Hori Hidemasa
Encyclopedia
, also known as Hori Kyūtarō (堀 久太郎), was a samurai retainer of Oda Nobunaga
and Toyotomi Hideyoshi
during Japan's Sengoku period
. He was one of Hideyoshi's greatest generals, and commanded his forces in several of his most major battles.
Born in Mino Province
, he was raised along with his cousin Hori Naomasa, by his uncle, an Ikkō
priest. Originally serving Ōtsu Chōji and Kinoshita Hideyoshi, at the age of 13 he became Oda Nobunaga's page
. By sixteen, he'd been assigned prefect (bugyō
) in charge of the construction of Shogun
Ashikaga Yoshiaki
's residence at Hongaku-ji, working with the likes of Sugaya Nagayori, Ōtsu Nagaaki, Yabe Iesada, Hasegawa Hidekazu, Manmi Shigemoto and Fukutomi Hidekatsu. Gradually, however, he began to spend more and more time on the battlefield. In 1575, he aided in Nobunaga's assaults on the Ikkō-ikki
of Echizen province
, and fought the Saiga Ikki
two years later, leading Nobunaga's army alongside Hashiba Hideyoshi and Sakuma Nobumori
. He also led corps of arquebus
iers in a number of battles.
Hidemasa was granted the fief of Sakata, in Ōmi Province
, in 1581, with an income of 25,000 koku
. Though some sources say he also controlled Nagahama castle
at this point, most sources indicate this castle belonged to Hideyoshi. While there was a nearby fief held by a Buddhist temple, with the same kokutaka (assessment of land-value in koku), these should not be confused.
The following year, Oda Nobunaga was killed in the Incident at Honnō-ji, but Hidemasa remained loyal to his lord's clan, following Oda Nobutada
into battle against Araki Murashige
and the Takeda family
. He was still bugyō throughout this period though, and so continued this position as well, overseeing the construction of a mansion for Portguese missionaries, and playing a role in hosting the 1579 Azuchi religious debate
(安土宗論, Azuchi shūron). Serving as Nobunaga's representative, he also hosted the likes of Tokugawa Ieyasu
, Niwa Nagahide
, and others. Following the death of his lord, he came to serve Toyotomi Hideyoshi.
Hidemasa led Hideoyshi's vanguard in the 1582 battle of Yamazaki
, along with Nakagawa Kiyohide
and Takayama Ukon, and received great praise the following year from Tokugawa Ieyasu for his battle prowess. At that time, Hideyoshi had just begun fighting Shibata Katsuie
, and Ieyasu expressed his confidence that the campaign would go smoothly. Hidemasa was promoted to the fifth rank, appointed to the Saemonfu (左衛門, Court Security Office), and granted Sawayama in Ōmi province
as his fief, with an income of 90,000 koku
. He then arranged negotiations for Hideyoshi with the Ikkō sect which had fervently opposed Nobunaga; the head priest of Renshō-ji was Hidemasa's cousin Hori Rokuemon, and so the negotiations went quite smoothly.
Hidemasa led portions of Hideyoshi's forces once again, in the 1584 Battle of Komaki and Nagakute
, in which they suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of the Tokugawa army. Ambushed by Ōsuga Yasutaka and Sakakibara Yasumasa
, they successfully held off their attackers for a time, but upon meeting the main Tokugawa force of 9000, were forced to retreat. The following year, Hideyoshi became Kanpaku (Imperial regent), and Hidemasa was promoted to the fourth rank at court, and appointed to a new post as well. Following the siege of Negoroji
and the invasion of Shikoku
, he was given the lands of the late Niwa Nagahide, Kita no shō in Echizen province
, with an income of 180,000 koku.
During the 1587 Kyūshū Campaign
, Hidemasa once again led the vanguard of Hideyoshi's forces. As various castles fell, and fifty or so Satsuma warriors were captured, he released them rather than killing them. It is said that he had absolutely no rest for much of the campaign, fighting battle after battle with no break.
The 1590 siege of Odawara
would see Hidemasa commanding in battle for the final time. He commanded the left flank of the besieging army with a number of great warriors under him, and captured a number of surrounding fortifications. But then, late in the fifth month, he suddenly fell very ill and died. His lands and posts were inherited by his eldest son, Hori Hideharu.
