One is Never Far From Exciting and Fascinating History in Ōmi.

Historical Ōmi was one of the traditional provinces of old Japan, mentioned by name in the chronicles of 701 AD. Ōmi’s central position, being close to Kyoto and traversed by Japan’s major traditional highways, the Tokaido and the Nakasendo, linking the Imperial capital, Kyoto, with the Shogunate cities of Kamakura and later Edo (Tokyo), and with the great Lake Biwa — one of the world’s oldest lakes — affording transportation routes, made it strategically important. For these reasons, the Ōmi area is dotted with numerous samurai castles and history changing battlefields that influenced the fate of the Three Unifiers, the popular warlords Oda Nobunaga, Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Tokugawa Ieyasu.

Heroes of Ōmi

The history books are filled with the names of notable historical personages of Ōmi, including the great warrior, castle architect and statesman Todo Takatora, one of Tokugawa Ieyasu’s closest friends and advisors. His son-in-law, samurai, tea master, garden designer and artist, Kobori Masakazu Enshu was also from Ōmi. Oda Nobunaga’s loyal son-in-law Gamo Ujisato, also the leader of the Western forces at Sekigahara, Ishida Mitsunari, and Otani Yoshitsugu, the only daimyo to have committed seppuku on the Sekigahara battlefield all came from Ōmi. Wakisaka Yasuharu whose defection along with the Kobayakawa at Sekigahara brought victory to the Tokugawa hailed from Ōmi, as did Toyotomi Hideyoshi’s wife, Lady Yodo, born at Odani. Katagiri Katsumoto, one of the Seven Spears of Shizugatake was born in Nagahama, Tanaka Yoshimasa, one time master and architect of Okazaki Castle, the 4th largest castle of the Edo period was a native of Ōmi’s Torahime. Other names regularly seen in the history books including Kyogoku Takatsugu, Mashita Nagamori, Takigawa Kazumasu and Azai Nagamasa - all came from Ōmi!

Todo Takatora, the great warrior , castle architect and statesman.

Ishida Mitsunari, the leader of the Western forces at Sekigahara.

Ōmi was the location of several battles of the Jinshin War of 672 when the Imperial throne split into two courts, one of which set up a capital in Ōmi. Ōmi was also the base of Japan’s Buddhism, with the Tendai sect establishing the Enryaku-ji Temple complex on Ōmi’s Mt. Hiei, overlooking Ōmi and the Imperial Capital, Kyoto.

The influential Rokkaku and Kyogoku clans, descendants of the once governing Sasaki clan continued to dominate Ōmi Province during the Sengoku, or Warring States period, until continuous internal struggles weakened both clans. Ōmi then became the battlefields of the powerful Azai and Asakura clans, until they too formed an alliance against a common encroaching enemy, Oda Nobunaga.

The Azai and the Oda had been enemies since at least 1564. On capturing Mino, Nobunaga had been called upon to assist the Ashikaga Shogunate, and as Nobunaga also had his eye on conquering Japan, he needed access to Kyoto. To quell any future opposition, Nobunaga had orchestrated the marriage of his sister, O-Ichi, considered a great beauty, to Ōmi’s Lord Azai Nagamasa. The marriage was a strategic ploy to protect Nobunaga’s western front, while he concentrated on taking Kyoto, the route to which was now made easier and simpler through the lands of his now friendly brother-in-law.
Echizen Province on the northern side of Lake Biwa, was ruled by the Asakura Clan under the very able Asakura Yoshikage. The Ashikaga Shogunate had originally approached the Asakura for help, but they had declined. The missed opportunity was accepted by Nobunaga. Once the Shogun was re-established, Asakura Yoshikage was summoned to Kyoto. Believing this to be Nobunaga asserting his superiority, Yoshikage refused. Infuriated by his insolence, Nobunaga attacked Echizen, taking Kanegasaki Castle and began to lay siege to the Asakura’s main castle at Ichijodani before discovering a plot hatched by Nobunaga’s own brother-in-law, Azai Nagamasa. Nagamasa had formed an alliance with the Asakura against Nobunaga and had set a trap! The warning came in the form of a bag of beans tied at both ends. The beans had been sent by Azai Nagamasa’s wife, Nobunaga’s sister! Departing from Odani Castle, the Azai moved to the northern end of Ōmi’s Lake Biwa in an attempt to cut off Nobunaga’s escape to Gifu. Realising the situation, the Oda troops beat a hasty retreat to Kyoto where they re-organised before launching a revenge assault.

