summarise, after the first arrival of Portuguese merchants in Japan in 1543, they had slowly, but steadily expanded their influence through commerical interests, and the spread of Christianity, ultimately being based at the port of Nagasaki.

    A contemporary depiction of a Portuguese trading ship of a type commonly seen at Nagasaki.

    Outside of Kyushu, the attitude of powerful Daimyo towards these Christians seems to have been fairly ambivalent, with most tolerating their presence, but few converting to the foreign religion. Hideyoshi himself issued permits for Christian priests to preach their religion in Osaka, and, according to some sources, he asked Jesuit Priest Gaspar Coelho to assist him in building an armada to be used in the conquest of China once Japan had been unified.

    This changed after the subjugation of Kyushu. Sources differ on exactly what occurred, with some blaming the machinations of the native Japanese Buddhist clergy, but the short version is that Hideyoshi became aware of the fact that Nagasaki had effectively been handed over to complete Portuguese control. They had fortified it and were apparently using it as a port through which non-Christian Japanese were sold out of the country as slaves.

    A contemporary image of Portuguese at Nagasaki. Though the trade was primarily in silks, spices, and silver, rumours of Japanese slaves being transported out of the country were enough to earn Hideyoshi’s ire.

    The issue of Japanese being sold as slaves by Portuguese merchants remains controversial (surprise, surprise), with debates raging over the extent of the practice and how involved the Japanese themselves were. There are contemporary sources which indicate that Japanese slaves could be found across Asia, and the concept of ‘unfree labour’ was already well established in Japan at this time, ranging from effective serfdom to labourers convicted to a term of service as punishment for a crime.

    Another issue is that one of the primary sources describing Portuguese involvement in slavery also describes them as a people that skin cows and horses alive, and eat the meat raw with their bare hands, suggesting that the purpose of such ‘records’ was more about demonising the Portuguese than recording actual events.

    A contemporary depiction of Portuguese in Japan. Though not all sources paint them in a negative light, the foreign visitors were often looked on as strange and even barbarous by comparison.

    Regardless of how extensive the trade was, it provided a convenient enough excuse for Hideyoshi to act. Though highlighting the fortifications at Nagasaki, and the selling of Japanese as slaves, modern historians more generally agree that the move against the Christians was more about consolidating power, as Hideyoshi believed that Christian theology was a direct threat to the traditional Japanese belief in a divine Emperor, from whom Hideyoshi’s power ultimately derived.

    Another theory is that Hideyoshi wanted to control trade with the West, believing (erroneously) that the trade was controlled by the Jesuits, when in reality, religious and commercial interests were separate, and often in conflict (the Jesuits, for example, actively opposed enslaving Japanese) This theory suggests that Hideyoshi hoped that removing the priests would allow him to take direct control of the trade.

    A contemporary image of a Christian Mass in Japan. Hideyoshi believed that the priests controlled the merchants.

    Whether he was motivated by political, religious, or economic reasons (or all three), Hideyoshi issued what became known as the Bateren expulsion order (bateren being the Japanese word for Christian priests, derived from the Latin Patren) in 1587. What followed was a brief campaign of repression against Christianity; the Jesuit base in Kyoto was burned, and territory around Nagasaki was seized.

    Ultimately, however, Hideyoshi seems to have largely ignored his own order, keeping several Christian priests as interpreters and scribes, and allowing trade to continue practically unmolested. For now, at least, Hideyoshi had bigger problems than Christian priests.

    Hojo Ujinao

    Sources
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E8%B1%8A%E8%87%A3%E7%A7%80%E5%90%89
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    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slavery_in_Japan

  • The Second Unifier – Toyotomi Hideyoshi. Part Four.

    The Second Unifier – Toyotomi Hideyoshi. Part Four.

    Despite an ultimately unsuccessful campaign against Tokugawa Ieyasu, by late 1584, Hideyoshi was the most powerful man in the realm. Having secured his position as Oda Nobunaga’s successor, he dominated central Japan and could call on economic and martial resources that dwarfed those of his rivals.

    The strategic situation in late 1584, Hideyoshi controlled the territory in red.
    By Alvin Lee – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=39198357

    Despite this, he was not yet unchallenged. To the west, the Mori remained undefeated, to the east, was Tokugawa Ieyasu, and further away, the Hojo, who had remained untouched by Nobunaga’s conquests, and to the south, in Kii Province, the locals coalesced around fiercely independent religious and social movements that resisted any attempts to impose central rule.

    Meanwhile, Hideyoshi solidified his political power, being elevated to the Third Rank of the nobility in November 1584 and to the Second Rank in March 1585. Around this time, some sources suggest that the Imperial Court even went so far as to offer him the title of Shogun, only for Hideyoshi to refuse, though the exact nature of the offer, if it existed at all, is unclear.

    Kii Province.
    By Ash_Crow – Own work, based on Image:Provinces of Japan.svg, CC BY 2.5, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1683109

    With his position secured, Hideyoshi turned his attention to Kii Province. We’ve spoken about the power of certain religious institutions before, and nowhere was this more apparent than in Kii (sometimes called Kishu). Luis Frois, a well-known Portuguese writer at the time, referred to the area as under the control of five “Great Republics”, which weren’t democracies in the way we’d recognise today, but were strongly independent polities with extensive territories, economic might, and military strength.

    In 1570, Nobunaga began what would prove to be a long campaign against the power of the Ikko-Ikki, based at Honganji Temple. The warrior monks of Kii Province were a key ally of the Ikko-Ikki, and in 1576, Nobunaga dispatched an army against them, aiming to reduce their ability to support his enemies elsewhere.

    A semi-contemporary depiction of Nobunaga’s attempts to subdue Kii Province.

    Despite being defeated on the battlefield, the warriors of Kii engaged in guerrilla warfare, led most famously by the Saika-shu, an organisation made up of local samurai and mercenaries, which was well known for its heavy (and skilful) use of firearms. Nobunaga eventually signed a peace treaty and withdrew, allowing his enemies to claim that they had actually defeated him.

    Nobunaga’s death in 1582 put an end to any further campaigning, and for a time, at least, Kii Province was left alone, though no one believed the peace would last. In early spring 1586, Hideyoshi, at the head of an army of some 100,000 men, invaded with the intention of crushing the independent ‘Republics’ for good.

    A depiction of Hideyoshi’s attack on Kii Province.

    The campaign was a true demonstration of Hideyoshi’s new power. Though the Saika-shu and others fought bravely, they were swiftly overwhelmed. Some scholars speculate that the Saika and their allies underestimated Hideyoshi. In the earlier Sengoku Period, it had often been enough to inflict heavy casualties in an initial battle, which would force the attackers to either negotiate or back off.

