Chris Perry, Author

Tag: Daimyo warfare

  • The Shimazu, Part 1

    The Shimazu, Part 1

    Last time we looked at Shikoku, the so-called ‘four provinces’, well, how about an island of nine provinces? That’s right, Kyushu, the third largest of Japan’s main islands, is so called because in the pre-modern period it was home to nine whole provinces, which means, as names go, it’s not terribly creative, but what can you do?

    Kyushu.
    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=16385933

    In ancient times, Kyushu had been the centre of cultural, economic, and social development in Japan, as its close proximity to Korea, and by extension China, made it the logical landing site for innovations as widespread as rice farming and written language. The island would also be the focus of two ultimately unsuccessful Mongol invasions in the 13th Century, and the Shogunate administration there would continue to be important until the decline of central authority in the 15th Century left Kyushu, much like the rest of the realm, effectively independent.

    Into this power vacuum stepped several powerful clans, with the most prominent arguably being the Ouchi, Otomo, and Shimazu. Though the Ouchi and Otomo would play important roles of their own in the story of the Sengoku Period, it is the Shimazu that we will be focusing on.

    The exact origins of the Shimazu name aren’t entirely clear, but the first figure to take the name was Tadahisa, who was made lord of the Shimazu Manor in southern Kyushu in 1185. Tadahisa himself is something of a mysterious figure, with various conflicting reports of his origins, parentage, and even his name, but what is clear is that the Shimazu were well established in southern Kyushu by the 13th century, and would use it as their base going forward.

    Shimazu Tadahisa, the first “Lord” Shimazu.

    Tadahisa’s son, Tadatoki, seems to have been an accomplished military leader, as he was appointed the shugo (military governor) of Satsuma, Osumi, and Hyuga Provinces, all of southern Kyushu in effect. He was also granted numerous prestigious lands and titles around the realm, but it was his Kyushu holdings that would be the most important for his descendants.

    The Shimazu’s fortunes would ebb and flow over time, but the distance of their lands from the centre of power in Kyoto meant that they were often able to weather the storms of early Medieval Japan. They were not immune from the ever-present problem of internal conflict, however, and by the time of the Onin War in 1467, the Shimazu were weak, divided, and vulnerable.

    It would be Shimazu Tadayoshi (1492-1568) who would begin to turn the fortunes of the clan around. Originally from the Isaku Clan (a branch of the Shimazu), Tadayoshi had a difficult start to life. His father, Yoshihisa, was apparently murdered by a stable hand when Tadayoshi was just two, and his grandfather was killed in battle in 1500. Following this, Tadayoshi’s mother, Lady Baiso, agreed to marry the lord of another branch of the Shimazu, on the condition that Tadayoshi be adopted as heir to both branches. The lord in question was apparently so keen on Lady Baiso that he agreed.

    Shimazu Tadayoshi.

    Tadayoshi proved to be an enlightened and capable ruler, taking inspiration from Zen teachings and humanitarian principles. He was a popular leader, as he genuinely cared for the needs of his retainers and the welfare of his territory, but his son, Takahisa, would prove to be greater still. In 1526, following the deaths in quick succession of both his sons, the head of the main branch of the Shimazu Clan, Katsuhisa, turned to Tadayoshi (renowned for his learning and upright conduct) for a solution to the succession issue.

    Tadayoshi had Takahisa adopted by the Lord of the Shimazu. In November 1526, Katsuhisa handed over control of the Shimazu Clan to Takahisa and retired to a monastery. Tadayoshi became a monk himself shortly afterwards and would go on to play a significant role in aiding his son in reestablishing Shimazu power in southern Kyushu.

    Shimazu Takahisa.

    Things are never quite that simple, however, and Takahisa’s accession to the leadership of the Shimazu was opposed by several powerful retainers, some of whom also claimed the right to lead. Katsuhisa himself also seems to have expressed some regret about handing over power, and in June 1527, an army was raised which drove Takahisa out, and had Katsuhisa returned as the shugo.

    The fighting would go back and forth for a while after this, despite unsuccessful efforts to arrange a reconciliation in 1529. Katsuhisa proved to be an unpopular lord, however, apparently being more focused on ‘vulgar entertainment’ than the business of ruling. Though this did not automatically translate into support for Takahisa, the division amongst his enemies handed him the initiative.

    Starting in 1533, Takahisa would lead a series of counter-attacks which eventually saw him establish control over most of Satsuma Province, and in 1539, the decisive Battle of Murasakihara saw Takahisa drive out his primary rivals, though it wouldn’t be until 1552 that he was finally recognised as the shugo of Satsuma Province by the Shogunate, 26 years after he had first assumed the mantle.

    Satsuma Province, home of the Shimazu Clan.
    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

    Takahisa had long hoped to reestablish Shimazu control of the three provinces held by his ancestors, and he would lead campaigns into neighbouring Osumi province from 1554 to 1556, which would allow him to establish a foothold in the province from which further expansion could be launched.

    Though Takahisa would prove to be a successful warrior, he was also known for his outward-looking attitude towards foreigners. The Shimazu had long had trade with Ming China, largely through intermediaries in the Ryukyu Islands (modern Okinawa), and after Portuguese merchants arrived in Japan, Takahisa was one of the first lords to welcome them to his domains, and perhaps one of the first to employ firearms in battle.

    He would also go some way to establishing Christianity in Japan, as he welcomed Francis Xavier into his territory in 1549, though this would ultimately prove a short-lived association, due to backlash from conservative elements amongst the Buddhist and Shinto priesthoods.

