History of Asia

Toshiie Maeda suffers from the squeeze between Katsuie and his best friend Hideyoshi, who longs for him like his father.

The suffering of the Sengoku daimyo who shook between loyalty and the houses and vassals to be protected during the Warring States period on Gekokujo is immeasurable.

Maeda Toshiie built by Kaga Hyakumangoku Was one of them.

While serving Nobunaga Oda, he fought against many of his peers and played an active role, but he was reluctantly involved in the power struggle after the change of Honnoji in 1582.

The successor to Nobunaga was his best friend Hideyoshi Hashiba and Katsuie Shibata, who had longed for his father since he was young. In April 1583, Battle of Shizugatake Will start.

Those who know the results will know which one Toshiie Maeda chose.

This time, I would like to focus on the suffering of Toshiie Maeda at that time.

Relationship with the Shibata Katsuie, who was called my father

Although they are two people who serve the same Oda clan, their positions are very different, and the Shibata Katsuie has been a shukuro since the Nobuhide era, and as of 1582, he was in the position of general commander in the Hokuriku region. However, Toshiie Maeda was the power of Katsuie, and although it was not a master-slave relationship, Katsuie reigned as his direct boss.

1575 Since then, Toshiie and Katsuie have been having a hard time together in Echizen.

After the Hokuriku Heisei in 1581, Nobunaga was given the territory of Toshiie Maeda in Noto and Katsuie Shibata in Echizen. These two areas were places that needed close cooperation with each other in preparation for Uesugi.

When the Uesugi clan in Etchu and Echigo were still a threat, Toshiie and Katsuie were both destined to solidify the defense of Hokuriku. Katsuie Shibata, who was the Oda clan in the war, aggressively attacked in the war, and Toshiie was always called his father because of his honest personality.

In this way, a strong relationship of trust was built between the two.

My best friend Hideyoshi Hashiba was dating with the whole family

On the other hand, the relationship between Toshiie and Hideyoshi was also close to both public and private.

Like Katsuie, Hideyoshi, who serves the same Oda clan, is only two years old and has changed from Nobunaga to [ dog (Toshiie) and monkey (Hideyoshi) . ] Was called and loved. Considering the career of the Oda clan, Toshiie is a senior, but Hideyoshi's talent and the speed of his career are tremendous, and while he was with Katsuie in Hokuriku, Hideyoshi was appointed as the general commander for China. rice field.

From Toshiie's point of view, Hideyoshi, who came in later, wasn't interesting, but I think the reason why they were good was because of Oda Nobunaga's personality.

If there is a one-person boss, the subordinates tend to support each other, cooperate with each other, and manage and unite the boss's unreasonableness while complaining. At the Oda clan, he adopted a complete "pay for performance" regardless of the number of years he had served.

Since they were called [dogs and monkeys], it seems that they were expected, and it is probable that Toshiie and Hideyoshi were good rivals and close friends who worked hard while talking about their dreams.

Also, it may have been a big point that Toshiie's wife, Matsu, and Hideyoshi's wife, One, were very close to each other. In this way, the wives also had a close relationship with each other, and it seems that the two who had been dating with the whole family for many years also had a strong bond of friendship.

What is the ultimate measure taken by Toshiie Maeda in the battle of Shizugatake?

As mentioned above, Toshiie Maeda, who had a close relationship with both Katsuie and Hideyoshi, could not have chosen either of the two that he saw at Mt. Shizugatake.

Maeda Toshiie was once suspended from serving the Oda clan when he was young.

Dohoshu doing chores around Oda Nobunaga, the lord However, while he stole Toshiie's sword kōgai and went up without any remorse, he couldn't stand it and cut it off without Nobunaga's permission. Nobunaga was furious at this Toshiie's actions.

Fortunately, Katsuie Shibata was spared the crime of death, but Toshiie was severely punished for suspending his work and became a ronin. Since then, Toshiie has voluntarily participated in the battle between Okehazama and played an active role, but Nobunaga did not allow him to return.

1561 It is written in Shincho Kouki that he was finally allowed to return in the battle of Moribe with Tatsuoki Saito. Toshiie's ronin period was short, but it seems that it was hard for his companions to leave during that period.

At this time, the only ones who were reaching out were Katsuie Shibata and Hideyoshi Hashiba (Toyoshiro Kinoshita) . was.

Toshiie could not have known that the two who were reaching out would later fight in the battle of Shizugatake.

There is no problem because the people who are fighting are doing it for their own cause, but from the perspective of Toshiie Maeda, they are people who are deeply intimate with each other and it is a good annoying story. No conclusion can be drawn by squeezing one's head, and Toshiie takes an action.

March 12, 1583, Battle of Shizugatake In a battle that can be called an outpost, Toshiie will set up a camp in Besshoyama as the Shibata army. As a result of hesitation, Toshiie set out on the side of his father, Katsuie.

The battle situation was in a stalemate, so Hideyoshi first set out to attack Gifu Castle, where Nobutaka Oda is. At that time, Sakuma Morimasa of the Shibata army attacked Oiwayama on the Hideyoshi side, and Kiyohide Nakagawa, who was away from home, died in the war, and it seemed that the war situation had moved to the Shibata army.

After hearing the movement of the Shibata army, Hideyoshi pulls back the [Mino Great Return], which returns more than 52 kilometers from Mino in about 5 hours. The Sakuma army, which had been stepping on for three days from Mino, fell into a state of destruction after a great turmoil.

However, in this devastating drama, the Shibata Katsuie's army left the front line without permission, and the Maeda Toshiie's army, who was guarding the back, collapsed from behind [ collapse . ] It is also said. Even if Mino made a big return, even if Toshiie left the front, the Shibata army's fighting spirit would have been lost considerably.

The other Yoriki, including the withdrawal, returned to Kitanosho Castle, where the Shibata Katsuie cried and cried, and suicided with the city in a burning castle tower.

Once entered the war as the Shibata army, suddenly withdrew from the front. Then, he settles down in Hideyoshi's army, who seized the opportunity through a neutral position. According to one theory, this is also said to be a secret agreement made in advance between Toshiie and Hideyoshi.

As a result, Toshiie was [ Kaga's addition after the battle of Shizugatake. ], So it's not a lie. In conclusion, the Maeda clan of Kaga Hyakumangoku was alive, so Toshiie's choice was good.

At the end, I'm going to give in to Shibata Katsuie ...

As a result, Toshiie chose to betray the Shibata Katsuie, who was longing for his father.

Toshiie and Katsuie have a relationship of trust like a parent and child, and I think that they may have been spoiled for it.

In contrast to Hideyoshi, who would never forgive him if he betrayed him, Katsuie would understand what happened if he talked about the situation.

In fact, on the way back to Kitanosho Castle, there is an anecdote that he stopped by Toshiie's Fukui Castle and wanted to pickle it in hot water and aimed at his efforts so far. On his way home, he abandoned the agreement between Toshiie and Katsuie [ Hideyoshi ] It is said that he left behind.

The third daughter, who had been taken hostage by Katsuie, was said to have been safely returned to Toshiie before Joraku.

In addition, Katsuie did not grudge not only Toshiie but also the estranged vassals, and allowed the vassals who followed him to live, and rather said that he wanted it. What would have happened to Katsuie, who was such a straightforward and warm-hearted person, if he had won at Shizugatake?

It's my bad habit to think about it ...