LET'S VISIT SEKIGAHARA!

Sekigahara

Sekigahara is a rural town on the southwestern edge of Gifu Prefecture with a small population of about 9000 people. The town and surrounding area was the site of the epic Battle of Sekigahara or Sekigahara gassen (関ヶ原合戦) (see below) between Tokugawa Ieyasu and Ishida Mitsunari, the representative of Toyotomi Hideyoshi’s son and designated successor, Toyotomi Hideyori. Ieyasu’s victory on 21 October 1600 signified the end of the Sengoku Era and the beginning of the Edo Period in Japanese history, with the feudal Tokugawa shogunate unifying all of Japan and moving the nation’s capitol from Kyoto to Edo (Tokyo). As a consequence, the town is filled with ruins, memorials and shrines to the dead, even down to place names such as Kurochigawa (“Black Blood River”), where the Tokugawa forces washed the cut-off heads of those fallen in battle.

A battle monument at the Sekigahara Museum.

The battle as well as the circumstances and intrigue leading up to the battle are fictionalized in the novel (and television serial movie) Shogun by James Clavell, telling of Tokugawa Ieyasu’s rise to fame (under the character’s name of “Toronaga”), through the Battle of Sekigahara and the gruesome death of Ishida (“Ishido” in the novel), who was captured as he ran away from the battlefield and executed by having his head slowly cut off by a wooden saw.

Sekighara Shrine

You can get to Sekigahara on the JR Tokaido Main Line, which passes through Sekigahara on its way between Osaka and Nagoya. The closes Shinkansen (Bullet Train) station is in Maibara. One of two hourly Hikari services from Tokyo stop here and then you can transfer to the Tokaido Line local for the 3-hour trip to Sekigahara.

Battle Re-enactment.

While Sekigahara is of major importance historically to the Japanese (much like the American Civil War and the Battle of Gettysburg), and there is a steady flow of Japanese history buffs and school groups, foreign visitors are not common. Among the things to see there are:

• Folk History Museum: Despite the misleading name, the museum concentrates mostly on the Battle of Sekigahara, charting the course of events with informative maps and interactive exhibits.



• Field Camp Ground: Just across the road from the museum is the spot where Tokugawa Ieyasu held a council meeting after the battle and was presented with the heads of the enemy’s leaders. A small shrine marks the spot.



• Memorial posts: These have been set up at most major battle sites but are only in Japanese.

Some of the people visiting the Sekigahara Festival.

A high school Taiko drum group performs .

Another of Sekigahara’s attractions (although non-martial) is the abundance of fireflies in the area. Lake Mishima is home to a particularly famous firefly view spot housing hundreds if not thousands on a good day. In fact, a firefly festival is held here in the early summer.

You can even have Tokugawa's lunch from the day of the battle!

Each year at this time, the town holds a festival and re-enactment of the Battle of Sekigahara, which draws thousands of people from all over Japan. Hundreds of people as well from as far north as Hokkaido and as far south as Kyushu come in costume to participate in the event. There is music, folk dancing and great food as well. If you are so inclined, you can even have the same lunch that Tokugawa Ieyasu or Ishida Mitsunari had on the day of the battle as well as sample the typical food of a samurai soldier. Samurai in full costume, including armor are everywhere and it is an exciting and fun time for everyone. Lots of things for the kids as well, in fact, many kids participate in the official activities!

The kids have a better solution to the battle, at the end, all the enemies become kitties!

One of the kids groups participating in the Sekigahara Festival.

Men and women alike participate in the festivities and re-enactment.

Tokugawa Ieyasu, Honda Tadakatsu and friends.

Ishida Mitsunari and friends go for ice cream!

The Battle of Sekigahara

The Battle of Sekigahara or “The Realm Divide) was a decisive battle fought on October 21, 1600, and the battle was the culmination of the Sekigahara Campaign and saw the defeat of the “Western Army” (geographically, the Southern Army). The battle was fought around a small village called Sekigahara that sat at a major crossroads, in the shadows of Mt. Sasao, Mt. Matsuo, and Mt. Nangu. In actuality, the choice of battlefields was inadvertent. Ishida Mitsunari had hoped to confront the forces of Tokugawa Ieyasu somewhere farther east, because Tokugawa’s primary had been Sawayama Castle. Ieyasu’s quick march west forced Mitsunari to offer him a fight that Tokugawa was thus more willing to accept, although the ground ultimately chosen did favor Mitsunari to some degree.

The Western Army troops occupied the high ground around Mt. Nangu and Mt. Matsuo, with Ishida Mitsunari himself positioned somewhat northwest of Sekigahara with Mt. Saso to his side. Ieyasu’s men were deployed along the Nakasendo (a major highway), with the advance guard facing Mitsunari; thus, exposed to an attack on their flanks, particularly by the western troops on Mt. Matsuo. Fortunately for Ieyasu, those men were under the command of Kobayakawa Hideake, who had already decided to betray his western allies.

The actual fighting on a rainy dawn and the outcome at that time was very much in doubt. The advanced Tokugawa units attacked and became heavily engaged with contingents under the command of Ukita Hideie, Otani Yoshitsugo, and Konishi Yukinaga. No true advantage was gained until the defection of Kobayakawa at about noon. Hideaki commanded one of the strongest of the western army forces present, and turned the tide in Tokugawa Ieyasu’s favor. In the meanwhile, the 25,000-plus western forces arrayed on the slopes of Mt. Nangu under the Mori and Chosokabe clans were largely inactive. Kikkawa Tsunie, commanding the front line forces, had himself decide not to fight Ieyasu and it was his lack of mobility that forced those to his rear to do the same.

Ultimately, the western forces began to break and general collapse and disaray followed. By the end of the day’s killing, Ishida Mitsunari’s forces had scattered and as many as 60,000 heads had been taken. Tokugawa's victory was owed in a large part then to Kobayakawa’s defection and the Mori inactivity. Ishida and Konishi Yukinaga were later captured and executed.