was the fourth head of the

later Hōjō clan The was one of the most powerful samurai families in Japan in the Sengoku period and held domains primarily in the Kantō region. Their last name was simply Hōjō (北条) but in order to differentiate between the earlier Hōjō clan with the s ...

, and ''

daimyō were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast, hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and nominally to ...

'' of

Odawara is a city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 188,482 and a population density of 1,700 persons per km2. The total area of the city is . Geography Odawara lies in the Ashigara Plains, in the far western po ...

. Ujimasa succeeded the territory expansion policy from his father, Hojo Ujiyasu, and achieved the biggest territory in the clan's history.

Early life and rise

In 1538, Ujimasa was born as the second son of Hojo Ujiyasu. His childhood name was Matsuchiyo-maru (). As Ujiyasu's first son, Shinkuro, died young, Ujimasa became the heir of Ujiyasu. In 1554, when Ujiyasu make an alliance with Takeda Shingen and Imagawa Yoshimoto. Ujimasa took a daughter of Shingen, Obai-in, for his lawful wife. Upon his father Hojo Ujiyasu's retirement, Ujimasa inherited formal leadership of the family around 1559.

Hōjō Campaign

In 1560, Hojo clan seized Iwatsuki Castle and almost conquered whole

Musashi Province was a province of Japan, which today comprises Tokyo Metropolis, most of Saitama Prefecture and part of Kanagawa Prefecture. It was sometimes called . The province encompassed Kawasaki and Yokohama. Musashi bordered on Kai, Kōzuke, Sagami, ...

. Ujimasa commanded in many battles, he took part in the Battle of Konodai (1564), including the

Siege of Odawara (1569) The second Siege of Odawara took place in 1569. Takeda Shingen attacked Odawara Castle, as a response to Hōjō's intervention into Shingen invasion of Suruga Province. Background In 1568, as a response to Hōjō clan intervention in Takeda i ...

. In 1574, Ujimasa forced Sekiyado Castle of Shimosa Province under Yanada Harusuke to surrender and also forces Yuki Harutomi a vassal of

Uesugi clan The is a Japanese samurai clan which was at its peak one of the most powerful during the Muromachi and Sengoku periods (14th to 17th centuries). Appert, Georges. (1888) ''Ancien Japon,'' p. 79./ref> At its height, the clan had three main branch ...

swore allegiance to Ujimasa. In 1575, he forced Gion Castle of

Shimotsuke Province was a province of Japan in the area of Japan that is today Tochigi Prefecture. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''SHimotsuke''" in . Shimotsuke was bordered by Kōzuke, Hitachi, Mutsu and Shimōsa Provinces. Its abbreviated form name was ...

under Oyama Hidetsuna to surrender. In 1577, Ujimasa invaded

Kazusa Province was a province of Japan in the area of modern Chiba Prefecture. The province was located in the middle of the Bōsō Peninsula, whose name takes its first ''kanji'' from the name of Awa Province and its second from Kazusa and Shimōsa province ...

and realized the reconciliation with his old enemy, Satomi Yoshihiro. This battle marked the first battle for his heir, Hojo Ujinao. In 1580, after

Takeda Katsuyori was a Japanese ''daimyō'' of the Sengoku period, who was famed as the head of the Takeda clan and the successor to the legendary warlord Takeda Shingen. He was son in law of Hojo Ujiyasu. Early life He was the son of Shingen by the daughte ...

joined the force to support

Uesugi Kagekatsu was a Japanese samurai ''daimyō'' during the Sengoku and Edo periods. He was the adopted son of Uesugi Kenshin and Uesugi Kagetora’s brother in law. Early life and rise Kagekatsu was the son of Nagao Masakage, the head of the Ueda Nagao ...

and

Uesugi Kagetora was the seventh son of Hōjō Ujiyasu; known as Hōjō Saburō, he was adopted by Uesugi Kenshin, and was meant to be Kenshin's heir. However, in 1578, he was attacked in his castle at Otate by Uesugi Kagekatsu—Kagetora's respective brother-i ...

killed himself, Ujimasa built a new alliance with

Oda Nobunaga was a Japanese ''daimyō'' and one of the leading figures of the Sengoku period. He is regarded as the first "Great Unifier" of Japan. Nobunaga was head of the very powerful Oda clan, and launched a war against other ''daimyō'' to unify ...

and

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 ...

. He invaded the territory of the

Takeda clan The was a Japanese samurai clan active from the late Heian period until the late 16th century. The clan was historically based in Kai Province in present-day Yamanashi Prefecture. The clan reached its greatest influence under the rule of Taked ...

in Suruga from both sides attacked Katsuyori, which triggered the Battle of Omosu. In 1582, following the sudden death of

, Ujimasa took advantage of the situation and launched an attack on

Oda clan The is a Japanese samurai family who were daimyo and an important political force in the unification of Japan in the mid-16th century. Though they had the climax of their fame under Oda Nobunaga and fell from the spotlight soon after, several ...

territory at Battle of Kanagawa, who had received territories after the defeat of

. Later, Hojo and Tokugawa clans settled a territorial dispute by giving the Tokugawa clan Kai and Shinano Provinces and the Hojo clan Kozuke Province.

