Siege of Inabayama Castle
| Siege of Inabayama Castle | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Part of Sengoku Period | |||||||
 Gifu Castle tenshu, 2012 | |||||||
| |||||||
| Belligerents | |||||||
| File:Oda clan logo.png Oda clan |
 Saitō clan | ||||||
| Commanders and leaders | |||||||
|
Oda Nobunaga Kuroda Kanbei |
Saitō Tatsuoki Takenaka Hanbei | ||||||
| Strength | |||||||
| 22,000 | 3,000 | ||||||
The Siege of Inabayama Castle (稲葉山城の戦い, Inabayama-jō no Tatakai) of 1567 was the final battle in Oda Nobunaga's campaign to defeat the Saitō clan in their mountaintop castle and conquer Mino Province, Japan. It was a short two-week siege, fought between 13 and 27 September 1567, or in the Japanese calendar: from the 1st to 15th day of the 8th month, in the 10th year of the Eiroku era, according to the Nobunaga Chronicle.[1] The siege ended in a decisive battle and victory of Nobunaga's combined forces, and resulted in the subjugation of the Saitō clan, their vassals, and allies. This victory was the culmination of Nobunaga's Mino campaign, waged intermittently over the previous six years, and brought an end to a rivalry between the Oda clan of Owari province and the Saitō clan of Mino, which began over twenty years earlier between Nobunaga's father, Oda Nobuhide and Saitō Dōsan.
Due to the weak leadership of the Saitō, many samurai leaders defected to Nobunaga before the battle, while others willingly submitted afterward. With this victory, Nobunaga took control of the expansive and fertile Mino Province and gained numerous supporters and resources. Nobunaga had the former Saitō castle repaired and re-named it Gifu Castle, a firm base from which to expand north into the Hokuriku region and to make his drive toward Kyoto. Gifu Castle functioned as his primary residence and military headquarters until he moved to the partially completed Azuchi Castle in 1575.
Nobunaga's young retainer Kinoshita Tōkichirō (later known as Toyotomi Hideyoshi) played an important role in attaining the victory at Inabayama. In the years leading to the battle, he negotiated for the support of local warlords, which ensured a ready-made army by the time of the attack, and built a castle on the edge of the enemy's territory to serve as a staging point for the attack. In addition to these preparations, Tōkichirō devised and led a bold plan, something of a commando raid, to break into the castle and open the gates for the attacking army. As a result of his efforts and the victory, his standing with Nobunaga rose considerably. So in addition to the battle's immediate importance to Nobunaga's plans, it was also an important step in Hideyoshi's rise to power.
Background
In 1549, young Oda Nobunaga was married to Nōhime, the daughter of Saitō Dōsan, leader of the Saitō clan of Mino Province. Although Saitō Dōsan was a strong and ruthless leader, internal strife began to split the Saitō into factions. In 1555, Saitō Yoshitatsu, eldest son of Dōsan, believing his inheritance was to be taken away, murdered his two younger brothers. The following year, he rallied troops loyal to him and openly rebelled against his father.[2] Dōsan changed his will, and named Oda Nobunaga his legal heir, and shortly after Dōsan was killed by one of Yoshitatsu's retainers at the Battle of Nagaragawa. At the time, Nobunaga was not in a position to help his father-in-law, and the Saitō civil war was perhaps too short for any active intervention to be mounted. In 1561, Yoshitatsu died of leprosy, and his son, Saitō Tatsuoki, succeeded to the leadership of the clan. At the time, Tatsuoki was young and ineffective; but as he entered adulthood, it became obvious that he would be incapable of effective leadership.
After the Oda and Matsudaira clans allied and then defeated the Imagawa clan at the 1560 Battle of Okehazama, Nobunaga was in a more secure position to focus on their northern neighbor, the Saitō clan.[3] Nobunaga was ostensibly motivated to avenge the death of his father-in-law, Saitō Dōsan, and claim his inheritance. Although Yoshitatsu died in 1561, Nobunaga continued with his plans, using revenge as a pretext for attack.
