Nobunaga by Luis Frois

A description of Nobunaga during his prime was written by the Jesuit priest Luis Frois is one of the best. He knew Nobunaga very well and quickly became friends. I do enjoy this entry by Frois and it accurately describes Nobunaga.

"This King of Owari, who would be around 37 years old, is tall of stature, lean, sparsely bearded, with extremely sonorous voice, given to military exercises, indefatigable, inclined to works of justice and compassion, arrogant, a great lover of honour, very secretive in his decisions, a master of stratagems, hardly or not at all mindful of the reprimands or advice of his subordinates, and is feared and venerated by all to the highest degree. He does not drink wine, is brusque in his manner, looks down upon all the other kings and princes of Japan and speaks to them with disdain as if to his inferiors, is totally obeyed by all as the absolute lord, has good understanding and sharp judgements, despises the gods, the Buddhas, and all other kinds of idolatry and pagan superstition. Nominally, he professes to belong to the Lotus sect, but openly declares that there is no creator of the universe, no immortality of the soul, or life after death. His buildings are very clean and refined, and always in perfect order. He hates delays and circumlocution, and not even a prince appears before him bearing a sword; he always has two thousand pages or mounted guards with him. His father was Lord of Owari Province, but he, through his immense energy, has subjected seventeen or eighteen provinces in the last four years. He conquered the eight [sic] central provinces, including the metropolitan province of Yamashiro, in seven or eight days."

This was written in 1569 by Frois. The location could be Kyoto because that was the first time he met Nobunaga. They met again the same year in Gifu and Frois had some written documentation about the meeting. The source can be found in Jeroen Lamers, Japonius Tyrannus, p. 10. More later.

Tenka no tame!

Takeda Shingen and young Nobunaga

A monk named Tentaku of the Tendai sect went to Kai to visit the mountain monkey(Kai no Yama), Takeda Shingen(1521-1573). Shingen was from the province of Kai (Yamanishi Prefecture) and his residence is now modern day Kofu City. Shingen asked Tentaku where Nobunaga lived. He answered Nobunaga's residence was Kiyosu Castle. He also asked the monk what was Nobunaga's daily activities. Tentaku answered, "He rides the horse every morning and practice with the gun." He also gave Shingen the way of Nobunaga. For example, gun instructor Hasimoto Ippa; bow teacher, Ishikawa Daisuke; and military tactics, Hirata Sanmi. He mentions to Shingen about Nobunaga's hobbies of falconry, song, and dance. He also told Shingen that Nobunaga hanged out with a Kiyosu townsman named Matsui Yukan. As for the songs, Tentaku told Shingen Nobunaga liked "Atsumori" and the other ballad I wrote in my last blog was told to Shingen as well. All of this happened during the 1550s and after Nobunaga took over Kiyosu Castle. The interview can be found in the,Shinchoo Ko-ki, Introduction book,Chapter 21. This is a continuation of Nobunaga's character. Nobunaga was different from the rest and he was more successful than the rest. The photo above is Takeda Shingen, the mountain monkey! As for the monk, he was from Owari, Nobunaga's area.

Nobunaga no tame!

Happy New Year

Shinnen Akemashite Omedetougozaimasu! Happy New Year!
I have a little ballad from Nobunaga. He used to sing it during his youth.
Shinou wa ichijou Shinobu kusa ni wa nani wo shi yo zo Ichijou katari Okosu yo no.

Death is a certainty and not a thing the grasses can do, and so it is told from generation to generation. You can find the balled in Tsumoto Yo's novel, Geten wa Yume ka.

Tenka no tame! Nobunaga no tame!

Conclusion

Here is the conclusion of the meeting. The Viper had some issues with Nobunaga before he met him at Shoutokuji Temple. Here were the two key points.

• Nobunaga was no fool. Dosan was able to see him as the man of the future.

• The alliance with caution was still in tact. Dosan could not invade Owari because Nobunaga was a strong man with character and would pull off the unexpected.
  

Dosan had to know right from the start he was beat with brains and not by brawl. He then knew Nobunaga was not going to take orders from his superiors. Dosan then knew the type of person Nobunaga was made of. A self-made man. Nobunaga took full advantage of what the Sengoku Era gave. He was able to pull is zany actions with flare and able to get away with it. When Nobunaga brought him army with him, he made sure that he brought the best. The guns, to scare the Viper, the very long spears, and his wild attire to show his father-in-law: Here I am. Dosan knew Nobunaga was rare, but now he able could work with him. I think Dosan spoke harshly about Nobunaga to his retainers to save face. He had to show strength. He would help his son-in-law a year later in the Battle of Muraki (1554) and when he was killed in 1556, he gave the deed to Mino to Nobunaga. A perfect gift. Why? He was able to see Nobunaga was rare and a self-made man who was able to survive in the Sengoku Era than a man who was not.
God Bless and Merry Christmas!