Conflict with Hideyoshi

In 1588,

Toyotomi Hideyoshi , otherwise known as and , was a Japanese samurai and ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) of the late Sengoku period regarded as the second "Great Unifier" of Japan.Richard Holmes, The World Atlas of Warfare: Military Innovations that Changed the Cour ...

succeeded the unifying nation from Oda Nobunaga. Hideyoshi asked Ujimasa and Ujinao, the father and son, to attend the imperial visit to

Jurakudai The Jurakudai or Jurakutei () was a palace constructed at the order of Toyotomi Hideyoshi in Kyoto, Japan. Construction began in 1586, when Hideyoshi had taken the post of , and required nineteen months to complete. Its total area was almost equa ...

(Hideyoshi's residence and office in Kyoto), but Ujimasa refused it. However, Ujimasa proposed to reschedule the visit to spring or summer of 1590, but Hideyoshi refused the proposal, which worsened their relationship.

Death

In 1590, after Ujimasa consolidated his clan's position and retired. His son

Hōjō Ujinao Hōjō Ujinao (北条氏直: 1562 – December 19, 1591) was a Japanese ''daimyō'' of the late Sengoku period, and the final head of the Later Hōjō clan. An important figure in the history of Azuchi-Momoyama politics, he lost his entire d ...

became head of the clan and lord of Odawara. Later that year, Hideyoshi launch the Odawara Campaign against

Hōjō clan The was a Japanese samurai family who controlled the hereditary title of ''shikken'' (regent) of the Kamakura shogunate between 1203 and 1333. Despite the title, in practice the family wielded actual political power in Japan during this period ...

3rd Siege of Odawara

In 1590, Odawara Castle was the biggest castle in Japan at that moment. However, Hideyoshi surrounded by the biggest army of Japan. Hojo's plan was use all of castles in

Kanto Kantō (Japanese) Kanto is a simplified spelling of , a Japanese word, only omitting the diacritics. In Japan Kantō may refer to: *Kantō Plain *Kantō region *Kantō-kai, organized crime group *Kanto (Pokémon), a geographical region in the ' ...

, to against Hideyoshi by guerrilla attacking. However, Hideyoshi defeated all those castle one by one with all his samurai. Ujimasa failed to hold Odawara against the forces of

and finally Odawara was fallen. Later, Ujimasa was forced to commit

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and sub ...

along with his brother Ujiteru. Like many

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 ha ...

who committed

seppuku , sometimes referred to as hara-kiri (, , a native Japanese kun reading), is a form of Japanese ritual suicide by disembowelment. It was originally reserved for samurai in their code of honour but was also practised by other Japanese people ...

in the face of shameful defeat, Ujimasa composed

death poem The death poem is a genre of poetry that developed in the literary traditions of East Asian cultures—most prominently in Japan as well as certain periods of Chinese history and Joseon Korea. They tend to offer a reflection on death—both in g ...

s: ::''Autumn wind of eve'' ::''Blow away the clouds that mass'' ::''O'er the moon's pure light.'' ::''And the mists that cloud our mind'' ::''Do thou sweep away as well.'' (雨雲のおほへる月も胸の霧もはらひにけりな秋の夕風) ::''Now I'm about to disappear,'' ::''Wondering how I should feel it.'' ::''From the emptiness I came,'' ::''Hence I shall return there.'' (我が身今消ゆとやいかに思ふべき空より来たり空へ帰れば)

Family

* Father: Hōjō Ujiyasu * Mother: Zuikei-in (d. 1590), daughter of

Imagawa Ujichika was a Japanese ''daimyō'' of the Sengoku period. He was the 10th head of the Imagawa clan of Suruga Province. Ujichika was the son of Imagawa Yoshitada. He was the husband of Jukei-ni. Biography In 1476, Ujichika father, Yoshitada, invaded ...

* Wives: ** Ōbai-in (1543–1569), daughter of

Takeda Shingen , of Kai Province, was a pre-eminent ''daimyō'' in feudal Japan. Known as the "Tiger of Kai", he was one of the most powerful daimyō with exceptional military prestige in the late stage of the Sengoku period. Shingen was a warlord of great ...

