The took place from January to February 1573, between the forces of the

Takeda clan The was a Japanese samurai clan active from the late Heian period until the late 16th century. The clan was historically based in Kai Province in present-day Yamanashi Prefecture. The clan reached its greatest influence under the rule of Taked ...

, led by the noted

warlord Warlords are individuals who exercise military, Economy, economic, and Politics, political control over a region, often one State collapse, without a strong central or national government, typically through informal control over Militia, local ...

Takeda Shingen was daimyō, daimyo of Kai Province during the Sengoku period of Japan. Known as "the Tiger of Kai", he was one of the most powerful daimyo of the late Sengoku period, and credited with exceptional military prestige. Shingen was based in a p ...

, against the

Tokugawa clan The is a Japanese dynasty which produced the Tokugawa shoguns who ruled Japan from 1603 to 1868 during the Edo period. It was formerly a powerful ''daimyō'' family. They nominally descended from Emperor Seiwa (850–880) and were a branch of ...

, led by

Tokugawa Ieyasu Tokugawa Ieyasu (born Matsudaira Takechiyo; 31 January 1543 – 1 June 1616) was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan, which ruled from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was the third of the three "Gr ...

. Along with the

Battle of Mikatagahara The took place during the Sengoku period of Japan between Takeda Shingen and Tokugawa Ieyasu in Hamamatsu, Mikatagahara, Tōtōmi Province on 25 January 1573. Shingen attacked Ieyasu at the plain of Mikatagahara north of Hamamatsu during hi ...

it was one of the final battles in Takeda Shingen's long career.

Background

Encouraged by his victory over the Tokugawa at the Battle of Mikatagahara in neighboring

Tōtōmi Province was a Provinces of Japan, province of Japan in the area of Japan that is today western Shizuoka Prefecture.Louis-Frédéric, Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Tōtōmi''" in . Tōtōmi bordered on Mikawa Province, Mikawa, Suruga Province, S ...

, Takeda Shingen decided to push farther into

Mikawa Province was an Provinces of Japan, old province in the area that today forms the eastern half of Aichi Prefecture.Louis-Frédéric, Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Mikawa''" in . Its abbreviated form name was . Mikawa bordered on Owari Province, O ...

, hopefully opening a route to the capital,

Kyoto Kyoto ( or ; Japanese language, Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan's largest and most populous island of Honshu. , the city had a population of 1.46 million, making it t ...

. Leading a mixed cavalry and infantry force of 30,000 men, Shingen skirted the northern shore of

Lake Hamana is a brackish lagoon in Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan. Formerly a true lake, it is now connected to the Pacific Ocean by a channel. As an internal body of water, it is considered Japan's tenth-largest lake (by area). It spans the boundaries of th ...

before advancing inland into Mikawa. His route was opposed by approximately 500 defenders of Noda Castle, situated on the Toyokawa river, commanded by Suganuma Sadamichi. Shingen was confident in his strength of numbers, and in his knowledge that the Tokugawa forces were overextended in various campaigns. Furthermore, his forces had taken Noda Castle with ease during a reconnaissance-in-force two years earlier.

Battle

Suganuma had extensively increased the defensive capabilities of Noda Castle over the past two years with additional earthworks and a wooden palisade. However, Shingen's ''kanabori-shū'' (

sapper A sapper, also called a combat engineer, is a combatant or soldier who performs a variety of military engineering duties, such as breaching fortifications, demolitions, bridge-building, laying or clearing minefields, preparing field defenses ...

corps, composed of troops with mining experience) tunneled into the castle moat, draining it and depriving the defenders of their drinking water as well as their primary defense. Shingen extended an offer to spare the lives of the rank-and-file troops provided that Suganuma surrender on February 16. Though the castle's surrender was now imminent, Shingen let his guard down when he approached the castle, and a sniper shot him.

Aftermath

Following the surrender of Noda Castle, Tokugawa forces were in retreat throughout Mikawa, and even Tokugawa Ieyasu's stronghold of

Okazaki Castle is a Japanese castle located in Okazaki, Aichi Prefecture, Japan. At the end of the Edo period, Okazaki Castle was home to the Honda clan, ''daimyō'' of Okazaki Domain, but the castle is better known for its association with Tokugawa Ieyasu ...

was threatened. However, Takeda Shingen died in May 1573 (whether from illness or from the wound sustained at the Battle of Noda Castle), and his forces were unable to maintain their momentum under his successor,

Takeda Katsuyori was a Japanese ''daimyō'' (military lord) of the Sengoku period, who was famed as the head of the Takeda clan and the successor to the legendary warlord Takeda Shingen. He was son-in-law of Hojo Ujiyasu, ''daimyō'' of Hojo clan. Early life H ...

References

*Sadler, A.L. ''The Maker of Modern Japan, the Life of Shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu''. George Allen & Unwin (London) 1937 *Turnbull, Stephen. ''The Samurai Sourcebook''. London: Cassell & Co. (1998). {{DEFAULTSORT:Noda Castle 1573 Sieges of the Sengoku period 16th-century military history of Japan 1573 in Japan Conflicts in 1573 Attacks on castles in Japan Military history of Aichi Prefecture Shinshiro, Aichi Mikawa Province