    A later depiction of a Portuguese trading ship in Japanese waters.

    Takahisa would eventually retire to a monastery in 1556, handing control of the Shimazu over to his son, Yoshihisa, who also inherited his father’s ambitions to regain control of the three provinces of Satsuma, Osumi, and Hyuga. Yoshihisa had actually joined his father’s campaign in Osumi, making his ‘debut’ in 1554, and after inheriting the leadership from his father, he would continue the campaigns to fully pacify Satsuma and expand Shimazu holdings into the neighbouring provinces.

    Satsuma would come under his complete control in 1570. In 1572, a rival clan from Hyuga Province would invade Shimazu territory, only to be defeated in short order at the Battle of Kizakihara, with the Shimazu forces being led by Yoshihisa’s highly capable younger brother, Yoshihiro. It is said that the Shimazu, despite being outnumbered 10 to 1, launched an aggressive attack against the enemy, which saw several key leaders killed and over 500 enemy deaths (counted in heads taken after the battle).

    A later depiction of a head viewing (kubi-jikken), a common practice among Samurai, in which the heads of defeated enemies would be presented to lords, or otherwise publicly displayed.

    This victory allowed Yoshihisa to focus on Osumi Province, which he was able to fully conquer by the end of 1573. Then in 1576, he captured the strategically important Takahara Castle, held by the powerful Ito Clan of Hyuga. The fall of Takahara led to a domino effect in which the remaining 48 castles of the Ito Clan were either conquered or defected to the Shimazu. Not long after, the head of the Ito Clan, Yoshisuke, fled Hyuga, and the long-dreamt-of reunification of the three provinces was achieved.

    Almost as soon as the dust had settled, however, the powerful Otomo Clan, who controlled several provinces in North-Eastern Kyushu, invaded, nominally in support of the exiled Yoshisuke, but more likely in an opportunistic attempt to expand their own territory. A huge army of some 43,000 men crossed into Hyuga Province in October 1578 and laid siege to Takashiro Castle. The Shimazu under Yoshihisa could muster only 20,000 men in response, but they took advantage of poor coordination amongst the Otomo, dealing with the invaders piecemeal.

    The campaign culminated in the Battle of Mimikawa (which was actually fought nearly 20 miles from the eponymous river), in which Yoshihisa employed a series of feigned retreats, breaking the Otomo Army (which still enjoyed a numerical advantage) down, and eventually winning a victory that was so comprehensive the Otomo effectively ceased to be serious rivals.

    The war wouldn’t end at Mimikawa, however, and in 1580, Oda Nobunaga began negotiations between the Otomo and Shimazu, hoping to bring an end to the war, since he wanted the Otomo to join his upcoming campaign against the Mori. The negotiations were apparently successful, as Yoshihisa even went so far as to recognise Nobunaga as his ‘lord’, and planned to join the attack on the Mori as well.

    The situation on the eve of Nobunaga’s death in 1582. The Shimazu lands are blue, in southern Kyushu.
    By Alvin Lee – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=39198356

    As we already know, Nobunaga’s death at the Honnoji incident in June 1582 put an end to those plans, but the weakened state of the Otomo and the fact that the peace deal no longer applied meant that the Shimazu were able to defeat or force the defection of several former Otomo retainers, increasing their own power and control over southern Kyushu.

    The campaign to unify the entire island would go on, but we’ll look at that next time.

    Sources
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%B3%B6%E6%B4%A5%E7%BE%A9%E4%B9%85
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E8%80%B3%E5%B7%9D%E3%81%AE%E6%88%A6%E3%81%84
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%A4%A7%E5%8F%8B%E6%B0%8F
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%B3%B6%E6%B4%A5%E7%BE%A9%E5%BC%98
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%B3%B6%E6%B4%A5%E8%B2%B4%E4%B9%85
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%B3%B6%E6%B4%A5%E5%BF%A0%E8%89%AF
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%A2%85%E7%AA%93%E5%A4%AB%E4%BA%BA
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E8%96%A9%E6%91%A9%E5%9B%BD
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shimazu_Takahisa
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%B3%B6%E6%B4%A5%E5%BF%A0%E4%B9%85
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%B3%B6%E6%B4%A5%E6%B0%8F
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_daimy%C5%8Ds_from_the_Sengoku_period

  • (No longer) Lords of the Four Provinces

    (No longer) Lords of the Four Provinces

    Last time, we looked at how the Chosokabe rose from barely holding a single castle to becoming effective masters of the whole of Shikoku. In 1582, it had looked like they were about to be invaded and (probably) conquered by Oda Nobunaga, but his sudden death at the Honnoji Incident in June 1582 granted the Chosokabe a brief reprieve.

    The mon of the Chosokabe Clan.
    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=9987939による

    Between 1582 and 1585, they completed their conquest of Shikoku, although exactly how much control they really exerted is still debated by historians, with some suggesting that Shikoku was conquered and pacified, but others making the case that Chosokabe control outside of Tosa Province was tenuous.

    Regardless of the nature of Chosokabe’s control of Shikoku, it would prove to be brief. In the spring of 1585, Hashiba Hideyoshi, fresh from defeating the last of his rivals to the mantle of Nobunaga’s successor, turned his attention to Shikoku. Hideyoshi ordered the Chosokabe to hand over Iyo and Sanuki Provinces, effectively ceding the northern half of Shikoku to him.

    Toyotomi Hideyoshi, who would eventually become master of Japan.

    The Lord of the Chosokabe, Motochika, tried to negotiate, offering just Iyo Province. Hideyoshi was not a man to be bargained with, however, and in response to what he saw as Chosokabe’s defiance, he dispatched an army of some 100,000 men under the overall command of his brother, Hidenaga.

