The Warring States period was a time when the whole of Japan was in a state of war.
So far, I have introduced the situation in the Kanto, Tohoku, and Kinki regions, but I would like to look at the Kyushu and Shikoku regions as well.
In the Kyushu region introduced today, it is also called [Kyushu's Three Kingdoms] because three big daimyo families have emerged. Most of the conflicts in the region so far have involved the shogunate and those in power at that time, but the characteristic is that they are not so involved in the Kyushu region.
However, the battle in Kyushu is as fierce as the battle in the center, and there is an exchange of wisdom and tactics, so I think it is quite interesting.
Daimyo of the Three Kingdoms era in Kyushu
Then, I would like to start by introducing each daimyo.
Mr. Otomo =Yoshinori Otomo (Sorin)
He was a Sengoku daimyo who controlled the northern part of Kyushu, and had a great power from the early days of the Sengoku period.
Later, he became interested in Christianity and was baptized himself. Along with that, he invades Mr. Shimazu in the south aiming for the Christian kingdom ...
Mr. Shimazu =Yoshihisa Shimazu
Shimazu, the 16th head of the Satsuma national guardian daimyo who ruled southern Kyushu.
Following the trace of Takahisa Shimazu, who made the ground of the Shimazu clan in Satsuma, he won the battle with the people of the southern part of Kyushu who are in conflict with his younger brothers Yoshihiro Shimazu and Iehisa Shimazu, and made Shimazu the number one force in Kyushu. I raised it.
Shimazu, who controlled the southern half of Kyushu, will start invading Ryuzoji in the northwest and Otomo in the northeast.
Mr. Ryuzoji =Takanobu Ryuzoji
He was a Sengoku daimyo who ruled the northwestern part of Kyushu (now Nagasaki Prefecture), and initially did not have much power. At one point, he was attacked by Mr. Shoni and was in danger of being destroyed, but Takanobu was still a child and escaped the difficulties.
After that, when Takanobu succeeded the Ryuzoji family, he won the battle with the monarch Shoni, and also won the battle with the neighbor Otomo and expanded his power.
Kitakyushu's hegemony battle between Otomo Yoshinori (Sorin) and Motonari Motonari
1550-1564 At that time, it had great power in Kitakyushu and the Chugoku region [ Ouchi ] Has begun to collapse. The famous family who ruled this region from the Heian period was Shigeomi [ Sue Harukata ] By the coup d'etat, the owner, Yoshitaka Ouchi Will commit suicide.
And Sue Harukata was adopted by Mr. Otomo because Yoshitaka Ouchi had no heirs. Yoshitaka Otomo Younger brother Yoshinaga Was welcomed and supported by the head of the Ouchi family. However, it goes without saying that Sue Harukata holds the real power of the Ouchi family, and Yoshinaga Ouchi was the owner of the decoration.
After that, Mori Motonari was under the control of Mr. Ouchi. Is Sue Harukata in the name of the lord's slaughter I will collide. Sue Harukata was cornered and committed suicide on Itsukushima Island in the Seto Inland Sea, and was isolated Yoshinaga Ouchi . Was attacked and beaten by Mori Motonari.
This Itsukushima Battle The territory of Mr. Ouchi in the Chugoku region will be controlled by Mr. Mouri.
On the other hand, Otomo Yoshinori in Kitakyushu Is Yoshinaga Ouchi Claims the rights of Mr. Ouchi's territory in Kitakyushu by saying that he was his younger brother, and will effectively control Kitakyushu while having a dialogue with Mr. Mori.
Kitakyushu is a trading city with great economic power [ Hakata ], And both Mr. Mouri and Mr. Otomo thought that it was an important place. Therefore, Mori Motonari cannot easily give up the land of Kitakyushu.
Otomo Yoshinori during the battle between pottery and Mori Was requested by Yoshinaga Ouchi for reinforcements, but did not send reinforcements to avoid a conflict with Mr. Mori. However, it wasn't small enough to soften Mori Motonari to that extent.
