7 The 100 Most Influential World Leaders of All Time 7moved to assume Nobunaga’s preeminent political posi-
tion. Ieyasu, then in the prime of life, emerged as his
principal rival. After a few bloody but indecisive skir-
mishes, however, the cautious Ieyasu offered a vow of
fealty, and Hideyoshi left Ieyasu’s domain intact. During
the rest of the 1580s, while Hideyoshi busily extended his
control over the daimyo of southwestern Japan, Ieyasu
strengthened himself as best he could. He continued to
enlarge his vassal force, increase his domain’s productivity,
and improve the reliability of his administration.
During the 1590s Ieyasu avoided involvement in
Hideyoshi’s two disastrous military expeditions to Korea.
Instead, he grasped the opportunity to secure his domain
and make it as productive as possible. He stationed his
most powerful vassals on the perimeter of his territory and
along main access routes, keeping the least powerful—and
least dangerous to himself—nearer Edo. He then placed
large tracts of land near the town under direct administra-
tion by appointed officials. This assured his castle
inhabitants easy access to the largest possible supply of
foodstuffs, and made detailed land and property surveys
in order to regularize taxation. He also confiscated the
weapons of all villagers, thereby reducing the likelihood of
peasant rebellion, and moved vigorously to attract skilled
artisans and businessmen to his new castle town. He
undertook engineering projects to enlarge his castle, facil-
itate urban growth, and assure a water supply for the town
populace. By the end of the decade, Ieyasu had the largest,
most reliable army and the most productive and best orga-
nized domain in all Japan.
Hideyoshi’s death in 1598 precipitated another power
struggle among the daimyo, and Ieyasu, as the most pow-
erful and most respected of Hideyoshi’s former vassal
advisers, became the head of one faction in that struggle.
A battle ensued in the autumn of 1600 at Sekigahara,