Oda Nobunaga
was the initiator of the unification of Japan under the shogunate in the late 16th century, which ruled Japan until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was also a major daimyo during the Sengoku period of Japanese history. His opus was continued, completed and finalized by his successors Toyotomi...
and Toyotomi Hideyoshi
Toyotomi Hideyoshi
was a daimyo warrior, general and politician of the Sengoku period. He unified the political factions of Japan. He succeeded his former liege lord, Oda Nobunaga, and brought an end to the Sengoku period. The period of his rule is often called the Momoyama period, named after Hideyoshi's castle...
during Japan's Sengoku period
Sengoku period
The or Warring States period in Japanese history was a time of social upheaval, political intrigue, and nearly constant military conflict that lasted roughly from the middle of the 15th century to the beginning of the 17th century. The name "Sengoku" was adopted by Japanese historians in reference...
. He was one of Hideyoshi's greatest generals, and commanded his forces in several of his most major battles.
Born in Mino Province
Mino Province
, one of the old provinces of Japan, encompassed part of modern-day Gifu Prefecture. It was sometimes called . Mino Province bordered Echizen, Hida, Ise, Mikawa, Ōmi, Owari, and Shinano Provinces....
, he was raised along with his cousin Hori Naomasa, by his uncle, an Ikkō
Ikko
Ikkō-shu is usually viewed as a small, militant, offshoot from Jodo Shinshu Buddhism though the name has a complex history.Originally Ikkō-shu was a small antinomian sect founded by Ikkō Shunjo and similar to Ippen's Ji-shu...
priest. Originally serving Ōtsu Chōji and Kinoshita Hideyoshi, at the age of 13 he became Oda Nobunaga's page
Page (servant)
A page or page boy is a traditionally young male servant, a messenger at the service of a nobleman or royal.-The medieval page:In medieval times, a page was an attendant to a knight; an apprentice squire...
. By sixteen, he'd been assigned prefect (bugyō
Bugyo
', often translated as "commissioner" or "magistrate" or "governor," was a title assigned to government officers in pre-modern Japan; other terms would be added to the title to describe more specifically a given commissioner's tasks or jurisdiction....
) in charge of the construction of Shogun
Shogun
A was one of the hereditary military dictators of Japan from 1192 to 1867. In this period, the shoguns, or their shikken regents , were the de facto rulers of Japan though they were nominally appointed by the emperor...
Ashikaga Yoshiaki
Ashikaga Yoshiaki
was the 15th shogun of the Ashikaga shogunate in Japan who reigned from 1568 to 1573. His father, Ashikaga Yoshiharu was the twelfth shogun, and his brother, Ashikaga Yoshiteru was the thirteenth shogun....
's residence at Hongaku-ji, working with the likes of Sugaya Nagayori, Ōtsu Nagaaki, Yabe Iesada, Hasegawa Hidekazu, Manmi Shigemoto and Fukutomi Hidekatsu. Gradually, however, he began to spend more and more time on the battlefield. In 1575, he aided in Nobunaga's assaults on the Ikkō-ikki
Ikko-ikki
', literally "Ikkoshū Uprising", were mobs of peasant farmers, Buddhist monks, Shinto priests and local nobles, who rose up against samurai rule in 15th to 16th century Japan. They followed the beliefs of the Jōdo Shinshū sect of Buddhism which taught that all believers are equally saved by Amida...
of Echizen province
Echizen Province
was an old province of Japan, which is today the northern part of Fukui Prefecture. It was sometimes called , with Etchū and Echigo Provinces.Echizen is famous for washi . A text dated AD 774 mentions the washi made in this area. Echizen-produced Washi is still the most commonly sold traditional...
, and fought the Saiga Ikki
Saiga Ikki
The , based in Ōta in Kii Province, were one of many Ikkō-ikki groups in feudal Japan.In particular, the members of the Saika Ikki, along with the monks of the Negoro-ji, were renowned for their expertise with the arquebus, and for their expert gunsmiths and foundries...
two years later, leading Nobunaga's army alongside Hashiba Hideyoshi and Sakuma Nobumori
Sakuma Nobumori
was a retainer for the Oda clan. Nobumori's banishment by Oda Nobunaga to Mount Koyasan has widely been regarded as symbolic of Nobunaga's ruthlessness against even his longest-serving retainers, highlighting the leader's shortcomings as a military commander....