    These tactics had worked against Nobunaga, who had ultimately been unable to secure decisive control over Kii, for fear of tying down too many men. Hideyoshi had no such hesitation, and even though his losses were heavy, he kept pushing on, and the Saika, who were often hugely outnumbered, were swept aside.

    Firearms of the type used effectively, but ultimately unsuccessfully by the Saika-shu.

    Hideyoshi was able to secure control of Kii in the short term, but his hold over it was always fragile, and there would be several more outbreaks of rebellion in the coming years. In fact, it wouldn’t be until 1614, long after Hideyoshi had passed away, that Kii could be truly said to have been pacified.

    After this, Hideyoshi turned his attention to Shikoku and the powerful Chosokabe Clan. Once allies of Nobunaga, the Chosokabe had fallen foul of his ambitions and had been under threat of invasion at the time of his death at Honnoji.

    Shikoku.
    By TUBS – This vector image includes elements that have been taken or adapted from this file:, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=16385942

    An army under Nobunaga’s third son, Nobutaka, had been gathered at Sumiyoshi (in modern Osaka) with the purpose of attacking Shikoku; in fact, they had been meant to set out on the same day that Nobunaga was killed, and news of his death demoralised the army, some of which simply went home.

    In the aftermath of Nobunaga’s death, the Chosokabe had consolidated control of all of Shikoku and lent support to opponents of Hideyoshi, notably Shibata Katsuie, Tokugawa Ieyasu, and the Saika-shu of Kii Province. None of these enemies had been able to overcome Hideyoshi, however, and it was probably no surprise when he turned his vengeful eye on the Chosokabe themselves.

    Chosokabe Motochika, Lord of the Chosokabe at the time of Hideyoshi’s invasion.

    There were some attempts at negotiation, but Hideyoshi’s demands that the Chosokabe give up three of the four provinces of Shikoku were unacceptable. The strategic situation for the Chosokabe was made worse when the Mori, one-time antagonists of Hideyoshi, instead made a permanent peace with him. Some sources suggest that it was at this point that the Mori submitted to Hideyoshi outright.

    With the support of the Mori and their powerful navy, Hideyoshi launched a three-pronged attack on Shikoku, which the Chosokabe were hard-pressed to oppose. Outnumbered some 3 to 1, the Chosokabe fought bravely, but the campaign was over quickly. From June to August 1585, there was a series of battles and sieges that invariably resulted in Chosokabe defeat.

    A 19th-century depiction of the Invasion of Shikoku.

    Eventually, despite claiming he would rather fight to the end, Chosokabe Motochika surrendered at the urging of his senior vassals. As punishment for his defiance (or reward for his surrender), Hideyoshi confiscated three of the four Shikoku Provinces, leaving the Chosokabe with their home province of Tosa and an obligation to provide Hideyoshi with up to 3,000 troops for any future campaign and hostages to ensure the peace.

    During the Shikoku Campaign, which was led by his brother, Hideyoshi was appointed Kampaku by the Imperial Court. This was a result of a political crisis that had been ongoing since before Nobunaga’s death in 1582. At the time, the Imperial Court had (allegedly) invited Nobunaga to become Shogun, or Kampaku (Regent). Both contemporary and modern scholars disagree on Nobunaga’s response to this offer, but his death in June of that year ultimately rendered it moot.

    Emperor Go-Yozei, who was the sovereign during this time.

    What followed was a drawn-out political squabble between rival factions at court over who would ultimately take the position of Regent. We’ve spent a lot of time looking at how the Imperial Court was a decorative but ultimately impotent organisation by this point, and any title the Emperor might bestow would be largely symbolic without any external political power to back it up.

    Into this silk-clad quagmire stepped Hideyoshi. Traditionally, the position of Regent had rotated amongst five prestigious warrior families, of which Hideyoshi was not a member. To overcome this issue (which was one of tradition, rather than law), he was formally adopted as the son of Konoe Sakahisa (who was less than a year older than him) in July 1585, being named Kampaku shortly afterwards.

    Konoe Sakahisa, who formally adopted Hideyoshi.
    Leehiroki258 – 投稿者自身による著作物, CC 表示-継承 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=162775880による

    There was supposedly an agreement in which the childless Hideyoshi would take the position as a temporary solution to the crisis, before handing it over to the Konoe family’s chosen heir at a later date. Hideyoshi had other ideas, however. In 1586, he petitioned the Emperor for a new family name, which the Emperor duly bestowed. From then on, Hideyoshi would be known as Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the name by which he is best remembered in English sources.

    Hideyoshi would then adopt the Emperor’s younger brother, Prince Hachijo, as his son and eventual successor. This was a clear breach of the agreement with the Konoe, but since Hideyoshi was the most powerful man in the realm, and the proposed heir was a member of the Imperial Family, there was nothing anyone could do about it.

    Prince Hachijo

    Hideyoshi went further, seeking to replace the powerless Imperial aristocracy with a new “Samurai Nobility”. For centuries, the ‘Nobles’ had held all the prestige, but practically none of the actual power, which was in the hands of the Samurai after long years of civil war.

    Hideyoshi sought to address this by bestowing titles on some of the other powerful Daimyo, including Tokugawa Ieyasu and Ishida Mitsunari, appointments that would have long-term political repercussions.

    Ishida Mitsunari, we haven’t talked about him much, but he’s going to become very important later.

    Another attempt was made to force obedience from Ieyasu when Hideyoshi demanded that he hand over hostages to ensure ongoing peace. Ieyasu refused, and Hideyoshi began planning a large-scale military campaign to finally bring Ieyasu to heel. The massive Tensho Earthquake in January 1586 caused severe damage to Hideyoshi’s capital at Osaka and several other castles and staging areas, bringing an end to the plans, and causing Hideyoshi to adopt a more conciliatory policy towards Ieyasu.

    A monument at the site of Kaerikumo Castle, which was destroyed in a landslide during the 1586 earthquake. The evidence of the landslide can be seen on the hill in the background.

    Later that year, Ieyasu would marry Hideyoshi’s younger sister, Princess Asahi, and he would later travel to Kyoto and swear allegiance to Hideyoshi as Regent. Despite this nominal submission, Hideyoshi had failed to subdue Ieyasu, whose military power remained intact.

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    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%9B%9B%E5%9B%BD%E5%B9%B3%E5%AE%9A
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E7%B4%80%E5%B7%9E%E5%BE%81%E4%BC%90
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%9B%91%E8%B3%80%E8%A1%86
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%A0%B9%E6%9D%A5%E8%A1%86
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kii_Province
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1586_Tensh%C5%8D_earthquake
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaerikumo_Castle

  • The Second Unifier – Toyotomi Hideyoshi. Part Three.

    The Second Unifier – Toyotomi Hideyoshi. Part Three.