Mino campaign
Nobunaga mounted forays into Mino territory in 1561 and 1563, which resulted in brief battles. In each expedition, Nobunaga and his 700 troops were outnumbered by rapidly assembled forces under local daimyo, who would muster up to 3,000 men. Caught in the open and unable to organize a defense, Nobunaga fell back each time to his home territory.[4] The local history of Gifu city states that in 1564, Nobunaga went so far as to attack Inabayama Castle.[2] Although Tatsuoki fled in fear, his retainers Takenaka Shigeharu (called Hanbei) and Andō Morinari stayed and commanded the defense of the castle. In a meeting, Nobunaga asked Hanbei to defect, but the frustrated retainer declined. Nobunaga then left or was driven out soon afterward.[2] In later years Nobunaga had this setback expunged from records and omitted from the Nobunaga Chronicles.[1][4][5]
Starting in 1564, Nobunaga dispatched his loyal retainer, Kinoshita Tōkichirō, to convince, with liberal bribery, many of the warlords in the Mino area to defect to the growing alliance under the Oda clan.[4] In 1566, in anticipation of the upcoming campaign, Kinoshita proposed to Nobunaga that a castle should be built somewhere near Inabayama Castle, to serve as a staging point for the Oda forces. Nobunaga agreed and charged Kinoshita with the task.[6] To this end, Kinoshita built Sunomata Castle on the bank of the Sai River opposite Saitō territory.[7] The advantage of the castle's proximity to the enemy was also a problem during construction. Until the castle was complete, Kinoshita's men and the construction site were vulnerable to an amphibious attack from across the river.[4] According to legend, Kinoshita build the castle in one night;[8] however it is more likely that it was the tower's skeleton with a facade that was seen from the opposite bank.[7][9] The speed of the apparent construction were meant to give his own men a vantage point and to surprise and impress the enemy.[7] Stalled by the enemy's caution, Kinoshita's men were able to quickly transform the fragile framework into a functioning fortification, and then into a complete castle.[10] Nobunaga then ordered Kinoshita to remain as steward of the castle.[11]
Battle
In 1567, Nobunaga led an attack against the Saitō clan of Mino Province. The clan headquarters and administrative center for Mino Province was Inabayama Castle, a mountain fortress atop Mount Inaba (in present-day Gifu city). As Saitō Tatsuoki, the daimyo of the clan, had shown himself to be a cowardly and ineffective ruler, Takenaka Hanbei had staged a coup, and took command of the castle and its garrison. Although Tatsuoki was allowed to remain the titular head of the clan, he contributed nothing to the outcome of the battle. When the Oda army entered Mino, Hanbei prepared the garrison for the defense of the castle.[4][12]
According to the Shinchō kōki, or the Nobunaga Chronicles, preparations for the battle began on 13 September 1567 (Eiroku-10 year, 8-month, 1-day).[1] Nobunaga entered the area with a force of 3,000 men, and made contact with allies that brought another 9,000 troops. Among the daimyo and retainers that rallied to the Oda banner were Shibata Katsuie, Ikeda Tsuneoki, Mori Yoshinari, Sakuma Nobumori, and Maeda Toshiie.[4] Altogether, an army of about 12,000 troops crossed the Kiso River. As the troops assembled on the far shore, Nobunaga sent two messengers, Murai Sadakatsu and Shimada Hidemitsu, to three of the Saitō clan's top vassals, known as the Mino Triumvirate, asking for their cooperation in the upcoming battle. Mino warlords that Kinoshita Tōkichirō had persuaded to defect brought an additional 10,000 troops to Nobunaga's banner. As the forces loyal to Nobunaga moved across the plain, several skirmishes were fought in a futile effort to turn the invading forces.[1] Nobunaga's forces then entered the town of Inoguchi, which lay below Inabayama Castle. To clear the field of view and provide space for the besieging army, Nobunaga's samurai set fire to the town. As some soldiers took positions on Mount Inoguchi and a nearby ridgeline, the main army positioned itself before the imposing Mount Inaba to begin the siege.[4] The greatly augmented army, now bristling with the flags of the Saitō clan's former vassals and allies, bewildered the castle's defenders.[1]
During the days that followed, Kinoshita Tōkichirō dispatched men to gather intelligence, especially from peasants willing to help. One of these men, Horio Yoshiharu, found out about a little-known path that led up the north slope of the mountain. The north slopes below the castle were so steep that assault by a large force was considered impossible, and so was effectively ignored by the defenders at the advent of battle.