    Shikoku was attacked from three sides: Sanuki and Awa by Hidenaga’s army, and Iyo by the Mori who had recently submitted to Hideyoshi and were keen for a chance to prove their loyalty. Attacked on multiple fronts and facing overwhelming numbers, the Chosokabe did not resist for long. At the end of July, after already having lost Awa Province, Motochika surrendered.

    The terms were harsh, but not as bad as they might have been. Hideyoshi allowed the Chosokabe to keep control of Tosa Province, but the other three were divided amongst Hideyoshi’s vassals. In 1586, the Chosokabe would join Hideyoshi’s invasion of Kyushu, and though the campaign itself would be successful, Motochika’s heir, Nobuchika, was killed in battle.

    Overcome with grief, Motochika is supposed to have tried to kill himself, only being dissuaded at the last minute by his vassals. Not long after this, he relocated the base of the clan to what is now Kochi Castle, and in 1588, he named his fourth son, Morichika, as the new heir.

    Kochi Castle as it appears today.
    By Taisyo – photo taken by Taisyo, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=2157936

    In 1590, the Chosokabe again went to war in the service of Hideyoshi, this time dispatching naval forces to attack the Hojo Castle at Shimoda with 10,000 men. The garrison of 500 held out for nearly two months, but it was eventually taken, and with it, the Chosokabe contribution to the wider Odawara Campaign came to an end.

    In 1591, Motochika moved his base from Kochi Castle to a position at Urado (still within the modern city of Kochi). Some sources say this was because of the unfavourable location of the first castle (it was prone to flooding), whilst others suggest it was a strategic move, with Urado serving as the main base of the Chosokabe Navy, which took part in Hideyoshi’s long and ultimately unsuccessful invasions of Korea from 1592-1598.

    In 1596, the San Felipe Incident occurred when a Spanish Galleon (the San Felipe, hence the name) was shipwrecked off the coast of Tosa and brought into the harbour at Urado. We’ll focus on this incident specifically in a later post, but the short version is that Motochika confiscated the remaining cargo of the Galleon, and when officials from Hideyoshi arrived in Kochi to take possession of the goods, the captain of the Galleon heavily implied that the presence of Christians in Japan was the precursor to a Spanish Invasion, explaining that that was how the Spanish had managed to conquer such a large part of the globe.

    Hideyoshi had initially issued orders expelling Christian priests from Japan in 1586, but it had been unenforced before now. When news of the supposed Spanish invasion reached him, Hideyoshi was horrified, and in 1597, he had 26 Christians (including one passenger from the San Felipe) marched from Kyoto to Nagasaki (the centre of Christianity in Japan) and had all 26 crucified on a hill overlooking the city.

    A 19th Century depiction of the executions. The Japanese are wrongly portrayed with Chinese clothing and weapons.

    Motochika’s role in the persecution that followed is not clear, though Christianity had never been particularly strong on Shikoku, as the Chosokabe were largely opposed to foreigners in Japan, so it’s not hard to imagine he would have had no qualms about expelling them from his territory, even if he was not actively involved in the wider campaign.

    Hideyoshi’s death in 1598 would threaten the fragile peace he had forged, as his son and heir was just a boy, and a council of five regents was appointed to rule in his stead. Though Motochika was not a member of the council, he was still a man of influence, and in 1599, he was in Kyoto for an audience with Toyotomi Hideyori (Hideyoshi’s son) when he fell seriously ill.

    When it became clear that he wasn’t going to get better, he made his will, leaving control of the Chosokabe to his son Morichika, before he passed away in May that year. Morichika’s accession was far from smooth; he was unpopular amongst some of the Chosokabe’s retainers (apparently due to his arrogance and short temper), and the Toyotomi, de facto masters of Japan, didn’t recognise him as the new head of the clan.

    An early 20th century depiction of Chosokabe Morichika.

    Morichika would try to make good on his appointment by joining the Western Army (the pro-Toyotomi side) at the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600. This would prove to be an unwise choice in the end, as the Western Army was defeated by the Eastern Army under Tokugawa Ieyasu. Although the Chosokabe had not actually been involved in the final battle, they had chosen a side and would not escape the consequences.

    Morichika was punished by having Tosa taken from him. Though there would be some protest, the decision proved to be final, and the Chosokabe’s time as feudal lords was over. Motochika would campaign to have his territory restored until around 1605. In 1610, he supposedly became a monk, and although his movements around this time are unclear, by 1612, he was under direct surveillance from the new Tokugawa Shogunate.

    The new Shogun was right to suspect him, as, during the Osaka Campaign in 1615, he sided with the Toyotomi, hoping to secure the restoration of Chosokabe lands in Tosa. In the event, the Tokugawa would be victorious in that campaign, snuffing out the last of the Toyotomi Clan, and securing their rule.

    A contemporary kawaraban, a kind of early newspaper, depicting the fall of Osaka Castle.

    Morichika is reported to have fought bravely, leading an attack on the Tokugawa’s main camp that was ultimately unsuccessful, but which managed to inflict serious casualties on the Tokugawa army before being forced to withdraw. With Osaka Castle eventually falling to the Tokugawa, Morichika initially fled, but he was discovered and then humiliated by being paraded around Kyoto before being beheaded.

    Morichika’s death brought an end to the Chosokabe. Some sources state he had as many as five sons, all of whom died premature and violent deaths. Some other sources, however, suggest that he had just two children, a girl and a boy, one who married a local retainer, and the other who was whisked away after the Siege of Osaka and raised elsewhere. Unfortunately, in both cases, reliable sources are hard to come by, and the truth appears to be that the Chosokabe died with Morichika.

