On June 5, 1615, the Eastern Army of

Tokugawa Ieyasu was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa Shogunate of Japan, which ruled Japan from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was one of the three "Great Unifiers" of Japan, along with his former lord Oda Nobunaga and fellow ...

and the Osaka Army of

Toyotomi Hideyori was the son and designated successor of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the general who first united all of Japan. His mother, Yodo-dono, was the niece of Oda Nobunaga. Early life Born in 1593, he was Hideyoshi's second son. The birth of Hideyori cre ...

clashed in

battle A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

at Dōmyōji (道明寺の戦い; Dōmyōji no tatakai),

Osaka is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of 2. ...

. This battle was one of Japan's major historical battles between

samurai were the hereditary military nobility and officer caste of medieval and early-modern Japan from the late 12th century until their abolition in 1876. They were the well-paid retainers of the '' daimyo'' (the great feudal landholders). They h ...

forces. This battle was one of a number of battles that took place during the Summer Campaign of the

Siege of Osaka The was a series of battles undertaken by the Japanese Tokugawa shogunate against the Toyotomi clan, and ending in that clan's destruction. Divided into two stages (winter campaign and summer campaign), and lasting from 1614 to 1615, the siege ...

that led up to the fall of Osaka to the forces of Tokugawa and the death of

Toyotomi The was a Japanese clan that ruled over the Japanese people, Japanese before the Edo period. Unity and conflict The most influential figure within the Toyotomi was Toyotomi Hideyoshi, one of the three "unifiers of Japan". Oda Nobunaga was a ...

Hideyori. A vanguard force ahead of the Osaka Army was commanded by

Gotō Mototsugu , also well known as , was a ''samurai'' of the late Sengoku through early Edo periods. He served Kuroda Yoshitaka but retired from the Kuroda clan after Kuroda Yoshitaku had died. Finally, he served Toyotomi Hideyori and Yodo-dono and was killed ...

. He had with him a force of 2,800 samurai and his mission was to guard against the arrival of elements of The Eastern Army. The eastern border of Osaka is protected by a natural border known as the Ikoma Mountain Range. Gotō was given the task of guarding the area near Komatsu-yama, a hilly area located near one of very few mountain passes. This pass in the range is created by the

Yamato River The is a river which flows through Nara Prefecture and Osaka Prefecture, Japan. It is designated Class A by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT). The river flows via towns: *Nara Prefecture **Yamatokōriyama *Osa ...

, which runs just north of Komatsu-yama. He had planned to occupy the high ground provided by the slopes of Komatsuyama and prevent the enemy from freely entering the flat plains of Osaka that exist once past Komatsu-yama.

The Battle

On 5 June, Gotō Mototsugu and his forces were at Dōmyōji, a low-lying section of land north of Komatsu-yama on the opposite side of the Ishikawa river which is a tributary of the Yamato-gawa river. In order to take their positions on Komatsu-yama they would have to ford the Ishikawa river. As they were doing so, scouts reported that the Eastern Army had exited the pass through the range and were moving up the southern slopes of Komatsu-yama. At 4:00 AM, Gotō Mototsugu and his samurai made a dash to Komatsu-yama in order to push the Tokugawa forces back. By 5:00 AM, Gotō Mototsugu was forced back to the summit of Komatsu-yama by a strong attack by the enemy. All this time Gotō Mototsugu was awaiting the planned arrival of reinforcements which had been delayed by thick fog. At 10:00 AM, Gotō Mototsugu was shot and committed ritual suicide. With his death, his remaining samurai forces lost control of Komatsuyama and were forced to fight as they were pushed down the southern slope of Komatsu-yama and across the Ishikawa river. As the fog cleared, the Osaka Army forces on the southern side of the Ishikawa river had been revealed. Susukida Kanesuke led the left flank of the Osaka Army. After advancing, the Eastern Army cleared the Ishikawa and made their way up the gentle slope of Dōmyōji. Susukida Kanesuke and his samurai fought them fiercely in an area next to

Emperor Ingyo An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife ( empress consort), mother ( e ...

's massive tomb. Susukida Kanesuke, who was in disgrace at the time, fought valiantly although dying in battle and in doing so, he redeemed his honor.

Sanada Yukimura , also known as , was a Japanese samurai warrior of the Sengoku period. He was especially known as the leading general on the defending side of the Siege of Osaka. Yukimura was called "A Hero who may appear once in a hundred years", "Crimson D ...

in command of the Osaka Army on the right of Susukida Kanesuke was taken on by

Date Masamune was a regional ruler of Japan's Azuchi–Momoyama period through early Edo period. Heir to a long line of powerful ''daimyō'' in the Tōhoku region, he went on to found the modern-day city of Sendai. An outstanding tactician, he was made all ...

in the area of

Emperor Ōjin , also known as (alternatively spelled 譽田別命, 誉田別命, 品陀和気命, 譽田分命, 誉田別尊, 品陀別命) or , was the 15th (possibly legendary) Emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. No firm dat ...

's Tomb and Konda

Hachiman In Japanese religion, ''Yahata'' (八幡神, ancient Shinto pronunciation) formerly in Shinto and later commonly known as Hachiman (八幡神, Japanese Buddhist pronunciation) is the syncretic divinity of archery and war, incorporating elements f ...

Shrine. This fight took place at around 12:00 and by 5:00 PM Sanada Yukimura made the decision to begin a retreat towards Osaka Castle having already lost two powerful commanders. Tokugawa Tadateru, the sixth son of Tokugawa Ieyasu was given the order to pursue Sanada's force, but he refused. His refusal later led to his exile at Kōya-san. Sanada Yukimura and his army successfully disengaged in retreat from the Eastern Army.

Geographical Notes

This region has been renamed Tamate-yama, but the geographic features of this battle are still referred to as part of Komatsu-yama. The pass through the range, the rivers, and tombs remain, giving any interested party the chance to visit and visualize this battle.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Battle of Domyoji Domyoji 1615 in Japan Conflicts in 1615 Dōmyōji