Battle of Utsunomiya Castle

Infobox Military Conflict
conflict=Battle of Utsunomiya Castle
partof=Boshin War
date=May 10-May 14, 1868


caption=Utsunomiya castle during the Edo period.
place=Utsunomiya, Tochigi
territory=
result=Imperial victory
combatant1=Imperial Army
combatant2=Tokugawa shogunate
commander1=Ruler: Meiji Emperor
Army: Kagawa Keizo, Ijichi Masaharu
commander2= Shogun: Tokugawa Yoshinobu Army: Takenaka Shigekata, Otori Keisuke, Hijikata Toshizo, others.
strength1=Unknown
strength2=2,000
casualties1=Unknown
casualties2=UnknownThe nihongo|"Battle of Utsunomiya Castle"|宇都宮城の戦い|Utsunomiyajō no tatakai was a battle between pro-Imperial and Tokugawa shogunate forces during the Boshin War in Japan in May 1868. It occurred as the troops of the Tokugawa shogunate were retreating north towards Nikkō and Aizu.

Background

In early spring 1868, former Tokugawa retainers under Ōtori Keisuke and Hijikata Toshizō had gathered at Kōnodai (国府台), having left the shogun's capital of Edo en masse. However, there were small numbers of men of Aizu under Akizuki Noborinosuke and Kuwana troops under Tatsumi Naofumi also present, as well as a handful of surviving "Shinsengumi", such as Shimada Kai. [Ōtori Keisuke. "Nanka Kikō". "Kyū Bakufu" 1 (1898): 21.] While many of their numbers were samurai, there were also many members of other social classes present, particularly under Ōtori's direct command. Their objective was Utsunomiya, a castle town on the road northward to Nikkō and Aizu, which was a position of vital strategic importance. The daimyō of Utsunomiya, Toda Tadatomo, was absent, as he had been charged by Tokugawa Yoshinobu with traveling to Kyoto and submitting a letter of apology and submission. [Abe Akira, “Utsunomiya-han”, in "Hanshi Daijiten", Vol. 2 (Kantō). Tōkyō: Yūzankaku, 1989, p. 189.] However, upon his arrival in Ōtsu, Toda was met by Satsuma-Chōshū forces, and placed under confinement, as such a message reaching the ears of Emperor Meiji might have resulted in a premature pardon that would have complicated the alliance's anti-Tokugawa military objectives. [Ibid.] This left Utsunomiya in the hands of Tadatomo's retired predecessor, Toda Tadayuki, who also advocated surrender, but was not involved in the efforts of the former Shogunate.

Events Leading to the Battle

In the days prior to the attack, the former Shogunate forces were moving quickly in the area from castle to castle, with Hijikata taking two domains in Hitachi province —Shimotsuma and Shimodate -- on May 7 and May 8. However, as these domains were small and their daimyō had fled, they did not have much in terms of money or supplies, and Hijikata was unable to acquire what he had hoped for. [Kikuchi Akira, "Shinsengumi Hyakuichi no Nazo." Tōkyō: Shin Jinbutsu Ōraisha, 2000, p. 217] Almost simultaneously, a peasant riot broke out in Utsunomiya, giving the former Shogunate forces the perfect opportunity to strike, which they seized without delay. [Abe, p. 189.] Ōtori's forces launched their attack on the castle on the morning of May 10, 1868, facing off against the combined Imperial force made up of troops from Matsumoto (Shinano Province, 60,000 "koku"), Kurohane (Shimotsuke Province, 18,000 "koku"), Mibu (Shimotsuke Province, 18,000 "koku"), Iwamurata (Shinano Province, 18,000 "koku"), Susaka (Shinano Province, 12,000 "koku"), Hikone (Ōmi Province, 350,000 "koku"), Ōgaki (Mino Province, 100,000 "koku"), Utsunomiya (Shimotsuke Province, 77,000 "koku"), and Kasama (Hitachi Province, 80,000 "koku"). [Yamakawa Kenjirō, "Aizu Boshin Senshi". Tōkyō: Tōkyō Daigaku Shuppankai, 1931, pp. 232-33] The castle fell the same day, with Toda Tadayuki escaping to Tatebayashi [Ibid, p. 233] . Ōtori, leading the main element of the army, entered the castle on the 20th, and his forces emptied out the rice stored in the castle, handing it out to the townsfolk, who, as previously noted, had been rioting for the past several days. [Ibid.] Efforts were then made to strengthen the position of Ōtori's force. Ōtori's men, now linked up with Hijikata's force, including others such as including former "Shinsengumi" member Nagakura Shinpachi's unit Seiheitai, [Nagakura Shinpachi. "Shinsengumi Tenmatsu-ki". Tōkyō: Shin Jinbutsu Ōraisha, 2003, p. 180.] headed north to Mibu, where they intended to hide and lie in wait; however, upon their arrival they discovered that Satsuma forces had already taken the castle. The southerners, shocked at their sudden appearance, entered the castle and mounted a defense; and while the attackers had intended to set fire to the castle town, a torrential rain began, and made that impossible. Despite their best efforts, this combined unit was not able to take Mibu Castle, and withdrew to Utsunomiya after sustaining a total of 60 men killed and wounded, including eight officers. [Yamakawa, p. 235] Subsequently, the Imperial army, with Satsuma and Ōgaki forces leading the way, [Yamakawa, p. 235.] swept up in a northeastward direction over the Mibu-kaidō road on May 14, launching a counterattack which resulted in their taking of the castle on the same day. [Abe, p. 189.]

Faced with defeat, Ōtori's forces withdrew northward, by way of Nikkō, on to Aizu. [Yamakawa, p. 236]

Aftermath

It is important to note that while the Aizu domain previously advocated surrender and peaceful negotiation first and resistance second, the entrance of massive number of loyalists to the former Shogunate, following their retreat from Utsunomiya, forced its hand firmly into the realm of armed resistance:

"...soldiers of the Shogunate, who supported continued war, began decamping en masse and leaving Edo for Aizu, which necessitated Aizu's stance to be changed to one that was pro-war. Men such as senior councilor Saigō Tanomo and agriculture magistrate Kawahara Zenzaemon continued to push for allegiance and submission, however, they were not heard, and the clouds of war spread over northeastern Japan..." [Hoshi Ryōichi, "Aizu-han no Kakuryō to Hanron", in "Matsudaira Katamori no Subete", Tsunabuchi Kenjō, ed. Tōkyō: Shin Jinbutsu Ōraisha, 1984, p. 117.]

In later years, Ōtori would write an account of the battle, titled Nanka Kikō (南柯紀行), which would appear in Kyū Bakufu (舊幕府), a magazine devoted to documenting Bakumatsu history, which he helped edit.

Notes

References

*Abe Akira, “Utsunomiya-han”, in "Hanshi Daijiten", Vol. 2 (Kantō). Tōkyō: Yūzankaku, 1989.
*Kikuchi Akira, "Shinsengumi Hyakuichi no Nazo." Tōkyō: Shin Jinbutsu Ōraisha, 2000.
*Nagakura Shinpachi, "Shinsengumi Tenmatsu-ki". Tōkyō: Shin Jinbutsu Ōraisha, 2003
*Ōtori Keisuke. "Nanka Kikō". "Kyū Bakufu" 1 (1898), 20-58.
*Tsunabuchi Kenjō, ed. "Matsudaira Katamori no Subete" Tōkyō: Shin Jinbutsu Ōraisha, 1984.
*Yamakawa Kenjirō. "Aizu Boshin Senshi". Tōkyō: Tōkyō Daigaku Shuppankai, 1931.