    The Chosokabe name would be revived in later years by descendants of Motochika’s brother, Chikafusa, who had been adopted into the Shima Clan years earlier and thus survived the end of the Chosokabe. The family survived in this form until March 2025, when the last head of the family, Chosokabe Tomochika, passed away childless, aged 82.

    「今は個人の時代。家を背負う時代ではありません。逆にこれからの世代が、自分の思いで新しい歴史を作っていくのも立派なことじゃないかと思いますね」

    “We are now in the age of the individual. It is no longer the age to shoulder the burden of a family. On the contrary, I think it is admirable for future generations to create a new history based on their own ideas.” – Chosokabe Tomochika

    Sources
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%95%B7%E5%AE%97%E6%88%91%E9%83%A8%E7%9B%9B%E8%A6%AA
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%85%AD%E6%9D%A1%E6%B2%B3%E5%8E%9F
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%95%B7%E5%AE%97%E6%88%91%E9%83%A8%E5%85%83%E8%A6%AA
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ch%C5%8Dsokabe_Morichika
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%82%B5%E3%83%B3%EF%BC%9D%E3%83%95%E3%82%A7%E3%83%AA%E3%83%9A%E5%8F%B7%E4%BA%8B%E4%BB%B6
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E4%B8%8B%E7%94%B0%E5%9F%8E_(%E4%BC%8A%E8%B1%86%E5%9B%BD)
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/San_Felipe_incident_(1596)
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%95%B7%E5%AE%97%E6%88%91%E9%83%A8%E6%B0%8F
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%95%B7%E5%AE%97%E6%88%91%E9%83%A8%E5%8F%8B%E8%A6%AA
    https://croissant-online.jp/life/54209/

  • Memento Mori, Part 3

    Memento Mori, Part 3

    Last time, we looked at how the relationship between Mori Terumoto and Oda Nobunaga broke down, leaving both sides on the verge of conflict. After Terumoto declared for the Shogun, Ashikaga Yoshiaki (the last Ashikaga Shogun) declared that Terumoto would serve as ‘Vice Shogun’, a slightly ambiguous position which was rendered largely moot in practice, as the Shogun relied almost entirely on Mori’s strength of arms, reducing him to little more than a figurehead.

    Ashikaga Yoshiaki, the last of the Ashikaga Shoguns, and little more than a figurehead.

    The first action of this new ‘Shogunate’ (read: Mori) army was supporting the besieged warrior monks of Ishiyama Hongan-ji. You may recall in the post about the Ikko-Ikki, we mentioned Nobunaga’s campaigns against Hongan-ji, which ultimately lasted more than a decade, and left the temple a charred ruin.

    The Mori, possessing one of the most powerful navies amongst the Sengoku Daimyo, dispatched a fleet which made short work of the Oda forces in Osaka Bay, opening the way for supplies to be delivered to Hongan-ji. This victory prolonged the siege and gave the Mori unchallenged control of the Seto Inland Sea in the short term.

    Later that year, Nobunaga sought to restore the Amago Clan (long-time enemies of the Mori) to a position of strength, putting up Amago Katsuhisa, the last Amago ‘lord’ at Kozuki Castle, in Harima Province, hoping to attract Amago loyalists and any other opponents of the Mori, and make life difficult for Terumoto.

    A later image of Amago Katsuhisa, the last ‘lord’ of the Amago Clan.

    In response, Terumoto himself led an army to lay siege to Kozuki, and when a relief force, led by Hashiba (later Toyotomi) Hideyoshi, arrived, Terumoto handily defeated it, driving the Oda out of Harima Province, taking Kozuki Castle, and obliging the remaining Amago partisans to commit seppuku, which isn’t bad for a day’s work.

    Not long after this success, Terumoto would expand his influence in Harima still further, convincing several lords to defect to the Mori, and bottling up Nobunaga’s remaining loyalists in the province. After this series of successes, Terumoto had Nobunaga on the back foot, and in response, he pressured the Imperial Court to issue an order that Hongan-ji make peace with Nobunaga. The monks of Hongan-ji expressed a desire to make peace, but not without Terumoto, to whom they owed a debt of gratitude. In response, Nobunaga agreed and began negotiations with Hongan-ji and the Mori.

    The strategic situation shifted considerably in the early winter, however, as a Mori fleet dispatched to deliver further supplies to Hongan-ji was defeated by new ironclad ships of the Oda Navy. The exact nature of these vessels isn’t clear; the word ‘ironclad’ is a direct translation from Japanese, implying the vessels were at least partially armoured, though the exact style and extent of armour isn’t clearly recorded.

    An example of the type of warship used by the Mori Navy.

    Shortly after this victory, which drove the Mori beyond Awaji Island and opened Osaka Bay to the Oda, Nobunaga swiftly called off negotiations and made plans to continue the war. Despite the defeat, the Mori were still in a very strong position, however, and at this point, Terumoto made plans to advance on Kyoto and take the fight to Nobunaga directly.

    Plans were laid, including negotiation with Takeda Katsuyori for a simultaneous attack on Nobunaga’s ally, Tokugawa Ieyasu, and Terumoto set the date of the start of the campaign for early 1579. However, early 1579 came and went, and the Mori did not march. A series of rebellions broke out around the same time, supposedly instigated by both Nobunaga and the Otomo Clan (rivals to the Mori on Kyushu), and Terumoto had his hands full.