Working with the imperial court and the shogunate to ensure the rule of Kitakyushu Buzen and Chikuzen guardians And [Kyushu quest] Otomo Yoshinori got the title of. However, it was not easy to actually control Kitakyushu.
Shoni , a well-known family who was a former general in the Kamakura period and had great power in this area. There was the existence of. Mr. Ouchi is also Mr. Shoni Also famous Therefore, the people of Kitakyushu followed, but Mr. Otomo at the pot did not have many followers.
It seems that the background is that trade in China and the Korean Peninsula was flourishing in this area, and there were many powers with high economic and military power, even though they were nationals.
The confrontation between Mr. Otomo and Mr. Mouri became decisive when Mr. Akizuki, a subordinate of the former Shoni clan, relied on Mr. Mouri and requested support for subduing Mr. Otomo. 1559 At the request of Mr. Akizuki, Motonari will attack and occupy Moji Castle, a castle in the Kanmon Strait between Kyushu and the Chugoku region, with a large army.
In the dialogue with Mori, I thought that Kitakyushu's rights were my own Otomo Yoshinori Was struck by the invasion of Mouri.
Otomo Yoshinori He soon gathered an army and headed for the recapture of Moji Castle himself in a large army. However, the Mori family's Nomi Munekatsu and Kobayakawa Takakage And Murakami Suigun Otomo Yoshinori's Moji Castle recapture failed It ended in.
When the Mouri army pursued the retreating Otomo army ahead of time, the Otomo army suffered great damage. This battle is Moji Battle Otomo Yoshinori was priestly priestly Sorin due to the shock of a big defeat. I will call myself.
Moji Battle Sorin Otomo, who lost to Mori Motonari, will take measures.
Shogun Ashikaga Yoshiteru While making a donation to the Mori clan, he appeals for the outrage of the Mori clan and installs the mediation of peace by the Shogunate.
In response to this move, Motonari tried to proceed with peace negotiations with the Otomo family alone, but Amago opposed it and tried to postpone the negotiations, and the negotiations continued for several years.
1564 Finally, Mori's occupied territory in Kitakyushu is returned to Mr. Otomo By doing so, peace was established, and Mori could concentrate on Amago and Otomo on controlling Kyushu.
Satsuma Province Upheaval
At that time, Mr. Shimazu was emerging in Satsuma, southern Kyushu.
This Shimazu originally ruled Southern Kyushu Satsuma Shugo It was a famous family.
However, in the Warring States period, national lords emerged in various parts of Southern Kyushu, and the power of the head family, Shimazu, was completely weakened.
So, Yoshihisa's grandfather, Shimazu Nisshinsai Although he was a branch family, he is expected to recover Mr. Shimazu, who was highly evaluated as a military commander and has declined, and will succeed the head family.
1543 In, an event that changed the fate of Mr. Shimazu happened.
[gun] It is the tradition of.
Tanegashima Tokitaka spent a lot of money to purchase the guns that the Portuguese had drifted to Tanegashima, and this was transmitted to Satsuma and put into practical use rapidly.
1554 In the battle for the family reign of the Shimazu clan that took place in Satsuma around that time, it seems that the shooting of guns had already occurred, and Mr. Shimazu was the earliest battle using guns among the daimyo families of the Warring States period.
1561 From around that time, Takahisa Shimazu Satsuma was already stable under the rule of the Shimazu clan when the family was succeeded. At that time, Mr. Hebei and Mr. Shimazu who dominate Osumi A banquet will be held between them.
Mr. Hebei and Mr. Shimazu have been in a friendly relationship for a long time, and they have a relationship with each other by marrying their daughters. Originally, both families seemed to have been confused for a long time, and both of them had trouble at this banquet.
After the banquet, Mr. Kimotsuki Kanetsugu's head, Kimotsuki Kanetsugu Immediately returns to the castle and prepares for the battle.
