In the early 16th century, the most formidable samurai cavalry army was the Takeda. At that time, it was a mighty military force that always won victory on the battlefield. At the head was Takeda Shingen, who had two sons. It was the sons who continued his work after the death of their father. The main task was to capture Mikawa, which belonged to Tokugawa Ieyasu. However, everything did not go according to plan. The power and strength of the Takeda army, which everyone feared, changed dramatically in the second half of the 16th century.
Brave Warrior Tori
In early May 1575, an army of 15,000 soldiers led by Takeda Katsuyori entered Tokugawa territory. The first thing the warriors did was to surround Yoshida Castle. However, the castle became the first obstacle to the conquest, as the soldiers could not destroy it. Then they began to move north, with the goal of encircling Nagashino Castle. And at this stage, the Takeda army was also expected to be defeated. This moment went down in history as the Battle of Nagashino.
Torii Suniemon managed to escape from the castle. This is a brave ashigaru who was able to break out of the castle and call for reinforcements from the Tokugawa. His story of escaping from the castle is unique. The brave warrior left the castle, swam across the fast river, bypassing the nets that were placed by the enemy, and then ran 35 km to Okazaki. Requesting reinforcements from the allies, Tori returned to Nagashino. However, while trying to get back to the castle, he was captured by the enemy.
Tory was tied to a wooden cross and put on display across the river from the castle. The enemy ordered Tori to tell the men that the castle had been surrendered and there would be no reinforcements. However, the brave warrior did not follow the order. From a height, he examined his samurai, who were located on the observation towers, and shouted loudly: "People of Nagashino castles do not give up, reinforcements are on their way, wait a bit." For this, the Takeda soldier stuck a spear in Tori's stomach.
One of the Takeda detachments was so surprised by the courage and devotion of Torii that an order was given to design a battle flag with the image of the crucified. The posthumously glorious warrior was promoted to the rank of full hereditary samurai. His efforts led to the most famous samurai battle, the Battle of Nagashino.
A week later, reinforcements arrived at the site of the main battle. These were the Tokugawa forces and allied Oda. The total number of soldiers numbered 38 thousand.
Combat equipment of the samurai Oda
The combat equipment of the Oda samurai also deserves special attention. They carried not only a tool, armor, but also a long thin wooden log. In this case, from these wooden logs, the Oda warriors managed to build almost 2 km of a wooden palisade on the western side at the foot of the hilly area.
The Battle of Nagashino between the armies took place on May 21, 1575. Takeda's army was the first to attack. In front were the horsemen, and behind them were the infantry. However, their movement was not as fast as it should have been. At first the army was slowed down by the soft, muddy rice paddies, then much time was spent crossing the Rengo River. After that, the Takeda army had to go through several more rice fields before reaching the log fence that was built by the Oda samurai.
Behind the fence, 3,000 Oda soldiers were waiting for them. Each soldier was armed with a matchlock gun. It is worth noting that a gun of this type was brought to Japan only 30 years ago before the start of a big battle. The arrows of Oda very quickly killed the opponent with a powerful shot.
After the first line of attack was destroyed, Katsuyori quickly sent out a second wave of samurai. However, just a few seconds later they were also killed by heavy rifle fire. The commander was greatly shocked, but did not give up his positions. He tried again to line up the lines of the troops, but they were also completely slanted.
Thus, in this great battle, the power of firearms won. In this battle, the correct tactics chosen by General Nobunaga also played. He became a true innovator. First of all, he was well aware of the shortcomings of throwing weapons and, taking advantage of this, managed to properly line up his shooters. To do this, he placed them in small groups of 3 around the barricades. After the first shot, the second line took aim and fired. By this time, the first line had time to reload and was ready to continue the battle. Thus, a volley of fire constantly occurred.
The second blow was delivered by ashigaru foot soldiers. As soon as the Takeda samurai approached the palisade, he was immediately stopped by the ashigaru foot soldiers. They had long spears.
In this big battle, Takeda continued to actively attack, and Oda continued to shoot and fight. The battle lasted over 8 hours. The result of a massive battle: 10 thousand dead Takeda samurai and 6 thousand soldiers of the allied forces. The Takeda clan, which was very formidable, was destroyed. And 7 years after this battle, an inglorious end awaited him.
See also
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The Siege of Tihaya Castle
Tihaya Castle was built by Kusunoki Masashige on top of Mount Kongo, separated from the neighboring hills by a deep ravine. The terrain itself provided natural protection, making the position extremely convenient for defense.
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The Siege of Akasaka Fort
Kusunoki Masashige, hero of the Genko Rebellion (1331–1333), was a talented commander and inventive strategist. The two sieges of castles where he acted as defender are inscribed in gold letters in the history of Japanese military art.
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The Battle of Itinotani
After the death of Minamoto no Yoshinaka, the Genpei War entered its final phase, which is closely associated with the name of Minamoto no Yoshitsune. On March 13, 1184, he and his brother Noriyori set out to accomplish what their cousin had failed to do: deliver a final defeat to the Taira.
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The Battle of Uji 1180
Minamoto no Yorimasa did not need a special pretext for his growing hostility toward the Taira clan to turn into open rebellion. The court also included the discontented Prince Motohito, the second son of the former Emperor Go-Shirakawa. He had already been passed over twice in the selection of the heir to the throne. The second time this happened was in 1180, when the young Antoku was enthroned. Thus, Kiyomori, the head of the Taira clan, became the emperor's grandfather.
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The Battle of Shigisan
The conflict between the Soga and Mononobe clans, who were related to the imperial dynasty, arose on religious grounds. The Soga supported Buddhism, which had come from Korea, while the Mononobe remained faithful to Shintoism and fiercely opposed the spread of “foreign teachings.” Tensions reached a peak after the death of Emperor Yomei in 587.
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The Mongol invasion of Japan
At the end of the 13th century, Japan faced a danger far more serious than any internal strife. In 1271, the Yuan dynasty, founded by Kublai Khan, grandson of Genghis Khan, established itself in China. His army was truly enormous: tens of thousands of soldiers — Chinese, Koreans, Jurchen, and especially Mongols, who had conquered the territory from Korea to Poland and from the northern taiga to Egypt. Only one country remained unconquered — Japan.
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The Genpei War
As early as the 8th century AD, Japanese emperors gradually lost their real power and became symbolic figures, under the complete control of the powerful Fujiwara clan. This clan, by marrying their daughters to emperors, effectively monopolized the government of the country: all key military and administrative positions were held by representatives of the Fujiwara.
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The Rebellion of Fujiwara no Hirotsugu
Fujiwara no Hirotsugu was the son of Fujiwara no Umakai, one of the most important court officials of the Nara period. By 740, the Fujiwara clan had held the reins of government for several decades. However, in 735–737, Japan suffered a severe trial: the country was hit by a devastating smallpox epidemic. It coincided with a series of crop failures, and together, disease and famine claimed the lives of about 40% of the population of the Japanese islands. The consequences were particularly tragic for the aristocracy. The mortality rate among the court nobility exceeded that among the common people. All four Fujiwara brothers, who held the most important positions at court — Umakai, Maro, Mutimaro, and Fusasaki — died.