    Hideyoshi’s victory over Nobunaga’s killer, Akechi Mitsuhide, left him in a strong, but far from unchallenged position. Though Hideyoshi was arguably the strongest of Nobunaga’s remaining supporters, his power was not so great that he could overcome the others on the battlefield.

    Instead, a conference was called at Kiyosu Castle on July 16th, 1582. Historians still debate exactly what Nobunaga’s plans had been for his succession, given that his second son, and most obvious heir, Nobutada, had been amongst the dead at the Honnoji Incident. Two camps quickly emerged: Hideyoshi, supporting Nobutada’s son, Hidenobu, and Shibata Katsuie, who supported Nobunaga’s third surviving son, Nobutaka.

    The reconstructed Kiyosu Castle as it appears today.
    Oliver Mayer, CC 表示-継承 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=230610による

    The exact course of the meeting isn’t clear, but by the end of it, Hideyoshi’s faction was in the ascendancy, and Hidenobu, at just two years old, was declared Nobunaga’s heir, with Nobutaka officially acting as his guardian. There was an attempt to mollify Katsuie by having him marry Nobunaga’s sister, Oichi, a woman of impeccable rank, but the seeds of conflict had already been sown.

    In October 1582, Hideyoshi held Nobunaga’s formal funeral, and played a central, highly visible role in the ceremony, cementing his position as chief amongst Nobunaga’s retainers. Not long after this, Katsuie, supported by Nobutaka, issued letters of impeachment against Hideyoshi, who responded by demanding that Nobutaka, who had custody of the ‘heir’, Hidenobu, return him to Azuchi, as per the Kiyosu Agreement.

    Oda Nobutaka

    When Nobutaka refused, Hideyoshi used this as justification to renounce the agreement and raise an army against him. Katsuie, trapped in the north by snows and the ongoing war with the Uesugi, was unable to send help, and in a short, sharp campaign, Hideyoshi raised an army of some 50,000, forced Nobutaka to retreat, and eventually surrender, handing over Hidenobu and sending his mother and daughter as hostages to secure the peace.

    This victory did not end the war, however, and shortly after the New Year, Takigawa Kazumasu (also known as Sakon) launched successful attacks in Ise Province. Hideyoshi responded with counterattacks against Kuwana and Nagashima Castles, but the attacks failed, and he was forced to withdraw, despite an overall advantage in numbers, leaving northern Ise Province (temporarily) in the hands of his enemies.

    Ise Province
    By Ash_Crow – Own work, based on Image:Provinces of Japan.svg, CC BY 2.5, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1682471

    The situation got worse for Hideyoshi when Katsuie himself led an army of 30,000 into Omi Province, whilst Nobutaka raised another army at Gifu Castle. Katsuie also made contact with Mori Terumoto, hoping to secure his support in the battle to come. The Mori never outright refused, but instead adopted a ‘wait and see’ approach, as it was not immediately clear which side would win.

    Throughout spring and early summer, the two sides clashed in skirmishes in Ise, Mino, and Omi Provinces, and the momentum would swing back and forth for some time until a decisive engagement near the fortress at Shizugatake. Hideyoshi’s forces were aided by the timely arrival of reinforcements from across Lake Biwa, and the betrayal of Maeda Toshiie, one of Katsuie’s most important generals, who switched to Hideyoshi’s side, for reasons that are still debated.

    A 19th-century depiction of Hideyoshi on the night before the Battle of Shizugatake.

    By all accounts, Katsuie and his army forced tenaciously, but with Toshiie’s betrayal, they were outflanked and outnumbered, and Katsuie was forced to retreat. He got as far as Kitanosho Castle, in modern Fukui, where Hideyoshi’s forces laid siege.

    The night before the final assault, Katsuie held a final banquet with his close family and retainers, whilst his wife, Oichi, made arrangements for her three daughters to be protected by Hideyoshi and avoid what was to come. Despite pleas to save herself, Oichi refused to leave her husband’s side.

    A later depiction of Shibata Katsuie preparing for battle, with Oichi beside him.

    The attack started at dawn, and despite stiff resistance, by midday, the battle was clearly lost, and Katsuie retreated to the main castle, where he and 80 members of his family, including Oichi, killed themselves. Calling it ‘suicide’ is perhaps a bit generous, as the records suggest that a large number of the dead were children. When it was over, Katsuie’s forces ignited a store of gunpowder, blowing the tower apart and bringing a spectacular end to the Shibata Line.

    “Katsuie, a martial artist, fought seven times but was unable to defend himself. He climbed to the ninth floor, the highest level of the main tower, and addressed the entire group, loudly proclaiming, “Watch Shuri’s hara-kiri and learn from it.” The samurai, with their hearts in tears, wet their armor sleeves. As everyone fell silent, Katsuie stabbed his wife, children, and others to death, then committed seppuku with 80 others. It was the hour of the tiger (5:00 PM).”

    Hideyoshi’s letter to Kobayakawa Takakage dated May 15, 1583,

    Just a side note, the actual record of Katsuie’s suicide is pretty harrowing stuff, and it’s always difficult to read about the death of women and children who weren’t guilty of anything other than being related to the losers. This kind of thing was expected, though; even children weren’t generally shown mercy, and though there are notable examples (Oichi’s daughters, for instance), if a child was caught in a siege, they generally died in the same manner as their parents.

    With Katsuie crushed, Hideyoshi was able to extend his direct control over the northern provinces of Koto, Noto, and Echizen, and when Nobutaka committed seppuku, and Kazumasu surrendered, Hideyoshi had established himself as the most powerful man in the realm and while Hidenobu (still just an infant) remained as the nominal ‘heir’ there was no no doubt that Hideyoshi was in charge.

    An image of Hideyoshi carrying Hidenobu at the time of the Kiyosu Conference.

    In 1583, construction began on Osaka Castle, built on the former site of the Ishiyama Hongan-ji Temple complex. It would eventually become Hideyoshi’s base and was widely considered one of Japan’s finest castles. Meanwhile, in the Kanto, a marriage alliance between the Tokugawa and Hojo presented a clear threat to Hideyoshi’s power.

    In early 1584, Oda Nobukatsu, another son of Nobunaga, rebelled against Hideyoshi, quickly gaining the support of Tokugawa Ieyasu and Chosokabe Motochika, who raised armies of their own in opposition to Hideyoshi. Despite a huge advantage in manpower (some sources say 3-to-1), Hideyoshi struggled to achieve a decisive victory.

    Tokugawa Ieyasu

    Some initial success in Ise Province was followed by a defeat at the Battle of Haguro Castle, after which Hideyoshi, who had been waiting at Osaka Castle, took the field himself, meeting Ieyasu near Komaki (near the modern city of the same name). Again, despite a significant manpower imbalance, Ieyasu’s strong position meant that Hideyoshi was unable to force a decisive engagement, and both sides focused on reinforcing castles and constructing new earthworks in anticipation of the fight to come.