The predecessor Shimazu Nisshinsai Goes to Kimotsuki Kanetsugu to get angry, but he doesn't listen and he has no choice but to Takahisa Shimazu . Decides to fight, and the Shimazu army and the liver army enter the battle.
In addition, Mr. Hebei was a friendly Mr. Ito of Hinata . Request help. And this Mr. Ito was also a good friend Mr. Sagara of Higo The drunken fight will develop into a war that involves the whole of Southern Kyushu.
Initially, the war situation was Kimotsuki Allied Forces Will develop predominantly, and Shimazu Takahisa's younger brother will also be killed in action, and the Shimazu army will be defeated. However, about three years after the start of the war, the person who quarreled, Kimotsuki Kanetsugu, collapsed and died of illness.
Ten years after the battle began, 1571 In addition, the head of the Shimazu family, Takahisa Shimazu Will die of illness. The owner is Takahisa's child, Yoshihisa The Shimazu family will make a big leap forward.
Knowing the death of Takahisa Shimazu, the Allied Forces of Hebei, Ito, and Sagara jointly started a large-scale march and proceeded to the Shimazu territory. On the other hand, Yoshihisa's younger brother, Yoshihiro Shimazu Will strengthen the defense in preparation for the invasion of the Hebei Union, but the difference in troop strength is Mr. Shimazu 300 Against the Allied Forces 3000 was.
As I wrote in an article by Yoshihiro Shimazu before, Yoshihiro dispatched dozens of people to the direction where the Sagara clan was advancing, and when he set up a lot of flags to make it look like there was a large army and delayed the march, he sent ambush soldiers to various places. I placed it and waited for the Ito army.
When the number is exceeded, the Ito army tries to capture the Shimazu family's castle at once, surrounding the castle on the front line and attacking all at once, but the attack fails due to the desperate struggle of the Shimazu army, and the Ito army retreats once. To wait for the arrival of the Sagara army.
However, the Ito army's reinforcements did not arrive because the Sagara army looked back at the large number of Shimazu clan's flags and thought that Shimazu's reinforcements had arrived. Upon seeing it, Yoshihiro Shimazu led his main unit and started an assault on the Ito army, but he could not win the number and Yoshihiro Shimazu's unit retreated as it was.
Here, the Ito army started pursuing all at once! !!
However, this is Yoshihiro's strategy to lure enemies into siege and destroy them. 】was. When Yoshihiro Shimazu's troops, which had been retreating, suddenly stopped, they turned around and started a counterattack, and at the same time, ambush soldiers appeared all at once and surrounded the Ito army from all sides.
By the time the Ito army noticed, it was too late, and the Ito army collapsed and the general general died in the war. Furthermore, reinforcements from the Shimazu clan's home country just caught up with the Ito army's rout force, resulting in great damage to the Ito army.
Mr. Ito, who lost a large number of soldiers, could not recover from the damage, and as a result, he fell before Mr. Hebei. Mr. Toshihisa, who lost the support of Mr. Ito, has been defensive since then, but he was good at battle Yoshihiro Shimazu, Iehisa, Toshihisa I couldn't stop the offensive of my brothers, and I would continue to lose.
1574 Mr. Hebei surrenders Then, Satsuma / Osumi and Hinata The Shimazu clan, who ruled the area, expanded their power at once and gained the hegemony of Southern Kyushu.
The rise of Ryuzoji Takanobu, the bear of Hizen
In Southern Kyushu, when the battle between Mr. Shimazu and Mr. Hebei and Mr. Ito was about to be settled, in Kitakyushu, Mr. Otomo was greatly expanding its power.
After reconciling with Mori, Sorin Otomo suppressed the forces that caused the rebellion in Kitakyushu. Is Bungo From Northern Higo , Buzen / Chikuzen in Kitakyushu I took control of a large area that spreads to.