** Hōshō-in (d. 1590) * Children: ** Hōjō Shinkurō (1555 – ) by Ōbai-in **

by Ōbai-in ** Ōta Gengorō (1563–1582) by Ōbai-in, son-in-law of Ōta Ujisuke ** Ōta Ujifusa (1565–1592) by Ōbai-in, son-in-law of Ōta Ujisuke ** Chiba Naoshige (d. 1627) by Ōbai-in, son-in-law of Chiba Kunitane ** Hōjō Naosada by Ōbai-in ** Hōjō Genzō ** Hōjō Katsuchiyo (b. 1590) by Hōshō-in ** daughter married Suzuki Shigeuji ** daughter married Niwata Shigesada ** daughter married Satomi Yoshiyori ** daughter married Chiba Kunitane

Relatives

* Sisters **

Lady Hayakawa Lady Hayakawa (早川殿, ''Hayakawa-Dono'', died April 4, 1613) was a Japanese woman and aristocrat of the Sengoku period. Hayakawa is a common nickname for one of ''Daimyō'' Hōjō Ujiyasu's daughters, who lived in the Sengoku through early ...

(Zōshun-in) married

Imagawa Ujizane was a Japanese ''daimyō'' who lived in the Sengoku through early Edo periods. He was the tenth head of the Imagawa clan, and was a son of Imagawa Yoshimoto and the father of Imagawa Norimochi and Shinagawa Takahisa. Biography Ujizane was bor ...

** Jōkō-in * Brothers **

Hōjō Ujiteru (1540? – August 10, 1590) was a Japanese samurai, who was the son of Hōjō Ujiyasu and lord of Hachiōji Castle in what is now Tokyo. In 1568, Ujiteru defended Takiyama castle from Takeda Shingen. Later in 1569, Ujiteru and his broth ...

, committed seppuku with Ujimasa **

Hōjō Ujikuni was a samurai of the Sengoku period, and the third son of Hōjō Ujiyasu. Ujikuni was a high-ranking commander in the invasion of Kozuke Province, Kōzuke was contested between the later Hōjō clan, the Takeda and the Uesugi clans. He was a ...

** Hōjō Ujinori ** Hōjō Saburō or

, son-in-law of

Uesugi Kenshin , later known as was a Japanese ''daimyō''. He was born in Nagao clan, and after adoption into the Uesugi clan, ruled Echigo Province in the Sengoku period of Japan. He was one of the most powerful ''daimyō'' of the Sengoku period. Known as ...

** Hōjō Ujitada * Niece ** Ashikaga Ujinohime

In popular culture

Hōjō Ujimasa appears in

Koei Koei Co., Ltd. was a Japanese video game publisher, developer, and distributor founded in 1978. The company is known for its ''Dynasty Warriors'' games based on the novel ''Romance of the Three Kingdoms'', as well as simulation games based on ...

's video games ''

Kessen is a real-time tactics video game produced by Koei and published by Electronic Arts. It was a launch game for the PlayStation 2 in Japan and North America. It was initially the only real-time wargame game available for the PlayStation 2. It is a ...

'', ''

Samurai Warriors 2 is a sequel to the original ''Samurai Warriors'', created by Koei and Omega Force. The game was released in 2006 for the PlayStation 2 and Xbox 360, and ported to Microsoft Windows in 2008. Like the ''Dynasty Warriors'' series, an ''Empires'' e ...

'', '' Samurai Warriors 3'' and ''

Warriors Orochi is a hack and slash video game for PlayStation 2 and Xbox 360, developed by Koei and Omega Force. It is a crossover of two of Koei's popular video game series, ''Dynasty Warriors'' and '' Samurai Warriors'' (specifically ''Dynasty Warriors 5'' ...

''. He was also in

Capcom is a Japanese video game developer and publisher. It has created a number of multi-million-selling game franchises, with its most commercially successful being ''Resident Evil'', ''Monster Hunter'', ''Street Fighter'', ''Mega Man'', ''Devil ...

's ''

Sengoku Basara is a series of video games developed and published by Capcom, and a bigger media franchise based on it, including four anime shows, an anime movie, a live action show, a magazine series, a trading card game, and numerous drama CDs, light no ...

'', '' Sengoku Basara 2'', and '' Sengoku Basara 2 Heroes'' as an old man who was armed with spear and has both his ancestral spirits and ice attacks and assisted by Fuma Kotaro. He also appears in The Creative Assembly's Total War: Shogun, and Total War: Shogun 2. Professional wrestler Akito wrestled as Ujimasa for the

Dramatic Dream Team is a Japanese professional wrestling promotion based in Shinjuku, Tokyo. Its name stands for Dramatic Dream Team, which was the promotion's official name from 1997 to 2004. Founded in March 1997 by Shintaro Muto, the promotion was eventually b ...

promotion on February 10, 2013.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hojo, Ujimasa Go-Hōjō clan 1538 births 1590 deaths 16th-century Japanese people Forced suicides Suicides by seppuku People from Kanagawa Prefecture 16th-century suicides