Editing Oda Nobunaga (section)

==Rise to power (1560–1568)==
[[File:Oda Nobunaga statue in Kiyosu park.jpg|thumb|Statue of Oda Nobunaga at [[Kiyosu Castle]]]]

===Conflict with Imagawa===
{{Main|Siege of Marune}}
Imagawa Yoshimoto was a long-time opponent of Nobunaga's father, and had sought to expand his domain into Oda territory in Owari. In 1560, Imagawa Yoshimoto gathered an army of 25,000 men,<ref name="Takeuchi">[[Takeuchi Rizō|Takeuchi, Rizō]] (1985). ''Nihonshi shōjiten'', p. 233.</ref> and marched toward the capital city of [[Kyoto]], with the pretext of aiding the frail [[Ashikaga shogunate|Ashikaga Shogunate]]. The [[Matsudaira clan]] also joined Yoshimoto's forces. 

The Imagawa forces quickly overran the border fortresses of Washizu and Matsudaira forces led by [[Matsudaira Motoyasu]] took [[Siege of Marune|Marune Fortress]] from the Oda clan. Against this, the Oda clan could rally an army of only 2,000 to 3,000 men.<ref name= Turnbull>{{Cite book |last=Turnbull |first= Stephen |title=Battles of the Samurai |publisher= Arms and Armour Press |year=1987 |isbn=978-0-85368-826-6 |page= 37}}</ref><ref>Weston, Mark. "Oda Nobunaga: The Warrior Who United Half of Japan". ''Giants of Japan: The Lives of Japan's Greatest Men and Women''. New York: Kodansha International, 2002. pp. 140–145.</ref> Some of his advisors suggested that he take refuge at Kiyosu Castle and wait out a siege by the Imagawa, but Nobunaga refused, stating that "only a strong offensive policy could make up for the superior numbers of the enemy", and calmly ordered a counterattack against Yoshimoto.<ref name= Sansom2>{{Cite book |last=Sansom |first=George |title=A History of Japan, 1334–1615 |publisher=Stanford University Press |year= 1961 |isbn= 978-0-8047-0525-7 |page=276}}</ref>

====Battle of Okehazama====
{{Main|Battle of Okehazama}}
In June 1560, Nobunaga's scouts reported that Yoshimoto was resting at the narrow gorge of Dengaku-Kazama, ideal for a surprise attack, and that the Imagawa army was celebrating their victories over the Washizu and Marune fortresses. While Yoshimoto viewed victory ahead, Nobunaga's forces marched to the [[Atsuta Shrine]], a fortified temple overlooking the Imagawa camp. Later, Nobunaga moved to {{ill|Zensho-ji fort|jp|善照寺砦|vertical-align=sup}}, set up a decoy army there, marched rapidly behind Yoshimoto's camp, and attacked after a terrific thunderstorm. Yoshimoto was killed by two Oda samurai.<ref>{{cite web|last= Seal|first= F. W.|title= Oda Nobunaga|url= http://www.samurai-archives.com/nobunaga.html#2|access-date= 7 June 2012|archive-date= 6 June 2017|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20170606234308/http://www.samurai-archives.com/nobunaga.html#2|url-status= dead}}</ref><ref name=Sato>{{Cite book | author-link = Hiroaki Sato (translator) |last = Sato |first=Hiroaki |title= Legends of the Samurai |publisher= Overlook Duckworth |year=1995 |isbn= 978-1-59020-730-7 |pages= 234–37}}</ref> With his victory in this battle, Oda Nobunaga gained greatly in prestige, and many samurai and warlords pledged fealty to him.

[[Kinoshita Tōkichirō]], who would eventually become Toyotomi Hideyoshi, probably participated in the battle, but nothing is recorded from that time. His exploits were first recorded in the Mino Campaign.

===Alliance with Matsudaira (later Tokugawa) and Takeda===
Rapidly weakening in the wake of this battle, the [[Imagawa clan]] no longer exerted control over the Matsudaira clan. In 1561, an alliance was forged between Oda Nobunaga and Matsudaira Motoyasu (who would become Tokugawa Ieyasu), despite the decades-old hostility between the two clans. Nobunaga also formed an alliance with [[Takeda Shingen]] through the marriage of his daughter to Shingen's son.<ref name=Sansom2/>{{rp|277–78}}<ref name=sam>{{Cite book|last =Turnbull |first= Stephen R. |title= The Samurai: A Military History |publisher=MacMillan Publishing Co. |place=New York |year =1977|page= 144}}</ref>

===Mino campaign===
{{Main|Siege of Inabayama Castle}}
[[File:Tenkahubu.svg|thumb|160px|Nobunaga's {{transliteration|ja|Tenka Fubu}} seal]]
In 1561, Saitō Yoshitatsu, Nobunaga's brother-in-law, died suddenly of illness and was succeeded by his son, Nobunaga's nephew, [[Saitō Tatsuoki]]. Yoshitatsu murdered his father and brothers to become daimyō, and Nobunaga had attempted to avenge the murder of his father-in-law numerous times. Nobunaga's nephew Tatsuoki was young and much less effective as a ruler and military strategist than his father and grandfather.<ref name=Turnbull/>{{rp|57}} Taking advantage of this situation, Nobunaga moved his base to [[Komaki|Komaki Castle]] and started his campaign in Mino Province, defeating Tatsuoki in both the [[Battle of Moribe]]<ref name=Turnbull2/>{{rp|216}}and the [[Battle of Jushijo]] in June that same year.