It seems that Sorin, who was relieved by this, invited a geisha to drink alcohol every day and played around in the sake pond meat forest. His vassal Tachibana Dosetsu Advised me, but I never listen to it.
Problems occur in the daily activities of Sorin Otomo.
Sorin is his vassal, Ichimada Chikami . He fell in love with his wife at first sight, hunted down and killed his parents, and made his wife his own.
It was Otomo's vassal who was angry at this, and Takahashi Kansei, the younger brother of Ichimanda Chika, who had a high achievement in the battle. Independence from home.
Due to the separation of Takahashi Kansei, many forces in Kitakyushu also separated one after another, and the Akizuki family in Kitakyushu who had escaped to Mr. Mouri also raised troops, and Mr. Mouri who had not given up on Kitakyushu was also on the anti-Otomo side. I supported the forces of.
In fact, there have been rumors about the separation of Takahashi Kansei for a long time, and it seems that Mr. Mori had been informed for quite some time, and even without this incident, there may have been a separation sooner or later.
Sorin Otomo was not silent in this rebellion, and he immediately began to invade the estranged forces. [Incarnation of Raijin] and [Kidoyuki] were particularly active in this battle. The master of the Otomo family, who was called [ Tachibana Dosetsu (at that time, Toji Kanren) 】was.
Tachibana Dosetsu With the success of Kyushu, various powers in Kyushu are defeated one after another. However, Mr. Akizuki on the anti-Otomo side requests reinforcements from the Mori clan, and while strengthening the defense at the castle, develops an endurance battle until the arrival of reinforcements.
Upon receiving the request, the Mori family will immediately dispatch a fleet of more than 100 ships to Kitakyushu. The Mouri army, which landed with the guidance of allies, attacks the castle of the Otomo family in Kitakyushu. When the Otomo army became inferior due to Mori's reinforcements, the Kitakyushu forces joined the anti-Otomo camp again.
At this time, one of the forces responsible for the anti-Otomo camp was Ryuzoji . was.
The owner, Ryuzoji Takanobu In the will of his house and testament, he succeeded the trace and revived the Ryuzoji family, and from his activity Hizen bear He was a fearless person called.
Takanobu, who was strong and strong, overthrew the hostile forces and regained the territory of Mr. Ryuzoji. After that, the power expanded steadily, and finally the former master, the famous family Shoni, was destroyed, and Ryuzoji was expanded to become a powerful power in Hizen again.
When many powers separated from the Otomo family in Kitakyushu, Mr. Ryuzoji, who was in conflict with Mr. Otomo, also participated in this. In order to hit the troublesome Ryuzoji at an early stage, the Otomo army will advance to Hizen, but here the large army of the Mori family will attack Kitakyushu.
Mori Motonari's son, Takakage Kobayakawa and Motoharu Kikkawa Will lead a large army of more than 40,000 and advance to Kitakyushu, dropping castles of Otomo army in various places one after another. Finally Tachibana Castle , which can be said to be the central base of Kitakyushu When the castle falls, the Otomo army stops attacking Ryuzoji and heads for the recapture of Tachibana Castle.
The battle is Tachibana Dosetsu The Otomo army led by is predominantly deployed and gradually surrounds Tachibana Castle.
The Mouri army that protects at the castle also fights well, and Sorin Otomo plans a plan when the battle becomes stalemate.
Sorin Otomo is a relative of the fallen Ouchi family Teruhiro Ouchi I was hiding. Sorin gave him a formal heir to the Ouchi clan, which was given by the shogunate, and gave him thousands of soldiers to revive the Ouchi clan. Chugoku region Mouri territory Let's advance to.
The forces that were indebted to Mr. Ouchi participated in this army one after another, and the troops became bigger and bigger. In addition, the remnants of the Amago clan, who had already been destroyed, and Kanosuke Yamanaka will activate the activities of the overthrowing Mori.
