The soldiers are wandering
Huddled on a muddy road.
What a cold!
Mutyo
Oda Nabunaga pounds Akechi Mitsuhide at a feast after the Battle of Nagashino. Uki-yo Utagawa Toyonobu.
So, Mitsuhide Akechi is a person who, first of all, is very difficult to assess objectively. It is known that he lived in the 16th century and was one of the most trusted and, we note, awarded persons who served one of the first unifiers of Japan, Ode Nobunage. Turning to historical sources, we can find out that he and the other seemed to trust each other and get along well with each other. Maeda Toshiie, Hasiba Hideyoshi, Sakuma Nobumori and Niva Nagahide all of these people unanimously reported their good relationship. He also honestly and quite fairly ruled his possessions, and was considered a good ruler, which was also reported by his vassals. Even having committed his famous betrayal, he did not lose the trust of his people, who still remained loyal to him, and for some reason they did not betray him in a difficult moment for him, a traitor. For some reason, they did not run away in all directions, but fought for him to the end at the Battle of Yamazaki. When Mitsuhide decided to flee, several sources immediately report that at least 200 people volunteered to go with him and protect their master. Amazing, isn't it?
But there is another image of Mitsuhide, literary, primarily from the novel by James Claywell "Shogun", where he is described as a very proud man who sought to get the title of shogun at any cost. That is, this is an unprincipled person, if he raised his hand against his overlord, "a traitor for all time."
His youth was spent on wanderings in Japan, during which he tried to offer his services to the powerful Mori clan. The head of the Mori Motonari clan took the issue of "recruiting" very seriously in this case, but refused the young samurai, although he gave him money. At the same time, he stated the following: “Indeed, he is overflowing with courage and endowed with a deep mind. But his face is like a sleeping wolf, hiding his essence in the depths of his bones until he decides to act. His calm state of mind is just a mask. " There is another version of the characterization given to him: “Talents are of two types: some are endowed with true greatness, and the other are villains. A learned villain is capable of ruining himself and the prince he serves. There is something slippery about him. His bright and enthusiastic speeches are mesmerizing. I don’t deny that he is an educated man, but I prefer our tried and tested, albeit dull, warriors from the western provinces. Mitsuhide in my army would be like a crane among the roosters, so I don't want to deal with him. " However, it is rather difficult to check today whether he said so and when exactly. Well, it's not so difficult to ascribe clever words retroactively to any person. Paper, including rice, will endure everything!
This is how Oda Nobunaga is portrayed in the Japanese drama Nyotora, Mistress of the Castle.
Europeans also spoke about him, with whom Oda Nobunaga had a strong friendship (and so much so that, as emphasized in the television series "Nyotora, Mistress of the Castle", he walks in European boots and a caftan, drinks from a European cup and sits by candlelight in a European candlestick) that, they say, with all his talents, this person is … dangerous. But … friends are very often biased in their judgments, as, indeed, all people.
Portrait of Oda Nobunaga from the collection of the Chokoji Temple in Toyota City (Prefecture)Aichi).
In any case, Mitsuhide was famous as a person capable of both the arts and military affairs. In particular, it is reported about him that he skillfully shot from an arquebus, which means that he did not shy away, again, and European culture alien to the Japanese. He carried out all the civil affairs entrusted to him with great responsibility, and besides, he was carried away by the poetry of Wack and was known as a fine connoisseur of the tea ceremony. Historical records indicate that he used only one bullet to hit a flying bird at a distance of about 45.5 meters. This skill in shooting made him a prominent person, and daimyos began to invite him as a shooting teacher. But Oda Nobunaga gave Matsuhide two funny nicknames - Bald Head and Golden Orange. His other nickname "White Hawk Oda" arose due to the fact that he was born in the castle of the Akechi clan - the castle of Sirotaka, and this name is precisely translated as "white hawk". However, it really was so or not, no longer matters. The main thing is that he had such a nickname.
