was the fourth head of the later Hōjō clan, and ''

daimyō were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji era, Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and no ...

'' of

Odawara is a Cities of Japan, 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 ...

. Ujimasa succeeded the territory expansion policy from his father, Hōjō 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 Hōjō Ujiyasu. His childhood name was Matsuchiyo-maru (). As Ujiyasu's first son, Shinkuro, died young, Ujimasa became the apparent 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 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 Provinces of Japan, province of Japan, which today comprises Tokyo, Tokyo Metropolis, most of Saitama Prefecture and part of Kanagawa Prefecture. It was sometimes called . The province encompassed Kawasaki, Kanagawa, Kawasaki and Yokohama. ...

. Ujimasa commanded in many battles, he took part in the Battle of Konodai (1564), including the Siege of Odawara (1569). 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 period, Muromachi and Sengoku periods (14th to 17th centuries).Georges Appert, Appert, Georges. (1888) ''Ancien Japon,'' p. 79./ref> At its heigh ...

swore allegiance to Ujimasa. In 1575, he forced Gion Castle of Shimotsuke Province under Oyama Hidetsuna to surrender. In 1577, Ujimasa invaded Kazusa 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 joined the force to support Uesugi Kagekatsu and Uesugi Kagetora killed himself, Ujimasa built a new alliance with

Oda Nobunaga was a Japanese ''daimyō'' and one of the leading figures of the Sengoku period, Sengoku and Azuchi-Momoyama periods. He was the and regarded as the first "Great Unifier" of Japan. He is sometimes referred as the "Demon Daimyō" and "Demo ...

and

Tokugawa Ieyasu Tokugawa Ieyasu (born Matsudaira Takechiyo; 31 January 1543 – 1 June 1616) was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan, which ruled from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was the third of the three "Gr ...

. He invaded the territory of the Takeda clan in Suruga from both sides attacked Katsuyori, which triggered the Battle of Omosu and later join attack on Conquest of Koshu, from the east of Kai province at Battle of Tenmokuzan in 1582. In 1582, following the sudden death of

, Ujimasa took advantage of the situation and launched an attack on Oda clan territory at Battle of Kanagawa, who had received territories after the defeat of Takeda Katsuyori. 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 succeeded the unifying nation from Oda Nobunaga. Hideyoshi asked Ujimasa and Ujinao, the father and son, to attend the imperial visit to Jurakudai (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 became head of the clan and lord of Odawara. Later that year, Hideyoshi launch the Odawara Campaign against Hōjō clan.

3rd Siege of Odawara

In 1590, Odawara Castle was the biggest castle in Japan at that moment. However, Hideyoshi surrounded the castle with the biggest army in all of Japan. Hojo's plan was to use all of his castles in Kantō against Hideyoshi via guerrilla warfare. However, Hideyoshi defeated all these castles one by one with his samurai and vassals. Ujimasa failed to hold Odawara against the forces of Toyotomi Hideyoshi; finally, Odawara fell. Later, Ujimasa was forced to commit

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Risk factors for suicide include mental disorders, physical disorders, and substance abuse. Some suicides are impulsive acts driven by stress (such as from financial or ac ...

along with his brother Ujiteru. Like many

samurai The samurai () were members of the warrior class in Japan. They were originally provincial warriors who came from wealthy landowning families who could afford to train their men to be mounted archers. In the 8th century AD, the imperial court d ...

who committed seppuku in the face of shameful defeat, Ujimasa composed death poems: ::''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.'' ::''Now I'm about to disappear,'' ::''Wondering how I should feel it.'' ::''From the emptiness I came,'' ::''Hence I shall return there.''

Family

* Father: Hōjō Ujiyasu * Mother: Zuikei-in (died 1590), daughter of Imagawa Ujichika * Wives: ** Ōbai-in (1543–1569), daughter of Takeda Shingen ** Hōshō-in (died 1590) * Children: ** Hōjō Shinkurō (1555 – ) by Ōbai-in ** Hōjō Ujinao 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 (died 1627) by Ōbai-in, son-in-law of Chiba Kunitane ** Hōjō Naosada by Ōbai-in ** Hōjō Genzō ** Hōjō Katsuchiyo (born 1590) by Hōshō-in ** daughter married Suzuki Shigeuji ** daughter married Niwata Shigesada ** daughter married Satomi Yoshiyori ** daughter married Chiba Kunitane

Relatives

* Sisters ** Lady Hayakawa (Zōshun-in) married Imagawa Ujizane ** 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. He fought in the Siege of Odawara (1561) and Battle of Konodai (1564). In 1568, Ujiteru defended Takiyama ...

, committed seppuku with Ujimasa ** Hōjō Ujikuni ** Hōjō Ujinori ** Hōjō Saburō or Uesugi Kagetora, son-in-law of Uesugi Kenshin ** Hōjō Ujitada * Niece ** Ashikaga Ujinohime

In popular culture

Hōjō Ujimasa appears in Koei's video games '' Kessen'', '' Samurai Warriors 2'', '' Samurai Warriors 3'' and '' Warriors Orochi''. He is also in

Capcom is a Japanese video game company. It has created a number of critically acclaimed and List of best-selling video game franchises, multi-million-selling game franchises, with its most commercially successful being ''Resident Evil'', ''Monster ...

's '' Sengoku Basara 1'' and '' 2'' (including ''Heroes'') as an old man who is armed with a spear and has both his ancestral spirits and ice attacks and assisted by Fūma Kotarō. He also appears in The Creative Assembly's '' Shogun: Total War'' and '' Total War: Shogun 2''. Professional wrestler Akito wrestled as Ujimasa for the Dramatic Dream Team 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