The Battle of Sekigahara, popularly known as the Battle for the Sundered Realm, was a decisive battle on October 21, 1600 (Keichō 5, 15th day of the 9th month) which cleared the path to the Shogunate for Tokugawa Ieyasu. Though it would take three more years for Ieyasu to consolidate his position of power over the Toyotomi clan and the Continue reading «Historical Events Today: 1600 – Battle of Sekigahara sets Tokugawa clan as Japan’s rulers (shoguns)!»

The Incident at Honnō-ji refers to the forced suicide on June 21, 1582 of Japanese daimyo Oda Nobunaga at the hands of his samurai general Akechi Mitsuhide. This occurred in Honnō-ji, a temple in Kyoto, ending Nobunaga’s quest to consolidate centralized power in Japan under his authority. Oda Nobunaga was at the height of his power, having destroyed the Takeda Continue reading «Historical Events Today: 1582 – The Incident at Honnō-ji takes place in Kyoto, Japan.»

Forces under the shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu take Osaka Castle in Japan. The Siege of Osaka was a series of battles undertaken by the Tokugawa shogunate against the Toyotomi clan, and ending in that clan’s destruction. Divided into two stages (Winter Campaign and Summer Campaign), and lasting from 1614 to 1615, the siege put an end to the last major armed Continue reading «Historical Events Today: 1615 – Siege of Osaka!»