Battle of Yamazaki

How the battle unfolded

1. Return The Great Return from Chūgoku

   Only eleven days after the Honnō-ji Incident. Hashiba Hideyoshi, who has raced back 200 kilometres from Takamatsu in Bitchū, assembles an army of 40,000 at Tonda in Settsu. "Avenge our lord": the just cause is already in Hideyoshi's hands.

2. Lines Facing Off in the Rain

   The 13th day of the 6th month, rain. The two armies face each other across the narrow pass at Yamazaki. A corridor a kilometre wide between Mount Tennō and the Yodo River becomes the battlefield that will decide the fate of the realm. The Akechi have 16,000; the Hashiba more than twice as many.

3. Clash Battle at the Hour of the Monkey

   The rain stops toward evening. Across the Enmyō-ji River the vanguard of Takayama Ukon and Nakagawa Kiyohide collides with the Akechi army's strongest contingent under Saitō Toshimitsu. In the opening clash the Akechi push forward.

4. Tennō Taking Mount Tennō

   Kuroda Kanbei and Hashiba Hidenaga secure the slopes of Mount Tennō and pin down the Akechi right wing with fire from above. The mountain that would become a byword for "the battle that decides the realm" settled the issue this way.

5. River The Ikeda Contingent Crosses

   The Ikeda Tsuneoki contingent, advancing along the Yodo River, forces the Enmyō-ji River and bites into the Akechi left wing. Ise Sadaoki, Matsuda Masachika and other Akechi commanders are killed one after another. The line begins to crack audibly.

6. Rout The Akechi Collapse

   Barely two hours after the battle began. Outnumbered, the Akechi army breaks completely. Mitsuhide abandons Onbōzuka and withdraws to Shōryūji Castle.

7. End The Three-Day Reign Ends

   Slipping out of the castle under cover of night, Mitsuhide makes for Sakamoto, but in a bamboo grove at Ogurusu he is said to have died on the bamboo spears of peasants. Eleven days after Honnō-ji: the "three-day reign" of legend.

Generals and units

• Hashiba forces Hashiba Hideyoshi Commander-in-chief
• Hashiba forces Takayama Ukon
• Hashiba forces Nakagawa Kiyohide
• Hashiba forces Ikeda Tsuneoki
• Hashiba forces Kuroda Kanbei & Hashiba Hidenaga
• Akechi forces Akechi Mitsuhide Commander-in-chief
• Akechi forces Saitō Toshimitsu
• Akechi forces Ise Sadaoki
• Akechi forces Matsuda Masachika
• Akechi forces Tsuda Nobuharu

FAQ

What was the Battle of Yamazaki?

Eleven days after Honnō-ji. Hideyoshi, back from the west in the Great Return, ends Akechi Mitsuhide's "three-day reign" on rain-soaked Mount Tennō.

When and where did the Battle of Yamazaki take place?

It took place in 1582 at Yamazaki, Yamashiro Province (13th day of the 6th month, Tenshō 10).

Who fought in the Battle of Yamazaki?

Hashiba Hideyoshi of the Hashiba forces, Akechi Mitsuhide of the Akechi forces were among the commanders.

Can I watch the Battle of Yamazaki in 3D?

Yes. This page plays a free three-minute 3D animated overview showing the deployments, the movements of each army and how the battle was decided.