Web Quotableonline.com Frasescelebres.org Greatbookscollection.org

Toyotomi Hideyoshi
(豊臣秀吉, original
surnames Kinoshita 木下 and Hashiba
羽柴; 1536 - September 18, 1598), was
a sengoku daimyo who unified Japan. He succeeded
his former liege, Oda Nobunaga and brought an end
to the Sengoku period. He was also known for his
invasion of Korea. He is noted for a number of
cultural legacies, including the restriction that
only members of the samurai class could bear arms.

The period of his rule is often called the
Momoyama period, after Toyotomi's castle. It
lasted from 1582 to his death in 1598, or
(according to some scholars) until Tokugawa Ieyasu
seized power after the Battle of Sekigahara in
1600.

==Rise to power==


Toyotomi Hideyoshi was born in what is now
Nakamura-ku, Nagoya in the Owari province, the
home of the Oda clan.   He was born with no
traceable samurai lineage and hence without a
surname: his childhood given name was Hiyoshimaru
(日吉丸), although variations
exist. According to Maeda Toshiie and a European
missionary named Luis Frois, he was
polydactyly|polydactyl - he had two thumbs on his
right hand, and he didn't cut his extra thumb as
other Japanese in his period would do.  As a
youth, he first joined the Imagawa clan as a
servant of local ruler Matsushita, under the name
Kinoshita Tokichiro
(木下藤吉郎).

Later, he joined the Oda clan as a lowly servant.
He was noticed for his resourcefulness and rose to
a high position within a relatively short amount
of time.  Despite his peasant lineage, he quickly
became one of Oda Nobunaga's most distinguished
generals, eventually taking the name Hashiba (the
name was made up of two characters, each taken
from Oda's two other right-hand men, Niwa Nagahide
and Shibata Katsuie) Hideyoshi.

Some of his well-known exploits under Oda
Nobunaga, many of them exaggerated and
romanticized, include the legendary overnight
construction of Sunomata Castle, his encounters
with Takenaka Shigenaru, and later the siege of
Takamatsu Castle.

After the sudden deaths of Oda Nobunaga and his
eldest son, Oda Nobutada at the hands of Akechi
Mitsuhide in 1582, Hashiba defeated Akechi at the
Battle of Yamazaki and established his de facto
succession of Oda's military rule.

At the Kiyosu Meeting to decide on a de jure
successor, Hashiba cast aside the apparent
candidate, Oda Nobutaka and his advocate, Oda
clan's chief general, Shibata Katsuie, by
supporting Nobutada's young son, Oda Hidenobu.
Having won the support of the other two Oda
elders, Niwa Nagahide and Ikeda Itsuoki, Hashiba
established Hidenobu's position, as well as his
own influence in the Oda clan. Tension quickly
escalated between Shibata and Hashiba, and at the
Battle of Shizugatake in the following year,
Hashiba destroyed Shibata's forces and thus
consolidated his own power, absorbing most of the
Oda clan into his control.

However, Nobunaga's other son, Oda Nobukatsu
remained hostile to Hashiba. He allied himself
with Tokugawa Ieyasu, and the two sides fought at
the inconclusive Battle of Nagakute|Battle of
Komaki-Nagakute. It ultimately resulted in a
stalemate, although the Hashiba forces were
delivered a heavy blow. Finally, Hashiba made
peace with Nobukatsu, ending the pretext for war
between the Tokugawa and Hashiba clans. Tokugawa
eventually subjected himself to become a vassal to
Hashiba.



On the other hand, Hashiba wanted the title of
shogun, because it was then considered the title
of the practical ruler of Japan. However, the
Emperor of Japan|emperor was unable to grant such
a title to someone of Hideyoshi's lowly lineage. 
Hashiba then wanted the last Ashikaga
shogunate|Muromachi shogun, Ashikaga Yoshiaki to
accept him as an adopted son, but was refused.
Unable to become shogun, in 1585 he took the
position of regent (kampaku), as the Fujiwara
Regents had, and it was around this time that he
married Lady Yodo, the mother of his future son.
In 1596, Hashiba was formally given the name
Toyotomi by the imperial court.

Afterwards, Toyotomi subjugated the Kii Province
and conquered Shikoku under the Chosokabe clan. He
also took control of Etchu Province|Etchu and
conquered Kyushu. In 1587, Toyotomi banished
Christianity|Christian missionary|missionaries
from Kyushu to exert greater control on the
Kirishitan daimyo. In 1588, Toyotomi started a
sword hunt and forbid ordinary peasants from
owning weapons. This measure effectively stopped
peasant revolts and ensured greater stability, at
the expense of individual freedom. The 1590 Siege
of Odawara (1590)|Siege of Odawara against the
Late Hojo clan in Kanto, the last resisting force
to Toyotomi's authority, signified the end of the
Sengoku period.

A year after that, Toyotomi resigned in 1591 as
kampaku to take the title of Sessho and
Kampaku|taiko (retired regent).  His adopted son,
Toyotomi Hidetsugu|Hidetsugu (actually his nephew)
succeeded him as kampaku. 

