Takeda Shingen

• Born: 1521
• Died: 1573/4/12
• Title: Daizen-Daibu
• childhood name (Yômei): Katsuchiyo
• Sons: Takeda Yoshinobu, Unno Nobuchika, Takeda Nobuyuki, Takeda Katsuyori, Nishina Morinobu, Katsurayama Nobusada, Yasuda Nobukiyo
• Other Name: Takeda Harunobu
• Japanese: 武田 信玄 (Takeda Shingen)

The Tiger of Kai

The most famous portrait of Takeda Shingen, the authenticity of which has been questioned. Certain scholars have suggested that this was in fact a painting of a Hatakeyama lord from Noto province.

Takeda Shingen was the eldest son of the aggressive warlord Takeda Nobutora (1493-1573).Takeda Nobutora had secured the position of the Takeda in Kai after various struggles and established the Takeda capital at Tsutsujigasaki in Fuchu (Kôfu) in 1519. In the course of his career Nobutora clashed with various outside powers, including the Hôjô of Sagami Province, the Imagawa of Suruga Province and the Suwa and Imai of Shinano Province. In 1521, Nobutora was compelled to fend off an invasion from Suruga led by Kushima Masanari in support of the Ôi family, who had defied Nobutora's authority. Nobutora sent his pregnant wife, the daughter of Oi Nobusato, from the Tsutsujigaseki mansion to Yogaiyama castle [要害山城]. Word came to Nobutora, commanding his army against Kushima's 15,000-man host, that a son had been born. Nobutora defeated Masanari at the Battle of Iidagawara and afterwards named his son Katsuchiyo.

In 1533, Nobutora arranged for him to marry the daughter of Ôgigayatsu-Uesugi Tomooki, who still held considerable lands in the Kanto. The girl died attempting to deliver Katsuchiyo's first child, however. By this time Nobutora was at odds with both the Imagawa and Hôjô families and they were pressing him on his southern borders. He was lucky in that Imagawa Ujichika died suddenly and a struggle for power ensued amongst his brothers. Nobutora backed Yoshimoto, the eventual victor, and in the aftermath married a daughter to him. In return, Yoshimoto acted as a go-between to arrange for the marriage of Katsuchiyo and the daughter of court noble Sanjo Kimiyori. Katsuchiyo celebrated his coming-of-age ceremony later that year and the shôgun, Ashikaga Yoshiharu, sent permission for Katsuchiyo to incorporate 'Haru' in his adult name, and Katsuchiyo thus became known as Harunobu. He was also given the honorific title Shinano no Kami. Despite this memorable coming of age ceremony, it would seem that Nobutora took a disliking to Harunobu in favor of his second son, Takeda Nobushige. The reasons for this are not clear, and this part of Shingen's life has been heavily embellished over the centuries.

Harunobu is thought to have seen his first campaign in 1536, when his father led an army against Hiraga Genshin of Shinano Province. He surrounded and attacked Genshin's Umi no kuchi Castle [海ノ口城] but found the defenders unwilling to give and withdrew with the onset of heavy winter snows. According to tradition, Harunobu, commanding the rearguard, decided to double back and launch a surprise attack. This took the seemingly victorious Hiraga men by surprise and the battle went to the Takeda. Whether or not this particular version of events has any basis in fact, Hiraga was defeated and killed in the 2nd month of 1537.

The events leading up to the expulsion of Nobutora from Kai are entirely murky, with the Imagawa figuring into the controversy, possibly as agitators. It would appear that Nobutora planned to name his second son Nobushige heir, and perhaps ship Harunobu off to the Imagawa clan in Suruga (for adoption?). For years, Harunobu had been under the guardianship of Obu Toramasa, a tough warrior who may well have been at the center of what transpired next. In 1541 Harunobu suddenly rebelled, supported by a great many of his father's retainers. Nobutora submitted with little bloodshed and Harunobu exiled his father to Suruga. In this act he had the aid of the top Takeda retainers, many of whom held personal grudges against Nobutora or at least saw some gain in assisting the young usurper to power. Nobushige, for his part, seems to have borne his brother no ill will, and became a valued retainer. Sources conflict on what the exact events where which led to the replacement of Nobuhide with Harunobu. One version of events is that in the 5th month of 1541, Nobutora and Harunobu went on a campaign together to attack Unno Munetsuna in Shinano province, joined by the Suwa and the Murakami. Unno Munetsuna lost and fled the province, and by the 4th day of the 6th month, they were on their way back to Kai. However, on the 10th day of their trip back to Kai province, Harunobu suddenly rebelled in a coup supported by his ashigaru and retainers, forcing Nobutora to flee to Suruga province, and in to the care of his daughter's husband, Imagawa Yoshimoto. This generally follows the Koyogunkan, which essentialy states that Harunobu uncovered a plot by Nobutora to dispose of him and eventually give control of the Takeda clan to his younger brother, Nobushige. According to the Koyogunkan, Harunobu and loyal vassals drove Nobutora out of Kai province into Suruga. Another version of events states that during the 6th month of 1541, Harunobu and Nobutora travelled to Suruga province to visit upon Nobutora's son in law, Imagawa Yoshimoto. Little did Nobutora know, Shingen and Yoshimoto had a secret agreement, and upon arrival, Nobutora was forcibly retired to Suruga castle, and his son Harunobu was given control of the Takeda clan. Although what really happened is not clear, historians seem to be in agreement that Imagawa Yoshimoto had a hand in the removal of Nobutora. Regardless, Harunobu took control of the clan in what is often specifically cited as a 'bloodless coup'.