It is uncertain exactly what happened on the battlefield between 14-25 September. Given what is known of Nobunaga's aggressive fighting style,[13] the prevailing siege tactics of the day, the layout of the Japanese castle,[14] and the events that followed, it can be inferred that Nobunaga's forces pressed their attack and probably breached the outer defenses of Inabayama Castle.[4] However, it is certain that Kinoshita Tōkichirō devised a plan in which a small force would scale the north face of the mountain, enter the castle, and rush to open the gates for the besieging army.[4] Nobunaga approved and charged Kinoshita with leading the raid. For his team, Kinoshita selected Horio Yoshiharu, Hachisuka Koroku, and five or six other men to accompany him.[4] On 26 September, Nobunaga was so confident of Kinoshita's plan and the outcome of the battle, that he had an heraldic partition erected on the battlefield where he held a meeting with his top officers and allotted tasks pertaining to the re-construction of the castle following the battle. He also greeted the daimyo of the Mino Triumvirate, who were stunned by his audacity, and offered them sake.[1]
On the night of 26 September, Kinoshita gathered his team, and concerned over the late summer heat and the exertions in store, provided them with gourds of fresh water. Horio Yoshiharu then guided Kinoshita Tōkichirō and the small assault force around to the back of the mountain, where they climbed the steep slopes by the light of a full moon.[4] At dawn, while Kinoshita's mission was in progress, the main force under Kuroda Kanbei opened up a ranged attack on the castle garrison, distracting the defenders while ground troops moved into position.
Sometime after dawn, Kinoshita's team infiltrated the castle, set fire to a storehouse and the powder magazine, and then rushed to open the front gates, cutting down whomever got in their way.[4] With explosions erupting from the powder magazine and the other building burning fiercely, the castle defense quickly devolved into chaos, as the shocked and exhausted defenders thought they were under a full-scale attack from behind. Kinoshita's men, filthy from the night's exertions and brandishing bloody swords as they rushed across the main courtyard, added to the impression. The castle garrison was thrown into complete disarray as men were pulled from the parapets to face the nonexistent assault. When Kinoshita's team had attained the gatehouse, they tied their gourds to spears and waved them to their allies below to signal they were in position.[9] When Kinoshita's men gave the signal, Kuroda's infantry charged the open gates and overran the castle's garrison.[4]
Once victory was imminent, Kinoshita's team found a place to rest while Horio Yoshiharu passed around a large gourd of sake he had taken from the castle's supply.[4] By the end of 27 September 1567, the castle had fallen and the remaining lords of Mino province formally surrendered to Nobunaga.[1]
Aftermath
In about two weeks' time, Oda Nobunaga had entered the sprawling Mino Province, raised an army, and conquered the ruling clan in their formidable main castle. Following the battle, the Mino Triumvirate, awed by the speed and skill of Nobunaga's conquest, permanently allied themselves to Nobunaga.[1]
Nobunaga had the castle repaired and re-named it Gifu Castle. The castle-town of Inoguchi was likewise re-named Gifu, after the mountain from which Wu Wang launched his campaign to unify China.[15] Nobunaga had a lavish manor built at the base of the castle mountain. He then transferred his primary base and residence from Komaki Castle to Gifu, from which he would launch his historic march on Kyoto the following year. He continued to use Gifu Castle as his primary residence and headquarters until he moved into the partially completed Azuchi Castle in 1575.[2]
Saitō Tatsuoki survived the battle. On the night of 26 September, he abandoned the castle, took a boat, and fled down the Nagara River, and eventually found his way to Nagashima, Ise Province. He lived in exile for awhile,[1] but eventually sought refuge with Asakura Yoshikage. He was killed in the Battle of Tonezaka, at the age of 26, in 1573.[4]
The efforts of Kinoshita Tōkichirō as the mastermind of the victory were recognized by Oda Nobunaga, and his status rose accordingly.[6] Not long after the battle, Kinoshita was promoted and he took the name Hashiba Hideyoshi. When Nobunaga later gave him a field command, Hideyoshi used an image of a golden gourd as his battle standard, in commemoration of the success of his mission at Inabayama Castle.[9] In time, he would change his surname to Toyotomi. Kuroda Kanbei, who led the frontal attack, and Takenaka Hanbei, who directed the castle's defense, would both eventually serve Toyotomi Hideyoshi.[12][16]
See also
- Battle of Gifu Castle (1600)
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Ohta 2003: 54-5.
