Matsunaga Hisamichi (February 8, 1543?—November 19, 1577) was the illegitimate son of Matsunaga Hisahide and the heir to the Matsunaga clan. Little is known about him and tends to be overshadowed by his more famous father; however, he was the one that was present at the assassination of the thirteenth Ashikaga shōgun, Yoshiteru. Sources in English are also limited, which has made him difficult to research.

The date and year of his birth are not entirely clear. The Japanese Wikipedia page has the date of birth listed as February 8, 1543 (1), while Japanese Wiki Corpus has the date as January 8, 1543 (2). There is also a rumor that he could have been born as early as 1538 (3). Considering that most sources claim that he died at the age of 35 at the Siege of Shigisan in 1577, the year 1543 is the closest (4). Despite looking at other sources, his mother is unknown.

Much like his father, not much is known about his childhood, with records beginning in 1563 when he was given control of Tamon Castle in Nara and took over as the head of the clan (5). In 1565, he, along with Miyoshi Yoshitsugu, would attack Ashikaga Yoshiteru in Kyōto and assassinate him there. Yet, the alliance between the Miyoshi and Matsunaga clans would be short lived, resulting in a civil war between them, along with battles between the Matsunaga and Tsutsui clans (6).

In 1568, Oda Nobunaga took control of Kyōto and the Matsunaga clan surrendered to him not long after. They were granted rule of Yamato, giving them the support they needed to take Shigisan Castle from Tsutsui Junkei (7). The Matsunaga clan seemed to stay loyal to the Oda only for a short time, rebelling in 1572 along with Miyoshi Yoshitsugu (8). Despite their efforts, the Matsunaga clan surrendered to the Oda once again after the fall of Wakae Castle where Yoshitsugu was stationed (9). In January 1574, Hisamichi surrendered Tamon Castle while his father went to Gifu to personally apologize to Nobunaga, presenting him with yet another precious sword, the Fudō Kuniyuki (10). Harada Naomasa became the ruler of Yamato after this incident (11).

In July 1575, Matsunaga Hisamichi would marry Onahe, the daughter of Juichi Enkatsu and moved to Ryuōyama Castle, but by November of the same year, Hisamichi would attack his father-in-law. This continued into the following year and only ended when Harada Naomasa took Junichi Castle and sent Enkatsu into exile (12).

Hisamichi would serve alongside his father at the siege of Ishiyama Honganji in 1576, the battle where Harada Naomasa was killed, and control of Yamato Province fell to Tsutsui Junkei. During this time, Nobunaga decided to destroy Tamon Castle and from August 1576 to July 1577, the castle was demolished and Hisamichi was involved in this process (13).

The Matsuanga clan would once again rebel against the Oda in 1577, leading to the Siege of Shigisan Castle. They broke away from their stations at Ishiyama Honganji and retreated back to Shigisan, but it is here that we run into some hazy details with Hisamichi’s manner of death. According to once source, it is said that Hisamichi committed seppuku at Yanagimoto Castle at an earlier date, while another said that he died alongside his father at Shigisan (14). The consensus seems to be that he perished at Shigisan, for it is also recorded that way in The Chronicle of Lord Nobunaga by the historian Ōta Gyūichi (15). It also seems that his children, both sons, did not live much longer either. The given ages of the children vary, aged between 10 to 13 years old, but they were held as hostages by the Oda and were executed at Rokujōgawa in Kyōto for their father and grandfather’s betrayal (16).

Sources

1. “Matsunaga Hisamichi”, Wikipedia.org (Japan). Matsunaga – Wikipedia, last accessed and translated May 12, 2023
2. “Matsunaga Hisamichi”, Japanese Wiki Corpus. https://www.japanesewiki.com/person/Hisamichi%20MATSUNAGA.html, last accessed May 12, 2023
3. “Matsunaga Hisamichi”, Japanese Wiki Corpus. https://www.japanesewiki.com/person/Hisamichi%20MATSUNAGA.html, last accessed May 12, 2023
4. “Matsunaga Hisamichi”, Japanese Wiki Corpus. https://www.japanesewiki.com/person/Hisamichi%20MATSUNAGA.html, last accessed May 12, 2023
5. “Matsunaga Hisamichi”, Wikipedia.org (Japan). Matsunaga – Wikipedia, last accessed and translated May 12, 2023
6. “Matsunaga Hisamichi”, Wikipedia.org (Japan). Matsunaga – Wikipedia, last accessed and translated May 12, 2023
7. “Matsunaga Hisamichi”, Wikipedia.org (Japan). Matsunaga – Wikipedia, last accessed and translated May 12, 2023
8. Ōta, Gyūichi, The Chronicle of Lord Nobunaga (2012). pp. 170-170
9. “Matsunaga Hisamichi”, Wikipedia.org (Japan). Matsunaga – Wikipedia, last accessed and translated May 12, 2023
10. Ōta, Gyūichi, The Chronicle of Lord Nobunaga (2012). p. 178
11. “Matsunaga Hisamichi”, Wikipedia.org (Japan). Matsunaga – Wikipedia, last accessed and translated May 12, 2023
12. “Matsunaga Hisamichi”, Wikipedia.org (Japan). Matsunaga – Wikipedia, last accessed and translated May 12, 2023
13. “Matsunaga Hisamichi”, Wikipedia.org (Japan). Matsunaga – Wikipedia, last accessed and translated May 12, 2023
14. “Matsunaga Hisamichi”, Wikipedia.org (Japan). Matsunaga – Wikipedia, last accessed and translated May 12, 2023
15. Ōta, Gyūichi, The Chronicle of Lord Nobunaga (2012). p. 272
16. Ōta, Gyūichi, The Chronicle of Lord Nobunaga (2012). p. 270