The Takeda mon.

Harunobu's chief ambition was the subjugation of Shinano but resistance in that quarter would prove fierce. A number of Shinano warlords, including Murakami Yoshikiyo (1510-1573), Ogasawara Nagatoki (1519-1583), Suwa Yorishige (? –1542), and Kiso Yoshiyasu, made a move designed to hopefully nip any further Takeda aggression in the bud. In April 1542 the four daimyo combined forces and marched to the border of Kai, encouraged by news that Harunobu was strengthening his defenses and preparing to make a stand in Fuchu. In fact, Harunobu's activities had been a ruse - far from waiting passively in Kai, Harunobu led his men out and caught the Shinano warriors by surprise, defeating them at Sezawa. Emboldened by the results of Sezawa, Harunobu made a drive into Shinano later that same year, focusing on the territory of the Suwa clan. He first took Uehara in a surprise attack and then moved on to the Suwa headquarters at Kuwahara, located 2 kilometers to the east. Caught completely off-balance, Suwa Yorishige had little choice but to surrender when Harunobu made a promise of safe conduct. Yorishige and his brother were taken to Kai where the Takeda general Itagaki Nobutaka arranged for their deaths; both Suwa were either made to commit suicide or were murdered outright.

Harunobu, with the aid of Yamamoto Kansuke's strategies, further expanded his territory through the defeat of both Tozawa Yorichika (1542) and Takato Yoritsugu of central Shinano (1544-45). The acquisition of Takato castle was of particular value, as it provided a secure staging area into southern Shinano, as well as a buffer against any southern aggression. In 1544 the Takeda marched into Suruga in support of the Imagawa and faced Hojo Ujiyasu. No actual fighting occurred as a result of this confrontation, and later Harunobu was compelled to arrange for a peace treaty between the Hojo, Imagawa, and himself due to his wars in Shinano. Over the next decade Harunobu kept up a relentless pressure on the Shinano warlords. Only at Uehara would he be checked, if only briefly. In 1548 Murakami Yoshikiyo, perhaps the most formidable of Harunobu's Shinano enemies, moved on Ueda and defeated the Takeda in a bitter clash which saw the use (on the part of the Murakami) of a number of Chinese arquebuses, the first such weapons ever deployed in a Japanese battle. While the defeat at Uehara left two of his best generals dead, Harunobu rebounded quickly, and by 1552 the Murakami and Ogasawara clans had fled Shinano outright to Echigo.

In 1551, Harunobu had adopted the name Shingen and a monk's habit, adding even more color to this up-and-coming Sengoku warlord, who was already known for his taste for women, penetrating judgment, skill at calligraphy, and wise government. Perhaps all that was now required was a great rival. This came, too, in the form of Uesugi Terutora of Echigo - the famed Kenshin.

Another view of Takeda Shingen, by artist Utagawa Kuniyoshi

According to tradition, the defeated Murakami and Ogasawara presented themselves before Terutora and protested Shingen's aggressions. Terutora, uneasy at Shingen's northern expansion and obligated to the two refugees, took the field. That Murakami figures into the Uesugi's roll even many years later gives some substance to this belief, and, certainly, Terutora had reason to worry about Echigo's borders. In June and October 1553 The Takeda and Uesugi armies clashed near the Kawanakajima plain in northern Shinano, and while the two sides withdrew after a few rounds of inconclusive skirmishing, a legend was born. In total, the Takeda and Uesugi would face each other at the Kawanakajima five times (1554, 1555, 1557, 1561, 1564) and while not exactly the nearly annual staring matches as they are sometimes portrayed, only the 4th (1561) resulted in an all-out contest. In that engagement, both sides suffered heavy losses and while not individually decisive, those losses no doubt slowed both warlords down for some years. In particular, Shingen must have felt the loss of Nobushige and Yamamoto Kansuke, both killed in action at the battle.

