Siege of Kanegasaki (1570)
Part of the Sengoku period
Date1570
Location
Kanagasaki Castle, Tsuruga, Echizen Province
Result

Nobunaga withdraws his forces

Belligerents
Oda clan forces
Tokugawa clan forces		 Asakura clan forces
Azai clan forces
Rokkaku clan forces
Ikkō-ikki forces
Commanders and leaders
Oda Nobunaga
Tokugawa Ieyasu
Kinoshita Hideyoshi
Sassa Narimasa
Maeda Toshiie
Ikeda Katsumasa
Akechi Mitsuhide		 Castle garrison:
Maeba Yoshitsugu
Relief forces:
Asakura Kagetake
Azai Nagamasa
Rokkaku Yoshikata
Strength
30,000 24,500

The 1570 Siege of Kanegasaki (金ヶ崎の戦い, Kanegasaki no Tatakai) occurred during Oda Nobunaga's struggle against the Asakura clan in Echizen province, which was allied with Azai Nagamasa.

Asakura Yoshikage, head of the Asakura clan was the regent of Ashikaga Yoshiaki, refused to come to Kyôto and attend a certain banquet, an act Nobunaga declared Asakura clan disloyal to both the shogun and the emperor. Nobunaga raised an army and marched on Echizen.[1]

Kinoshita Hideyoshi, one of Nobunaga's chief generals, led the attack on the fortress of Kanegasaki held by Maeba Yoshitsugu. Azai Nagamasa, who had been Asakura's longtime ally, led an army to relief the Kanagasaki castle with the help of the Rokkaku clan and Ikkō-ikki. Nobunaga found himself surrounded by Azai-Asakura, Rokkaku and Ikkō-ikki forces. When defeat looked certain, Nobunaga successfully retreated from Kanagasaki castle. This act was the first mark of Nagamasa's betrayal of the Oda clan.

Aftermath

The fighting retreat at Kanegasaki enabled Nobunaga to once more cheat death, and to amass an army which would be victorious against the Azai-Asakura army at the Battle of Anegawa. Ikeda Katsumasa led 3,000 soldier and helped Nobunaga escape. Akechi Mitsuhide joined Hideyoshi to serve as the rear-guard for the departing forces. Hideyoshi's rear defense for his lord's escape is one of his fabled accomplishments under Nobunaga.

See also

References

  1. ↑ Sansom, George (1961). A History of Japan, 1334–1615. Stanford University Press. p. 281. ISBN 0804705259.
  • Turnbull, Stephen (1998). 'The Samurai Sourcebook'. London: Cassell & Co.

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