    The situation went from bad to worse for the Mori throughout 1579, as several border clans, angered at what they saw as a ‘betrayal’ when Terumoto failed to march on Kyoto, defected to the Oda side, disrupting communications with troops on the front line, and opening several gaps in Mori defences. The Mori failure to march also resulted in no further attempts to relieve Hongan-ji, and it was forced to surrender in early 1580.

    Not long after that, Nobunaga was able to focus significant forces on the Mori, and an army led by Hashiba Hideyoshi took advantage of the Mori’s weak position and launched a series of successful attacks against them, capturing castle after castle. A counter-attack in February 1582 led to a brief reprieve, but news from elsewhere was bad.

    A later artistic depiction of Toyotomi Hideyoshi (then still called Hashiba) around 1582.

    The Takeda, with whom the Mori had allied against Nobunaga, were decisively defeated in early Spring, and with their removal, Nobunaga turned his entire attention to the Mori. The situation was dire. A little more than five years earlier, the Mori had been a match for Nobunaga; indeed, had Terumoto marched on Kyoto, he would have had a good chance of success.

    Now, however, Nobunaga was stronger than ever, and internal rebellion, defections, and military defeats meant that the Mori were far weaker in comparison. Had Nobunaga advanced, he almost certainly would have won.

    As is so often the case, however, fate intervened. Nobunaga was betrayed by one of his generals in June 1582 and killed. His supporters immediately turned on each other, with Hashiba Hideyoshi, the man who had been leading the charge against the Mori, wishing to establish himself as Nobunaga’s successor, and so he concluded a swift peace with the Mori. For his part, Terumoto was glad to accept, even though it meant sacrificing three provinces. When news of Nobunaga’s death broke, Ashikaga Yoshiaki, still with the Mori, ordered Terumoto to march on Kyoto and take advantage of the situation.

    A 19th century depiction of Oda Nobunaga’s final moments.

    Terumoto refused, still forced to deal with internal rebellion, and although there would be plenty of opportunities to involve himself in the chaotic fighting that followed Nobunaga’s betrayal, the Mori would not move, instead adopting a ‘wait and see’ approach, which, in hindsight was wise, as although history would record Hideyoshi as the ultimate victor, in the summer of 1582, that was far from certain.

    One thing that Terumoto did agree to, however, was refusing to accept the ceding of three provinces to Hideyoshi as part of their peace deal. No doubt the Mori felt that Hideyoshi had misled them (Terumoto hadn’t known about Nobunaga’s death before the agreement), and with Nobunaga’s successors tearing each other apart, the Mori were in a good position to keep hold of their territory.

    Negotiations dragged on, even after Hideyoshi was able to win a decisive victory at the Battle of Shizugatake in April 1583, and he began to lose patience, threatening a resumption of war if the Mori didn’t concede. It would not be until early 1585 that a peace was actually agreed, and it was achieved largely without fresh fighting. The Mori would be allowed to keep seven provinces, representing much of the territory that had been taken by Terumoto’s grandfather, Motonari. In exchange, the Mori agreed to support Hideyoshi’s campaigns to unite the realm, especially in Shikoku and Kyushu, which the Mori assisted in invading in May 1585 and August 1586, respectively.

    The strategic situation in 1584, just after Hideyoshi secured power. The Mori are represented in yellow, and Hideyoshi in red.
    By Alvin Lee – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=39198357

    Finally, in the summer of 1586, Terumoto formally became a vassal of Hideyoshi (by now known as Toyotomi), ending decades of conflict and proving to be a significant step in bringing the Sengoku Jidai to an end more generally. A testament to the new trust placed in the Mori came in 1590, when Hideyoshi attacked the Hojo Clan, masters of the Kanto. Though the Mori did not join the campaign, Mori troops were entrusted with guarding the capital while Hideyoshi was away.

    Around this time, Terumoto completed his new base at Hiroshima Castle and would take part in Hideyoshi’s ill-fated invasion of Korea in 1592. We will go into more detail about the events that followed later, but after Hideyoshi’s death in 1598, Terumoto was named as one of five regents for his infant son, Hideyori.

    The five regents were meant to stabilise the realm until Hideyori came of age, but it didn’t work; Tokugawa Ieyasu was swiftly opposed by the other four as it was believed (rightly as it turned out) that he wished to overthrow the current government and make himself Shogun. The tension would eventually lead to a new outbreak of violence, and a brief campaign culminated in the decisive Battle of Sekigahara in 1600.

    Teruhito and the Mori Clan were officially in opposition to the victorious Ieyasu, but had dispatched only a small force to Sekigahara, keeping their main strength at Osaka Castle to guard the heir. This was the strongest castle in the realm, and Terumoto had tens of thousands of fresh troops with which to hold it. Ieyasu, apparently aware of this, dispatched a letter to Terumoto, expressing his desire for positive relations between the two, and hoping that the Mori would depart Osaka without further violence.

    The walls of Osaka Castle as they appeared in 1865.

    Terumoto agreed when Ieyasu confirmed that the Mori would lose no territory in the aftermath. However, Ieyasu would almost immediately go back on his word once Terumoto was safely away from Osaka. The Mori were reduced to just two provinces in the far west, Suo and Nagato, and almost all the territory taken by Motonari and Terumoto was lost.

    Terumoto himself would officially retire as head of the clan not long after Sekigahara and became a monk, though in reality, he would retain most of the actual authority within the clan. One challenge that came about almost immediately was the loss of income that came with the loss of territory. Before Sekigahara, the Mori had had an income of more than 1 million koku (a Koku being approximately how much rice one man needed for a year). After Sekigahara and the loss of five of their provinces, this income was down to less than 300,000.

