Everand Logo

Welcome to Everand!

  • Discover millions of ebooks, audiobooks, and so much more with a free trial

    Only $9.99/month after trial. Cancel anytime.

    Nagashino 1575: Slaughter at the barricades
    Nagashino 1575: Slaughter at the barricades
    Nagashino 1575: Slaughter at the barricades
    Ebook217 pages1 hour

    Nagashino 1575: Slaughter at the barricades

    By Stephen Turnbull and Howard Gerrard

    4.5/5

    ()

    Read preview

    About this ebook

    A compact, illustrated guide to a key battle that originated firearm warfare in Japan.

    When Portuguese traders took advantage of the constant violence in Japan to sell the Japanese their first firearms, one of the quickest to take advantage of this new technology was the powerful daimyo Oda Nobunaga. In 1575 the impetuous Takeda Katsuyori laid siege to Nagashino castle, a possession of Nobunaga's ally, Tokugawa Ieyasu. An army was despatched to relieve the siege, and the two sides faced each other across the Shidarahara. The Takeda samurai were brave, loyal and renowned for their cavalry charges, but Nobunaga, counting on Katsuyori's impetuosity, had 3,000 musketeers waiting behind prepared defences for their assault.

    As medieval Japan expert Stephen Turnbull outlines in this book, the outcome of this clash of tactics and technologies was to change the face of Japanese warfare forever.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBloomsbury Publishing
    Release dateAug 20, 2012
    ISBN9781782002291
    Nagashino 1575: Slaughter at the barricades
    Author

    Stephen Turnbull

    Stephen Turnbull is widely recognised as the world's leading English language authority on the samurai of Japan. He took his first degree at Cambridge and has two MAs (in Theology and Military History) and a PhD from Leeds University. He is now retired and pursues an active literary career, having now published 85 books. His expertise has helped with numerous projects including films, television and the award-winning strategy game Shogun Total War.

    Read more from Stephen Turnbull

    Related to Nagashino 1575

    Titles in the series (100)

    View More
    View More

    Related ebooks

    European History For You

    View More
    View More

    Related podcast episodes

    Related articles

    • Article

      Legends Of The Sengoku

      Mar 19, 2020

      Legends Of The Sengoku
      3 min read

    • Article

      The Trio Who Unified Japan

      Apr 5, 2022

      The Trio Who Unified Japan
      11 min read

    • Article

      Daimyo THE WARLORDS OF JAPAN

      Dec 2, 2021

      Daimyo THE WARLORDS OF JAPAN
      6 min read

    • Article

      Land Of The Rising Gun

      Oct 3, 2019

      Land Of The Rising Gun
      7 min read

    • Article

      Battle Of Kawanakajima

      Nov 5, 2020

      Battle Of Kawanakajima
      7 min read

    • Article

      Kawanakajima

      Mar 21, 2019

      Kawanakajima
      10 min read

    • Article

      Shiroyama

      Jan 19, 2023

      Shiroyama
      11 min read

    • Article

      Fathers And Sons At War

      May 19, 2021

      THE TWO BATTLES OF KŌNODAI The 1538 victor was Hōjō Ujitsuna, the second daimyo of the great Hōjō dynasty who were gradually extending their territories across the Kantō Plain, the area around modern Tokyo. At the First Battle of Kōnodai, Ujitsuna de

      8 min read

    • Article

      Japan’s Sengoku Period

      Mar 19, 2020

      Japan’s Sengoku Period
      3 min read

    • Article

      A Kingdom Lost

      Jun 8, 2021

      A Kingdom Lost
      10 min read

    • Article

      Ninja Vs Samurai

      Jun 10, 2021

      Ninja Vs Samurai
      3 min read

    • Article

      The First Shogun

      May 18, 2023

      The First Shogun
      8 min read

    • Article

      Secrets Of The Samurai

      Jun 18, 2020

      Secrets Of The Samurai
      10 min read

    • Article

      Hall of Fame FAMOUS WARRIORS

      Mar 26, 2020

      Hall of Fame FAMOUS WARRIORS
      3 min read

    • Article

      Survival At All Costs

      Oct 26, 2023

      Survival At All Costs
      3 min read

    • Article

      The Killer And The Queen

      Oct 1, 2022

      The Killer And The Queen
      9 min read

    • Article

      Japanese Feudal Era

      Mar 26, 2020

      Japanese Feudal Era
      2 min read

    • Article

      Shogun Showdowns

      Mar 19, 2020

      What was the nature of the shogunate during the Sengoku period? Our more ‘modern’ sense of what the word ‘shogun’ means comes in the late Heian period, when you have emperors and retired emperors prepared to use the samurai houses as pawns in their