    The campaign that followed is often called the Battle of Komaki and Nagakute, after its two most decisive engagements, but there were actually a series of sieges, counterattacks, and skirmishes over the summer and early autumn of 1584. The fighting would result in a tactical victory for the Tokugawa, as they would arguably have the best of the fighting. On the other hand, the strategic situation favoured Hideyoshi, and he would ultimately be able to secure control over his new territory and the power that went along with it.

    An 18th-Century depiction of the Battle of Komaki and Nagakute.

    In the end, both sides had bigger problems. Ieyasu’s domains were under severe economic strain from the war, and a series of floods, combined with the burden of having a large number of peasants away at war, drained his treasury and threatened famine (this was before a serious earthquake in 1586 compounded his problems).

    For his part, Hideyoshi’s position was not as strong as it appeared. Though he had the advantage in men, he also had powerful enemies elsewhere, enemies that were arguably more pressing problems than Ieyasu, who had proven he could hold Hideyoshi off, but not that he could mount a serious attack of his own.

    Osaka as it appeared around 1650. The city would become Hideyoshi’s base, centred at the castle, which appears in the second screen from the left.

    Despite his inability to defeat Ieyasu, by the dawn of 1585, Hideyoshi was effectively the ruler of Japan, already on the verge of surpassing his nominal masters (the Oda), and about to launch the campaigns that would finally bring an end to the centuries of bloodshed.

    Sources
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E8%B1%8A%E8%87%A3%E7%A7%80%E5%90%89
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    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%9F%B4%E7%94%B0%E5%8B%9D%E5%AE%B6

  • The Second Unifier – Toyotomi Hideyoshi. Part Two.

    The Second Unifier – Toyotomi Hideyoshi. Part Two.

    In 1577, a dispute between Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Shibata Katsuie led to Hideyoshi taking his army home, and leaving Katsuie to battle the mighty Uesugi Kenshin alone, a battle he lost. In the aftermath, Hideyoshi had every reason to fear the wrath of his master, Oda Nobunaga, and he was arguably lucky to keep his head, let alone his position.

    A 19th-century depiction of Hideyoshi in Nobunaga’s service.

    Nobunaga was well known for his ferocity, but he recognised capable subordinates. Hideyoshi had been reckless, but he had also earned a reputation as a good administrator and leader of men, and it wasn’t long before he was back in the Great Lord’s good books. In late 1577, he was dispatched west to contend with the powerful Mori Clan and by the end of the year, he was in control of Harima Province and advancing into neighbouring Tajima.

    During this period, Hideyoshi made the famous Himeji Castle his base and used it as a springboard for a series of successful campaigns against the Mori over the next few years. By late 1578, he had subjugated (either through conquest or submission) Bizen and Mimasaka Provinces, in addition to his earlier conquests, and he was poised to advance further when the Araki Clan, based at Arioka Castle, rebelled, obliging him to redeploy his forces to put them down.

    Himeji Castle as it appears today (after renovations in 2015)
    Niko Kitsakis – 投稿者自身による著作物, CC 表示-継承 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=40135622による

    Able to resume his advance in 1580, Hideyoshi secured Tajima Province, bringing the once-mighty Yamana Clan under his control and incorporating many of their former vassals and members of the clan itself into the new administration, a policy widely praised as the reason that Tajima was swiftly pacified.

    By 1581, he had advanced into Bitchu Province and secured Awaji Island for his master, utilising slow but effective siege tactics, starving his enemies into submission, a time-consuming but strength-preserving strategy. One disadvantage, though, was that it meant you were easy to find should your enemy have sufficient strength elsewhere.

    The area that Hideyoshi either conquered or was fighting in during this period.

    In Spring 1582, Hideyoshi led an army of some 30,000 to besiege the mighty fortress at Takamatsu. Strategically vital for control of Bitchu Province, the castle was defended by 3,000 Mori warriors, who quickly called for aid. Mori Terumoto responded and began mustering an army that would eventually number over 50,000. Hideyoshi now faced a problem: already outnumbered, if he tried to take the formidable fortress by storm, he’d deplete his forces further. On the other hand, trying to starve the garrison, who knew help was on the way, would take too long and risk trapping his army between the walls of the fortress and the vengeful spears of the Mori.

    Hideyoshi responded in a typically inventive fashion. Unable to take the castle by storm, he ordered a levee built and the nearby river dammed, diverting water into Takamatsu itself, flooding the castle to such an extent that the garrison’s food supplies were almost completely ruined and they were reduced to communicating by boat.

    A later depiction of the Siege of Takamatsu Castle. The tower to the left is Hideyoshi’s observation post, and you can see the castle itself flooded in the background.

    Despite this, the castle still held out, and when news arrived that Terumoto was on the march, Hideyoshi sent a message to Azuchi, requesting immediate reinforcement from Nobunaga. Sensing an opportunity to catch the powerful Mori clan in open battle, where they could be destroyed, Nobunaga quickly dispatched Akechi Mitsuhide to reinforce Hideyoshi, while he went to Kyoto to make arrangements for a larger force that would be sent to finish the job.

    As we already know, Mitsuhide never arrived; instead, he turned his forces around and attacked Nobunaga at his base at Honnoji, killing him and his heir. Hideyoshi was well placed to respond to this betrayal, and he swiftly concluded a peace treaty with the Mori (who were apparently initially unaware of Nobunaga’s death). Some have speculated that his rapid reaction is evidence of his involvement, or at least foreknowledge of the plot, though there’s nothing concrete to suggest that he was anything other than in the right place at the right time.

    Funasaka Pass as it appears today. This was one of the narrow routes that Hideyoshi’s army had to contend with during their remarkable march back towards Kyoto.
    Bakkai – 投稿者自身による著作物, CC 表示 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=92337495による

    More to the point, Hideyoshi was far from the only player on the board. Hideyoshi’s former rival, Shibata Katsuie, was to the north, with an army facing the Uesugi, while in the Kanto, Takigawa Kazumasu (sometimes called Sakon) had a large army intended to monitor the Hojo. Nobunaga’s son and heir had been killed during the Honno-ji Incident, but his third son, Nobukatsu, had gathered a force at Sakai (modern Osaka) to conquer Shikoku.

    Any one of these forces could have been the one to avenge Nobunaga’s death and put an abrupt end to Akechi Mitsuhide’s ambitions. Even Tokugawa Ieyasu was a potential avenger, making his famed escape from mortal danger with the (supposed) help of the famous Ninja of Iga. Ieyasu would return to his home in Mikawa and gather his forces, but events would move quickly, and though all parties moved against Mitsuhide, it was Hideyoshi who struck first.

