is a 1965 Japanese television series. It is the 3rd

NHK , also known by its Romanization of Japanese, romanized initialism NHK, is a Japanese public broadcasting, public broadcaster. It is a statutory corporation funded by viewers' payments of a television licence, television license fee. NHK ope ...

taiga drama is the name NHK gives to the annual year-long historical drama television series it broadcasts in Japan. Beginning in 1963 with the black-and-white ''Hana no Shōgai'', starring kabuki actor Onoe Shoroku II and Awashima Chikage, the network regul ...

Story

Taikōki deals with the

Sengoku period The was the period in History of Japan, Japanese history in which civil wars and social upheavals took place almost continuously in the 15th and 16th centuries. The Kyōtoku incident (1454), Ōnin War (1467), or (1493) are generally chosen as th ...

. Based on

Eiji Yoshikawa was a Japanese historical novelist. Among his best-known novels are revisions of older classics. He was mainly influenced by classics such as ''The Tale of the Heike'', ''Tale of Genji'', ''Water Margin'' and ''Romance of the Three Kingdoms'', m ...

's novels "

Shinsho Taikōki ''Taiko'' (Japanese: 新書太閤記, Hepburn: ''Shinsho Taikōki''), also known as ''Taiko: An Epic Novel of War and Glory in Feudal Japan'', is a Japanese epic novel written by Eiji Yoshikawa about the life and rise to power of Toyotomi Hideyo ...

". Now only episode 42 exists, which depicted the

Honnō-ji Incident The was the assassination of Japanese daimyo Oda Nobunaga at Honnō-ji, a temple in Kyoto, on 21 June 1582 (2nd day of the sixth month, Tenshō 10). Nobunaga was on the verge of unifying the country, but died in the unexpected rebellion of ...

. The story chronicles the life of

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

from childhood to ruler of Japan.

originally scheduled the Honnō-ji Incident for the 32nd episode to be aired on August 8th, but due to the popularity of Kōji Takahashi's portrayal as

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 ...

, they received letters from audience viewers asking them to "please don't kill Nobunaga". In response, the producers delayed the episode for two months, airing it on October 17th as the drama's 42nd episode. Furthermore, Nobunaga continued to appear in flashback scenes. The average viewership across all episodes came to 31.2%, with the peak reaching 39.7% on October 17th with the 42nd episode.

Production

*Sword fight arranger - Kunishirō Hayashi

Cast

Toyotomi clan

Ken Ogata , better known by his stage name , was a Japanese actor. He appeared in more than 50 movies and 25 television series. For his merits and contribution to arts in 2000 received Japan's Medal of Honor with Purple Ribbon. Among many movie awards an ...

Shiho Fujimura Shiho Fujimura (藤村志保 ''Fujimura Shiho'', 3 January 1939 – 12 June 2025) was a Japanese actress. She was given a Special Prize for her career at the 2008 Yokohama Film Festival. Fujimura died on 12 June 2025, at the age of 86. Filmogr ...

as Nene * Yoshiko Mita as Lady Chacha * Masakazu Tamura as

Toyotomi Hidetsugu was a during the Sengoku period of Japan. He was the nephew and retainer of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the unifier and ruler of Japan from 1590 to 1598. Despite being Hideyoshi's closest adult, male relative, Hidetsugu was accused of atrocities and at ...

* Chieko Naniwa as Naka *Kōtarō Tomita as

Toyotomi Hidenaga , formerly known as or . He was a half-brother of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, one of the most powerful and significant warlords of Japan's Sengoku period and regarded as 'Hideyoshi's brain and right-arm'. Life Hidenaga was also known by his court tit ...

Hideyoshi's vassals

Kōji Ishizaka is a Japanese actor. Ishizaka graduated from Keio University with a Bachelor of Laws, B.L. degree. He serves as a special advisor for the Japan Plamodel Industry Association, and on 23 February 2009, he founded Rowguanes, a plastic model enthus ...

Ishida Mitsunari was a Japanese samurai and military commander of the late Sengoku period of Japan. He is probably best remembered as the commander of the Western army in the Battle of Sekigahara following the Azuchi–Momoyama period of the 16th century. He ...

* Takahiro Tamura as Kuroda Kanbei *Yoshiki Takahashi as Shōjumaru * Yoshio Inaba as Katō Kiyotada *Katsutoshi Atarashi as

Katō Kiyomasa was a Japanese ''daimyō'' of the Azuchi–Momoyama period, Azuchi–Momoyama and Edo periods. His court title was . His name as a child was ''Yashamaru'', and first name was ''Toranosuke''. He was one of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, Hideyoshi's Seven ...