      3 min read

    • Article

      16-17 Oct 1561

      Nov 5, 2020

      16-17 Oct 1561
      1 min read

    • Article

      Battle Of Sekigahara

      Aug 13, 2020

      Battle Of Sekigahara
      7 min read

    • Article

      Author’s Note

      May 1, 2019

      Social conditions in Korea and Japan were vastly different during the sixteenth century. While Korea enjoyed decades of peace, Japan was torn by civil war. Finally, in 1590, Toyotomi Hideyoshi unified Japan. Having gained control of his own country,

      1 min read

    • Article

      Revenge Of The 47 Rōnin

      Aug 11, 2022

      Revenge Of The 47 Rōnin
      7 min read

    • Article

      Taira Masakado The First Samurai

      Jun 20, 2019

      A shadow emerges from the flames atop a horse. Digging his feet into the stirrups, he burns like a crazed dragon, over the corpses of his enemies and their houses. Before long, all of Japan will know the name of Taira Masakado, the greatest warrior i

      8 min read

    • Article

      Tsushima Island

      Apr 12, 2024

      As the thirteenth century drew to a close, Northeast Asia looked very different than it had for the previous millennium. The Mongols had exploded across the region in shocking fashion, altering the geo-political landscape in a way that sent ripples w

      7 min read

    • Article

      Deadly Elegance

      Jul 14, 2021

      Deadly Elegance
      5 min read

    • Article

      Jutte: Traditional Weapon Helped Keep The Peace

      May 17, 2022

      After unifying Japan’s many feudal domains, Tokugawa Ieyasu (1542-1616) based his government in Edo, the site of present-day Tokyo. The new center of Japanese authority quickly attracted residents of all classes. In addition to laborers, craftsmen an

      2 min read

    • Article

      ARMOUR, BLADES & GUNPOWDER

      Mar 19, 2020

      ARMOUR, BLADES & GUNPOWDER
      2 min read

    • Article

      The Med Behida The Myths

      Aug 8, 2019

      The Med Behida The Myths
      1 min read

    • Article

      Timeline Of japan Vs Korea

      Oct 26, 2023

      Timeline Of japan Vs Korea
      3 min read

    Related categories

    Reviews for Nagashino 1575

    4.5/5

    5 ratings0 reviews

    What did you think?

    Tap to rate

    Review must be at least 10 words

      Book preview

      Nagashino 1575 - Stephen Turnbull

      Degener)

      ORIGINS OF THECAMPAIGN

      Nagashino and the ‘Warring States Period’

      The siege of Nagashino castle and the battle of Nagashino which followed it make up one of the pivotal moments in the history of the samurai. Its military significance is considerable, because it demonstrated the power available through a skilful combination of arms, comparatively simple defensive measures and, above all, the use of firearms on a large and controlled scale. Other samurai leaders who later found themselves in a similar position would look for lessons that they could apply from the example of Nagashino.

      The battle of Nagashino is but one among many conflicts of 16th century Japan. The period is known as the Sengoku-jidai (Warring States Period), a term borrowed from the Chinese dynastic histories. For the past five centuries Japan had been ruled by a succession of dynasties of Shoguns, the military dictators who ruled on behalf of an emperor who since 1185 had been reduced to the position of a figurehead. The Shogunates suffered many vicissitudes during those years. There had been attempts at imperial restoration, conflicts within ruling houses, and one episode of foreign invasion. However, until the mid-15th century the institution of the Shogun, which at that time was vested in successive generations of the Ashikaga family, still managed to control and govern the country.

      The tragedy for the Ashikaga happened in 1467, when a civil war, known as the Onin War from the traditional ‘year’ in which it occurred, began to destroy Kyoto, the capital city of Japan. As the ashes settled the fighting spread further afield, setting in motion sporadic conflicts that were to last for 11 years. Some semblance of order was finally restored, but not before many samurai generals had realised that the Ashikaga Shogunate was gradually losing its power and authority, and that if the samurai wished to increase their land holdings by the use of force against their neighbours, then there was little likelihood of any intervention from the centre to stop them. Thus over the next 50 years Japan slowly split into a number of petty kingdoms, ruled by men who called themselves daimyô (great names). Some had held lands in their regions for centuries, and had increased their power by the readiness of neighbours to ally themselves to a powerful protector. Others seized power by murder, intrigue or invasion, and held on to that power by military might.

      It would be a mistake to look upon the daimyô of the early 16th century as bandit leaders. In many cases their lands were well governed, and the men who worked in their rice fields, nearly all of whom were part-time soldiers, showed their overlords a degree of loyalty that the Ashikaga Shoguns would have envied. Such loyalty was expressed through willing and enthusiastic military service, carried out on the daimyô’s behalf when a call to arms was issued. It was said of the followers of one daimyô, the Chôsokabe of Shikoku Island, that these farmer-samurai were so ready to fight that they tilled the rice-paddies with their spears thrust into the ground at the edge of the field and their sandals tied to the shafts.