Even if Kitakyushu is occupied, Motonari Motonari, who will not be able to do anything if the Chugoku region falls, orders Takakage Kobayakawa and Motoharu Kikkawa of Kitakyushu to withdraw. In this way, Tachibana Castle is retaken by the Otomo army, and Toji Kanren is appointed as the castle owner. And Toji Kanren is Tachibana Dosetsu from the name of the castle. It was renamed to.
The Motonari army, who returned to the Chugoku region, immediately defeated Teruhiro Ouchi's army, but Motonari died the following year. The trace was taken over by Terumoto Mori, but after that, he faced Nobunaga Oda, and Mr. Mori did not invade Kyushu.
With the withdrawal of Mr. Mouri, the forces of Kitakyushu surrendered to Mr. Otomo one after another, and Mr. Akizuki who continued to resist the Takahashi family and the Otomo family who were the basis of the conflict was forced to obey and the anti-Otomo coalition was dismantled. ..
If this happens, Ryuzoji Takanobu will be isolated.
Mr. Ryuzoji was a powerful force in Hizen, but he was not yet in control of the whole of Hizen. Ryuzoji Takanobu immediately offered peace to Mr. Otomo, but was dismissed, and Mr. Otomo's large army marched to Mr. Ryuzoji's Saga Castle with 30,000 soldiers.
On the other hand, the total force of the Ryuzoji army was about 5,000, and it was truly desperate. However, the morale of the Ryuzoji army was high and it fought well, and the Otomo army attacking the castle could not get a decisive victory.
In the Ryuzoji family, who are fighting well but cannot expect relief, the [Surrender Theory] began to appear when they saw the increasing number of Otomo troops, and the owner, Takanobu, was thinking about the two characters of surrender at this time. It seems that.
However, the opponent was the famous general, Naoshige Nabeshima , who is also the brother-in-law of Ryuzoji Takanobu. was.
Naoshige, the ancestor of the Hizen Saga domain, pointed out that the Otomo army, which had won the number by reconnaissance, was slack. .. If you forgive me tonight, let's never win or lose in a night attack for a lifetime! ].
Naoshige Nabeshima Jumps out of the castle with only 17 horses and sorties towards Otomo's main team. However, Narimatsu Nobukatsu and Hyakutake Tomokane of the Ryuzoji army who heard the story The warlords of Mr. Ryuzoji, such as, join one after another. In addition, a group of farmers and Yamabushi who yearn for Mr. Ryuzoji and Naoshige Nabeshima joined, and eventually an army of nearly 700 people gathered.
As the night went on, the Otomo army soldiers got drunk at the banquet and fell asleep, and when the dawn was about to dawn, the Nabeshima army attacked Otomo's main team all at once and carried out a night attack.
The Otomo army was suddenly confused, and the soldiers were defeated one after another, and the general Otomo Chika was also defeated by the Ryuzoji army Narimatsu Nobukatsu. In the confused Otomo army, there was a mutual debate, and after several hours of battle, it suffered great damage, and it collapsed and routed in all directions.
This Battle of Imayama The morale of the Ryuzoji army, which won a great victory in the battle called, will be further enhanced.
The Otomo army, whose troops were destroyed and there was no sign that Saga Castle would fall, once made peace with Mr. Ryuzoji and withdrew to his home country.
After that, Mr. Ryuzoji started to invade the forces of Hizen who were hostile in this battle, and finally made a leap to become a Sengoku daimyo who controls Hizen Ichikoku, and will continue to expand the power after that.
In this way, in Kyushu, Mr. Otomo in the northeastern part of Kyushu , Mr. Ryuzoji in northwestern Kyushu , Mr. Shimazu of Southern Kyushu Three big daimyo families will reign.
Wei, Shu, Wu Three Kingdoms reminiscent of China's Three Kingdoms era It was the moment when the shape of was decided in the Kyushu region of Japan. However, although this situation does not last so long, I would like to write about the conflict between each daimyo in a separate article.