Takeda clan

The clan Takeda (武田氏, Takeda-shi ) was one of the most powerful families of Daimyō.

The power of this family is actually much older. This family is a branch of princes Minamoto, going down directly from the Seiwa Emperor (850-880) and the prince Minamoto No Yoriyoshi (998-1082). Minamoto No Yoshikiyo (+ 1163) will be the first to use the name of Takeda, of Shoen (great field) of Takeda, in the province of Kai.

At the 12th century, at the end of the Period Heian, the Takeda family controls the Province of Kai, and those which one names in the accounts of the time the " Kai Genji" (i.e. " Minamoto of the province of Kai"), are Takeda. In 1180, at the time of the War of Gempei, the rallying of Takeda and Nitta to the cause of their cousin Minamoto No Yoritomo will be a decisive turn, these families bringing their own army of 20.000 soldiers each one.

The name of Takeda is always a very widespread patronym, but it is very improbable that all those which currently bear this name go down from this house.

In fact, practically all the real descendants of Takeda bear a different name since they move away from the principal line. Several families of Daimyo of the period Tokugawa (1603-1868) bearing a different name, are actually of Takeda.

In 1868 these families of Daimyo are:

Matsumae, descendants of Kuninobu Takeda, are Daimyo of the stronghold of the same name (the single seigneurial field of the island of Hokkaido, in fact the widest field of Japan).
Nambu, descendants of Mitsuyuki Takeda, divided into 2 branches: Daimyo de Morioka, and those of Hachinohe in the north of Japan (province of Mutsu). The name of Nambu comes from the field of the same name, in the province of Kai.
Yanagizawa, descendants of Nobuyoshi Takeda, divided into 3 branches: Daimyo de Kôriyama (province of Yamato), those of Kurokawa and those of Mikkaichi (province of Echigo).
Goto, descendants of Nobuhiro Takeda, are Daimyo of the field of the same name in the west of Kyushu (province of Hizen).
Ogasawara, descendants of Nagakiyo Takeda (1162-1242) which will take the first the name of Ogasawara, are divided into 5 branches: Daimyo de Kokura, those of Chikuza (province of Buzen), those of Ashi (province of Harima), those of Karatsu (province of Hizen) and those of Katsuyama (province of Echizen).
2 branches bearing the name of Takeda appear among the " Kôke" (literally " Large the familles"), which received a pension of Tokugawa and had privileged missions which were reserved to them; with other big families dispossessed like Hatakeyama, Imagawa, Otomo, etc…

Nobumitsu Takeda (1162-1248) will receive the province of Aki after the war of Shokyu (1221). 13th at the 16th centuries, Takeda control 3 provinces (Kai for the elder branch, Wakasa and Aki for the second branch), with the prestigious title of Shugo.

In 1415, they help to repress the rebellion of Zenshū Uesugi. Mochiuji Ashikaga, the lord of Uesugi and the man against whom the rebellion was organized, organizes reprisals against Takeda, which begins the long competition between the Clan Uesugi and that of Takeda, which will last approximately 150 years.

Harunobu Takeda, which will take the name of Shingen later, succeeds his/her father Nobutora in 1540, becoming lord of Kai and beginning an expansion policy quickly. Even if he faces the Clan Hōjō a certain number of times, the majority of its expansion are done in direction of North, where he carries out his more famous battles, against Kenshin Uesugi.

Shingen is famous for its tactical genius and its innovations, even if certain historians affirmed that its tactics were neither particularly impressive, nor revolutionary. At all events, Shingen is especially famous for its use of the load of Cavalerie. Until the middle of the 16th century and the come to power of Shingen, the assembled Samurai S were especially Archer S. There was already at the time a tendency to more using large armies based on the Infanterie, including/understanding a great number of archers to foot. With an aim of getting rid of these troops with long range, Shingen transforms its assembled samurais archers into lancers, and uses the load of cavalry with devastators effects with the Bataille of Mikata ga Hara in 1572. The power of the new tactic of Shingen quickly becomes so famous that the Takeda army is soon known under the name of kiba gundan (騎馬軍団), the “assembled army”. Some call them even the shinshutsu crowned kibotsu (神出鬼没), or devils.

Shingen dies in 1573 at the 53 years age, probably of a wound by ball. His/her son Katsuyori, less good strategist, succeeds to him, but is overcome by Nobunaga Oda with the Bataille of Nagashino in 1575.

The Kōshū Hatto composed during the 15th century is the code of law of the Takeda clan, and the Kōyō Gunkan mainly compiled by Masanobu Kōsaka in the middle of the 16th century is a chronicle of the history of the clan and a treaty on the innovations of Shingen as regards tactic.

Important members of the Takeda clan

Nobutora Takeda - Father of Shingen.
Shingen Takeda - One of the most known lords of the war of Japan, Shingen extended enormously its fields and became one of largest the powers of the time.
Katsuyori Takeda - Wire of Shingen, Katsuyori ordered the troops of his/her father after his death, but saw the fall of its clan soon.

References

George Sansom, has History Japan off: 1334-1615 , Stanford University Near, Stanford (California), 1961.
Stephen Turnbull, War in Japan 1467-1615 , English, Osprey Publishing, Oxford, 2002.

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