Oichi
Encyclopedia
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...
. She is known primarily as the mother of three daughters who married well -- Yodo-dono
Yodo-Dono
or was a prominently-placed figure in late-Sengoku period. She was a concubine and second wife of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, who was then the most powerful man in Japan. She also became the mother of his son and successor, Hideyori. She was also known as Lady Chacha...
, Ohatsu and Oeyo
Oeyo
, , or : 1573 – September 15, 1626) was a prominently-placed female figure in late-Sengoku period. She married three times, first to Saji Kazunari, then to Toyotomi Hideyoshi's nephew Toyotomi Hidekatsu. Her third and last husband Tokugawa Hidetada became the second Tokugawa shogun...
.
Oichi was the younger sister of Oda Nobunaga
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 she was the sister-in-law of Nōhime
Nohime
also Kichō or Lady Noh, was the wife of Oda Nobunaga, a major daimyo during the Sengoku period of Japanese history. Her proper name was Kichō, but since she came from Mino Province, she is most commonly referred to as Nōhime . She was renowned for her beauty and cleverness.Nōhime's father was the...
, the daughter of Saitō Dōsan
Saito Dosan
was a daimyo who dramatically rose and also fell from power in Sengoku period Japan. He was also known as the for his ruthless tactics.-Life:Originally a wealthy merchant from Yamashiro Province , he entered the service of Nagai Nagahiro of Mino Province , assuming the name Nishimura Kankurô.He...
. Oichi was equally renowned for her beauty and her resolve. She was descended from the Taira and Fujiwara
Fujiwara
, literally "wisteria field", is a Japanese surname.The name can refer to:-People:* The Fujiwara clan and its members** Fujiwara no Kamatari* Northern Fujiwara clan** Fujiwara no Kiyohira...
clans.
Life as a spouse and mother
Following Nobunaga's conquest of MinoMino 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....
in 1567, in an effort to cement an alliance between Nobunaga and rival warlord Azai Nagamasa
Azai Nagamasa
was a Daimyo during the Sengoku period of Japan. His clan, the Azai, were located in northern Ōmi Province, east of Lake Biwa. He was both the brother-in-law of Oda Nobunaga, starting in 1564, and one of Nobunaga's enemies from 1570-1573. Nagamasa and his clan were utterly destroyed by Oda...
, Nobunaga arranged for Oichi, then twenty years old, to marry Nagamasa. Their marriage was through political means, ensuring an alliance between the Oda and the Azai clans. She bore Nagamasa one son (Manjumaru) and three daughters -- Yodo-dono
Yodo-Dono
or was a prominently-placed figure in late-Sengoku period. She was a concubine and second wife of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, who was then the most powerful man in Japan. She also became the mother of his son and successor, Hideyori. She was also known as Lady Chacha...
, Ohatsu and Oeyo
Oeyo
, , or : 1573 – September 15, 1626) was a prominently-placed female figure in late-Sengoku period. She married three times, first to Saji Kazunari, then to Toyotomi Hideyoshi's nephew Toyotomi Hidekatsu. Her third and last husband Tokugawa Hidetada became the second Tokugawa shogun...
.
In the summer of 1570, Nagamasa betrayed his alliance with Nobunaga and went to war with him on behalf of the Asakura family. A story relates that Oichi sent her brother a sack of beans tied at both ends, ostensibly as a good-luck charm but in reality a warning that he was about to be attacked from both front and rear by the Asakura and Azai clans. According to the story, Nobunaga understood the message and retreated from his brother-in-law's assault in time.
The fighting continued for three years until the Asakura and other anti-Oda forces were destroyed or weakened. Oichi remained with her husband at Odani Castle throughout the conflict, even after 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...
, a trusted vassal of Nobunaga at the time, began laying siege to the castle. When Odani was surrounded, Nobunaga requested that his sister be returned to him before the final attack. Nagamasa agreed, sending out Oichi and her three daughters. Nagamasa had no hope of winning, and chose to commit seppuku.
Oichi and her daughters remained in the Oda family's care for the next decade. After Nobunaga was assassinated in 1582, his sons and vassals broke into two major factions, led by two of Nobunaga's favored generals, Katsuie and Hideyoshi. Nobunaga's third son, Nobutaka, belonged to the former group, and arranged for his aunt Oichi to marry Katsuie in order to ensure his loyalty to the Oda clan. But in 1583, Katsuie was defeated by Hideyoshi in the Battle of Shizugatake
Battle of Shizugatake
The was a battle in Sengoku period Japan between supporters of Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Oda Nobutaka.In May, 1583, a former general of Nobunaga's named Shibata Katsuie coordinated a number of simultaneous attacks on Shizugatake, a series of forts held by Hideyoshi's generals among whom was Nakagawa...
, forcing him to retreat to his home at Kitanosho Castle
Kitanosho Castle
was a hirashiro . Its remains are located in current-day Fukui, Fukui Prefecture, Japan. As the castle lasted merely eight years, few records survive about it. It is known, though that it was built by Shibata Katsuie in 1575...
. As Hideyoshi's army lay siege to the castle, Katsuie implored Oichi to flee with her daughters and seek Hideyoshi's protection. Oichi refused, insisting on dying with her husband after their daughters were sent away. The couple reportedly died in the castle's flames.
