Who was this person?
A Sengoku daimyo of Yamato (Nara). Inheriting the headship as a small child, he long fought Matsunaga Hisahide for control of Yamato. Later he served Oda Nobunaga, was entrusted with all of Yamato and made Kōriyama castle his base. In the Honnōji Incident he did not side with his friend Akechi Mitsuhide but joined Hashiba Hideyoshi.
| Name | Tsutsui Junkei (筒井順慶) |
|---|---|
| Born–died | 1549 – 1584 |
| Period | Sengoku period |
| Birthplace | Yamato Province |
| Also known as | Yōshunbō Junkei |
| Main achievements |
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He was born a son of Tsutsui Junshō of Yamato Province (Nara). The Tsutsui had risen from a family of warrior monks attached to Kōfuku-ji to become samurai, and in his father's time they were the largest warrior band in Yamato. Yamato had no military governor; under the power of Kōfuku-ji, warrior families such as the Tsutsui and the Ochi fought one another.
His father Junshō died of illness, and the young Junkei inherited the house under his uncle's guardianship. A story is told that before dying his father had a look-alike named Mokuami stand in for him to hide his death, and that Mokuami later returned to his old station; this is said to be one origin of the phrase moto no Mokuami, back to square one (accounts differ).
Matsunaga Hisahide, a senior retainer of the Miyoshi, had invaded Yamato and was expanding his power. That year a surprise attack by Hisahide drove Junkei out of his base, Tsutsui Castle, and he fled to his kinsmen the Fuse. Some retainers also left Junkei, and the Tsutsui house was put in a difficult position.
Allying with the Miyoshi Triumvirate, he struck back and retook Tsutsui Castle. After visiting Kasuga Taisha he underwent a rite of entering religion and took the name Yōshunbō Junkei; the name Junkei dates from this time. Holding a monk's name while being a warlord was typical of the Tsutsui, closely tied to Kōfuku-ji.
With the Miyoshi Triumvirate, Junkei camped at Tōdai-ji in Nara, facing Matsunaga Hisahide in Tamonyama Castle. Hisahide's army stormed Tōdai-ji, fierce fighting followed, and the Great Buddha Hall burned down. Hisahide's side won this battle, and Junkei went on contending with Hisahide over Yamato for years.
At the Battle of Tatsuichi he defeated the Matsunaga forces and restored the Tsutsui's strength. That same year, through the mediation of Akechi Mitsuhide, he came to serve Oda Nobunaga. He later sent his mother to Nobunaga as a hostage and is said to have married a woman of Nobunaga's family, strengthening his ties with the Oda.
Nobunaga entrusted him with rule over all of Yamato. Serving in battles across the land as a commander under Akechi Mitsuhide, Junkei became close to Mitsuhide. The next year, when Matsunaga Hisahide rebelled against Nobunaga and held out in Shigisan Castle, Junkei led the attacking army, and Hisahide met his end in the castle.
On Nobunaga's orders, all castles in Yamato except one main base were to be torn down. Junkei demolished Tsutsui Castle and others and developed Kōriyama Castle as his new base. Kōriyama Castle later became the castle of Toyotomi Hidenaga and was carried on as the castle town of Yamato-Kōriyama in the Edo period.
When Akechi Mitsuhide carried out the Honnō-ji Incident, Junkei, who had been close to him, was invited to join him. After hesitating, Junkei did not move his troops and sided with Hashiba Hideyoshi. Because Mitsuhide camped at Horagatōge pass waiting for Junkei, a later tale arose that Junkei sat on the fence there, but this is thought not to be true.
Serving Hideyoshi, he had his Yamato lands confirmed, but his stomach illness grew worse; he was treated in Kyoto by the famous physician Manase Dōsan but did not recover. He died soon after returning to Kōriyama Castle. Junkei was a cultured man versed in the tea ceremony, Noh and waka, and his adopted son Sadatsugu succeeded him.
A. A Sengoku daimyo of Yamato (Nara). Inheriting the headship as a small child, he long fought Matsunaga Hisahide for control of Yamato. Later he served Oda Nobunaga, was entrusted with all of Yamato and made Kōriyama castle his base. In the Honnōji Incident he did not side with his friend Akechi Mitsuhide but joined Hashiba Hideyoshi.
A. Period: Sengoku period. Born in 1549, died in 1584.
A. Tsutsui Junkei was born in Yamato Province.
A. After the Honnōji Incident, Akechi Mitsuhide camped at Horagatōge pass waiting for Junkei, which gave rise to the saying that Junkei sat on the fence at the pass. In fact Junkei is thought not to have moved his troops and later sided with Hashiba Hideyoshi, so the story is considered untrue.
See also: Wikipedia (ja) / Wikipedia (en) / Wikipedia (fr) / Wikipedia (zh) / Wikidata
Follow this life (autoplay)Matsunaga HisahideAkechi MitsuhideOda NobunagaToyotomi Hidenaga
Hōshun-in (Matsu)Honda TadakatsuNene (Kōdai-in)Sakakibara YasumasaTakayama UkonMōri TerumotoHori HidemasaSuminokura Ryōi
People of the Sengoku/Azuchi-Momoyama period ・ People by period
Based on facts found in textbooks and biographies. Uncertain points are marked as such.