Before gripping control of Japan, Toyotomi
Hideyoshi employed a friendly diplomatic stance
with the Ming Dynasty and helped the Chinese
government combat the Japanese piracy
(Wokou|wakō) along the coasts of Yellow Sea,
South China Sea and Taiwan. Now with his country
secured, he began the Battle of Bunroku to annex
Korea. On April 1592, his generals invaded Korea. 
Within a month, the Japanese controlled almost the
entire country. However, the Koreans soon
rebelled, aided by the Chinese Ming dynasty.
Resistance led by Yi Sun-shin  forced the Japanese
army to retreat from Korea in December, 1592.

Unsatisfied, in 1596 Toyotomi unsuccessfully
attempted to invade Korea again in the Battle of
Keicho. This time the Japanese encountered a
well-prepared joint defence of Korea and China and
eventually surrendered. The invasions of Korea
created a legacy of mutual bitterness between
Korea and Japan. Nearly a third of Japan's army of
150,000 died in the winter of 1592 alone, but did
not leave before burning Seoul to the ground in
1593. During the second invasion, Toyotomi ordered
his generals to kill all who resisted the Japanese
troops - including women and children - and cut
off and pickle their noses, which Toyotomi
collected by the tens of thousands in a large pile
beside his mausoleum, known today by the misnomer
"Mound of Ears." 

In 1598, Toyotomi Hideyoshi died; thus, the
Japanese army withdrew and the battles ended.
Admiral Yi Sun-shin chased the retreating Japanese
navy and in the final showdown of the war half of
the remaining Japanese fleet was either sunk or
never returned.  The futile war only served to
weaken the clans that were loyal to the Toyotomi
name and clan. Following Toyotomi's death, the
other members of the council of five regents could
not keep the ambitions of Tokugawa Ieyasu in
check. Toyotomi's underaged son and designated
successor Toyotomi Hideyori|Hideyori lost the
claim to the power his father once held, and
Tokugawa Ieyasu was declared Shogun following the
Battle of Sekigahara.

==Cultural legacy==


It is important to note the many ways in which
Toyotomi Hideyoshi changed Japanese society. 
During the Sengoku period, it became common for
peasants to become warriors, or even for samurai
to farm due to the constant uncertainty of no
centralized government and always tentative peace.
 Upon taking control, Toyotomi decreed that all
peasants be disarmed completely.  This solidified
the social class system for the next 300 years. 
Furthermore, he ordered all of Japan to be
surveyed, including a census.  Once this was done
and all citizens were registered, he required all
Japanese to stay in their respective provinces (or
'han (Japan)|han') without official permission to
go elsewhere.  These steps were taken to ensure a
modicum of peace in a period of time where bandits
still roamed the countryside and peace was still
new.  But also by surveying the countryside,
Japanese land and resources could be utilized
properly. In 1588, Toyotomi effectively abolished
slavery by stopping sales of slaves.  Contract and
indentured labor replaced slavery.(<---Needs to be
researched)

In 1590 Toyotomi completed construction of the
huge Osaka Castle, the largest and most formidable
in all Japan, to guard the western approaches to
Kyoto.  His contributions were not all military,
however.  Inspired by the dazzling Kinkaku (golden
pavilion) temple in northwestern Kyoto, he
constructed a fabulous portable tea room, known as
kigame no zashiki ("golden chamber"), covered with
gold leaf and lined inside with red gossamer.
Using this mobile innovation, he was able to
practice the Japanese tea ceremony  wherever he
went, powerfully projecting his unrivaled power
and status upon his arrival.



Politically, he set up a governmental system that
balanced out the most powerful Japanese warlords
(or daimyo).  A council was created to include the
most influential lords.  At the same time, a
regent was designated to be in command.  The
combined polity functioned in some ways like a
president with a parliament.  

At the time of his death, Toyotomi had hoped to
set up a system stable enough to survive until his
son grew old enough to become the next leader.  A
council of five regents was formed, consisting of
the five most powerful daimyo. Following the death
of Maeda Toshiie, however, Tokugawa Ieyasu began
to secure alliances, including political marriages
(which had been forbidden by Toyotomi). Things
eventually came to a head and the pro-Toyotomi
forces fought against Tokugawa and his allies in
the battle of Sekigahara. Tokugawa won and
received the title of Seii-tai Shogun two years
later.

Tokugawa, asserting their wisdom, left in place
the majority of Toyotomi's decrees to use as a
base upon which his fledgling shogunate was built.
This ensured that Toyotomi's cultural legacy
remained.

==Popular culture==
Being the subject of much fiction and speculation,
Toyotomi's life is also frequently used as a
source of inspiration in fictional works, films,
and video games.

Toyotomi's stereotypical, monkey-like appearance,
for example, is used in Onimusha, and he is
portrayed in the popular video game as a sneaky
and cunning character.

In Koei's Samurai Warriors Xtreme Legends, Hashiba
Hideyoshi is a powerful monkey-like character
wielding a three-segment staff.

Toyotomi's life and struggles also inspired the
popular video game series by Koei, Taikou
Risshiden.

As Messier Undertree, Toyotomi appears in Cantos
LVI and LVIII of Ezra Pound's long poem The
Cantos.

== Further reading ==

* Eiji Yoshikawa: Taiko (Historical
novel|historical fiction). Kodansha International
(Japan), 2001, ISBN 4770026099

== External links ==
*http://www1.kinjo-u.ac.jp/~nakata/Nakata/VirtualS
chool/hideyoshi.html Hideyoshi Toyotomi (in
Japanese)
*imdb:tt0115201 | "Hideyoshi" (1996) TV-Series