Oichi's daughters
The eldest and the most famous, Yodo-dono
Yodo-Dono
or was a prominently-placed figure in late-Sengoku period. She was a concubine and second wife of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, who was then the most powerful man in Japan. She also became the mother of his son and successor, Hideyori. She was also known as Lady Chacha...
became a concubine to Hideyoshi, who had killed not only both her birth parents but also her stepfather. She became known as Yodo-dono or Yodogimi (from Yodo Castle, given to her by Hideyoshi), and she bore him his only two sons, including his heir Hideyori
Toyotomi Hideyori
was the son and designated successor of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the general who first united all of Japan. His mother, Yodo-dono, was the niece of Oda Nobunaga....
. Yodo-dono and Hideyori later died in the Siege of Osaka
Siege of Osaka
The was a series of battles undertaken by the Tokugawa shogunate against the Toyotomi clan, and ending in that clan's destruction. Divided into two stages , and lasting from 1614 to 1615, the siege put an end to the last major armed opposition to the shogunate's establishment...
, the final battle of the Warring States era.
Kyōgoku Takatsugu
was a daimyo of Omi Province and Wakasa Province during the late-Sengoku Period of Japan's history.Takatsugu is recognized as the founder of the modern Kyōgoku clan. His forebears had been powerful since the 13th century, but their fortunes had waned after the Ōnin War...
, a man from a noble family once served by the Azai clan. The Kyogoku clan sided with Ieyasu after Hideyoshi's death, giving her the means to serve as an intermediary between Ieyasu and Yodo-dono. She worked in vain to end their hostilities, and after Yodo-dono and Hideyori's death, managed to save Hideyori's daughter by putting her in a convent.
The youngest, Oeyo
Oeyo
, , or : 1573 – September 15, 1626) was a prominently-placed female figure in late-Sengoku period. She married three times, first to Saji Kazunari, then to Toyotomi Hideyoshi's nephew Toyotomi Hidekatsu. Her third and last husband Tokugawa Hidetada became the second Tokugawa shogun...
(also called Ogō), married Tokugawa Hidetada
Tokugawa Hidetada
was the second shogun of the Tokugawa dynasty, who ruled from 1605 until his abdication in 1623. He was the third son of Tokugawa Ieyasu, the first shogun of the Tokugawa shogunate.-Early life :...
, Ieyasu's heir and the second Tokugawa Shogun. They had many children, including the third Shogun Iemitsu
Tokugawa Iemitsu
Tokugawa Iemitsu was the third shogun of the Tokugawa dynasty. He was the eldest son of Tokugawa Hidetada, and the grandson of Tokugawa Ieyasu. Iemitsu ruled from 1623 to 1651.-Early life :...
, and Kazuko, consort to Emperor Go-Mizunoo
Emperor Go-Mizunoo
was the 108th Emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession.Go-Mizunoo's reign spanned the years from 1611 through 1629.This 17th century sovereign was named after the 9th century Emperor Seiwa and , translates literally as "later;" and thus, he could be called the "Later...
. Kazuko's daughter Okiko became Empress Meishō
Empress Meisho
was the 109th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession.Meishō's reign spanned the years from 1629 to 1643.In the history of Japan, Meishō was the seventh of eight women to become empress regnant. The six female monarchs who reigned before Meishō-tennō were Suiko, ...
, thus posthumously making Oichi both a grandmother to a Shogun and a great-grandmother to an Empress.
In popular culture
- Oichi was named Oyu in Onimusha 2, in which she works together with Saika Magoichi, Yagyu Jubei, Ekei Ankokuji, and Fuma Kotaro in defeating her evil demonic brother, Oda Nobunaga. Oyu is also in Onimusha: Blade Warriors.
- She is a playable character in Sengoku Basara 2Sengoku Basara 2Sengoku Basara 2 is a sequel to the video game Sengoku Basara , released in Japan on July 27, 2006 for the PlayStation 2. A revision with additional features named Sengoku Basara 2 Heroes was released on November 29, 2007...
. She is forced into the servitude of her cruel and malevolent brother after he murders her husband Azai Nagmasa. Only later, as she begins to regret her actions in furthering Nobunaga's campaign of conquest and being haunted by the voice of her dead husband does she revolt and utterly decimate the Oda clan. She would then seemingly perish next to her brother's fallen corpse, weeping as everything around them burned to ashes. In Sengoku Basara 3, she is depicted as a woman literally possessed by the demons left behind by her brother, and also appears to be oblivious of the world around her, not remembering any of her former acquaintances. In some ways, she is depicted in similar fashion to an onryo (vengeful ghost) in that her weapons are black demonic hands that resemble her long hair, and her neck is always tilted down to the side, as if broken. While it is believed that she may be manipulated by Tenkai to further his goals, Oichi may in fact, be working for herself. Oichi can either side with Tokugawa Ieyasu or Ishida Mitsunari.
- Oichi's daughters Yodo-Dono and Ohatsu are characters in Onimusha 4. Ohatsu must betray everything she worked for in defeating her sister, Yodo-Dono, and her husband, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, who have become pure evil. She is in love with an old friend named SokiYuki Hideyasuwas a Japanese daimyo who lived during the Azuchi-Momoyama and early Edo periods. Born the second son of Tokugawa Ieyasu, he established the Echizen Fukui Domain.-Birth:...
, the main hero in Onimusha 4, but at the end of the game, she doesn't know what happened to Soki after Hideyoshi's defeat.
- Oichi is a playable character in Sengoku Musou series. she is depicted as being a cheerful, peppy young fifteen year old. In Sengoku Musou 2, her appearance has been adjusted to make her an adult with a more mature personality. Oichi also makes an appearance in Sengoku Musou 3.