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allowed for the true daimyo to come
to the fore. The subversion of lordly
aristocrats by people substantially lower
on the social scale was termed gekokujō,
‘the low overcoming the high’.
The prototypical daimyo, Hōjō Sōun
(1432-1519), had himself initially been
only an ordinary samurai. He subdued
a rebel leader in Ise province in 1491 and
for his good work was put in charge of
the region. He and his sons relentlessly
enlarged their holdings in the ensuing
years. In addition to being an excellent
soldier, Sōun, who would live until
the ripe old age of 88, showed a flair
for good governance. The law code
he promulgated would provide a legal
template for other daimyo.Takeda Shingen and Uesugi Kenshin
The Sengoku Jidai would see the rise
of several legendary daimyo whose
names still resonate in Japanese history.
Among the foremost of these warlords
were the great rivals Takeda Shingen
and Uesugi Kenshin.
Takeda Shingen (1521-73) was the
master of Kai province in modern-day
Yamanashi prefecture, while Uesugi
Kenshin (1530-78) ruled Echigo province
in north-central Japan. Both were, in
addition to being daimyo, Buddhist
monks. Each had shown ruthlessness
in achieving power in their respective
domains. Shingen had mounted a coupagainst his own father, a daimyo who
had planned to pass over him and give
his lands to another, younger son.
An excellent general, Shingen was
also known as a wise and generous civil
administrator. The peasant farmers
of Kai were relatively well-treated in
comparison to those ruled by other
daimyo, and they gave Shingen their
complete loyalty.
Kenshin’s ascent was even more
dramatic. Originally named Nagao
Kagetora, he was a vassal of the more
powerful Uesugi clan. However, the
Uesugi fell on hard times during the
Sengoku Jidai, and this opened the door
for Kagetora to step through. After a
series of defeats had left the Uesugi clan
prostrate, its chief, Uesugi Norimasa,
appealed to his vassal for succour.
This was granted, but Kagetora did
so on the condition that he be adopted
as the Uesugi heir and also be made the
lord of Echigo. He changed his name to
Uesugi Kenshin.
Shinano province lay between the
domains of Kenshin and Shingen, and
it became their battleground. They
would meet in five separate battles at
Kawanakajima, a strategically important
piece of land, between 1553 and 1564.
These were fought with large doses
of chivalry; the greatest and most
dramatic of the encounters, the fourth
battle, was fought in 1561. When newsABOVE One of the greatest of
Japan’s Sengoku-era warlords,
in 1582 Oda Nobunaga
committed ritual suicide as
the Honnoji temple in Kyoto
burned around himBELOW Victory at the 1600
Battle of Sekigahara paved
the way for the Sengoku
Jidai daimyo Tokugawa
Ieyasu to become the
overlord of all JapanHE 14TH CENTURY WITNESSED
THE RISE OF A NEW SAMURAI
ARISTOCRACY KNOWN AS THE SHUGO
Image^ source:^wiki/risingsunprints.comImage^ source:^wiki/City^ of^ Gifu^ Museumof^ HistoryImage^ source:^wiki/HommaMuseum^ of^ Art