The Battle of Anegawa

The Ane River (Anegawa) runs east to west through the northern districts of Ōmi Province before flowing into Lake Biwa north of Nagahama. Here, On July 30th, 1570, a combined force under Oda Nobunaga and his ally Tokugawa Ieyasu faced off against the joint 13,000 troops of Azai Nagamasa and Asakura Yoshikage, (according to the Shincho Koki, the Chronicles of Lord Nobunaga) and the wide, shallow waters of Ōmi’s gentle Anegawa flowed red with the blood of thousands of samurai casualties killed in the violent Battle of Anegawa one of the greatest samurai battles of all time.
While a contingent of Oda forces was ordered to lay siege to the nearby Azai held Yokoyama Castle, the bulk of the troops stationed themselves on the southern banks of the river. The Anegawa flowed between the Oda and the Azai, while a short distance downstream, the Tokugawa’s 5,000 troops faced the Asakura. Nobunaga had some 500 matchlock gunners on the field that day and had forsaken wearing armor, instead taking to the field in a yukata, a light summer kimono with a black haori jacket over that and topped off with a lightweight jingasa helmet.
The action began at first light with the Tokugawa forces pushing forward before being repelled time and again. Eventually the Tokugawa made a successful flank attack, forcing the Asakura to retreat. With the Asakura defeated, the Tokugawa samurai then came to the aid of Nobunaga’s men who were taking a beating from the Azai troops until the Tokugawa forces crushed the Azai’s right flank. The Tokugawa forces alone claimed some 1,100 enemy heads in the battle.

The battlefields of Anegawa, where the river ran red. © Chris Glenn

The Azai were routed, and Nobunaga claimed victory, however the Azai and the Asakura remained a concern until Nobunaga later attacked Ichijodani Castle and destroyed the Asakura. Then in 1573, Nobunaga returned to Ōmi and surrounded Odani Castle. Nobunaga showed no mercy, burning and destroying the splendid castle and community of Odani. Utterly defeated, Nagamasa capitulated. He sent his wife and children back to her brother, Nobunaga, and cut himself open in the manner of the Samurai.

Azai Nagamasa committed seppuku here in Odani Castle as it fell to the Oda troops. © Chris Glenn

Today the battlefields of Anegawa are a little different from Nobunaga’s days, as the river has changed course over the last 450 years, however, very little else has changed, and one can still get a very good feel of the conditions at Anegawa. Monuments stand where the various command posts once stood. The ruins of Odani and Yokoyama castles nearby are well worth visiting too.

The Warrior Monks of Hiei

From around the 12th century the warrior monks of the economically powerful Buddhist temple complexes of Enryaku-ji on Mt. Hiei in south western Ōmi had developed their own formidable military, and by 1571 had begun to exert their unwanted influence on the capital, Kyoto and other regional powers. Concerned by the bullying tactics of the clergy, the Shogun turned to the emerging leading warlord, Oda Nobunaga, to quell the threats. When the monks refused to cede to Nobunaga’s commands, he took a heavy-handed approach. He surrounded the holy mountain, and mercilessly attacked and burned the Buddhist temples of Ōmi in an effort to break their power. Thousands of priests, women and children on Mt. Hiei were exterminated. Nobunaga’s shock tactics brought a sharp end to the threat of the temples.

Azuchi, The Greatest Castle

Having destroyed the Rokkaku, the Azai and the monks of Ōmi, Nobunaga chose Ōmi as his next base of operations, building the magnificent Azuchi Castle on a steep mountain top along the eastern central shores of Lake Biwa. The castle, completed in 1579 was like no other samurai castle to date, and so innovative, that it forever changed samurai castle construction and design! Azuchi Castle was six stories high atop its stone base, with blue roof tiles, red balustrades, black walls, and generous gold fittings. Even the visiting European missionaries of the time were in awe of the splendor of this fine castle.

