Article The Battle of Sekigahara

[JREF]

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[JREF]

The article The Battle of Sekigahara has been updated:

Added an album featuring some shots of the battlefield in Sekigahara. We visited there in 2017—more photos to follow.

 

[thomas]

Interesting what-if scenario on Reddit: what would have happened, had Kobayakawa Hideaki never defected and Mitsunari had been victorious instead of Ieyasu:

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[Ukigumo]

Interesting what-if scenario on Reddit: what would have happened, had Kobayakawa Hideaki never defected and Mitsunari had been victorious instead of Ieyasu:

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We would have had the 'Mitsunari Period' rather than the Tokugawa period.

 

[thomas]

We would have had the 'Mitsunari Period' rather than the Tokugawa period.

Ishida-jidai.

However, I agree with the view expressed in the Reddit post: Ishida Mitsunari was an able administrator, but not really cut out to act as a hegemon or unifier. Ieyasu was. The Western Army lacked cohesion and shared few aims beyond opposing the Tokugawa. A Mitsunari victory might have resulted in prolonged instability or in a sustained Toyotomi-led order. It's always exciting to speculate.

 

[NANGI]

Mina-san Konnichiwa!

The Battle of Sekigahara is currently depicted as a battle in which Mitsunari took the lead in challenging Ieyasu. However, in reality, the Council of Five Elders, Ukita Hideie and Mouri Terumoto, and the Five Commissioners, Ishida Mitsunari, Nagatsuka Masaie, Maeda Geni, and Masuda Nagamori, cooperated to oppose Tokugawa Ieyasu.

So why is it now often said that only Mitsunari opposed Ieyasu?

The Mouri family survived even after the Battle of Sekigahara. They continued to insist that they were not at fault.

The Ukita family lost their territory, but their lives were spared. They continued to insist that they were not at fault.

Masuda Nagamori was an informant(SPY) of Ieyasu, so he was not spoken of negatively.

Maeda Geni did not send troops to fight Ieyasu, so he was not spoken of negatively.

Nagatsuka Masaie fought against Ieyasu, but because he was married to the sister of Honda Tadakatsu, so he was not spoken of negatively.
(Honda Tadakatsu was one of Ieyasu's closest confidants.)

Ishida Mitsunari fought against Ieyasu and was executed after the battle. Therefore, he was unable to speak about it(He couldn't make an excuse.)

History is written by the victors. Even if you lose, if you survive, you can continue to say, "It wasn't my fault." However, if you die, all the responsibility will fall on you, and you will no longer be able to make excuses.

Of course, the Japanese like stories in which official(Mitsunari) from small territorie stand up against powerful lord(Ieyasu) who is plotting to usurp the power.

And the Mouri family, whose territory was drastically reduced, went on to overthrow the Tokugawa shogunate and establish the Meiji government 270 years later. Tokugawa Ieyasu, who was highly respected during the Edo period, came to be regarded as a great villain during the Meiji era.

Of course, Mitsunari was re-evaluated as a loyal retainer to his lord (the Toyotomi family) and a brave and courageous figure who fought against Ieyasu. However, the perception that Mitsunari was a poor combat command ability still persists. Furthermore, it is said to be even weaker in one-on-one combat.

NANGI