Japan Background Essay 5:

Hideyoshi, the Commoner who Became Supreme Leader

 

Period of the Warring States:

After their great victory over Kublai Khan, the shoguns of Japan started losing their grip on power. They became more interested in living the good life than in being military leaders. Gradually, local warlords became powerful again, and began fighting among themselves to expand their territory. This time period, 1490-1600, was called the Period of the Warring States, because Japan was divided by hundreds of small warlords.

It was a time of chaos, bloodshed, uncertainty, and destruction. But it was also a time when any local warlord with a lot of skill and a little luck could seize power and become shogun. One regional leader, Oda Nobunaga, attempted to do just that, and he almost succeeded.

 

The Rise of Hideyoshi:

Oda’s best general was Hideyoshi, who was not even a samurai. Hideyoshi was born a poor commoner, but he was a man of great talent, and quickly became one of Oda’s most trusted men. He proved his skill on the battlefield many times. During one battle, he had a river diverted to flood out the defenses of his enemy. His cleverness made him a popular general among Nobunaga’s troops.

 

Muskets in Japan :

In 1542, a Portuguese trading ship got caught in a storm and crashed on a beach in Japan . Three sailors survived, and managed to salvage their muskets and gunpowder from the shipwreck. Hideyoshi’s samurai found the men, and when the sailors demonstrated their firearms, the samurai were astonished by these new weapons. One observer said, “Light like lightning was seen and noise like thunder was heard. Bystanders closed their ears with their hands, and flying birds and running beasts fell before them.” Hideyoshi quickly understood how important muskets could be in warfare, and he soon developed battle plans using the new weapons. In one battle, with only 3,000 musket-armed men behind movable shields, Hideyoshi defeated an army of 25,000 samurai. The enemy was forced to retreat because they couldn’t stand against steady gunfire. With the help of guns, Hideyoshi won even more battles and conquered more land for his master Oda Nobunaga.

 

Nobunaga Assassinated:

Nobunaga succeeded in being named deputy shogun by the emperor, but Nobunaga’s enemies continued to fight against him. Nobunaga eventually defeated most of his enemies, but in 1582 he was assassinated by one of his own men. Hideyoshi tracked down the assassin and killed him. After that, Hideyoshi’s power and popularity allowed him to take control of Nobunaga’s entire army.

 

Hideyoshi Conquers Japan :

In the following ten years, Hideyoshi set out to conquer the rest of Japan . His army of 170,000 soldiers cruelly destroyed any who resisted him. The one enemy Hideyoshi could not defeat was a powerful warlord named Ieyasu Tokugawa. Tokugawa was a brilliant fighter and held many fortified castles that were almost impossible to attack. Finally, Hideyoshi and Tokugawa agreed to a peace treaty. Tokugawa was allowed to keep control of his region, as long as he didn’t fight against Hideyoshi. Then, Hideyoshi turned his army to crush everyone else who opposed him, and became the absolute ruler of Japan .

 

Ruler, But Not Shogun:

Although Hideyoshi was now the ultimate ruler of Japan , he could not be named shogun because he was born a commoner. The title “shogun” could only be given to someone who was born a samurai. In order to make himself seem more important, he persuaded members of the imperial Fujiwara family to adopt him. He also made up a story about how he was born – he said that before his birth, his mother saw a brilliant light fill her room, though it was late at night. She then heard a glorious prophecy announcing that her son would be a mighty ruler. Hideyoshi kept secret the true facts about his birth. No one was sure the exact date of his birth or who his father was.

 

Hideyoshi’s Wealth:

Perhaps to compensate for his humble past, Hideyoshi set out to increase his wealth and power to levels greater than any ruler before him. He order prospectors to search for new silver and gold mines, and Hideyoshi claimed much of the new wealth for himself. In one of his homes in Kyoto , everything Hideyoshi touched had to be made of gold. Even the roof was gold. Rooms were filled with bars of gold and silver and bales of fine silk. Hideyoshi also built the largest and strongest fortress ever constructed in Japan – the castle at Osaka . Tens of thousands of workmen were used to built the 187-acre castle, which became the center of Hideyoshi’s government. Double walls, deep moats, and a 100-high tower protected Hideyoshi and his family within.

 

Heir to Power:

Hideyoshi had a son whom he hoped would become ruler after him. But when his son died in 1590, new plans had to be made. Hideyoshi appointed his nephew to become the next ruler after his death. Then, to everyone’s surprise, Hideyoshi’s wife gave birth to another son. Because Hideyoshi preferred his son to inherit the throne, he ordered his nephew to commit suicide, and all the nephew’s children killed, which was done. This cleared away any argument about who would succeed Hideyoshi.

 

Korea Invaded:

To increase his power even further, Hideyoshi decided to invade the Asian mainland. Using his military skill, he organized a successful invasion of Korea and crushed the native armies. From there, Hideyoshi wanted to invade China , which was a much richer prize, but was never able to do it. Disease killed many of his troops, and Korean pirates destroyed some of the boats he used to transport his army. Hideyoshi was forced to retreat to Japan , giving up Korea . He launched a second invasion a few years later. Again, he quickly took Korea , but before he could move into China , Hideyoshi died. The invasion was called off, and his generals took the army back home to Japan . Japan had been strengthened and enriched by Hideyoshi’s rule. The period of warring states had ended. But would Hideyoshi’s young son be able to rule, now that his father was dead?

 

Questions on Hideyoshi

 

  1. Who did Hideyoshi work for?

 

 

  1. Who was the one warlord Hideyoshi couldn’t beat, and why?

 

 

  1. Where did Hideyoshi build his huge castle?

 

 

  1. How did the Japanese learn about guns?

 

 

  1. How did Oda Nobunaga die?

 

 

  1. After Nobunaga’s death, why couldn’t Hideyoshi become shogun?

 

 

  1. What is one way Hideyoshi compensated for his humble birth?

 

 

  1. Why did Hideyoshi order his nephew’s family killed?

 

 

  1. Why did Hideyoshi’s first invasion of Korea and China fail?

 

 

10.  Why did the second invasion fail?