* Kyū Sazanka as Hachisuka Koroku * Yoshiyuki Fukuda as Takenaka Hanbei *Gorō Wakamiya as Fukushima Masanori

Oda clan

* Kōji Takahashi as

Keiko Kishi is a Japanese actress, writer, and UNFPA Goodwill Ambassador. Life and career She made her acting debut in 1951 in Noboru Nakamura's film '' Home Sweet Home''. In the 1950s, David Lean proposed her for the main role in '' The Wind Cannot Read ...

Oichi was a female historical figure in the late Sengoku period. She is known primarily as the mother of three daughters who became prominent figures in their own right – Yodo-dono, Ohatsu

*Kazuko Inano aa Nōhime *Keiji Takamiya as Oda Nobutaka *Masao Kageyama as Oda Nobukatsu

Nobunaga's vassals

Jun Hamamura was a Japanese actor. He appeared in more than 130 films between 1938 and 1995. Selected filmography * ''Wolf The wolf (''Canis lupus''; : wolves), also known as the grey wolf or gray wolf, is a Canis, canine native to Eurasia and Nor ...

Hirate Masahide was a Japanese samurai who served the Oda clan for two generations. His original name was . Life Masahide first served Oda Nobuhide and then become one of the Four karōs that helped Oda Nobunga in his early life. He was a talented samurai as ...

*Kazuyuki Inoue as

Sakuma Nobumori was a Samurai retainer of Oda Nobuhide. He was treated as Oda Nobunaga's most important retainer and would come to fight in every important battle under Nobunaga's command such as the 1567 Siege of Inabayama Castle, the 1571 and 1573 Siege o ...

*Nakamura Kamon II as

Shibata Katsuie or was a Japanese samurai and military commander during the Sengoku period. He was retainer of Oda Nobuhide. He served Oda Nobunaga as one of his trusted generals, was severely wounded in the 1571 first siege of Nagashima, but then fought ...

* Kei Satō as

Akechi Mitsuhide , first called Jūbei from his clan and later from his title, was a Japanese ''samurai'' general of the Sengoku period. Mitsuhide was originally a bodyguard of the last Ashikaga shogunate, Ashikaga ''shōgun'' Ashikaga Yoshiaki and later, one of ...

* Tatsuo Matsumura as

Matsunaga Hisahide Matsunaga Danjō Hisahide (松永弾正久秀 1508 – November 19, 1577) was a ''daimyō'' and head of the Yamato Matsunaga clan in Japan during the Sengoku period of the 16th century. He has historical reputation as one of , a nickna ...

Yūsuke Kawazu was a Japanese actor. Life and career Kawazu was born in Tokyo on 12 May 1935. While still a student at Keio University, Kawazu signed with Shochiku in 1958 and debuted in Keisuke Kinoshita, Kinoshita's ''The Eternal Rainbow''. He became one o ...

Maeda Toshiie was one of the leading generals of Oda Nobunaga following the Sengoku period of the 16th century extending to the Azuchi–Momoyama period. His preferred weapon was a yari and he was known as "Yari no Mataza" (槍の又左), Matazaemon (又左 ...

* Asao Koike as

Araki Murashige was a retainer of Ikeda Katsumasa, head of the powerful "Setssu-Ikeda clan" of Settsu Province. Under Katsumasa, Murashige sided with Oda Nobunaga following Nobunaga's successful campaign to establish power in Kyoto. Military life Murashige b ...

*Kataoka Takao as

Mori Ranmaru , also known as Mori Naritoshi (森成利), was a samurai retainer to the Oda clan. He was son of Mori Yoshinari, and had 5 brothers in total, from the province of Mino Province, Mino. He was a member of the Mori clan (Genji), Mori Clan, descen ...

*Yoshio Kaneuchi as

Ikeda Tsuneoki , also known as Ikeda Nobuteru (池田信輝), was an Ikeda clan ''daimyō'' and military commander under Oda Nobunaga during the Sengoku period and Azuchi–Momoyama periods of 16th-century Japan. He was a retainer of the famous warlords Oda No ...

Tokugawa clan

*Onoe Kikuzō VI as

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 ...

*Takashi Toyama as

Honda Tadakatsu , also called Honda Heihachirō (本多平八郎) was a Japanese samurai, general, and daimyo of the late Sengoku through early Edo periods, who served Tokugawa Ieyasu. Honda Tadakatsu was one of the Tokugawa Four Heavenly Kings (Shitennō) a ...

*Yasunori Irikawa as

Okudaira Nobumasa , also called Okudaira Sadamasa (奥平貞昌), was a Japanese ''daimyō'' of the Sengoku and early Edo periods. Nobumasa's family considered their origins to have been associated with Mikawa Province. The clan was descended through the Akam ...

