The Mystery of Akechi Mitsuhide and Honnoji

Akechi Mitsuhide was a general of the Warring States period, known for his victory over Oda Nobunaga at Honnoji. Although he is known as the one who perpetrated the rebellion, his life and the motives for the rebellion are shrouded in mystery. There are many theories about Mitsuhide’s death, and many believe that he (actually ) survived for a long time.

In this article, we will introduce the life of Akechi Mitsuhide as explained through historical documents and the mystery of the Honnoji Incident. We will also explore the family crest of the Akechi family well as the movies and TV dramas depicting Mitsuhide.

Who Is Akechi Mitsuhide?

Akechi Mitsuhide was a military commander active in the Warring States period. In the same period, famous generals such as Oda Nobunaga, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, and Tokugawa Ieyasu were actively engaged in many battles.

Akechi Mitsuhide is famous for his rebellion in the Honnoji Incident and his victory over his master, Oda Nobunaga. The Honnoji Incident refers to the attack by Akechi Mitsuhide against Oda Nobunaga, who was staying at Honnoji Temple in Kyoto, on June 2, 1582.

Akechi Mitsuhide defeated Oda Nobunaga and took over the country, but failing to gain allies, he_was defeated and killed by a powerful army led by Toyotomi Hideyoshi. Akechi Mitsuhide’s reign ended in only about 10 days after the Honnoji Incident.

In Japan, there is a phrase “Mikka Tenka” (short-lived reign), which means being in power only for a short time.  This expression originated from the fact that Akechi Mitsuhide was only able to gain power for a little more than 10 days.

Although Akechi Mitsuhide played a major role in history, not much is known about his activities other than the Honnoji Incident. His character is also shrouded in mystery.

Life of Akechi Mitsuhide

The life of Akechi Mitsuhide is very mysterious. Mitsuhide’s name is said to have first appeared in history when he served Asakura Yoshikage in Echizen Province ( currently Fukui Prefecture), and there is no clear historical record of his life before that time.

Here we will look at Akechi Mitsuhide’s life from his childhood to the Honnoji Incident, based on various theories and documents.

Childhood to Adolescence

The year of Akechi Mitsuhide’s birth and the name of his father are unknown, and there are multiple theories as to his birthplace, including Mino (currently Gifu Prefecture) and Omi (currently Shiga Prefecture).

According to one theory, Akechi Mitsuhide was born in 1528, and his father was Akechi Mitsutsuna, who served Saito Dosan, a general in the Warring States period. Historical documents showing the relationship between the Akechi family and the Saito family state that a woman who was Akechi Mitsuhide’s aunt married Saito Dosan.

Akechi Mitsutsuna, who is said to be Mitsuhide’s father, died when Akechi Mitsuhide was very young, and his uncle, Akechi Mitsuyasu, succeeded him as governor instead. However, it is said that Akechi Mitsuhide was forced to flee his country before he was 30 years old due to infighting with Saito Dosan, who attacked Akechi Castle.

Officers to the Ashikaga Family

After the fall of Akechi Castle, some historical records reveal that Akechi Mitsuhide served the Asakura clan in Echizen Province. It is widely believed that for about two years before that, he served as a general in the Muromachi Shogunate, Ashikaga Yoshiteru.

After Ashikaga Yoshiteru committed suicide in a family dispute, Akechi Mitsuhide became the servant of Asakura Yoshikage around this time, Ashikaga Yoshiteru’s younger brother, Ashikaga Yoshiaki, approached Asakura Yoshikage, believing that he was the right person to be the shogun of the Muromachi Shogunate. Akechi Mitsuhide, an officer of the Asakura clan, was to work with Hosokawa Fujitaka, a close associate of Ashikaga Yoshiaki, to rebuild the Muromachi Shogunate.

Among the various daimyo that Ashikaga Yoshiaki relied on was Oda Nobunaga. A daimyo is a warrior who owns a large number of fields in a samurai society. Akechi Mitsuhide was ordered by Ashikaga Yoshiaki to go to Oda Nobunaga to request his cooperation. It is said that Mitsuhide met Nobunaga for the first time and came to serve both the Asakura clan and Nobunaga later on.

In 1568, Ashikaga Yoshiaki was retained by Oda Nobunaga to serve as the 15th general (shogun) in Kyoto. However, Ashikaga Yoshiaki eventually fell out with Oda Nobunaga, and the Muromachi Shogunate fell when Nobunaga expelled him from Kyoto. Although Mitsuhide served both Yoshiaki and Nobunaga, he eventually became a direct vassal of Nobunaga.

Battle of Kanegasaki

Akechi Mitsuhide’s rise as a vassal of Oda Nobunaga was marked by the Battle of Kanegasaki. In 1570, the allied forces led by Oda Nobunaga and Tokugawa Ieyasu faced Asakura Yoshikage’s army at Kanegasaki in Echizen Province (currently Fukui Prefecture), and through the betrayal of Nobunaga’s brother-in-law, Azai Nagamasa, Nobunaga was forced into a critical situation.

Akechi Mitsuhide, along with Toyotomi Hideyoshi, served as the tail end of the troop, preventing the enemy from pursuing the troop and stopping the pursuit by Asakura’s army. His efforts to minimize damage to Oda’s army were highly appreciated by Nobunaga, and it is said that he was officially made a vassal of Nobunaga for his subsequent successes.

Mitsuhide continued to participate in numerous battles and achieve great accomplishments, going down in history as a vassal of Nobunaga.

