Siege of Takamatsu

• Date: 1582
• Location: Bitchuu Province

Siege

Toyotomi Hideyoshi (under the command of Oda Nobunaga) (30,000) vs. Shimizu Muneharu (under the command of Mori Terumoto)

Takamatsu Castle was the Mori's last line of defense against the encroaching Oda army - beyond this point, the latter could finally enter the Mori's home provinces. The castle was defended by Mori vassal Shimizu Muneharu and promised to be as difficult to bring down as the other stongholds Hideyoshi had reduced in his five or so years of campaigning in the Chugoku region. Initial attacks by Oda and Ukita troops were repulsed, and so Hideyoshi settled in for a siege. Terumoto eventually arrived in the area with an army but took no real action. By this point, Hideyoshi had decided to attempt a flooding of Takamatsu by diverting the waters of the Ashimori River. This was duly carried out, but, despite the especially difficult situation he was now in, Muneharu still refused calls to surrender. Soon after the flooding tactic had been carried out, Oda Nobunaga was killed in Kyoto by Akechi Mitsuhide. Mitsuhide attempted to send a message to the Mori informing them of this turn of events but the letter was intercepted by Hideyoshi's army. Now holding this important piece of information in his hands, and determined to march against Akechi as soon as possible, Hideyoshi negotiated with the Mouri. They would be allowed to retain the provinces they still held and peace would be.