      As the Sengoku-jidai wore on it was inevitable that smaller daimyô territories should be swallowed by bigger ones, until by about 1560 Japan consisted of a number of major power blocs, alternately in alliance or in conflict as the balance of power shifted from one lord to another. In the midst of it stood the Shogun, impotent in military terms but immensely powerful as a symbol. By ancient convention no one could become Shogun unless he possessed the appropriate lineage back to the original Minamoto family – an honour enjoyed by the Ashikaga. The secret to controlling Japan, therefore, was control of the Shogun.

      In 1560 a decisive point was reached when a powerful daimyô called Imagawa Yoshimoto planned to march on Kyoto and set up his own puppet Shogunate. The first obstacle Imagawa had to overcome was a neighbour called Oda Nobunaga, whose much smaller territory was inconveniently situated between Imagawa and his goal. Full of confidence, the Imagawa army moved into Owari province, where they were unexpectedly and thoroughly defeated. Oda Nobunaga launched a surprise attack on them and succeeded in spite of odds of 12 to one against him. This victory, the battle of Okehazama, flung Oda Nobunaga into the big league of daimyô. His military prowess and his convenient location – not far from the capital – ensured alliances and support, not the least of which was a long-standing association with the ruler of neighbouring Mikawa province, Tokugawa Ieyasu, formerly a retainer of the Imagawa but freed from that obligation by the victory at Okehazama.

      The two red banners of Suwa Myôjin, the deity of the area where the Takeda were based, treasured by the Takeda along with the ‘Sun Zi’ flag, and were carried into battle together with the blue flag. They bear invocations of the god in Japanese characters, while round the edge of the larger one is a religious incription in Sanskrit.

      For the next 15 years Oda Nobunaga fought battles, made marriage alliances, arranged coups and built castles, until in 1568 he himself was able to enter Kyoto in triumph with Ashikaga Yoshiaki, whom he proclaimed Shogun. More battles and campaigns followed, among which there began a long and bitter struggle between the Oda and the Buddhist fanatics of the Ikkô-ikki, whose well trained fighting men were the equal of any daimyô’s army.

      In spite of having control of the Shogun, Oda Nobunaga still effectively ruled only a handful of provinces around the capital in central Japan, and some very powerful enemies lay just over the horizon. To the west were the Mori, who controlled the Inland Sea, to the north were the Uesugi, and to the east were the mighty Takeda, under their daimyô, Takeda Shingen.

      The Takeda Clan

      Of all the daimyô who had the potential to rule Japan, Takeda Shingen had demonstrated his ability most clearly by his own successful hegemony in Kai and Shinano provinces. Three factors had prevented him from taking the same initiative of marching on Kyoto as had been exercised by Imagawa Yoshimoto in 1560. The first was the isolation of his mountain-based province from the central area. The second was the fact that any advance by Shingen down towards the Tokaido, the road which ran along the Pacific coast, was monitored and blocked by Oda Nobunaga’s allies the Tokugawa. Finally, for much of his reign Takeda Shingen was occupied in fighting his enemies to the north and east of his own territory, in particular the Hôjô family, based near modern Tokyo, and the Uesugi, whom he contested on five occasions at the same place – the battlefield of Kawanakajima.

      In the winter of 1572 Takeda Shingen broke out of his territories and made a move towards the Pacific coast. He threatened the Tokugawa in Hamamatsu castle and then defeated them when Tokugawa Ieyasu led his army out to fight him on the plain of Mikata-ga-hara. It proved to be an indecisive victory because the winter weather prevented any follow-up, but the defeat of the Tokugawa encouraged Takeda Shingen to return the following year. This time he laid siege to Tokugawa Ieyasu’s castle of Noda, on the Toyokawa river. The garrison were soon driven to the point of surrender, but, according to legend, had in their castle a large stock of sake (rice wine). Not wishing to allow this precious brew to fall into the hands of the enemy, the defenders of Noda decided to dispose of it in the most appropriate manner. The sounds of the party reached the besiegers’ ears, and Takeda Shingen was particularly taken by the music of a bamboo flute being played on the ramparts. He moved forward to hear the tune more clearly and was spotted by a sniper on the castle walls who put a bullet through his head. Takeda Shingen died a few days later, living just long enough to urge his followers to keep his death secret for as long as possible, as so much of the formidable reputation of the Takeda army rested on his own broad shoulders.

      The great banner of Takeda Shingen, in a reproduction flown at Kawanakajima. It bears a quotation from the Chinese strategist Sun Zi, ‘Swift as the wind; quiet as the forest, conquer like the fire; steady as the mountain’, which became the motto of Takeda Shingen, and the inspiration of the clan. The flag was taken on the Nagashino campaign by Takeda Katsuyori.

      Takeda Shingen was succeeded by his son Takeda Katsuyori, who inherited the mantle of the all-conquering Takeda daimyô and the considerable military experience of the fine Takeda army with its renowned cavalry force. It was not long before he decided to follow in his father’s footsteps by invading the territories of Tokugawa Ieyasu. He set off in 1575, but his route was

      Enjoying the preview?
      Page 1 of 1