Toyotomi Hideyoshi

100 Aspects of the Moon No. 7, by Tsukioka Yoshitoshi: "Mount Inaba Moon" 1885, 12th month. The young Toyotomi Hideyoshi (then named Kinoshita Tōkichirō) leads a small group assaulting the castle on Mount Inaba

In 1558, Hideyoshi became an ashigaru for the powerful Oda clan, the rulers of his home province of Owari, now headed by the ambitious Oda Nobunaga.[5] Hideyoshi soon became one of Nobunaga's sandal-bearers, a position of relatively high status, and was present at the Battle of Okehazama in 1560 when Nobunaga defeated Imagawa Yoshimoto to become one of the most powerful warlords in the Sengoku period. According to his biographers, Hideyoshi supervised the repair of Kiyosu Castle, a claim described as "apocryphal", and managed the kitchen.[6]

In 1561, Hideyoshi married One, the adopted daughter of Asano Nagakatsu. Hideyoshi carried out repairs on Sunomata Castle with his younger brother Toyotomi Hidenaga, Hachisuka Masakatsu, and Maeno Nagayasu. Hideyoshi's efforts were well-received because Sunomata was in enemy territory, and according to legend constructed a fort in Sunomata overnight and discovered a secret route into Mount Inaba, after which much of the local garrison surrendered.[7]

Hideyoshi was very successful as a negotiator. In 1564, he managed to convince, mostly with liberal bribes, a number of Mino warlords to desert the Saitō clan. Hideyoshi approached many Saitō clan samurai and convinced them to submit to Nobunaga, including the Saitō clan's strategist, Takenaka Shigeharu.

Nobunaga's easy victory at the Siege of Inabayama Castle in 1567 was largely due to Hideyoshi's efforts,[8] and despite his peasant origins, Hideyoshi became one of Nobunaga's most distinguished generals, eventually taking the name Hashiba Hideyoshi (羽柴 秀吉). The new surname included two characters, one each from Oda's two other right-hand men, Niwa Nagahide (丹羽 長秀) and Shibata Katsuie (柴田 勝家).

Hideyoshi led troops in the Battle of Anegawa in 1570 in which Oda Nobunaga allied with Tokugawa Ieyasu to lay siege to two fortresses of the Azai and Asakura clans.[6][9] Hideyoshi participated in the 1573 Siege of Nagashima.[10] In 1573, after victorious campaigns against the Azai and Asakura, Nobunaga appointed Hideyoshi daimyō of three districts in the northern part of Ōmi Province. Initially, Hideyoshi based at the former Azai headquarters at Odani Castle but moved to Kunitomo and renamed the city "Nagahama" in tribute to Nobunaga. Hideyoshi later moved to the port at Imahama on Lake Biwa, where he began work on Imahama Castle and took control of the nearby Kunitomo firearms factory that had been established some years previously by the Azai and Asakura. Under Hideyoshi's administration, the factory's output of firearms increased dramatically.[11]

Hideyoshi fought in the Battle of Nagashino.[12] Nobunaga sent Hideyoshi to Himeji Castle to conquer the Chūgoku region from the Mori clan in 1576. Hideyoshi then fought in the 1577 Battle of Tedorigawa, the Siege of Miki, the Siege of Itami (1579), and the 1582 Siege of Takamatsu.[10]

After the assassinations at Honnō-ji of Oda Nobunaga and his eldest son Nobutada in 1582 at the hands of Akechi Mitsuhide, Hideyoshi, seeking vengeance for the death of his beloved lord, made peace with the Mōri clan and defeated Akechi at the Battle of Yamazaki.[10]^:275–279

Subsequently, Hideyoshi was in a very strong position. He summoned the powerful daimyo to Kiyosu so that they could determine Nobunaga's heir. Oda Nobukatsu and Oda Nobutaka quarreled, causing Hideyoshi to instead choose Samboshi, Nobunaga's grandson.[13] Having won the support of the other two Oda elders, Niwa Nagahide and Ikeda Tsuneoki, Hideyoshi established Hidenobu's position, as well as his own influence in the Oda clan. He distributed Nobunaga's provinces among the generals and formed a council of four generals to help govern. Tension quickly escalated between Hideyoshi and Katsuie, and at the Battle of Shizugatake in the following year, Hideyoshi destroyed Katsuie's forces.[14] Hideyoshi had thus consolidated his own power, dealt with most of the Oda clan, and controlled 30 provinces.[8]^:313–314 The famous kirishitan daimyō and samurai Dom Justo Takayama fought on his side at this epic battle.

In 1582, Hideyoshi began construction of Osaka Castle. Built on the site of the temple Ishiyama Hongan-ji destroyed by Nobunaga,[15] the castle would become the last stronghold of the Toyotomi clan after Hideyoshi's death.