- ^ a b c d Gifu 1969: 182-5.
- ^ Hall 1991.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Soda 1991: 288-92.
- ^ Harada 2007: 31.
- ^ a b Sansom 1961: 278.
- ^ a b c Harada 2007.
- ^ Harada 2007: 29.
- ^ a b c Turnbull 2010: 10-2.
- ^ Harada 2007: 38-40.
- ^ Harada 2007: 41.
- ^ a b Harimaya 2010.
- ^ Sansom 1961.
- ^ Nakayama 2007.
- ^ Berry 1982: 38.
- ^ Harada 1996.
Bibliography
- Berry, Mary Elizabeth (1982). Hideyoshi. Harvard University Press. ISBN 0674390261.
- Gifu Prefecture Department of Education (1969). History of Gifu Prefecture: The Complete Overview of History. Vol. Middle Ages. Gifu Prefecture Press.
{{cite book}}: Unknown parameter|trans_title=ignored (|trans-title=suggested) (help) - Hall, John Whitney (editor) (1991). The Cambridge History of Japan. Vol. 4: Early Modern Japan. Cambridge University Press.
{{cite book}}:|first=has generic name (help) - Harada, Minoru 原田実 (2007). "Toyotomi Hideyoshi Built Mino-Sunomata Castle in One Night!! 豊臣秀吉は美濃墨俣に一夜城を築いた!!". The Truth of Outrageous Japanese History and Lectures on Falsified History in Academia トンデモ日本史の真相 と学会的偽史学講義. Bungeisha. pp. 29–42. ISBN 978-4-286-02751-7.
- Harada, Tanemasa 原田種眞 (1996). Kuroda Josui 黒田如水 (in Japanese). Tokyo: Benseisha 勉誠社.
- Harimaya (10 July 2010). "Takenaka Clan". Warring States Daimyo Search (in Japanese). Retrieved 1 June 2012.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|trans_title=ignored (|trans-title=suggested) (help)CS1 maint: date and year (link) - Nakayama, Yoshiaki 中山良昭 (2007). Japanese Castles. もう一度学びたい (in Japanese). Seitosha. ISBN 978-4791614219.
{{cite book}}: Unknown parameter|trans_title=ignored (|trans-title=suggested) (help) - Ohta, Gyuichi 太田牛一 (2003). "Beginning Chapter". Shincho Kouki 信長公記 (PDF) (in Japanese). Retrieved 6 April 2012.
{{cite book}}: Unknown parameter|trans_title=ignored (|trans-title=suggested) (help) - Sansom, George (1961). A History of Japan, 1334-1615. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.
- Soda, Kouichi (1991). "Nobunaga and Battle: Attack on Inabayama Castle 信長と合戦：稲葉山城攻め". 事典信長をめぐる５０人. Tokyo: Tokyo Doushuppan 東京堂出版.
{{cite book}}: More than one of|author=and|last=specified (help); Unknown parameter|trans_title=ignored (|trans-title=suggested) (help) - Turnbull, Stephen (2010). Toyotomi Hideyoshi: Leadership, Strategy, Conflict. Osprey Publishing.