But this is a purely Japanese image of Oda Nobunaga.
Matsuhide's family life is known to have had two wives, possibly one concubine, possibly five sons and six famous daughters. His beloved wife was Hiroko-hime or Tsumaki Hiroko, whose romantic love story was described by the famous Japanese writer Ihara Saikaku in his story "A mole that revived the past in memory".
Mon clan Oda.
Once she cut her beautiful black hair, and the Japanese women, representatives of the nobility, had them in the literal sense of the word, to the toes, and sold them to help her husband with money in a difficult situation in which he fell. Cutting our hair is like … well, nonsense for us. But for Japanese women and the Japanese of the 16th century, it was something. It is not for nothing that such a great Japanese poet like Matsuo Basho even wrote about it to hokku:
Moon, darken.
Akechi about his wife
Will tell
Again, the European will not immediately understand what the point is. What does the Moon have to do with it, doesn't it? And the fact is that Akechi's act moved his wife to tears and he talks about her only in the dark so that his listeners could not see them.
This is how the sovereign prince spoke from the veranda of his house to his faithful servants - the samurai. And they kneeled down and listened to him.
It is known that in his younger years he was a subject of the daimyo of the Mino province, Toki clan, and was in the service of Saito Dosanu. But then he was forced to become a ronin, was forced to wander around the country, and tried a variety of activities, for example, teaching the village children to read and write. He was in different places, nowhere did he get attached to anyone, and in the end he came back and entered the service of the daimyo Echizen Asakura Yoshikage. Here he again took up the fact that he taught the children of the vassals of the clan in musket shooting. But … I managed to make enemies in this clan. And then he was offered to seek happiness from the "wandering shogun" Ashikage Yoshiaki. As a result, Mitsuhide met him sometime in 1568, began serving him, but at the same time began serving Oda Nobunaga. Moreover, the latter was quite happy with this situation.
He acted as an intermediary between Oda and the shogun on several occasions. But in addition, as a commander of Oda, he participated in a number of battles. And he serves him with obvious success, because he becomes one of his five most trusted "generals" and receives as a reward Shiga district with an income of about 50,000 koku. This position gives him the right to a castle, and he builds Sakamoto's castle and becomes his master.
It is known that Nobunaga was an incredulous person. However, Katsuie Shibata, Hideyoshi Hashiba and Mitsuhide Akechi gained his trust. In 1575, he successfully defended Kuroi from the attack of the Akai clan. Then in 1577 he participated in the siege of the castle of Sigisan, and in 1578 he was sent to the castle of Arioka in order to force his master to surrender. And when the castle surrendered, he went to the battle at the Ibaraki castle.
In 1577 he was ordered to seize Kuroi Castle, which he did. For this, Oda granted him possessions that gave 340,000 koku, the castles of Fukushiyama, Kameyama and Susan. That is, now he owned as many as four castles and a very large income from land holdings, which turned him into one of the richest daimyo in the central regions of Japan. But then it all started …
Nobunaga fights off the spearman during the assault on Honno-ji. Triptych Toshihide, 1880
It is known that one of Oda Nabunaga's allies was the future shogun and ruler of Japan, Ieyasu Tokugawa. They fought together in the Battle of Nagashino, and Ieyasu not only defeated the Takeda clan, which was at enmity with Oda, but also delivered him a valuable trophy - the head of Katsuyori - the close son of Takeda Shingen. For this Oda Nabunaga ordered with great pomp to receive Ieyasu Tokugawa in his castle Azuchi and instructed Mitsuhide to organize this reception. He fulfilled the commission given to him. But then a message came from another ally of Oda - Hideyoshi, who asked to send reinforcements to conquer the powerful Mori clan. Thus, Mitsuhide was relieved of his duties as a major dom, and had to go to war again. He returned to his castle Sakamoto, gathered his people and wrote a poem in renga, where it was written: “The time has come. The fifth month when it rains."