By convincing Saitō retainers to abandon their incompetent and foolish master, Nobunaga significantly weakened the [[Saitō clan]]. In 1564, Oda Nobunaga dispatched his retainer, [[Toyotomi Hideyoshi|Kinoshita Tōkichirō]], to bribe many of the warlords in the Mino area to support the Oda clan.  In 1566, Nobunaga charged Kinoshita with building [[Sunomata Castle]] on the bank of the [[Sai River (Gifu)|Sai River]] opposite Saitō territory to serve as a staging point for the Oda forces and to intimidate, surprise, and demoralize the enemy.

In 1567, the [[Mino Triumvirate]] (西美濃三人衆, Nishi-Mino Sanninshū)--three samurai generals, [[Inaba Ittetsu]], [[Andō Michitari]], and [[Ujiie Bokuzen]], who served the Saitō clan--agreed to change sides and join the forces of Oda Nobunaga. Their combined forces mounted a victorious final attack at the [[Siege of Inabayama Castle]].<ref name=Sansom2/>{{rp|278}} 

After taking possession of the castle, Nobunaga changed the name of both [[Gifu Castle|Inabayama Castle]] and the surrounding town to [[Gifu, Gifu|Gifu]]. Nobunaga derived the term ''Gifu'' from the legendary Mount Qi (岐山 ''Qi'' in [[Standard Chinese]]) in [[China]], on which the [[Zhou dynasty]] is fabled to have started. Nobunaga revealed his ambition to conquer the whole of Japan and also started using a new personal [[Seal (emblem)|seal]] that read '''Tenka Fubu''' (天下布武),<ref name=Sansom2/>{{rp|278}}<ref name="omi">[http://www.oumi-castle.net/yume/gifu.html Gifu Castle] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071221025050/http://www.oumi-castle.net/yume/gifu.html |date=21 December 2007 }}. Oumi-castle.net. Retrieved 5 December 2007.</ref> literally "[[All under heaven]], spreading military force", or more idiomatically, "All the world by force of arms". Remains of Nobunaga's residence in Gifu can be found today in [[Gifu Park]].<ref name= "map">'' Gifu City Walking Map''. Gifu Lively City Public Corporation, 2007.</ref>

===Ise campaign, Omi campaign, and march to Kyoto===
{{Main|Siege of Chōkō-ji|Ashikaga Shogunate}}
Following Nobunaga's conquest of Mino Province in 1567, Nobunaga sent [[Takigawa Kazumasu]] on a campaign comprising two invasions of [[Ise Province]] in 1567 and 1568 that defeated numerous families of Ise  (Ise was ruled nominally by the [[Kitabatake clan]]). Later in 1569, head of Kitabatake clan, [[Kitabatake Tomonori]], adopted Nobunaga's second son [[Oda Nobukatsu]].

Nobunaga also arranged for [[Oichi]], his sister, to marry rival warlord [[Azai Nagamasa]] from [[Omi Province]] in an effort to cement an alliance. Nobunaga desired peaceful relations with the [[Azai clan]] because of their strategic position between the Oda clan's land and the capital, Kyoto.

In 1568, [[Ashikaga Yoshiaki]] and [[Akechi Mitsuhide]], as Yoshiaki's bodyguard, went to [[Gifu]] to ask Nobunaga to start a campaign toward Kyoto. Yoshiaki was the brother of the murdered 13th shogun of the Ashikaga Shogunate, [[Ashikaga Yoshiteru|Yoshiteru]], who had been killed by the Miyoshi ''tannins'' (three chiefs of the [[Miyoshi clan]], [[Miyoshi Nagayuki]], [[Miyoshi Masayasu]] and [[Iwanari Tomomichi]]). Yoshiaki wanted revenge against the killers who had already set up a puppet shogun, [[Ashikaga Yoshihide]].

Nobunaga agreed to install Yoshiaki as the new shogun and, grasping the opportunity to enter Kyoto, started his campaign. An obstacle in southern Ōmi Province was the [[Rokkaku clan]], led by [[Rokkaku Yoshikata]], who refused to recognize Yoshiaki as shogun and was ready to go to war to defend Yoshihide. In response, Nobunaga launched a rapid attack on Chōkō-ji Castle, driving the Rokkaku clan out of their castles.<ref name=Sansom2/>{{rp|278–79}} Other forces led by [[Niwa Nagahide]] defeated the Rokkaku on the battlefield and entered [[Kannonji Castle]], before resuming Nobunaga's march to Kyoto. 

Later in 1570, the Rokkaku tried to [[Siege of Chōkō-ji|retake the castle]], but they were driven back by Oda forces led by [[Shibata Katsuie]]. The approaching Oda army influenced the [[Matsunaga clan]] to submit to the future shogun. The ''daimyō'' [[Matsunaga Hisahide]] kept his title by making this decision to ally his clan with the shogun.

On 9 November 1568, Nobunaga entered Kyoto, drove out the Miyoshi clan, who had supported the 14th shogun and who fled to [[Settsu]], and installed Yoshiaki as the 15th shogun of the Ashikaga Shogunate. However, Nobunaga refused the title of shogun's deputy ([[Kanrei]]), or any appointment from Yoshiaki, even though Nobunaga had great respect for the [[Emperor Ōgimachi]].<ref name= Sansom2 />{{rp|279–81}}<ref>{{cite book |last= Saito|first=Hisho|title=A History of Japan|page=130|publisher=Forgotten Books |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=IDLKItejw9YC&pg=PA129|isbn= 978-1-4400-4213-3}}</ref>