Nobunaga no tame!

The Meeting Part 3

At the main hall of the temple, the Saito men all in formal attire sat and waited for the meeting to start. As for Nobunaga, he was able to pull the rabbit out of the hat trick again. This time he was dressed in formal attire. The hair was properly tied and his clothing was lavish. For example, he wore a brown nagabakama (very long trousers) and a short scabbard to go with it. This was a complete shock for the Saito! They could not believe he was able to pull another trick again. Two of Dosan's retainers showed Nobunaga the way, but he acted as if nothing has happened. He treated the retainers as if they never existed at all. Hotta Doku then introduced Dosan to Nobunaga, "This is Yamashiro-dono." Nobunaga replied, "Indeed" or "Is that so!" The viper had to be nervous. He never met such an odd figure before. He was embarrassed by the fact that Nobunaga brought up the subject of caught in the act of spying. Dosan did mention to Nobunaga that he was an oil merchant long ago. Both had a simple meal and drank to a toast. Dosan sent off Nobunaga back to Nagoya. He had to be in complete bitter embarrassment. He saw the Oda spears longer than the Mino army. Not only that, but the guns as well. Inoko Hyousuke asked about Dosan's son-in-law. He replied, "I feel regrettable that my children will follow that idiot." The viper did have new respect for Nobunaga. How? He knew times were changing in Sengoku Japan, Nobunaga was the new kid on the block, and meeting the father-in-law for the first time Nobunaga passed with flying colors. Dosan knew the alliance was still good enough for time being. As for Nobunaga, he won the battle without firing a single shot. The conclusion of the historic meeting at a later date. The Shinchoo-Ko ki, by Ota Gyuuichi is still your best bet for a good read on the meeting by far.


Tenka no tame!

The Meeting Part 2

A woodblock print of Nobunaga's procession to Shoutokiji Temple.

The story only gets better! Nobunaga crossed the Kiso and Hida River by boat with his troops. Slowly he finally arrived at Tonda. As for Shoutokuji itself, located in Ichinomiya, the temple was a proxy from the Honganji in Osaka. Nobunaga would soon find out that his father-in-law was spying on him. Why? The answer is simple. Saito Dosan only heard reports on Oda Nobunaga. He wanted to see for himself if Nobunaga was truly a blockhead. Dosan hid in a small shack to catch a glimpse, but he would soon be in awe! Nobunaga's attire was exactly Dosan was looking for. His hair was tied up in a chasen-maki style with a yellowish light green cord. The clothing was, well infamous! Tiger and leopard skin hakama, his shirt with one sleeve bare, a hemp cord (used for guns) as a bracelet, a flint bag, a rope around his waist as a sash, a beautifully decorated scabbard, and a few containers (hyootan, used for water or store other things). Now comes the awesome part. Nobunaga brought his spear and gunner group with him. What was so special about that? The spears were twice as long and he brought 500 gunners with him. Dosan had to be in complete shock! The father-in-law was supposed to teach the son-in-law a lesson. Not the other way around. The viper was outsmarted by the idiot! In my opinion, Dosan respected Nobunaga little by little after this incident. More zany thing came from the meeting. Again, it gets better and Nobunaga will prove to his father-in-law, he is no slouch

I did not include much detail about Nobunaga's attire in my book Okehazama 1560 because the book was about the battle. If one wanted to know how Nobunaga took over Mino in 1567, yes, by all means, the meeting should be in detail. I love Ota Gyuuichi's, Shinchoo Koo-ki, description of the meeting between the two. (Introduction, Chapter 10)

Myself as young Nobunaga at the Gifu City Museum of History



Nobunaga no Tame!

The Meeting Part 1

Good Morning friends! I will explain the meeting between Nobunaga and his father-in-law, Saito Dosan. It will have several parts because I want to explain the details and the outcome which was very important. I just wrote about the tragic death of Nobunaga's senior adviser, Hirate Masahide, which took place in 1553. The meeting also took place in the same year (1553), but early spring. Dosan wanted to know if his son-in-law, was really an idiot. The fact was and still is known today, Nobunaga was no fool. For Saito Dosan, everything was going his way. He had power in Mino, trade, military might, and an alliance with the Oda which he was able to focus on other priorities.

Why the meeting in the first place?

• Dosan never met Nobunaga in person.


• Wanted to know if Nobunaga was a fool.


• To find out if the Oda was weak enough for the Saito to invade Owari.


• To find out if the alliance was good enough to continue.

The two would meet at Shoutokuji Temple in Tonda, near the border of Mino and Owari. Dosan was about to find out fast that his son-in-law can adapt quickly to the times of war. He found out Nobunaga's free thinking attitude was a fast track to success, especially with new weapons of war. More important, he found out after the meeting Nobunaga had a dream to unite the country. Part 2 later. Until then,

Tenka no Tame!