    Tokugawa Ieyasu as he appeared in later life. He was close to Kyoto during the Honnoji Incident and was forced to make a dramatic escape back to Mikawa. Hideyoshi would prove to be faster, but Ieyasu’s time would come.

    In the days following the Honnoji Incident, Mitsuhide moved to consolidate his position. Unfortunately for him, he faced harsh military and political opposition. On the one hand, Nobunaga’s body had not been recovered from the flames, and rumours abounded that he was still alive. Even among those who may have believed Nobunaga was dead, Mitsuhide commanded little respect. He was a traitor, after all, and surrounded by enemies who wished to avenge Nobunaga and take power for themselves.

    Militarily, Mitsuhide was too weak to assert effective control over much territory. He had between 13,000 and 15,000 men, but was obliged to capture and garrison several important castles, whittling his already limited forces down still further. Then there was the speed at which Hideyoshi moved. Mitushide arguably did what he could, and with the limited communications and transportation available at the time, it’s hard to see how he could have moved faster, but Hideyoshi was faster still, and on July 2nd, 1582, just 12 days after Honnoji, the two sides clashed at the Battle of Yamazaki, to the south-east of Kyoto.

    Akechi Mitsuhide. Historians debate why he decided to betray Nobunaga, but within two weeks of the incident, he’d be dead.

    The numbers vary by source, but Hideyoshi is said to have had between 20 and 40,000 men, while Mitsuihides had 10 to 16,000. Despite the long odds, Mitsuhide’s army was well-positioned, and the ground around Yamazaki was boggy, limiting movement and reducing Hideyoshi’s advantage in numbers.

    Mitsuhide probably understood that a defensive victory against difficult odds would have greatly enhanced his prestige, and for most of the day, Hideyoshi’s army took heavy losses in vicious frontal assaults. Around 4pm, however, reinforcements arrived for Hideyoshi, outflanking Mitsuhide’s position, and causing his army to fall back. As the battle moved to higher and drier ground, Mitsuhide’s force was gradually surrounded and forced back.

    The battlefield of Yamazaki as it appears today. Historians believe the heaviest fighting took place around the bypass that can be seen in the centre.

    Later sources suggest that the casualties were about the same (around 3,000 each), but under attack from three sides, the morale of Mitushide’s army broke first, and by sunset, their retreat became a rout. When the battle was over, it is said that Mitsuhide had just 700 men remaining. His exact fate isn’t clear; some say he was wounded and committed seppuku, while others suggest he was killed by vengeful peasants or bandits. Either way, his head was brought to Hideyoshi the day after the battle, and then displayed at Honnoji, a powerful statement confirming Hideyoshi as Nobunaga’s ‘avenger’ and giving an enormous boost to his credibility.

    Hideyoshi would spend a few weeks stamping out the last embers of Mitushide’s rebellion, but despite his military successes, he was not unchallenged as Nobunaga’s successor. The other players, who had all been poised to strike, still remained in the field, and each had their own ambition to rule, either directly or through one of Nobunaga’s other sons.

    This would result in the Kiyosu Conference, but we’ll cover that and its consequences next time.

    Sources
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E8%B1%8A%E8%87%A3%E7%A7%80%E5%90%89
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    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%AB%98%E6%9D%BE%E5%9F%8E_(%E5%82%99%E4%B8%AD%E5%9B%BD)

  • The Honnoji Incident – Oda Nobunaga. Part Four.

    The Honnoji Incident – Oda Nobunaga. Part Four.

    “The enemy is at Honnoji” – Akechi Mitsuhide

    By 1582, Oda Nobunaga was the most powerful man in the realm; in fact, it could be argued that he was the most powerful man Japan had seen in centuries. A combination of ruthless political manoeuvring and brutal military campaigns had left him on the verge of finally reuniting the nation and ending the Sengoku Jidai.

    Only the Mori Clan still had the strength to stifle Nobunaga’s ambitions, and in May 1582, he announced his intention to march against them with all his might. The catalyst for this next campaign was a message from Hashiba Hideyoshi, who was besieging Takamatsu Castle (in modern-day Okayama). The message read that Mori Terumoto was marching to relieve the siege, presenting Nobunaga with an opportunity to meet the Mori in open battle and crush them.

    A scene from the Battle of Takamatsu Castle. Hideyoshi attempted to end the siege by flooding the castle, a tactic that was ultimately unsuccessful.

    It is generally accepted by historians that Nobunaga intended not only to defeat the Mori but also subjugate Shikoku and, eventually, Kyushu as well, viewing the campaign against the Mori as part of a wider strategy to bring the entire nation under his command. In preparation for this, he dispatched several generals to support Hideyoshi, most notably Akechi Mitsuhide.

    In the days that followed, Nobunaga was seen to be in good spirits and laid on lavish entertainment for those who came to visit him, including Tokugawa Ieyasu, who departed Azuchi on June 21st, embarking on a tour of Kyoto, Osaka, and the surrounding region. On the same day, Nobunaga’s son and heir, Nobutada, arrived in Kyoto for reasons that aren’t entirely clear (some speculate he meant to accompany Ieyasu). Whatever his purpose, his arrival in the capital meant that when Nobunaga himself departed Azuchi for Kyoto on June 29th, father and son would be in the same place, at the same time.

    Azuchi Castle, Nobunaga’s base, as it appeared around 1582.

    Exactly why Nobunaga went to Kyoto first is debated, with some suggesting he planned to attack Shikoku first, going via Kyoto and the port at Sakai (modern Osaka). Other sources say he went to deal with negotiations at the Imperial Court, and others still suggest he wanted to show off a new tea set he had recently acquired. (This may sound a touch comical to a modern audience, but the tea ceremony was a serious matter in Japan at the time.)

    On June 30th, Nobunaga held said tea ceremony, which was followed by a drinking party, during which Nobunaga’s son, Nobutada, arrived, and father and son drank and talked together, little knowing that it would be their last meeting. Sources tell us that the party ended late, and Nobutada returned to his accommodation at nearby Myokakuji Temple, and Nobunaga retired for the night shortly afterwards.

    Oda Nobutada, Nobunaga’s son and heir.

    Though Honnoji was a temple, as the primary residence of Nobunaga in Kyoto, it wasn’t undefended. Excavations in 2007 found evidence of a moat and some earthworks, suggesting that the site had been partially fortified, though it was far from a fortress, and Nobunaga was protected by only a few dozen servants and his personal entourage.

    Nobunaga clearly didn’t expect to be attacked, and why should he have? He was the most powerful man in the realm, in the heart of the capital city, with hundreds of thousands of warriors at his command. His enemies were far away, and even in the unlikely event that the army under Hideyoshi was defeated, he could call on other, just as formidable forces.