. He also led corps of arquebus
Arquebus
The arquebus , or "hook tube", is an early muzzle-loaded firearm used in the 15th to 17th centuries. The word was originally modeled on the German hakenbüchse; this produced haquebute...
iers in a number of battles.
Hidemasa was granted the fief of Sakata, in Ōmi Province
Omi Province
is an old province of Japan, which today comprises Shiga Prefecture. It was one of the provinces that made up the Tōsandō circuit. It is nicknamed as .Lake Biwa, Japan's largest lake, is located at the center of the province...
, in 1581, with an income of 25,000 koku
Koku
The is a Japanese unit of volume, equal to ten cubic shaku. In this definition, 3.5937 koku equal one cubic metre, i.e. 1 koku is approximately 278.3 litres. The koku was originally defined as a quantity of rice, historically defined as enough rice to feed one person for one year...
. Though some sources say he also controlled Nagahama castle
Nagahama Castle
is a hirashiro located in Nagahama, Shiga Prefecture, Japan.-History:Nagahama Castle was built in 1575-1576 by Hashiba Hideyoshi in the village then called Kunitomo, renaming the area Nagahama. Previously, he had ruled from Odani Castle, though found this hard to do as it was a yamashiro...
at this point, most sources indicate this castle belonged to Hideyoshi. While there was a nearby fief held by a Buddhist temple, with the same kokutaka (assessment of land-value in koku), these should not be confused.
The following year, Oda Nobunaga was killed in the Incident at Honnō-ji, but Hidemasa remained loyal to his lord's clan, following Oda Nobutada
Oda Nobutada
was the eldest son of Oda Nobunaga, and a samurai who fought in many battles during the Sengoku period. He commanded armies under his father in battles against Matsunaga Hisahide and against the Takeda clan....
into battle against Araki Murashige
Araki Murashige
was a retainer of Oda Nobunaga, and daimyō of Itami Castle during the late Sengoku period of the 16th century in Japanese history, in what is now Itami city in Hyōgo Prefecture....
and the Takeda family
Takeda family
The ' was a famous clan of daimyō in Japan's late Heian Period to Sengoku period.The Takeda were descendants of Emperor Seiwa and are a branch of the Minamoto clan , by Minamoto no Yoshimitsu , brother to the Chinjufu-shogun Minamoto no Yoshiie...
. He was still bugyō throughout this period though, and so continued this position as well, overseeing the construction of a mansion for Portguese missionaries, and playing a role in hosting the 1579 Azuchi religious debate
Azuchi religious debate
The took place between monks of the Nichiren and Jōdo sects of Japanese Buddhism, at Oda Nobunaga's Azuchi Castle in 1579.Nobunaga, who effectively ruled over all of Japan at the time, had a long history of low tolerance for violence or competition for power from religious groups...
(安土宗論, Azuchi shūron). Serving as Nobunaga's representative, he also hosted the likes of Tokugawa Ieyasu
Tokugawa Ieyasu
was the founder and first shogun of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan , which ruled from the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. Ieyasu seized power in 1600, received appointment as shogun in 1603, abdicated from office in 1605, but...
, Niwa Nagahide
Niwa Nagahide
, also known as Gorōzaemon , was a Japanese samurai of the Sengoku through Azuchi-Momoyama periods of the 16th century. He served as a retainer to the Oda clan, and was eventually a daimyo in his own right....
, and others. Following the death of his lord, he came to serve Toyotomi Hideyoshi.
Hidemasa led Hideoyshi's vanguard in the 1582 battle of Yamazaki
Battle of Yamazaki
The was fought in 1582 in Yamazaki, Japan, located in current day Kyoto Prefecture. This battle is sometimes referred to as the Battle of Mt. Tennō ....
, along with Nakagawa Kiyohide
Nakagawa Kiyohide
Nakagawa Kiyohide was a daimyo in Azuchi-Momoyama period.His childhood name was Nakagawa Toranosuke...
and Takayama Ukon, and received great praise the following year from Tokugawa Ieyasu for his battle prowess. At that time, Hideyoshi had just begun fighting Shibata Katsuie
Shibata Katsuie
or was a Japanese military commander during the Sengoku Period who served Oda Nobunaga.-Biography:Katsuie was born in the Shibata family, a branch of the Shiba clan . Note the differences between , , and the .Katsuie was the retainer of Oda Nobukatsu...
