Siege of Kanegasaki (1570)

Siege of Kanegasaki (1570)
	Part of the Sengoku period
Date	1570
Location	Kanagasaki Castle, Tsuruga, Echizen Province
Result	Nobunaga withdraws his forces Successful retreat by Nobunaga;
Belligerents
Oda clan forces; Tokugawa clan forces	Asakura clan forces; Azai clan forces; Rokkaku clan forces; Ikkō-ikki forces
Commanders and leaders
Oda Nobunaga; Tokugawa Ieyasu; Hashiba Hideyoshi; Sassa Narimasa; Maeda Toshiie; Ikeda Katsumasa; Akechi Mitsuhide	Castle garrison:; Maeba Yoshitsugu; Relief forces:; Asakura Kagetake; Azai Nagamasa; Rokkaku Yoshikata
Strength
30,000	24,500

The 1570 Siege of Kanegasaki (金ヶ崎の戦い, Kanegasaki no Tatakai) took place during Oda Nobunaga's conflict with the Asakura clan in Echizen Province, which was allied with Azai Nagamasa.

Asakura Yoshikage, the head of the Asakura clan and regent to Ashikaga Yoshiaki, refused Nobunaga's invitation to a court banquet in Kyoto. Nobunaga interpreted this as disloyalty to both the shogun and the emperor, prompting him to raise an army and march on Echizen.^[1]

Several reports from Mikawa Monogatari, Nobunaga Koki, Tokugawa Jikki, and a supplement from Ietada Nikki documented that Tokugawa Ieyasu and his forces also participated in this campaign. They captured Mount Tenzutsu castle on April 25, killing 1,370 enemies in the process.^[2]

The next day, Nobunaga's forces besieged Kanegasaki Castle,^[2] which was held by Maeba Yoshitsugu. One of Nobunaga's chief generals, Kinoshita Tōkichirō (later Hashiba Hideyoshi then Toyotomi Hideyoshi), led the attack, with Sassa Narimasa commanding a contingent of horse guards and firearms troops to support him. Meanwhile, Azai Nagamasa, who had long been allied with the Asakura, led an army to relieve Kanegasaki Castle with help from the Rokkaku clan and Ikkō-ikki.^{[citation needed]}

Realizing that he was surrounded by enemy forces, Nobunaga retreated from Kanegasaki. Ikeda Katsumasa led 3,000 soldiers to aid in his escape, while Akechi Mitsuhide and Tōkichirō served as the rear guard. This marked Nagamasa's betrayal of the Oda clan.^{[citation needed]}

Nobunaga retreated without informing Ieyasu. After dawn, Ieyasu was guided by Kinoshita Tōkichirō to withdraw from the battle.^[3]

^ Sansom, George (1961). A History of Japan, 1334–1615. Stanford University Press. p. 281. ISBN 0804705259.
^ ^a ^b 小野雅彦 (2023). "家康も撤退を知らされていなかった「金ヶ崎の退き口」". Rekishijin (in Japanese). ABC ARC, inc. Retrieved 10 June 2024. 。織田・徳川連合軍は敵の首1370を討ち取るなどして城を攻め落とし（『家忠日記増補』）
^ Koichiro Hamada (濵田航一郎) (2023). "金ヶ崎合戦、姉川の戦いで徳川家康は一体どうした⁉". Rekishijin (in Japanese). ABC ARC, inc. Retrieved 10 June 2024. 。織田・徳川連合軍は敵の首1370を討ち取るなどして城を攻め落とし（『家忠日記増補』）

[Sansom2-1] Sansom, George (1961). A History of Japan, 1334–1615. Stanford University Press. p. 281. ISBN 0804705259.

[Rekishijin,_Kanegasaki,_Tokugawa-2] 小野雅彦 (2023). "家康も撤退を知らされていなかった「金ヶ崎の退き口」". Rekishijin (in Japanese). ABC ARC, inc. Retrieved 10 June 2024. 。織田・徳川連合軍は敵の首1370を討ち取るなどして城を攻め落とし（『家忠日記増補』）

[3] Koichiro Hamada (濵田航一郎) (2023). "金ヶ崎合戦、姉川の戦いで徳川家康は一体どうした⁉". Rekishijin (in Japanese). ABC ARC, inc. Retrieved 10 June 2024. 。織田・徳川連合軍は敵の首1370を討ち取るなどして城を攻め落とし（『家忠日記増補』）

[1]

[2]

[3]