    This loss in income led to a loss in strength, as many of the clan’s retainers found their stipends reduced or lost entirely, leading them to seek employment elsewhere (just in case you thought Samurai were all about unquestioned loyalty.) Terumoto rather astutely recognised that this reduction might actually benefit the clan long term, as disloyal vassals would leave quickly, and even those who remained could be chosen based on ability, leading to a reduction in the clan’s overall strength, but perhaps improving skill and efficiency, at least in theory.

    A 19th century photograph of Hagi Castle, where the Mori Clan were based after their forced relocation.

    This would prove a wise move, as a land survey in 1610 showed that the Mori’s financial situation was better than originally assumed, and the reduction in vassals and retainers had led to a leaner, more efficient administration.

    Peace in the realm would last a while under Tokugawa Ieyasu’s rule, but it was a fragile thing. In 1614, the now adult Toyotomi Hideyori (Hideyoshi’s heir) brought about a crisis when a new prayer bell was inscribed with language that was interpreted as calling for the overthrow of the Tokugawa. Hideyori holed up in Osaka Castle and called on all ‘loyal vassals’ to come to his aid. Most, including Terumoto, ignored him, and when Ieyasu marched on Osaka, he requested the Mori dispatch their navy in support, which they duly did.

    Terumoto also led an army to Osaka, though the Mori would ultimately play a relatively small role in the so-called Winter Siege of Osaka. The following year, during what is called the Summer Siege, Ieyasu attacked Osaka again, this time successfully, capturing and executing Hideyori, and bringing his line to an end.

    Tokugawa Ieyasu, the man who would ultimately bring the Sengoku Jidai to an end.

    The Mori were again asked to dispatch an army, but delays in orders and the length of the march meant they arrived only after Osaka had fallen. There was some concern that this delay might be interpreted as treachery by Ieyasu; however, even the savvy political operator, Ieyasu, chose to lay the blame on slow communication instead, sparing the blushes of the Mori.

    Terumoto, his health failing and age catching up with him, handed full control of the clan over to his heir, Hidenari, in 1621, and although a formal system of ‘dual leadership’ would continue, it was becoming increasingly clear that Terumoto’s time was running out.

    He would continue to play a role in the affairs of the Mori until his death in 1625, and his clan’s distant position from the new capital in Edo afforded them a certain degree of autonomy, at least with regard to internal affairs, in the years that followed.

    That would prove important in the 19th century, as the arrival of American ships in Edo Bay forced Japan to end its period of isolation. It would be the Mori Clan, based in what by then was called the Choshu Domain, who would lead the charge against the Tokugawa Shogunate, overthrowing it, and re-establishing Imperial Rule in the so-called Meiji Restoration, but we are getting way ahead of ourselves.

    Mori Motonari, the last lord of Choshu Domain.

    Mori Terumoto is one of the giants of the Sengoku Era. Building on the successes of his grandfather, Motonari, he led the Mori to a position in which they may well have been able to take power for themselves, had things gone a little differently. Ultimately, despite never gaining ultimate power for themselves, Terumoto and his successors would prove to be one of the success stories of this period, surviving the turmoil and even thriving in the new Japan of the 19th Century.

    Sources
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%AF%9B%E5%88%A9%E8%BC%9D%E5%85%83
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%BA%83%E5%B3%B6%E5%9F%8E
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E4%BA%AC%E8%8A%B8%E5%92%8C%E7%9D%A6
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%B3%A5%E5%8F%96%E5%9F%8E
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%89%84%E7%94%B2%E8%88%B9
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%89%AF%E5%B0%86%E8%BB%8D
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M%C5%8Dri_Terumoto
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%B0%BC%E5%AD%90%E5%8B%9D%E4%B9%85
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyotomi_Hideyoshi
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tokugawa_Ieyasu

  • Takeda-mned if you don’t…

    Takeda-mned if you don’t…

    (I had to make this a two-parter or the joke in the title wouldn’t have worked.)

    Note: Takeda Shingen’s real name was Harunobu, with Shingen being a name he took as part of his religious vocation. In keeping with my policy of using the names that figures are best known by, we’ll be referring to him as Shingen throughout this post, but in other sources, he is often called Harunobu, just so you know.

    Takeda Shingen, who has kind of become an unofficial mascot of this site.

    In June 1541, Takeda Shingen (then known as Harunobu) overthrew his father, Nobutora, and established himself as the leader of the Takeda Clan and master of Kai Province. As we mentioned last time, the exact reasons for this coup aren’t known; some sources say he was overthrowing his tyrannical father, others that it was a self-serving power grab, but whatever his motivation, Harunobu was in charge, and he had big plans.

    The strategic and diplomatic situation that Shingen inherited was full of risks and opportunities. His father had successfully subjugated all of Kai Province and even expanded the borders of Takeda control into neighbouring Shinano. He had been a fierce rival of the Hojo Clan, based in Izu and Sagami Provinces (modern day Kanagawa Prefecture), but had established peaceful relations or alliances with other powerful neighbours.

    Almost immediately, Shingen would chart a radically different course. His father had been allied with the Suwa Clan of Shinano, to the Takeda’s north, but in June 1542, Shingen invaded Shinano Province, defeating the Suwa at the Battle of Kuwabara Castle, and forcing their leader to commit suicide, absorbing their lands into his own.

    Takeda territory is in blue, and the clans that Shingen quickly made enemies of are shown approximately in red.