Internally, the Takeda suffered two grim moments within the span of five years. In 1560 Shingen had uncovered a plot against him led by his cousin Katanuma Nobumoto, whom he ordered put to death. In 1565, another plot came to light - this one headed by his own son Yoshinobu and Obu Toramasa. Tormasa was made to commit suicide, while Yoshinobu was confined to the Tokoji. Two years later Yoshinbou died, either from illness or, as many believe, because Shingen had forced him to commit suicide. The event left Shingen heirless for the time being and the Takeda retainers uneasy.

By 1564, Shingen had subdued all of Shinano and shifted his attention to Kozuke, where he took a number of castles from the Uesugi. For the next five years, he limited himself to raids and local conquests (including land grabs in mountainous Hida province), concentrating on internal affairs. In the 1560's, Shingen's greatest achievement was the Fuji River damming project, the largest and most ambitious of his many innovative domestic endeavors. The benefit of the Fuji River project far-outlived its mastermind, and is ranked as one of the greatest domestic initiatives of the 16th Century.

The Takeda expand

The Takeda domain in 1569 (CLICK HERE for full size version of this map.)

By 1568, the Takeda army was on the move again, this time to the south against the faltering Imagawa. The daimyo of that clan was Ujizane, the incompetent son of the late Imagawa Yoshimoto (killed in 1560 by Oda Nobunaga), whose political ineptness had already cost the Imagawa their Matsudaira (Tokugawa) vassals and Mikawa province. Years before, Shingen's son Yoshinobu had married Ujizane's sister but after the suicide of the former in 1567, relations between the families had grown sour. It would appear that Shingen and Tokugawa Ieyasu struck up a deal whereby the two would split up the Imagawa's remaining lands (Totomi and Suruga), an agreement that in the event quickly fell through. In addition, the Hojo of Sagami took a dim view to this shift in the balance of power, and sent troops to defy Shingen, which they did with varying degrees of success for a year or so. In 1569 Shingen responded by invading Sagami and besieging Odawara (the Hojo's capital). While this effort was quite short-lived (lasting around a week), the Takeda army did manage to crush an attempt at an ambush by the Hojo at Mimasetoge on their way back to Kai.

The Takeda domain in 1572.

Thus, in 1570, the Takeda's lands now included Kai, Shinano, Suruga, and pieces of Kozuke, Totomi, and Hida. Shingen, at 49, was something more than a regional power - he was the most important warlord east of Mino, and the one who was in a position to derail Oda Nobunaga's march to national hegemony. Shingen alone possessed the strategic position, the generalship, and the solid retainer band necessary. In 1570, the formidable Hojo Ujiyasu died and his heir, Ujimasa, quickly made peace with Shingen, an act that might have all but assured the ultimate destruction of Tokugawa Ieyasu had not Shingen died in 1573. In the meantime, the Takeda and Oda, after an abortive diplomatic courtship designed to check the Uesugi, initiated a war of words, possibly with the shogun, Ashikaga Yoshiaki, at the center of the storm. Shingen stepped up the pressure against Tokugawa, and in 1572 launched an attack into Totomi that resulted in the capture of Futamata. The following January, Shingen returned to the province and enticed Tokugawa Ieyasu to come out and fight. The Battle of Mikatagahara, conducted on 6 January to the north of Hamamatsu, ended in a near-complete defeat for Ieyasu (and the allied Oda troops present).

Though often presented as the opening moves in a march on Kyôto, Shingen's intentions were no doubt more conservative. He probably aimed to test the responses of both Ieyasu and Nobunaga and deal the two a defeat if possible. Either way, within days of winning the battle, he received news that Asakura Yoshikage had elected not to take the field against Nobunaga at this time. Shingen is reported to have been displeased, and might have counted on Yoshikage - and Asai Nagamasa - to keep Nobunaga preoccupied. This may have played a role in his decision to strike camp and return to Kai - thus granting the bloodied Tokugawa a reprieve.