Nobunaga's other son, Oda Nobukatsu, remained hostile to Hideyoshi. He allied himself with Tokugawa Ieyasu, and the two sides fought at the inconclusive Battle of Komaki and Nagakute. It ultimately resulted in a stalemate, although Hideyoshi's forces were delivered a heavy blow.[7] Finally, Hideyoshi made peace with Nobukatsu, ending the pretext for war between the Tokugawa and Hashiba clans. Hideyoshi sent Tokugawa Ieyasu his younger sister Asahi no kata and mother Ōmandokoro as hostages. Ieyasu eventually agreed to become a vassal of Hideyoshi.

Afterwards, Hideyoshi subjugated Kii Province[20] and conquered Shikoku under the Chōsokabe clan.[21] He also took control of Etchū Province[22] and conquered Kyūshū.[23] In 1587, Hideyoshi banished Christian missionaries from Kyūshū to exert greater control over the Kirishitan daimyōs.[24] However, since he made much of trade with Europeans, individual Christians were overlooked unofficially.

In 1588, Hideyoshi forbade ordinary peasants from owning weapons and started a sword hunt to confiscate arms.[25] The swords were melted down to create a statue of the Buddha. This measure effectively stopped peasant revolts and ensured greater stability at the expense of freedom of the individual daimyōs.

The 1590 Siege of Odawara against the Hōjō clan in the Kantō region[26] eliminated the last resistance to Hideyoshi's authority. His victory signified the end of the Sengoku period. During this siege, Hideyoshi offered Ieyasu the eight Hōjō-ruled provinces in the Kantō region in exchange for the submission of Ieyasu's five provinces. Ieyasu accepted this proposal.

In February 1591, Hideyoshi ordered Sen no Rikyū to commit suicide, likely in one of his angry outbursts.[27] Rikyū had been a trusted retainer and master of the tea ceremony under both Hideyoshi and Nobunaga. Under Hideyoshi's patronage, Rikyū made significant changes to the aesthetics of the tea ceremony that had a lasting influence over many aspects of Japanese culture. Even after Rikyū's death, Hideyoshi is said to have built his many construction projects based upon aesthetics promoted by Rikyū, perhaps suggesting that he regretted his actions.

Following Rikyū's death, Hideyoshi turned his attention from tea ceremony to Noh, which he had been studying since becoming Imperial Regent. During his brief stay in Nagoya Castle in what is today Saga Prefecture, on Kyūshū, Hideyoshi memorized the shite (lead roles) parts of ten Noh plays, which he then performed, forcing various daimyōs to accompany him onstage as the waki (secondary, accompanying role). He even performed before the emperor.[28]

In the first campaign, Hideyoshi appointed Ukita Hideie as field marshal, and had him go to the Korean peninsula in April 1592. Konishi Yukinaga occupied Seoul, which had been the capital of the Joseon dynasty of Korea, on June 19. After Seoul fell easily, Japanese commanders held a war council in June in Seoul and determined targets of subjugation called Hachidokuniwari (literally, dividing the country into eight routes) by each corps (the First Division of Konishi Yukinaga and others from Pyeongan Province, the Second Division of Katō Kiyomasa and others from Hangyong Province, the Third Division of Kuroda Nagamasa and others from Hwanghae Province, the Fourth Division of Mōri Yoshinari and others from Gangwon Province; the Fifth Division of Fukushima Masanori and others from Chungcheong Province; the Sixth Division by Kobayakawa Takakage and others from Jeolla Province, the Seventh Division by Mōri Terumoto and others from Gyeongsang Province, and the Eighth Division of Ukita Hideie and others from Gyeonggi Province). In only four months, Hideyoshi's forces had a route into Manchuria and occupied much of Korea. The Korean king Seonjo of Joseon escaped to Uiju and requested military intervention from China. In 1593, the Wanli Emperor of Ming China sent an army under general Li Rusong to block the planned Japanese invasion of China and recapture the Korean peninsula. The Ming army of 43,000 soldiers headed by Li Ru-song proceeded to attack Pyongyang. On January 7, 1593, the Ming relief forces under Li recaptured Pyongyang and surrounded Seoul, but Kobayakawa Takakage, Ukita Hideie, Tachibana Muneshige and Kikkawa Hiroie won the Battle of Byeokjegwan in the suburbs of Seoul. At the end of the first campaign, Japan's entire navy was destroyed by Admiral Yi Sun-sin of Korea whose base was located in a part of Korea the Japanese could not control. This, in effect, put an end to Japan's dream of conquering China as the Koreans simply destroyed Japan's ability to re-supply their troops who were bogged down in Pyongyang.