    Though the result of this campaign is relatively undisputed, the exact nature of how things got started is more controversial. Allegedly, in March 1542, before Shingen’s invasion of Shinano, the Suwa Clan and their allies attacked first, before being defeated at the Battle of Sezawa. The problems come from there being little evidence that this battle ever took place, with some historians suggesting that it might have been a later invention to justify Shingen’s invasion after the fact.

    Regardless of its origins, the campaign would be a long and ultimately successful one for Shingen. A series of battles through the late 1540s put the Takeda in a pre-eminent position in Shinano. By 1553, the clan occupied almost the entire province; only the far north, around the modern city of Nagano, remained outside their control.

    This would prove significant later, but during this period, Shingen would also prove himself to be a savvy political player as well. In 1544, Shingen made peace with the Hojo and then mediated between them and the Imagawa, bringing an end to their conflict, allowing both clans to focus on issues elsewhere, and securing peace on Kai’s southern borders.

    Hojo Ujiyasu, with whom Shingen made peace.

    Turning his attention back to Shinano, Shingen would launch semi-annual campaigns into Shinano, winning a series of victories against the clans based in the province, and slowly extending Takeda dominance. He didn’t have it all his own way, however; in March 1548, the Takeda marched against the Murakami Clan, one of their chief rivals for control of Shinano. The Battle of Uedahara was arguably a draw, as both sides suffered similar losses; however, the Takeda advance was stopped, and they lost several key commanders, with Shingen himself being wounded.

    In July of that year, another of Shingen’s enemies in Shinano, the Ogasawara Clan, sought to take advantage and push the Takeda back into Kai; however, at the Battle of Shiojiri Pass, the Ogasawara were decisively defeated by a resurgent Shingen, and the momentum would swing back in favour of the Takeda.

    In 1550, Shingen took control of what is today called the Matsumoto Basin (around the modern city of the same name), but a second serious defeat would follow in September of that year, as the Takeda tried and failed to take Toishi Castle. Sources differ, with some saying the Takeda lost a fifth of their forces, and others saying it was as many as two-thirds.

    Although losses were clearly heavy, as with Uedahara a few years earlier, Shingen wasn’t on the back foot for long. In April 1551, Toishi Castle was taken (supposedly through trickery), and over the next two years, he would drive the Murakami Clan out of Shinano, until they were forced to flee Shinano entirely.

    This left Shingen in control of almost all of Shinano, but it also presented a new problem. In fleeing Shinano, the Murakami Clan sought the support of another powerful player in the region, the lord of Echigo Province and lord of a clan that was every bit as powerful as the Takeda, Uesugi Kenshin. Though neither side knew it yet, the stage was now set for one of the great rivalries of the Sengoku Period.

    A later depiction of Uesugi Kenshin, Shingen’s legendary rival.

    Shingen and Kenshin would clash repeatedly in the years to come, mostly at and around the now-famous battlefield of Kawanakajima (which literally means “The Island in the River”). The first clash of these rivals would come in April 1553, and would be indecisive, but the frontier in northern Shinano would remain volatile.

    In 1554, Shingen strengthened his diplomatic position by marrying his son to a daughter of the Imagawa Clan, followed shortly afterwards by a marriage of his son to a daughter of the Hojo Clan, who were also conveniently an enemy of the Uesugi. Following the establishment of the so-called Koso Alliance, Shingen secured control of southern Shinano and advanced into neighbouring Mino Province, securing the submission of several border clans in the process.

    The second and third Battles of Kawanakajima would be fought in 1555 and 1557, respectively, and both would end in further stalemate, but following the third battle, the Shogun (very much a figurehead at this point) issued a command that both sides make peace. Kenshin accepted immediately, but Shingen responded that he would only make peace if the Shogun named him shugo (governor) of Shinano, which was duly granted.

    In 1559, the Eiroku Famine and a serious flood in Kai Province led to the cessation of hostilities (at least temporarily) and that year, Shingen became a monk, formally adopting the name Shingen. Exactly why he chose to become a monk isn’t recorded, but it is speculated that it was in response to the twin disasters of famine and flood, with Shingen perhaps seeking divine intervention.

    Whether or not the gods were listening isn’t known, but after 1560, Shingen and the Takeda clan would begin to move away from older alliances and local authority and towards a policy of seeking power on the national stage. In May 1560, the Imagawa, allies of the Takeda, were severely defeated by the rising star that was Oda Nobunaga, and although Shingen publicly declared his intention to continue the alliance, he made secret arrangements with Nobunaga, with his son, Katsuyori, marrying Nobunaga’s adopted daughter.

    Oda Nobunaga. He would go on to be one of the most significant figures in Japanese history, but in the 1560s he was just getting started.

    The relationship continued to break down until 1567, when the Imagawa ended the trade of salt (abundant in their coastal provinces) to Kai, effectively cutting the Takeda off from this vital resource. The next year, in cooperation with a former Imagawa vassal, Tokugawa Ieyasu (then known as Matsudaira Motoyasu), Shingen invaded Imagawa territory, taking Suruga Province, whilst Ieyasu invaded Totomi, to the west.

    The invasion was a military success, but had serious diplomatic repercussions more or less immediately. The relationship with the Imagawa was obviously already pretty bad, but when Shingen tried to enlist the help of the Hojo in attacking Suruga, he was rebuffed, and the Hojo would instead send troops to support their Imagawa allies.

    The relationship with Ieyasu, always a marriage of convenience, broke down swiftly as well. The erstwhile allies got into a dispute about actual control of Totomi Province, and Ieyasu took his proverbial ball and went home, making peace with the Imagawa, and ignoring his previous agreement with Shingen.