The Death of Shingen

Unfortunately, time ran out on the man who had come to epitomize the best and, in some ways, the worst qualities of the Sengoku warlord. In 1573, while laying siege to Noda castle in Mikawa, Shingen fell ill. A popular tradition holds that a defending sniper shot him. However, the Koyo Gunkan mentions that Shingen had been ill and records, On the 11th day of the 4th month around 1pm, Lord Shingen's condition took a turn for the worst. His pulse became extremely rapid. On the night of the 12th, approximately 9pm, he developed an [abscess/rash] in his mouth, and 5 or 6 of his teeth fell out. He gradually weakened.. Isogai Masayoshi's Takeda Shingen, Kobayashi Keiichiro's Takeda Gunki, and other modern works on Shingen dismiss the sniper story, pointing out that only Tokugawa records make any mention of a sniper and that Shingen had been ill for some time prior to his death, which in any event occurred a full two months after Noda. Interestingly, Shingen had given up eating meat as a show of religious piety around 1563 but began eating fish and poultry again around the time of Noda for his health. The sniper version of events, made famous by Akira Kurosawa's film Kagemusha, holds that he was drawn close to the walls of the castle to listen to a defender playing a flute to raise the morale of his comrades. However, this is strongly reminiscent of the death of Amako Masahisa, the difference being that Masahisa was the flute player playing for the benefit of his men. A defending archer guessed where he seated in the dark, let fly, and killed him. It seems possible-even probable-that this story was adopted and adapted for the romantic death of Shingen, a death the Tokugawa could then claim credit for.

He died at Komanba in Shinano on the night of the 12th day of the 4th month of 1573, to be succeeded by his fourth son, Takeda Katsuyori.

Shingen had been a warlord of great domestic skill and competent military leadership. He was a complicated figure, at times utterly cruel. Earlier in his life, he had forced Suwa Yorishige to commit suicide (or had him murdered) after the two warlords had signed a peace treaty, and then proceeded to take Suwa's daughter as a mistress, ignoring the fact that she was technically his own niece. In 1565, as mentioned above, he ordered his own son, Yoshinobu, confined to a temple and evidently made him commit suicide for treasonous activity, as well as the man who had once been his guardian, Obu Toramasa. His domestic policies demonstrate the duality of Takeda Shingen. On one hand, he kept two iron cauldrons on hand to boil alive certain criminals (a practice considered sufficiently cruel enough to provoke Tokugawa Ieyasu to have the cauldrons destroyed years later). On the other, he did away with corporal punishment for most minor offences, instituting in it's place a system of fines - an act that earned him considerable praise from the peasants and townspeople of Kai. Shingen's law was not considered overly harsh, and his was one of the few Sengoku Period administrations prior to 1582 to tax most of his subjects evenly (most exempted powerful samurai families and/or religious establishments) and with the option of payment in either gold or rice (a forerunner, in some ways, to the later Kandaka system).

An enduring legend describes Kenshin's reaction to Shingen's death. When the event was reported to him during a meal, he threw down his chopsticks and said, "He was my rival for many years, but the great general who was a pillar of the Kanto warrior families has been lost. It is truly a shame." He then ordered that no music be played at Kasugayama castle for a span of three days. In addition, he resisted a call to attack the Takeda domain to take advantage of the situation.

Perhaps the greatest praise paid Shingen was by Tokugawa Ieyasu himself. Following the defeat of Katsuyori in 1582 and the death of Oda Nobunaga, Ieyasu assumed control of Kai, and borrowed freely from Shingen's style and techniques of governance, which he later included in his model for the Tokugawa Shogunate.

Just prior to his death, Shingen had called from his bed for Yamagata Masakage, one of ablest men, to raise his flags at Seta Bridge (the traditional eastern gate to Kyoto). He then collapsed back into his bed and died soon afterwards. In lieu of a death poem, he left the following words, borrowed from Zen literature, "It is largely left to her own natural bodily perfection, and she has no special need to resort to artificial coloring and powdering to look beautiful."

See also

• Takeda Shingen's 24 Generals

References

• Hall, John Whitney, et al. (ed.) Japan Before Tokugawa. Princeton, 1981
• Kanaya, Shunichiro. Sengoku Jidai Ga Omoshiroi Hodo Wakaru Hon, 2003
• The Koyo Gunkan (Edited by Yoshida Toyo) 19th edition, Tokyo, August 2005.
• Kuwada, Tadachika. Nihon Busho Retsuden Series #3, 1989
• Narumoto, Tatsuya. Sengoku Bushou Omoshiro Jiten, Japan, 1998
• Rekishi Gunzô. Shirizu #5: Takeda Shingen. Japan: Gakken, 1999
• Rekishi Gunzô. Shirizu #6: FuuRinKaZan. Japan: Gakken, 1999
• Sadler, A. L. The Maker of Modern. Japan Tuttle, 1978
• Sato, Hiroaki. Legends of the Samurai. Overlook, 1995
• Suzuki, D. T. Zen and Japanese Culture. Princeton, 1993
• Turnbull, Stephen. Samurai Warlords. London: Blandford, 1992