    Honnoji as it appears today. The current temple is located at a different site from that in 1582; after being rebuilt by Hideyoshi in 1592, it was destroyed by fire in 1788 and 1864, and then underwent further renovation in 1928.
    ＋－ – 投稿者自身による著作物, CC 表示-継承 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=107655314による

    One of these was a force of around 13,000 men under Akechi Mitsuhide. In the afternoon of June 30th, Mitsuhide claimed to have received a message from Nobunaga, instructing him to bring his force to Kyoto for review. The letter, if it existed at all, was certainly a forgery, but by that evening, Mitsuhide had arrived at Kameyama (modern Kameoka), north of Kyoto. By the next morning, they had reached the Katsura River, and at this point, it is unclear if Mitsuhide’s army understood their objective.

    Sources from men serving in this force suggest they believed that they were going to attack Tokugawa Ieyasu, nominally on the orders of Nobunaga himself. This is supported by the semi-contemporary “History of Japan”, written by the Jesuit, Luis Frois, which suggests that Mitsuhide’s army believed they were acting under Nobunaga’s secret order, at least initially.

    Akechi Mitsuhide, the man behind the Honnoji Incident.

    At this point, Mitsuhide is supposed to have uttered the famous phrase “The Enemy is a Honnoji” announcing his rebellious intention (as everyone knew that was Nobunaga’s base.) Unfortunately, as dramatic as that scene might have been, the first source for it doesn’t appear until 1641, nearly 60 years after the event, and there are no contemporary sources that tell us what Mitsuhide might or might not have said.

    What we know is that by dawn, Mitsuhides forces had surrounded Honnoji. What followed was a bloody, but ultimately one-sided fight. All sides agree that Nobunaga and his pages fought bravely, but they were hopelessly outnumbered, and the fighting was over by around 8am. We don’t know exactly how Nobunaga died, but the sources agree that he fought with a bow, and then a spear, before suffering some kind of injury (the sources differ) and retreating into the already burning Honnoji, where he presumably committed seppuku.

    A 19th-century depiction of Nobunaga’s last stand. Though we don’t know exactly how he died, sources agree he fought bravely until an injury forced him to retreat.

    Nobunaga’s son, Nobutada, had, upon hearing that Honnoji was under attack, rushed to help, only to be overwhelmed and forced back to his own accommodations at Myokakuji Temple, where he too was forced to commit seppuku as the temple burned around him, his body consumed by the flames.

    Rumours of their survival sprang up almost immediately. Since neither body was ever identified (this being before DNA or dental records), Mitsuhide could not prove the deed was done, and any hope he had of securing support went up in the same smoke that Nobunaga and his son had.

    Another 19th-century depiction of Nobunaga’s end. Though heavily stylised, it displays the flames that would ultimately consume Nobunaga’s body.

    Whatever his actual motivation (which we’ll look at in a moment), Mitsuhide’s triumph would be short-lived. Though his forces had successfully killed Nobunaga, his son, Nobutada, and most of his inner circle, and secured Kyoto, the same forces that Nobunaga might have called on to defend him were now focused on avenging him.

    Mitsuhide swiftly withdrew to Azuchi Castle, from where he tried to rally support, and wrote to the Imperial Court, seeking to legitimise his position. There are no records of any response, and he soon ran out of time. Hashiba Hideyoshi had made peace with the Mori (who were apparently initially unaware of Nobunaga’s death) and was now marching against him.

    The site of the Battle of Yamazaki as it appears today, seen from Mt Tenno, from which the battle is sometimes called The Battle of Tennozan.

    Mitsuhide was outnumbered two or three to one, and at the Battle of Yamazaki on July 12th, he was decisively defeated. Although losses were similar on both sides (about 3000), Mitsuhide’s army suffered from serious morale problems and disintegrated as the battle went against them, leaving Mitsuhide with just 700 warriors at day’s end.

    Mitsuhide himself survived the battle, but he was either killed in the aftermath (possibly by bandits or opportunistic peasants) or else committed suicide due to injuries sustained on the battlefield. Whatever his end, he was definitely dead by the time his head was displayed outside the burned remains of Honnoji Temple, on or around July 17th.

    Akechi Mitsuhide’s grave at Saikyoji Temple in Kyoto.

    No sooner was Mitsuhide dead than questions were raised about why he had betrayed his lord. Though Samurai overthrowing their overlords was nothing new, Nobunaga was uncommonly powerful, and his death threatened to unravel the fragile peace he had secured, especially in light of Mitushide’s failure to secure support or legitimacy in its aftermath.

    Contemporary scholars and modern historians continue to debate exactly why Mitsuhide betrayed Nobunaga. He was certainly mistreated and often humiliated, sometimes even being publicly beaten by Nobunaga himself, so simple revenge is a possible motive. Other sources suggest it was to avenge his mother, who had served as a hostage to secure a truce years earlier, only for Nobunaga to break it, resulting in the poor woman being executed.

    Mitsuhide’s mother hangs from a tree in consequence of Nobunaga breaking the truce that her life was the guarantee of.

    If public humiliation and the death of his mother weren’t reason enough, some suggest it was pure ambition; Mitsuhide may simply have wanted the power for himself, and he certainly wouldn’t have been the first to try it. Indeed, some historians speculate that if he had been able to prove that Nobunaga was actually dead, he might have gained some support, and the outcome could have been different.

    Others suggest that Mitsuhide was a partisan of the Shogun, or possibly the Imperial Court, and overthrew Nobunaga in order to restore one or the other to power, though these ideas only emerged in the 20th century, and there’s little contemporary information to go on.

    Nobunaga publicly beats Mitsuhide. Quite why Nobunaga treated him so poorly isn’t clear, but the humiliation almost certainly contributed to his decision to rebel.

    There’s also the speculation that Mitsuhide was working with one of Nobunaga’s other vassals. Some historians argue that Hashiba Hideyoshi was able to turn his army against Mitsuhide very quickly, leading to speculation that he knew the attack was coming. Historians have never conclusively dismissed this, though it has been pointed out that only the fastest of Hideyoshi’s troops actually made it to the Battle of Yamazaki, meaning that the quick turnaround might not have been that quick after all.

    Other theories blame the Imperial Court, or the Mori Clan, for conspiring against a man who had proven to be an existential threat, as well as the Buddhist Clergy, who had plenty of reason to want vengeance on Nobunaga.

    A contemporary depiction of Mass. Though largely dismissed by historians, the possibility that the Jesuits feared Nobunaga would turn on them contributed to the theory that they were involved in his death.

    Another possibility is the Jesuits, who are suggested to have feared that Nobunaga might move against them, though there’s little evidence that he intended to (as he valued foreign trade), and Hideyoshi, his ultimate successor, would prove to be a far greater threat to Christianity in Japan.

    Ultimately, most of this speculation comes from later sources, and there’s no way to know what Mitsuhide intended, only that his plans fell apart before being decisively ended on the battlefield at Yamazaki.