Honnoji Incident

The Honnoji Incident is a historical event that occurred in the early hours of June 2, 1582, when Akechi Mitsuhide led a large army of 13,000 men to raid Oda Nobunaga, who was staying at Honnoji in Kyoto. Surrounded by Akechi’s army, Nobunaga noticed the commotion and returned fire. However, it is said that Nobunaga, realizing that he could no longer resist, set fire to the temple and committed suicide.

Mitsuhide attacked Honnoji and also attacked Nobunaga’s eldest son, Oda Nobutada, who was at Nijo Palace. Although Nobutada still had a chance to escape, it is said that he heard that his father, Nobunaga, had committed suicide so he followed him and committed suicide.

The Honnoji Incident occurred just before Nobunaga achieved his long-cherished dream of unifying Japan. Nobunaga’s body was never found at Honnoji, and many things remain a mystery, including Mitsuhide’s motive for his rebellion.

Mitsuhide’s Death

Akechi Mitsuhide, who had succeeded in the Honnoji Incident, had no feudal lords to ally with him and was having trouble conquering Kyoto.

Meanwhile, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, upon discovering that his master Nobunaga had been attacked, rushed to Kyoto for a battle known as the “Battle of Yamazaki”. On June 13, about 10 days after the Honnoji Incident, Hideyoshi’s army and Akechi’s army clashed at Yamazaki (currently Nagaokakyo City, Kyoto Prefecture), and Akechi’s army was severely defeated.

Akechi Mitsuhide is said to have been killed in the mountains, but there are various theories that he committed suicide or survived.

The theory that he survived says that a man named “Nankobo Tenkai”, who served Tokugawa Ieyasu, was actually Akechi Mitsuhide. Tenkai, is believed to have been born in the 1500s, he was a high priest (the highest rank among monks) of the religion known as Tendai Buddhism. Both Mitsuhide and Nankai have in common that the date of their birth and the first half of their lives are not known.

Tenkai first appeared on the stage of history in 1608 at the age of 72. There are many reasons to believe that he and Akechi Mitsuhide were the same person, one of which is the stone lantern at Shozenji Temple on Mount Hiei. The stone lantern is said to have been donated by a person named “Mitsuhide” in 1615, 33 years after the Honnoji Incident. Of course, we don’t know for certain if the “Mitsuhide” who donated the lantern was Akechi Mitsuhide.

The Battle of Yamazaki, won by Toyotomi Hideyoshi, brought the end of the Warring States period and usher in the unification of Japan by Hideyoshi.

The Mystery of Honnoji – The Motive for the Rebellion Still Remains a Mystery

The fact that Akechi Mitsuhide, a loyal vassal of Oda Nobunaga, rebelled in the Honnoji Incident is still considered a mystery today. There are numerous theories as to the motive for the rebellion, and none is definitive.

The typical theory is that he harbored a grudge against Nobunaga. There is also a theory that it was to stop the atrocities of Nobunaga, who had taken many lives in order to take over the country, or that there was a mastermind behind Mitsuhide’s actions. None of these theories are definitive.

A theory that has been gaining attention in recent years is that it was to avoid the conquest of Shikoku. It is said that Chosokabe Motochika, who unified Tosa (currently Kochi Prefecture), was on friendly terms with Nobunaga, and that Mitsuhide brought the two families together.

However, when the Chosokabe clan gained momentum to pacifyShikoku, Nobunaga changed his attitude and decided to conquer the Chosokabe clan.  In 2014, a document was discovered that shows how this happened, leading to the theory that Mitsuhide may have rebelled to protect the Chosokabe clan.

Akechi Mitsuhide’s Family Crest

After the Honnoji Incident, the Akechi family crest was considered a crest of treachery. A family crest is a symbol that represents a family lineage and is shared by family members, relatives, and other blood relatives. It is said that the family crest originated in the Heian period when court nobles and aristocrats put their own designs on oxcarts (vehicles driven by oxen and ridden by aristocrats) and other vehicles so that they could easily identify them as their own property.

The Akechi family crest is called “Mizuiro Kikyo”, an unusual family crest colored in light blue. Kikyo is a perennial plant that grows wild in the mountains, and Mitsuhide attacked Honnoji under the banner of this light-blue Kikyo.

For this reason, the Kikyo crest was regarded as a symbol of betrayal, and even today the descendants of the Oda family forbid the display of the Kikyo crest on their shrines as it is considered unlucky.

Movies and Dramas Featuring Mitsuhide Akechi

A number of movies and dramas have been produced in which Akechi Mitsuhide appears. Here we will introduce “Oda Nobunaga” starring Hideki Takahashi, a drama in which Akechi Mitsuhide also appears.

Oda Nobunaga (Starring Hideki Takahashi)

One drama featuring Akechi Mitsuhide is “Oda Nobunaga” starring Hideki Takahashi, which aired on TV Tokyo in 1994.

This 12-hour-long drama was broadcast on TV Tokyo on January 2, 1994, as a special program to commemorate the 30th anniversary of TV Tokyo. Based on the novel of the same title by Yamaoka Sohachi, this six-part drama depicted Oda Nobunaga and Akechi Mitsuhide leading up to the Honnoji Incident.

Summary

Akechi Mitsuhide is famous for defeatinghis Master, Oda Nobunaga, in the Honnoji Incident. Other than that, however, the date and place of his birth and the rest of his life remain unclear and full of mystery.

There are numerous theories as to the motive for the attack on Nobunaga, and none is conclusive. There are also various theories about Mitsuhide’s end, with some saying that he survived under Tokugawa Ieyasu.

Akechi Mitsuhide is so famous as the man who caused the Honnoji Incident, but he also left many achievements as a military commander and was a skilled politician. It was because of such talents that he was so highly valued by Nobunaga.

Learning about a side of Mitsuhide that is more than just a man who committed rebellion is one of the fun aspects of learning history.