INTERACTIVE BATTLE
Battle of Kawagoe
April 1546 · Area around Kawagoe Castle
Hōjō Ujiyasu's relief force defeated the allied Uesugi and Koga Ashikaga army besieging Kawagoe Castle, and Ōgigayatsu Uesugi Tomosada was killed.
Background
After Hojo Ujitsuna took Kawagoe Castle in 1537, Ogigayatsu Uesugi Tomosada allied with the Yamanouchi Uesugi and the Koga kubo to retake it. Kawagoe commanded the Iruma river basin and northern Musashi, and its possession shaped the balance of power in the Kanto. For Ujiyasu the question was whether he could hold the forward position his father had built.
Outcome
The besieging Uesugi and Ashikaga coalition was broken by Ujiyasu's relief force together with the Hojo defenders inside the castle. Ogigayatsu Uesugi Tomosada fell in the fighting and his house was destroyed; the Yamanouchi Uesugi and the Koga kubo also lost ground.
Course of the battle
1 1537
Kawagoe castle passes to the Hojo
Hojo Ujitsuna pressed on from Edo against Uesugi Tomooki, and in 1537 Kawagoe castle passed to the Hojo of Odawara. The Ogigayatsu Uesugi lost their seat, and winning the castle back became the Uesugi aim thereafter.
Sources123·Certainty: Medium
2 April 1546
Battle of Kawagoe
Hōjō Ujiyasu's relief force defeated the allied Uesugi and Koga Ashikaga army besieging Kawagoe Castle, and Ōgigayatsu Uesugi Tomosada was killed.
Points of debate
Whether there was a night attack, the numbers on each side, and the details of a feigned truce all differ between records. Kawagoe City is re-examining whether it was a night battle at all.
Sources1234·Certainty: Medium
Historical significance
It marks the point at which the Hojo displaced the powers that had upheld the old Kanto order and became a central contender in its politics. It did not unify the Kanto: conflicts with the Satomi of Boso, Uesugi Kenshin of Echigo and the Takeda of Kai continued.
Key figures
後北条氏
2
扇谷上杉氏
1
Head of the Ogigayatsu Uesugi
Sought to retake Kawagoe Castle, was defeated and killed; the Ōgigayatsu-Uesugi clan was destroyed by the defeat.
Sources3·Certainty: High
山内上杉氏
1
Head of the Kanto kanrei house
Joined Tomosada in besieging Kawagoe Castle.
Sources3·Certainty: Medium
古河公方
1
The Koga kubo
Joined the siege in alliance with the Uesugi.
Sources3·Certainty: Medium
Notes on the data
The battle is widely known as the "night battle of Kawagoe", but Kawagoe City questions whether it was fought at night at all. Troop numbers differ widely between records, so the stock heroic tale of a small Hojo force defeating a large one by a ruse is not treated as fact. This page uses "Battle of Kawagoe" and notes the popular name alongside it.
Sources consulted
- 川越市「川越市の歴史 中世」
- 川越市「県指定記念物 川越城跡」
- 川越市「川越の歴史年表」
- 川越市「河越夜戦跡」
- 川越市「川越百景 東明寺、河越夜戦跡と門前」
The numbers in the text refer to the list above. Certainty indicates how far a statement is supported by the cited sources; it does not refer to the precision of the coordinates or the dating.
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