    Hashiba (later Toyotomi) Hideyoshi. His victory at Yamazaki did not make him Nobunaga’s successor, but it did wonders for his prestige.

    Hashiba Hideyoshi’s victory did not mean he inherited Nobunaga’s power, however, and the power struggle that followed threatened to undo the Great Lord’s work, but that’s a story for another time.

    Sources
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E7%B9%94%E7%94%B0%E4%BF%A1%E9%95%B7
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%9C%AC%E8%83%BD%E5%AF%BA%E3%81%AE%E5%A4%89
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%95%B5%E3%81%AF%E6%9C%AC%E8%83%BD%E5%AF%BA%E3%81%AB%E3%81%82%E3%82%8A
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%A1%82%E5%B7%9D_(%E6%B7%80%E5%B7%9D%E6%B0%B4%E7%B3%BB)
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E4%BA%80%E5%B2%A1%E5%B8%82
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%82%99%E4%B8%AD%E9%AB%98%E6%9D%BE%E5%9F%8E%E3%81%AE%E6%88%A6%E3%81%84
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honn%C5%8D-ji_Incident
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Akechi_Mitsuhide
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%B1%B1%E5%B4%8E%E3%81%AE%E6%88%A6%E3%81%84
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E7%B9%94%E7%94%B0%E4%BF%A1%E5%BF%A0

    If you are interested, the main source for this and the other posts on Oda Nobunaga is the 2011 translation of the Chronicle of Nobunaga, the Kindle version of which can be found here.

  • The First Unifier – Oda Nobunaga. Part Three.

    The First Unifier – Oda Nobunaga. Part Three.

    By 1573, Oda Nobunaga was arguably the strongest warlord of his day, controlling a large territory that dominated central Japan. He had taken control of Kyoto and brought about the end of the Ashikaga Shogunate (though he would never take the title for himself), and with the death of Takeda Shingen, his most dangerous rival had been removed.

    Nobunaga’s position is red. Dominant, but not yet unchallenged.
    By Alvin Lee – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=39200929

    You probably know by now that even a strong position was never completely unchallenged during the Sengoku Jidai, and Nobunaga still had enemies to deal with. In the summer of 1573, he launched a campaign against the Azai-Asakura alliance, whom he had defeated at the Battle of Anegawa in 1570 and now meant to finish off.

    Nobunaga’s forces laid siege to the formidable Odani Castle. When Azai-Asakura forces marched to relieve it, they were ambushed and forced to retreat to Ichijodani Castle with Nobunaga in hot pursuit. The Azai-Asakura were then decisively defeated at the Battle of Tonezaka and tried to retreat again; however, a series of defeats, betrayals, and suicides put an end to the alliance and then to the clans themselves.

    A modern reconstruction of the castle down around Ichijodani.
    663highland – 投稿者自身による著作物, CC 表示 2.5, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=12059706による

    A side note to these events is the end of the marriage between Nobunaga’s sister, Oichi, and Azai Nagamasa, lord of the Azai Clan. When Nagamasa betrayed Nobunaga, Oichi remained faithful and was by his side as Odani Castle came under siege. Some sources say that Oichi gave birth to her third daughter during the siege (though others disagree). There is also debate over how she escaped, with some saying she was aided by a loyal retainer, and others stating that Nobunaga and Nagamasa agreed to let Oichi and her daughters go, a tale often romanticised as demonstrating the love both men had for her.

    Romantic stories aside, with the end of the Azai-Asakura threat, Nobunaga turned his attention to the peasant rebellion in Ise Province (the so-called Nagashima Ikko-Ikki), which had resulted in the death of his younger brother, Nobuoki. The campaign was successful at first, with several outlying forts being taken, but an attempt to secure the rebels’ main fortress at Nagashima failed, and Nobunaga was obliged to fall back after an ambush threatened to cut him off.

    A 19th-century depiction of the fighting in Nagashima.

    The year would end on a more positive note for him, however, as Ashikaga Yoshiaki, who was still claiming the title of Shogun, was forced to flee Wakae Castle (in modern Osaka) and retreat to Kii Province. In December, Nobunaga’s forces captured the important and wealthy Tamonyama Castle (modern Nara), further securing his territory in central Japan.

    1574 would bring new problems, starting with another peasant rebellion (the Echizen Ikko-Ikki) in territory that Nobunaga had only recently taken from the Azai-Asakura. Shortly after that, a renewed attack by the Takeda, now led by Shingen’s son, Katsuyori, invaded Mino Province. Nobunaga marched to meet them, but the border castles fell before he could arrive, and so he withdrew, avoiding a decisive clash with the Takeda for now.

    Takeda Katsuyori

    With crises in all directions, Nobunaga was stretched to his limit, but it was in moments like this where he showed his brilliance and his brutality. The Ikko-Ikki fortress at Nagashima had been a thorn in his side for years, and he set out to remove it in the summer of 1574, surrounding the fortress from land and sea and starving the defenders into surrender by September.

    It is said that some attempted to flee by boat, but Nobunaga stopped them with a volley of gunfire. Suitably provoked, the Ikko-Ikki launched a counterattack that ultimately failed, but killed Nobunaga’s half-brother. In response, Nobunaga had the remaining 20,000 defenders, including women and children, locked up inside the castle, which he then ordered burned.

    A memorial to those who were killed during the fall of Nagashima.
    立花左近 – 投稿者自身による著作物, CC 表示-継承 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=20094400による

    With Nagashima subdued, Nobunaga turned his attention to the Takeda, who had launched a series of relatively small-scale invasions throughout 1574, and by April 1575, were besieging the Tokugawa-controlled fortress at Nagashino. What followed was one of the most heavily mythologised battles of the era, and even today, many of the details are open to debate, but what is not in doubt is that the Battle of Nagashino inflicted a mortal wound on the Takeda. They never again posed a serious strategic threat to Nobunaga’s ambitions.

    One of his other long-term enemies was the Temple of Hongan-ji, the spiritual centre of the widespread Ikko-Ikki movement. The movement had been severely weakened by the loss of Nagashima, and in late Summer 1575, Nobunaga crushed the Echizen Ikko-Ikki, further weakening Hongan-ji’s power. This turn of events allowed Nobunaga to establish a short-lived peace in the territory he controlled.

    Emperor Ogimachi (r 1557-1586) was Emperor for most of Nobunaga’s rise to power.

    In November 1575, Nobunaga was appointed Dainagon, and Ukone no Taisho, Chief Councillor, and General of the Right, respectively, positions in the Imperial court which established his position, and right to rule the country (in the Emperor’s name, of course) Around this time Nobunaga also began distributing territory and other titles to his followers on behalf of the Emperor, and it is from this point that historians generally agree that Nobunaga gave up the pretence of supporting the Ashikaga, and began eyeing the position for himself. In light of this, he officially recognised his son, Nobutada, as his heir and gave orders for the construction of a new fortress at Azuchi.