The innovative stone walls of warlord Oda Nobunaga’s Azuchi Castle remain standing and just as impressive nearly 450 years later. © Chris Glenn

In the summer of 1582, Oda Nobunaga was on the verge of gaining full control of the nation. His generals and their armies of samurai were fighting on the outer rim of his expanding empire. Believing himself safe at the heart of this empire, Nobunaga with as few as 70 guards and another 30 or so assistants and maids stopped in Kyoto, lodging at the Honno-ji Temple, as he had dome times before. One of his generals, Toyotomi Hideyoshi was facing a prolonged siege against Takamatsu Castle in Bitchu (Okayama Prefecture) and had requested Nobunaga send reinforcements. Nobunaga responded by ordering another trusted general, Akechi Mitsuhide, to support Hideyoshi. Akechi Mitsuhide loyally prepared his 13,000 men for battle, but instead of sending them to Hideyoshi in Okayama, he sent them to Kyoto, telling them that enemy was within the Honno-ji! Nobunaga’s small band of bodyguards were soon overwhelmed in the early morning raid, and realizing his predicament, Nobunaga shut himself in the temple’s prayer room, and setting it alight, cut himself open in the way of the samurai. Akechi Mitsuhide then attempted to take Oda control but was quickly destroyed by Toyotomi Hideyoshi’s forces in revenge.

Model of the stunning tower keep of Azuchi Castle.

In the turmoil, the magnificent castle at Azuchi in Ōmi was burned down. Some claim by looters, others say it was the work of Nobunaga’s men or even his sons robbing the Akechi of ever gaining hold of the symbol of Oda power. The great structure burned for three full days. Nothing was left. While there are no structures remaining, the impressive stone walls however, are awe inspiring, and these, along with the excellent museums and recreated castle structures are well worth the visit.

The Battle of Shizugatake

Toyotomi Hideyoshi took the reins of Nobunaga’s hard-earned estates and completed the unification process. Before he could do this however, he faced Shibata Katsuie, another of Nobunaga’s generals. Hideyoshi’s usurping of Oda power fueled resentment between the elite Shibata Katsuie and Hideyoshi, who had risen from the ranks of the peasantry. This led to another of the most decisive battles in samurai — and Ōmi — history, the Battle of Shizugatake, fought on the northeastern ridge of Mt. Shizugatake between Ōmi’s Lake Biwa and Lake Yogo in May of 1583.

Spectacular views and the tranquility of nature belies the fact that this was the scene of a violent battle.

Hideyoshi had attacked Katsuie’s son in Ōmi’s Nagahama Castle the previous winter while Shibata’s supporting troops in Kitanosho Castle, Fukui, were snowed in and unable to assist. The castle fell within days. Hideyoshi then attacked Gifu Castle, where Oda Nobunaga’s son, Nobutaka had foolishly raised Hideyoshi’s ire, and responded with such force that Nobutaka surrendered immediately. As the winter snows melted, Hideyoshi ordered four forts be built on the mountains dividing Lake Biwa and the smaller Lake Yogo to prevent Shibata Katsuie’s 30,000 troops from crossing. The northernmost fort was Iwasaki-yama. To the south of that was Oiwa. Below that, on Shizugatake another fortress was constructed. On the other side of the Hokkoku-kaido highway running below these three castles, was Hideyoshi’s own command post on Mt. Tagami. Shibata Katsuie meanwhile took a position 10km north on Mt. Uchinakao. Each side waited and watched one another.

A statue of an exhausted warrior rests at the peak of Shizugatake. © Chris Glenn

While waiting, Hideyoshi was forced to depart with 20,000 samurai to quell yet another insurrection by Oda Nobutaka at Gifu Castle, and so Shibata Katsuie ordered his nephew Sakuma Morimasa to take these castles. Sakuma’s samurai attacked Oiwa, then Iwasaki-yama, winning them easily. Sakuma’s troops then surrounded Shizugatake, but made the mistake of disobeying Shibata’s orders, to occupy and hold Oiwa on taking it.

