The Iga Sōkoku Ikki
The Tenshō Iga War often refers to the two wars (The First Tenshō Iga War and The Second Tenshō Iga War) fought between the forces of the Oda clan and the local Jizamurai (farmers who had acquired samurai status) of Iga Province.
As a result of these two wars, Iga was defeated by the Oda clan. However, in the first war, the Jizamurai of Iga took advantage of the terrain and defeated the Oda forces, so it was not easy for the Oda forces to capture Iga Province.
Oda’s Forces and the Jizamurai of Iga Province
What troubled the Oda forces in their attack on Iga was the strength of unity among the Jizamurai. Those Jizamurai were united and formed a revolt, an organization of Jizamurai, to deal with the threat of armies from other domains. The Jingu bunko in Mie Prefecture contains the Okitegaki (a book containing rules) of The Iga Sōkoku Ikki (a group of warriors and farmers organized for a common purpose), which provide a glimpse into the unity of the local samurai.
There is an article guaranteeing the payment of rewards and a rise in samurai status to those foot soldiers (peasants) who were capable of attacking castles. It is thought that the purpose of this was to keep the low-ranking ninja in Iga.
The reason is that the article also mentions that the foot soldiers would go to other countries to fight on the battlefield in order to receive rewards. It is believed that they were aware that whether or not they were on the battlefield would make a big difference in the war situation.
Those firmly united Jizamurai played with (controll as they wish) the invading Oda clan forces. The events of Tenshō Iga War are recorded in the “伊乱記 Iranki” and the “信長公記 Nobunagako-ki”.
The First Tenshō Iga War
The First Tenshō Iga War occurred in 1579 when Oda Nobukatsu (second son of Oda Nobunaga) of Ise Province, without permission from his father Nobunaga, led his forces in Ise Province to invade Iga from three directions with 8,000 soldiers.
The Jizamurai in Iga defeated the Oda forces by guerrilla warfare (a small force fighting a larger force using various warfare techniques), especially by capturing Maruyama Castle built by the Oda forces and killing a leading general to gain an advantage. Nobunaga was angered by this failure by Nobukatsu, writing vehemently that he would sever the relationship between father and son.
The Second Tenshō Iga War
In the Second Tenshō Iga War of 1581, Nobukatsu invaded Iga from six different directions with 5,000 soldiers, a larger number than in the first war.
The Iga side fought well against the Oda forces, confining themselves in Heirakuji Castle (later Iga-Ueno Castle) and Hijiyama Castle and playing with the Oda forces of Gamō Ujisato and Tsutsui Junkei, but eventually fled to Kashiwara Castle in the southern part of Iga and attempted one last battle.
A man named Okura Goroji from Nara forced the Iga forces to negotiate, which led to the opening of Kashiwara Castle and the end of the second war. In this battle, temples, shrines, and villages throughout Iga were burned to the ground.
There are many stories of temples and shrines being re-built after the war, indicating the magnitude of the war. After this, those who rebelled against Oda’s forces in Iga left for other domains. This was one of the reasons for the spread of the Iga-mono throughout the country. In addition, many of the Jizamurai in Iga were given the status of Musokunin (無足人), a samurai in the village, by the Todo domain after the Edo period. (Yoshiki Takao)