    It couldn’t last, however, and in Spring 1576 Ishiyama Hongan-ji was in arms against him again, supported by a loose coalition of powerful clans, and at least nominally acting on behalf of the exiled Shogun, Yoshiaki. Initial attempts by Oda forces to subdue Hongan-ji failed, but when Nobunaga himself arrived, he won a decisive victory at the Battle of Tennoji, and subsequently laid siege to the vast Ishiyama temple complex.

    This modern recreation shows that the Ishiyama Hongan-ji complex was more akin to a fortified town than a temple.

    Nobunaga might have hoped to repeat his success at Nagashima, but those hopes were to be dashed when a fleet from the Mori Clan destroyed the Oda blockade at the Battle of Kizugawaguchi in August 1576, ensuring that, for the time being, supplies would continue to flow into Ishiyama, and the siege would drag on.

    Meanwhile, in 1577, Nobunaga led an army into Kii Province and forced the surrender of the Saika Clan before withdrawing, only to then have to face a rebellion from the Matsunaga Clan in Ise Province, which was put down in characteristically brutal fashion, with the castle burned, and its occupants forced to commit Seppuku.

    This image depicts Matsunaga Hisahide at the moment of his death. The story goes that Nobunaga offered to spare him in exchange for a rare tea kettle. In response, Hisahide is supposed to have smashed the kettle to pieces before killing himself.

    From 1578 to 1580, Nobunaga was forced to contend with the powerful Mori Clan and their allies for control of Harima Province. Meanwhile, his vassal, Akechi Mitsuhide, successfully subdued the provinces of Tamba and Tango. In late 1580, Nobunaga forced the surrender of Arioka and Miki Castles, bringing the whole of Harima under his control.

    Meanwhile, the Second Battle of Kizugawaguchi in December 1578 reversed the strategic situation in the seas around Ishiyama (Osaka Bay), when the rebuilt Oda navy inflicted a decisive defeat on the Mori fleet, finally cutting Ishiyama off completely. The siege would last until 1580, however, and it would eventually take an Imperial Order to convince the leadership to surrender, in exchange for being allowed to leave.

    A semi-contemporary image of Ishiyama Hongan-ji during the siege.

    War was never far away, but as 1581 dawned, Nobunaga was stronger than any Daimyo had ever been, and it was seriously possible that if anyone were to bring an end to the Sengoku Jidai and reunite the country, it would be him. However, he still had a few more rivals to overcome first.

    The Battle of Nagashino had been a death blow to the Takeda, but as late as 1582, they were still clinging on, and now Nobunaga made the decision to end them once and for all. Gathering a force of some 100,000 and supported by his ally Tokugawa Ieyasu, Nobunaga invaded Takeda territory in early 1582. The campaign was almost too easy, as Takeda resistance crumbled almost immediately, forts often surrendered without a fight, or after only a token display of defiance, and many former Takeda retainers simply switched sides, or else ran away from the advancing Oda.

    A heavily stylised (and much later) depiction of the end of Takeda Katsuyori, whose death would signal the end of his clan.

    The Takeda eventually stood their ground at the formidable Takato Castle, but, despite its reputation, it was taken quickly, and what remained of the Takeda began to melt away. Eventually, Takeda Katsuyori and his son Nobukatsu were trapped at Tano (modern Tsuru, Yamanashi Prefecture) and forced to commit Seppuku, bringing an end to the Takeda line and any hope of resistance to Nobunaga.

    With the Takeda gone, Nobunaga took some time to reorganise the newly conquered territories, and then headed home through the lands of his ally Tokugawa Ieyasu, who laid on entertainments, refreshments, and accommodation, all purpose-built for Nobunaga’s visit.

    A reconstruction of Nobunaga’s ‘throne’ at Azuchi.
    日本語版ウィキペディアのMaakunさん – 原版の投稿者自身による著作物, CC 表示-継承 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=115518317による

    By Spring, Nobunaga was back at his base at Azuchi, from where he made plans to invite the Emperor for a formal visit, and rumours began that the court was about to appoint him Shogun, or else some other senior position. The exact nature of this appointment and Nobunaga’s receptiveness to it are unclear, as the sources don’t agree on whether anything was offered at all, let alone what Nobunaga said about it. The Imperial visit was supposedly arranged for the following year, but again, the sources are scant.

    During this brief period of peace, Nobunaga is supposed to have announced his plans to conquer Shikoku from the Chosokabe. One of his retainers, Akechi Mitsuhide, was apparently unhappy about this, as he had previously acted as an intermediary between Nobunaga and the Chosokabe. Mitsuhide was further agrieved when Nobunaga ordered him to provide entertainment for the visiting Tokugawa Ieyasu. The story goes that Nobunaga accused Mitsuhide of doing a poor job (rightly or not) and launched into a public dressing-down of Mitsuhide that ended (according to some sources) with a literal kick in the backside.

    A 19th-century imagining of Nobunaga publicly chastising Mitsuhide.

    Given the importance of public image in Japan, it is easy to see why Mitsuhide might have felt a genuine grievance over this treatment. There is also a story that Mitsuhide’s mother had once served as a hostage for a truce that Nobunaga had gone on to break, resulting in the poor woman’s death. Whilst some of these stories are poorly sourced at best, what is known is that by the summer of 1582, Akechi Mitsuhide had had enough.

    Sources
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E7%B9%94%E7%94%B0%E4%BF%A1%E9%95%B7
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tsuru,_Yamanashi
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%AB%98%E9%81%A0%E5%9F%8E
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E7%94%B2%E5%B7%9E%E5%BE%81%E4%BC%90
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E4%B8%89%E6%9C%A8%E5%90%88%E6%88%A6
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E4%BF%A1%E8%B2%B4%E5%B1%B1%E5%9F%8E
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E7%B4%80%E5%B7%9E%E5%BE%81%E4%BC%90
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%A4%A9%E7%8E%8B%E5%AF%BA%E3%81%AE%E6%88%A6%E3%81%84_(1576%E5%B9%B4)
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E7%9F%B3%E5%B1%B1%E5%90%88%E6%88%A6
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E7%AC%AC%E4%B8%80%E6%AC%A1%E6%9C%A8%E6%B4%A5%E5%B7%9D%E5%8F%A3%E3%81%AE%E6%88%A6%E3%81%84
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E7%AC%AC%E4%BA%8C%E6%AC%A1%E6%9C%A8%E6%B4%A5%E5%B7%9D%E5%8F%A3%E3%81%AE%E6%88%A6%E3%81%84
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%95%B7%E5%B3%B6%E4%B8%80%E5%90%91%E4%B8%80%E6%8F%86