Sakuma, thinking Hideyoshi was at Gifu, three days away, figured he could take Shizugatake before Hideyoshi’s return. The men in the Shizugatake fortress feared they would not be able to hold off Sakuma’s troops for long, and made plans to evacuate, however, 2,000 reinforcement troops suddenly arrived, preventing Sakuma from taking the fortress easily.

That evening, Sakuma Morimasa was shocked to see thousands more samurai at the base of the mountain. Hideyoshi’s army had moved 52 kilometers in five hours, and into position, to attack! The fighting was so fierce that Sakuma’s troops were said to have discarded their weapons and armor to run away faster. Shibata Katsuie also fled to his Kitanosho Castle, about 50 km away in modern day Fukui City with Hideyoshi’s army close in pursuit. Katsuie and his wife set fire to their castle and committed seppuku in the flames. With the death of Shibata Katsuie, Toyotomi Hideyoshi now ruled the nation.

Sekigahara

One of Hideyoshi’s top retainers was Ishida Mitsunari of Ōmi. When Hideyoshi died in 1598, a power vacuum was formed, and in 1600, the nation split into two great factions, East and West. Ōmi born Ishida Mitsunari was leading the Western forces, those loyal to the late Toyotomi Hideyoshi and his heir, the five-year-old child, Toyotomi Hideyori. The Eastern forces consisted of the warlords now loyal to the next most powerful lord, Tokugawa Ieyasu. The Western made their way from Osaka along the Nakasendo to Ishida Mitsunari’s fief and castle in Ōmi’s Sawayama. A little further north, they passed through the narrow gap in the mountains separating east and west Japan, at a place called Sekigahara, and entered Eastern held territories. There the 160,000 warriors from both sides clashed in the greatest battle in samurai history. First into battle were the bright red armored warriors of the Ii clan under Ii Naomasa.

Armour of the warriors of Sekigahara.

Six hours of bloodshed later, Tokugawa Ieyasu had claimed victory, thanks in part to some warlords from Ōmi who had defected at the critical moment, changing the tide of the battle. An estimated 30,000 samurai lay dead on the narrow, mountain ringed plains, and Ishida Mitsunari was on the run for his life. The Eastern forces then attacked Mitsunari’s Sawayama Castle in Ōmi, bringing it down and destroying the Ishida family.

Realizing the strategic importance of Sawayama, sandwiched on the plains between Lake Biwa and the mountains, crossed by the Nakasendo Highway, and knowing that should the western forces’ daimyo ever attempt to rise up again against the Tokugawa, they would have to pass through Sawayama, Tokugawa Ieyasu awarded the Ōmi lands of Sawayama territory to his trusted general, Ii Naomasa.

Hikone Castle

Naomasa had been badly injured, shot in the closing stages of the Battle of Sekigahara, and would succumb to these wounds nearly two years later, and so his sons would oversee the work on rebuilding a magnificent new castle — Hikone Castle! Designed as a stop gap defense of eastern Japan, it was a battle-ready operative castle within around 3 years.

Hikone Castle watched over the water borne traffic on Lake Biwa to its west, and the Nakasendo route to its east for the 260 years of mostly peaceful Tokugawa Rule, completely under the command of the Ii clan. At the collapse of the shogunate at the end of the feudal Edo period, Japan reverted to Imperial rule. Castles were no longer required, and unable to afford their upkeep, the new Imperial government closed them down and sold the majority off or had them demolished. Emperor Meiji’s staff however, happened to be travelling the Nakasendo and saw Hikone Castle. Considering it to be both impressive and beautiful, Hikone Castle was slated for preservation. Today, this most elegant castle keep is one of just 12 extant keeps of the over 170 castles in operation during the Edo period, and of those 12, one of just five designated a National Treasure of Japan.

Experience the beauty of National Treasure designated Hikone Castle.

Under the Imperial government Ōmi continued its important role as a major land and water transportation artery, and in January 1872, Ōmi Province became Shiga Prefecture. Ōmi ceased to exist as such, but in the hearts and minds of the people of the region, Ōmi would never be forgotten. Its name lives on in the annuls of history, it’s land, territories, famous personages, castles and battles continually being mentioned in the esteemed history books. One is never far from exciting and fascinating history in Ōmi.