* Kazuo Kitamura as

Torii Suneemon was an ashigaru (low class footman) who served the Okudaira family, retainer of Tokugawa Ieyasu. He became famous for his bravery and incredible exploit at the battle of Nagashino, siege of Nagashino. He was a retainer of Okudaira Sadamasa an ...

Takeda clan

Sessue Hayakawa , known professionally as , was a Japanese actor and a matinée idol. He was a popular star in Hollywood during the silent film era of the 1910s and early 1920s. Hayakawa was the first actor of Asian descent to achieve stardom as a leading man ...

Takeda Shingen was daimyō, daimyo of Kai Province during the Sengoku period of Japan. Known as "the Tiger of Kai", he was one of the most powerful daimyo of the late Sengoku period, and credited with exceptional military prestige. Shingen was based in a p ...

* Fumio Watanabe as

Takeda Katsuyori was a Japanese ''daimyō'' (military lord) 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, ''daimyō'' of Hojo clan. Early life H ...

*Kenjirō Uemura as Baba Nobuharu *Shinjirō Asano as Anayama Baisetsu

Uesugi clan

*Kenjirō Ishiyama as

Uesugi Kenshin , later known as , was a Japanese ''daimyō'' (magnate). 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 ...

*Ichirō Izawa as Naoe Kagetsuna

Azai clan

*Katsumi Ōyama as

Azai Nagamasa was a Japanese ''daimyō'' of the Sengoku period known as the brother-in-law and enemy of Oda Nobunaga. Nagamasa was head of the Azai clan seated at Odani Castle in northern Ōmi Province and married Nobunaga's sister Oichi in 1564, fathering ...

* Terumi Niki as

Ohatsu or (1570 – September 30, 1633) was a prominently placed figure in the late Sengoku period. She was daughter of Oichi and Nagamasa Azai, and the sister of Yodo-dono and Oeyo. Alongside her sisters, she was active in the political intrigues ...

Mōri clan

*Hiroshi Nihon'yanagi as Kikkawa Motoharu * Shinsuke Mikimoto as Kikkawa Tsuneie *Shōichi Kuwayama as Ankokuji Ekei * Jun Tazaki as Shimizu Muneharu

Ashikaga clan

*Ichimura Kakitsu XVI as

Ashikaga Yoshiaki "Ashikaga Yoshiaki" in '' The New Encyclopædia Britannica''. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 15th edn., 1992, Vol. 1, p. 625. was the 15th and final ''shōgun'' of the Ashikaga shogunate in Japan who reigned from 1568 to 1573 when he ...

* Rokkō Toura as Hosokawa Fujitaka

Others

* Shōgo Shimada as

Sen no Rikyū , also known simply as Rikyū, was a Japanese tea master considered the most important influence on the ''chanoyu'', the Japanese "Way of Tea", particularly the tradition of '' wabi-cha''. He was also the first to emphasize several key aspect ...

*Kichijirō Ueda as

Saitō Dōsan , also known as Saitō Toshimasa (斎藤利政), was a Japanese samurai lord and daimyo during the Sengoku period.Louis-Frédéric, Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"Saitō Dōsan"in ''Japan Encyclopedia'', p. 809. He was also known as the f ...

*Ichirō Mikuni as

Imagawa Yoshimoto was a Japanese ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) of the Sengoku period. Based in Suruga Province, he was known as ; he was one of the three ''daimyō'' that dominated the Tōkaidō region. He died in 1560 while marching to Kyoto to become Shogun. He ...

Yoshio Tsuchiya was a Japanese actor who appeared in such films as Toshio Matsumoto's surreal ''Bara No Soretsu'' (a.k.a. '' Funeral Parade of Roses'') and Akira Kurosawa's ''Seven Samurai'' (as the firebrand farmer Rikichi) and '' Red Beard'', and Kihachi Okam ...

as Sōtan * Frankie Sakai as Ofuku * Harue Akagi as Nagisa * Shōbun Inoue as

Date Masamune was a Japanese ''daimyō'' during the Azuchi–Momoyama period through the early Edo period. Heir to a long line of powerful feudal lords in the Tōhoku region, he went on to found the modern-day city of Sendai. An outstanding tactician, he w ...

* Shigeru Kōyama as Yamanaka Shikanosuke * Seiji Miyaguchi as Dr. Manase Dōsan * Nobuko Otowa as Oetsu, Fukushima Masanori's mother

References

{{Taiga drama 1965 Japanese television series debuts 1965 Japanese television series endings Taiga drama 1960s drama television series Jidaigeki television series Television shows based on Japanese novels Cultural depictions of Akechi Mitsuhide Cultural depictions of Date Masamune Cultural depictions of Oda Nobunaga Cultural depictions of Takeda Shingen Cultural depictions of Tokugawa Ieyasu Cultural depictions of Toyotomi Hideyoshi Cultural depictions of Uesugi Kenshin