, and Ieyasu expressed his confidence that the campaign would go smoothly. Hidemasa was promoted to the fifth rank, appointed to the Saemonfu (左衛門, Court Security Office), and granted Sawayama in Ōmi province
Omi Province
is an old province of Japan, which today comprises Shiga Prefecture. It was one of the provinces that made up the Tōsandō circuit. It is nicknamed as .Lake Biwa, Japan's largest lake, is located at the center of the province...
as his fief, with an income of 90,000 koku
Koku
The is a Japanese unit of volume, equal to ten cubic shaku. In this definition, 3.5937 koku equal one cubic metre, i.e. 1 koku is approximately 278.3 litres. The koku was originally defined as a quantity of rice, historically defined as enough rice to feed one person for one year...
. He then arranged negotiations for Hideyoshi with the Ikkō sect which had fervently opposed Nobunaga; the head priest of Renshō-ji was Hidemasa's cousin Hori Rokuemon, and so the negotiations went quite smoothly.
Hidemasa led portions of Hideyoshi's forces once again, in the 1584 Battle of Komaki and Nagakute
Battle of Komaki and Nagakute
The consisted of two battles in 1584 between the forces of Hashiba Hideyoshi and the forces of Oda Nobukatsu and Tokugawa Ieyasu. Hideyoshi and Ieyasu had both served Oda Nobunaga and had not previously come into conflict; this would in fact be their only period of enmity...
, in which they suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of the Tokugawa army. Ambushed by Ōsuga Yasutaka and Sakakibara Yasumasa
Sakakibara Yasumasa
was a Japanese daimyo of the late Sengoku period through early Edo period, who served the Tokugawa clan. As one of the Tokugawa family's foremost military commanders, he was considered one of its "Four Guardian Kings"...
, they successfully held off their attackers for a time, but upon meeting the main Tokugawa force of 9000, were forced to retreat. The following year, Hideyoshi became Kanpaku (Imperial regent), and Hidemasa was promoted to the fourth rank at court, and appointed to a new post as well. Following the siege of Negoroji
Siege of Negoroji
The was commanded by Toyotomi Hideyoshi, a former vassal of Oda Nobunaga, who came to inherit his armies, his land, and his rivalry with the warrior monks of Japan when Nobunaga was killed in 1582. Thus, in a way this was the next in a series of many sieges that Oda Nobunaga's forces undertook in...
and the invasion of Shikoku
Invasion of Shikoku (1585)
In the 1585 invasion of Shikoku, Toyotomi Hideyoshi seized Shikoku, the smallest of Japan's four main islands, from Chōsokabe Motochika.Hideyoshi's army was divided into three forces. The first, under Hashiba Hidenaga and Hashiba Hidetsugu, consisted of 60,000 men, and assaulted the provinces of...
, he was given the lands of the late Niwa Nagahide, Kita no shō in Echizen province
Echizen Province
was an old province of Japan, which is today the northern part of Fukui Prefecture. It was sometimes called , with Etchū and Echigo Provinces.Echizen is famous for washi . A text dated AD 774 mentions the washi made in this area. Echizen-produced Washi is still the most commonly sold traditional...
, with an income of 180,000 koku.
During the 1587 Kyūshū Campaign
Kyushu Campaign
The Kyūshū Campaign of 1586-1587 was part of the campaigns of Toyotomi Hideyoshi who sought to dominate Japan at the end of the Sengoku period...
, Hidemasa once again led the vanguard of Hideyoshi's forces. As various castles fell, and fifty or so Satsuma warriors were captured, he released them rather than killing them. It is said that he had absolutely no rest for much of the campaign, fighting battle after battle with no break.
The 1590 siege of Odawara
Siege of Odawara (1590)
The third ' occurred in 1590, and was the primary action in Toyotomi Hideyoshi's campaign to eliminate the Hōjō clan as a threat to his power. The months leading up to it saw hasty but major improvements in the defense of the castle, as Hideyoshi's intentions became clear...
would see Hidemasa commanding in battle for the final time. He commanded the left flank of the besieging army with a number of great warriors under him, and captured a number of surrounding fortifications. But then, late in the fifth month, he suddenly fell very ill and died. His lands and posts were inherited by his eldest son, Hori Hideharu.