Hori Hidemasa

was a samurai retainer of Oda Nobunaga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi during Japan's Sengoku period. He was one of Hideyoshi's greatest generals, and commanded his forces in several of his most major battles.

Born in Mino Province, he was raised along with his cousin Hori Naomasa, by his uncle, an Ikkō priest. Originally serving Ōtsu Chōji and Kinoshita Hideyoshi, at the age of 13 he became Oda Nobunaga's page. By sixteen, he'd been assigned prefect ("bugyō") in charge of the construction of Shogun Ashikaga Yoshiaki's residence at Hongaku-ji, working with the likes of Sugaya Nagayori, Ōtsu Nagaaki, Yabe Iesada, Hasegawa Hidekazu, Manmi Shigemoto and Fukutomi Hidekatsu. Gradually, however, he began to spend more and more time on the battlefield. In 1575, he aided in Nobunaga's assaults on the Ikkō-ikki of Echizen province, and fought the Saiga Ikki two years later, leading Nobunaga's army alongside Hashiba Hideyoshi and Sakuma Nobumori. He also led corps of arquebusiers in a number of battles.

Hidemasa was granted the fief of Sakata, in Ōmi Province, in 1581, with an income of 25,000 "koku". Though some sources say he also controlled Nagahama castle at this point, most sources indicate this castle belonged to Hideyoshi. It is also important to note that while there was a nearby fief held by a Buddhist temple, with the same "kokutaka" (assessment of land-value in "koku"), these should not be confused.

The following year, Oda Nobunaga was killed in the Incident at Honnō-ji, but Hidemasa remained loyal to his lord's clan, following Oda Nobutada into battle against Araki Murashige and the Takeda family. He was still "bugyō" throughout this period though, and so continued this position as well, overseeing the construction of a mansion for Portguese missionaries, and playing a role in hosting the 1579 Azuchi religious debate (安土宗論, "Azuchi shūron"). Serving as Nobunaga's representative, he also hosted the likes of Tokugawa Ieyasu, Niwa Nagahide, and others. Following the death of his lord, he came to serve Toyotomi Hideyoshi.

Hidemasa led Hideoyshi's vanguard in the 1582 battle of Yamazaki, along with Nakagawa Kiyohide and Takayama Ukon, and received great praise the following year from Tokugawa Ieyasu for his battle prowess. At that time, Hideyoshi had just begun fighting Shibata Katsuie, and Ieyasu expressed his confidence that the campaign would go smoothly. Hidemasa was promoted to the fifth rank, appointed to the Saemonfu (左衛門, Court Security Office), and granted Sawayama in Ōmi province as his fief, with an income of 90,000 "koku". He then arranged negotiations for Hideyoshi with the Ikkō sect which had fervently opposed Nobunaga; the head priest of Renshō-ji was Hidemasa's cousin Hori Rokuemon, and so the negotiations went quite smoothly.

Hidemasa led portions of Hideyoshi's forces once again, in the 1584 Battle of Komaki and Nagakute, in which they suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of the Tokugawa army. Ambushed by Ōsuga Yasutaka and Sakakibara Yasumasa, they successfully held off their attackers for a time, but upon meeting the main Tokugawa force of 9000, were forced to retreat. The following year, Hideyoshi became Kanpaku (Imperial regent), and Hidemasa was promoted to the fourth rank at court, and appointed to a new post as well. Following the siege of Negoroji and the invasion of Shikoku, he was given the lands of the late Niwa Nagahide, Kita no shō in Echizen province, with an income of 180,000 "koku".

During the 1587 Kyūshū Campaign, Hidemasa once again led the vanguard of Hideyoshi's forces. As various castles fell, and fifty or so Satsuma warriors were captured, he released them rather than killing them. It is said that he had absolutely no rest for much of the campaign, fighting battle after battle with no break.

The 1590 siege of Odawara would see Hidemasa commanding in battle for the final time. He commanded the left flank of the besieging army with a number of great warriors under him, and captured a number of surrounding fortifications. But then, late in the fifth month, he suddenly fell very ill and died. His lands and posts were inherited by his eldest son, Hori Hideharu.

References

*"Most of the content of this article is derived from the corresponding article on the Japanese Wikipedia."
*Turnbull, Stephen (1998). 'The Samurai Sourcebook'. London: Cassell & Co.