Oda Nobutaka (1558–1583) was a samurai of the Oda clan, also known as Kanbe Nobutaka after being adopted as the head of the Kanbe clan, which governed the central region of Ise Province. He was the third son of Oda Nobunaga, born to a concubine named Sakashi. Nobutaka was referred to as "San Shichi," possibly because he was born on the seventh day of the third month in the Japanese lunar calendar. However, there is a theory suggesting he was born twenty days earlier than his elder brother, Oda Nobukatsu, but due to delays in reporting and the low status of his mother’s family, he was acknowledged as Nobunaga’s third son.
In 1568, after Nobunaga secured control of Ise Province, Nobutaka became the head of the Kanbe clan, ruling from Kanbe Castle near present-day Suzuka, Mie. In contrast, his brother Nobukatsu was adopted into the powerful Kitabatake clan and governed a much larger territory in southern Ise. Missionaries of the time noted that Nobutaka had a better character than Nobukatsu, despite holding a smaller domain.
In 1577, Nobutaka led a successful siege of Ota Castle (near modern Wakayama Castle) and suppressed the Jōdo Shinshū Buddhist uprising (Saika Ikki) in Kii Province. By 1582, Nobutaka was tasked with leading an army against Shikoku, commanding notable retainers such as Niwa Nagahide and Tsuda Nobuzumi, the son of Nobunaga’s younger brother, Nobuyuki.
Before the campaign began, Nobunaga was assassinated by Akechi Mitsuhide at Honnō-ji. Upon learning of his father’s death, Nobutaka returned to Osaka and executed Nobuzumi, who was married to Mitsuhide’s daughter, suspecting him of collusion with Mitsuhide. Though there was no evidence to support this, Nobutaka’s actions underscored the chaos of the period. He then allied with Hashiba Hideyoshi (later Toyotomi Hideyoshi), and together they defeated Mitsuhide’s forces at the Battle of Yamazaki.
After Nobunaga's death, disputes over succession arose. Nobutaka and Nobukatsu clashed during a council at Kiyosu Castle. Ultimately, Oda Hidenobu was declared Nobunaga’s heir. Nobutaka was granted Mino Province, previously ruled by his eldest brother, Oda Nobutada, who had been killed by Mitsuhide. However, this reward fell short of Nobutaka's expectations.
In 1583, Nobutaka allied with Shibata Katsuie and Takigawa Kazumasu in a rebellion against Hideyoshi. The alliance faltered when Nobutaka was besieged at Gifu Castle by Nobukatsu, Katsuie was defeated at the Battle of Shizugatake, and Kazumasu suffered defeat at Kameyama. Nobutaka ultimately surrendered.
Following his defeat, Nobutaka was confined to Daimidoji at Noma in Owari Province, the site where Minamoto no Yoshitomo had been assassinated centuries earlier. Under pressure from Hideyoshi and Nobukatsu, Nobutaka committed suicide in 1583. Historical records cite either June 19 or June 21 as the date of his death.
See also
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Yamagata Masakage
Masakage was one of Takeda Shingen’s most loyal and capable commanders. He was included in the famous list of the “Twenty-Four Generals of Takeda Shingen” and also belonged to the inner circle of four especially trusted warlords known as the Shitennō.
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Yagyu Munenori
Yagyū Munenori began his service under Tokugawa Ieyasu while his father, Yagyū Muneyoshi, was still at his side. In 1600, Munenori took part in the decisive Battle of Sekigahara. As early as 1601, he was appointed a kenjutsu instructor to Tokugawa Hidetada, Ieyasu’s son, who later became the second shogun of the Tokugawa clan.
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Yagyu Muneyoshi
A samurai from Yamato Province, he was born into a family that had been defeated in its struggle against the Tsutsui clan. Muneyoshi first took part in battle at the age of sixteen. Due to circumstances beyond his control, he was forced to enter the service of the Tsutsui house and later served Miyoshi Tōkei. He subsequently came under the command of Matsunaga Hisahide and in time became a vassal first of Oda and later of Toyotomi.
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Endo Naozune
Naozune served under Azai Nagamasa and was one of the clan’s leading vassals, renowned for his bravery and determination. He accompanied Nagamasa during his first meeting with Oda Nobunaga and at that time asked for permission to kill Nobunaga, fearing him as an extremely dangerous man; however, Nagamasa did not grant this request.
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Hosokawa Sumimoto
Sumimoto came from the Hosokawa clan: he was the biological son of Hosokawa Yoshiharu and at the same time the adopted son of Hosokawa Masamoto, the heir of Hosokawa Katsumoto, one of the principal instigators of the Ōnin War. Masamoto was homosexual, never married, and had no children of his own. At first he adopted Sumiyuki, a scion of the aristocratic Kujō family, but this choice provoked dissatisfaction and sharp criticism from the senior vassals of the Hosokawa house. As a result, Masamoto changed his decision and proclaimed Sumimoto as his heir, a representative of a collateral branch of the Hosokawa clan that had long been based in Awa Province on the island of Shikoku. Almost immediately after this, the boy became entangled in a complex and bitter web of political intrigue.
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Honda Masanobu
Masanobu initially belonged to the retinue of Tokugawa Ieyasu, but later entered the service of Sakai Shōgen, a daimyo and priest from Ueno. This shift automatically made him an enemy of Ieyasu, who was engaged in conflict with the Ikkō-ikki movement in Mikawa Province. After the Ikkō-ikki were defeated in 1564, Masanobu was forced to flee, but in time he returned and once again entered Ieyasu’s service. He did not gain fame as a military commander due to a wound sustained in his youth; nevertheless, over the following fifty years he consistently remained loyal to Ieyasu.
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Honda Masazumi
Masazumi was the eldest son of Honda Masanobu. From a young age, he served Tokugawa Ieyasu alongside his father, taking part in the affairs of the Tokugawa house and gradually gaining experience in both military and administrative matters. At the decisive Battle of Sekigahara in 1600, Masazumi was part of the core Tokugawa forces, a clear sign of the high level of trust Ieyasu placed in him. After the campaign ended, he was given a highly sensitive assignment—serving in the guard of the defeated Ishida Mitsunari, one of Tokugawa’s principal enemies—an obligation that required exceptional reliability and caution.
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Hojo Shigetoki
Hōjō Shigetoki, the third son of Hōjō Yoshitoki, was still very young—only five years old—when his grandfather Tokimasa became the first member of the Hōjō clan to assume the position of shogunal regent.
