Western Army, then Eastern · Kobayakawa
Kobayakawa Hideaki
“Kingo Chūnagon”
A nephew of Hideyoshi's wife Nene, raised for a time as a possible Toyotomi heir before being adopted into the Kobayakawa, a branch of the great Mōri house. At Sekigahara he first sided with the Western Army and camped on Mount Matsuo, but wavered over which side to join. Ieyasu's "warning volley" forced his hand: he turned on the Western Army, fell on Ōtani Yoshitsugu's contingent and tipped the battle to the East.
- Epithet
- “Kingo Chūnagon”
- Rank / office
- Middle Counsellor / Captain of the Left Gate Guards
- Domain / base
- Chikuzen → Okayama, Bizen
- Banner / crest
- Crossed sickles
- Side
- Western Army, then Eastern
- Lived
- 1582–1602 (aged 21)
Life
- Keichō 2 Heir to the Kobayakawa Adopted by Kobayakawa Takakage of the Mōri clan and succeeded to the house.
- Keichō 5 Camp on Mount Matsuo Took up position on Mount Matsuo with 15,000 men, holding the fate of both armies in his hands.
- Keichō 5 The defection at Sekigahara Betrayed the Western Army and attacked the Ōtani contingent, the decisive blow for the Eastern victory.
- Keichō 7 An early death Died young in Okayama two years after the battle, and the Kobayakawa line came to an end.
Battles in this archive1 battles
Related sites
- Mount Matsuo (Sekigahara)
- Okayama Castle