    Tokugawa Ieyasu. Much like Nobunaga, he came up in the shadow of men like Shingen, but the future was very bright indeed for him and his clan.

    Shingen, now surrounded by potential enemies, sought out allies amongst the pre-existing enemies of the Hojo, and launched a counter-attack in 1569, getting as far as the Hojo capital at Odawara, which he briefly laid siege to before withdrawing, contenting himself with burning the town around the fortress.

    Retreating to Kai, Shingen defeated a pursuing Hojo force at the Battle of Mimasu Pass, effectively ending the Hojo threat to Kai and preventing them from intervening further in the invasion of Suruga. By the end of 1569, Shingen was in complete control of the province.

    Shingen would consolidate his position, but in 1571, Oda Nobunaga, with whom Shingen had enjoyed good relations previously, attacked and burned Mt Hiei, one of the holiest sites in Japanese Buddhism, sparking religious outrage across the realm.

    Shingen, who was a monk, remember, was personally outraged, and allowed surviving monks from Mt Hiei to take refuge in Kai. In 1572, the Shogun, Ashikaga Yoshiaki, sent a letter, reaching out to Shingen and calling on him to march on Kyoto and destroy Nobunaga.

    By this point, the Shogun’s options were severely limited (Yoshiaki would prove to be the last Ashikaga Shogun), but it was probably a smart move. By the early 1570s, Nobunaga had risen to become one of the most powerful warlords in Japan, and there simply weren’t that many contemporaries who could match him for strength and strategic acumen.

    Ashikaga Yoshiaki, the last Ashikaga Shogun. Even by the standards of his troubled dynasty, Yoshiaki was a powerless leader.

    Shingen had the strength, he had the experience, and after Mt Hiei, he had plenty of reason to answer the Shogun’s request. Gathering somewhere in the region of 27,000 men, a gigantic army for the time, the Takeda Steamroller began its move west in October 1572, first striking at Tokugawa Ieyasu’s territory in Mikawa Province, taking several fortresses in a matter of days, and forcing Ieyasu to call for help from Nobunaga.

    Nobunaga, however, was busy elsewhere, and could only spare 3000 troops to help, not nearly enough, and whenever Tokugawa forces made a stand, they were defeated. Initially, Ieyasu sought to defend the castle at Hamamatsu, a strong position, but weak strategically, as Shingen was able to bypass it on his march to Kyoto.

    Forced to either give battle or see himself rendered effectively impotent, Ieyasu marched out and met Shingen at Mikatagahara in January 1573. The result was a catastrophic defeat for Ieyasu, who saw his army scattered in all directions, with thousands left for dead on the battlefield. It was only due to the heroic resistance of several of his retainers that Ieyasu himself was able to survive the battle.

    A 19th century depiction of the Battle of Mikatagahara.

    Flush with victory, the Takeda forces would continue their advance, defeating what remained of the Tokugawa Clan and securing many castles throughout Mikawa Province. At that point, it may well have seemed that Shingen was well placed to launch a final thrust at the capital, and it isn’t unreasonable to speculate that, had such an attack occurred, he may have been successful, and we might today be talking about a ‘Takeda Shogunate’.

    Alas, it wasn’t to be. Despite his military and political acumen, Shingen was still just a man. His health had been getting steadily worse for years. As early as 1571, he was forced to abandon military action due to symptoms as severe as coughing up blood, and after Mikatagahara, his condition took a turn for the worse.

    In early spring 1573, Shingen made the decision (or had it made for him) to return to Kai Province to recover his health. Somewhere along the road home, however, he died. Exactly when and where he passed isn’t clear, but most historians agree it was sometime in April. According to Shingen’s will, his death was kept a secret, and although this would later lead to speculation around the circumstances of his death (perhaps best seen in the film Kagemusha), Shingen’s remains were most likely returned to his capital in modern Kofu, Yamanashi Prefecture.

    A later artistic rendition of Shingen’s final moments.

    Shingen’s sudden death raises some of the most interesting ‘what if?’ questions of this period. He was arguably one of the few men who could match Oda Nobunaga for strength and cunning, and it is possible that, if he had lived, he might have defeated Nobunaga and perhaps led the unification of Japan himself.

    This is ultimately not how things played out, but Shingen’s role in Japanese history didn’t end with his death. Although he had a well-earned reputation as a warrior, he was also a wise administrator and reformer, and many of the policies he introduced in his territories were adopted by those who came after him, with some even going on to influence Japanese law after the Sengoku Jidai, but we’ll talk about that another time.

    Sources
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%AD%A6%E7%94%B0%E4%BF%A1%E7%8E%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%9D%BE%E6%9C%AC%E7%9B%86%E5%9C%B0
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    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E7%94%B2%E7%9B%B8%E9%A7%BF%E4%B8%89%E5%9B%BD%E5%90%8C%E7%9B%9F
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%AE%AE%E5%B7%9D%E3%81%AE%E6%88%A6%E3%81%84
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%B2%B3%E6%9D%B1%E3%81%AE%E4%B9%B1
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%AB%98%E9%81%A0%E5%90%88%E6%88%A6
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E7%94%B2%E5%B7%9E%E6%B3%95%E5%BA%A6%E6%AC%A1%E7%AC%AC
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%A1%91%E5%8E%9F%E5%9F%8E%E3%81%AE%E6%88%A6%E3%81%84
    https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E7%80%AC%E6%B2%A2%E3%81%AE%E6%88%A6%E3%81%84
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ashikaga_Yoshiaki
    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Mikatagahara