Imagawa Yoshimoto, a formidable daimyo of Suruga (modern-day Shizuoka Prefecture), held a prominent position among the three influential warlords in the central Japan region, known as Tokai. His lineage was believed to trace back to a branch of the noble Minamoto clan, and Yoshimoto, displaying a nobler image than a typical warrior, blackened his teeth, shaved his eyebrows, and was carried in an ornate palanquin.
Born as the third son of Imagawa Ujichika, the 10th head of the Imagawa clan, Yoshimoto was initially sent to a temple to become a monk. Following his father's demise in 1526 and the sudden death of his elder brother Ujiteru a decade later, the Imagawa clan faced internal divisions. Factions supporting Yoshimoto engaged in war against those backing an elder half-brother, resulting in Yoshimoto's triumph in June 1536.
Upon assuming leadership of the Imagawa clan, Yoshimoto strategically married the sister of rival warlord Takeda Shingen, solidifying an alliance that kept Shingen from encroaching on Imagawa territories. In 1552, the alliance was further strengthened when Shingen's son Yoshinobu married Yoshimoto's daughter. Additionally, a political marriage was arranged between Yoshimoto's son and heir, Ujizane, and the daughter of rival warlord Hojo Ujitsuna in 1554.
In 1542, Yoshimoto set his sights on the prosperous Mikawa region controlled by the Matsudaira, later to become the Tokugawa clan. The Imagawa territories expanded over the years to include Suruga, Totomi (now Shizuoka Prefecture), and Mikawa (eastern Aichi Prefecture). Thereafter, Yoshimoto aimed for Kyoto, necessitating the conquest of Owari Province (western Aichi Prefecture), held by Oda Nobunaga.
In 1560, Yoshimoto, with a claimed force of 40,000 (an exaggeration), led 25,000 troops into Owari. The vanguard included a 19-year-old samurai named Matsudaira Motoyasu, who later became Tokugawa Ieyasu. The young Ieyasu, a political hostage of the Imagawa since age nine, had been sent ahead to deliver supplies to Odaka Castle.
The unexpected assault by Oda during the battle of Okehazama troops caught Imagawa and his men off guard. Initially thinking it was a drunken brawl, Yoshimoto investigated and was stunned to find Oda forces approaching. Despite resisting an attack by Mori Shinsuke, Yoshimoto was eventually tackled by Hattori Koheita, an Oda samurai, who took the daimyo's head. Yoshimoto Yoshimoto succumbed to the attack at the age of 41.
While there are several gravesites associated with Imagawa Yoshimoto, his remains are said to be interred at Daisei-ji Temple in Toyokawa, Aichi Prefecture.
See also
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Takigawa Kazumasu
Takigawa Kazumasu (1525 – October 21, 1586), also known as Takikawa Sakon or Sakonshogen, was a prominent samurai and daimyō of the Sengoku period. He served as a loyal retainer and military commander under Oda Nobunaga and later Toyotomi Hideyoshi. His biological son, Toshimasu, was adopted by Maeda Toshihisa, the elder brother of Maeda Toshiie, and Kazumasu served alongside Toshiie in Nobunaga’s campaigns.
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Sanada Yukitaka
Sanada Yukitaka (c. 1512 – June 8, 1574) was a renowned samurai warrior of the Sengoku period, best known as one of the "Twenty-Four Generals of Takeda Shingen." He was the father of Sanada Nobutsuna and Sanada Masayuki, as well as the grandfather of the legendary Sanada Yukimura, who later served the Toyotomi clan.
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Torii Mototada
Torii Mototada (1539 – September 8, 1600) was a Japanese samurai and daimyo who lived through the Sengoku and late Azuchi–Momoyama periods. A loyal retainer of Tokugawa Ieyasu, he is best remembered for his heroic last stand at the Siege of Fushimi, an event that played a crucial role in shaping Japanese history.
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Toyotomi Hideyori
Toyotomi Hideyori (August 28, 1593 – June 4, 1615) was the son and designated successor of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the general who first unified Japan. His mother, Yodo-dono, was Oda Nobunaga's niece.
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Okubo Tadanori
Okubo Tadanori (January 13, 1842 – August 10, 1897) was the 9th daimyo of Odawara Domain in Sagami Province (modern-day Kanagawa Prefecture) during the late Edo period. Before the Meiji Restoration, he held the courtesy title of Kaga no Kami.
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Okubo Tadayo
Okubo Tadayo (1532 – October 28, 1594) was a samurai general who served Tokugawa Ieyasu during the Azuchi–Momoyama period and later became the daimyo of Odawara Domain in the early Edo period.
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Araki Murashige
Araki Murashige (1535 – June 20, 1586) was a samurai and retainer of Ikeda Katsumasa, the head of the powerful Settsu-Ikeda clan in Settsu Province. Initially serving under Katsumasa, he aligned himself with Oda Nobunaga after Nobunaga’s successful campaign to establish control over Kyoto.
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Yuki Hideyasu
Yuki Hideyasu (March 1, 1574 – June 2, 1607) was a Japanese samurai who lived during the Azuchi–Momoyama and early Edo periods, serving as the daimyō of Fukui Domain in Echizen Province. Born Tokugawa Ogimaru, he was the second son of Tokugawa Ieyasu and Lady Oman (also known as Lady Kogō), a handmaiden to Ieyasu’s wife, Lady Tsukiyama. Due to Ieyasu’s fears of his wife’s reaction to Oman’s pregnancy, Ogimaru and his twin brother were born in secrecy at the home of Honda Shigetsugu, one of Ieyasu’s retainers. Oman’s other son eventually became a priest, while Ogimaru was raised apart from Ieyasu, whom he only met at the age of three, in a meeting arranged by his older half-brother, Matsudaira Nobuyasu.