Toyotomi Hideyori

The birth of Hideyoshi's second son in 1593, Hideyori, created a potential succession problem. To avoid it, Hideyoshi exiled his nephew and heir Hidetsugu to Mount Kōya and then ordered him to commit suicide in August 1595. Hidetsugu's family members who did not follow his example were then murdered in Kyoto, including 31 women and several children.[30]

In January 1597, Toyotomi Hideyoshi had twenty-six Christians arrested as an example to Japanese who wanted to convert to Christianity. They are known as the Twenty-six Martyrs of Japan. They included five European Franciscan missionaries, one Mexican Franciscan missionary, three Japanese Jesuits and seventeen Japanese laymen including three young boys. They were tortured, mutilated, and paraded through towns across Japan. On February 5, they were executed in Nagasaki by public crucifixion.[31]

The 26 Christian martyrs of Nagasaki, 18-19th-century, Choir of La Recoleta, Cuzco

After several years of negotiations (broken off because envoys of both sides falsely reported to their masters that the opposition had surrendered), Hideyoshi appointed Kobayakawa Hideaki to lead a renewed invasion of Korea, but their efforts on the peninsula met with less success than the first invasion. Japanese troops remained pinned down in Gyeongsang Province. In June 1598, the Japanese forces turned back several Chinese offensives in Suncheon and Sacheon, but they were unable to make further progress as the Ming army prepared for a final assault. While Hideyoshi's battle at Sacheon was a major Japanese victory, all three parties to the war were exhausted. He told his commander in Korea, "Don't let my soldiers become spirits in a foreign land."[2]

• Nene, or One, later Kōdai-in. Wife.
• Yodo-dono, or Chacha, later Daikōin, daughter of Azai Nagamasa
• Minami-dono, daughter of Yamana Toyokuni
• Minami no Tsubone, daughter of Yamana Toyokuni
• Matsu no Maru-dono or Kyōgoku Tatsuko, daughter of Kyōgoku Takayoshi
• Kaga-dono or Maahime, daughter of Maeda Toshiie
• Kaihime, daughter of Narita Ujinaga
• Kusu no Tsubone later Hokoin, daughter of Azai Nagamasa
• Sonnomaru-dono, daughter of Oda Nobunaga
• Sanjo-dono or Tora, daughter of Gamō Katahide
• Himeji-dono, daughter of Oda Nobukane
• Hirozawa no Tsubone, daughter of Kunimitsu Kyosho
• Ōshima or Shimako later Gekkein, daughter of Ashikaga Yorizumi
• Anrunkin or Otane no Kata
• Ofuku later Enyu-in, daughter of Miura Noto no Kami and mother of Ukita Hideie

Hashiba Hidekatsu (Ishimatsumaru)

• Hashiba Hidekatsu (Ishimatsumaru) (1570–1576) by Minami-dono
• daughter

Tsurumatsu

• Toyotomi Tsurumatsu (1589–1591) by Yodo-dono
• Toyotomi Hideyori by Yodo-dono

• Hashiba Hidekatsu (Tsugaru), fourth son of Oda Nobunaga
• Oda Nobutaka later Toyotomi Takahiro (1576–1602), seventh son of Oda Nobunaga
• Oda Nobuyoshi later Toyotomi Musashi more (1573–1615), eight son of Oda Nobunaga
• Oda Nobuyoshi (d. 1609), tenth son of Oda Nobunaga
• Ukita Hideie, son of Ukita Naoie
• Toyotomi Hidetsugu, first son of Hideyoshi's sister, Tomo with Miyoshi Kazumichi
• Toyotomi Hidekatsu (1569–1592), second son of Hideyoshi's sister, Tomo with Miyoshi Kazumichi
• Toyotomi Hideyasu (1579–1595), Third son of Hideyoshi's sister, Tomo with Miyoshi Kazumichi
• Yūki Hideyasu, Tokugawa Ieyasu's second son
• Ikeda Nagayoshi, third son of Ikeda Nobuteru
• Kobayakawa Hideaki, Hideyoshi's nephew from his wife, Nene
• Prince Hachijō Toshihito, sixth son of Prince Masahito

• Gohime (1574–1634), daughter of Maeda Toshiie and married Ukita Hideie
• O-hime (1585–1591), daughter of Oda Nobukatsu and married Tokugawa Hidetada
• Oeyo, daughter of Azai Nagamasa and married Saji Kazunari, Toyotomi Hidekatsu, Tokugawa Hidetada
• Konoe Sakiko, daughter of Konoe Sakihisa and married Emperor Go-Yōzei
• Chikurin-in, daughter of Ōtani Yoshitsugu and married to Sanada Yukimura. They had two sons, Sanada Daisuke and Sanada Daihachi, and some daughters. Known as Akihime and Riyohime
• Toyotomi Sadako (1592–1658), daughter of Toyotomi Hidekatsu with Oeyo later become the adopted daughter of Tokugawa Hidetada and married Kujō Yukiie
• Daizen-in, daughter of Toyotomi Hidenaga and married Mōri Hidemoto
• Kikuhime, daughter of Toyotomi Hidenaga and married Toyotomi Hideyasu
• Maeda Kikuhime (1578-1584), daughter of Maeda Toshiie

• Toyotomi Kunimatsu
• Tenshuni (天秀尼) (1609–1645)