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[woman crying]

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[opening theme plays]

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[narrator] 1568.

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Ten years after waging a bloody campaign
to gain control over his own province,

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powerful samurai warlord Oda Nobunaga
has seized much of Central Japan,

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including the nation’s capital, Kyoto.

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Now, driven by a towering ambition,

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he dreams of crushing the powerful clans
who still oppose his rule.

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And for the first time in over a century,

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uniting all of Japan under one banner.

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But Nobunaga’s legendary brutality
has caused widespread anger.

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Across the nation,
powerful enemies now plot his demise.

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[Ashmore] Nobunaga was a master 
of the battlefield.

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But in Kyoto, he was beginning to see
the potential he had for power.

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[Turnbull] This caused lasting resentment
among Nobunaga’s rivals.

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They knew that Nobunaga
wanted the power for himself.

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[Garrett] This meant Nobunaga's rule

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in Central Japan was immediately
ringed by adversaries,

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who whilst of very diverse origins,

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were drawn together by their dislike
and worry about his expanding control.

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If Nobunaga wished to truly consolidate
his power in Central Japan,

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he had to either co-opt or eliminate 
all other sources of authority.

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And the Buddhist institutions,
the great temples…

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and the populist Buddhist sects
were two of the greatest threats to this.

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[in Japanese] The blessing of the Buddha
to us…

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[Spafford] The Buddhist establishment
was a huge hurdle in Nobunaga’s path.

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These institutions were deeply embedded
in the political fabric of the country

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and absolutely accustomed
to flex their political muscle.

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[Garrett] Buddhism has a very long history
in Japan,

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and it arrived in Japan
before there really was a Japan

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in the sense
of a centralized bureaucratic state.

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The concept is that the great temples
exist to perform ritual and ceremony,

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which will protect Japan from invasion,
from disease, from hardship.

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This is a divine defense against
any kind of external or internal threat.

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The Buddhist institutions were
often as heavily armed as warlords.

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[Turnbull] They would fight to the death.
Nothing daunted them,

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and they knew that victory in battle
would guarantee the path to heaven.

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[speaking indistinctly in Japanese]

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So, these were major institutions
that had the military power

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to prevent the total domination
of Central Japan by Nobunaga.

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[in Japanese] You called?

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Rid me of these parasites!

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Mitsuhide!

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Now, get moving!

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Yes, sir.

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[Spafford] The large Buddhist institutions

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were not the only,
or even the major, threat

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coming from, let’s call it,
the Buddhist quarter.

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There was a new militant sect
of Buddhism that developed

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called the Ikkō-ikki…

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which were communities of believers
spread throughout the land.

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The Ikkō-ikki appeal to the simple
farmers and workers,

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because it was
a very simple formula for salvation,

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just repeating one’s belief in the Buddha.

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This was extremely powerful
in a land that's still beset

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by poverty and famine and warfare.

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[Garrett] The Ikko drew people together
across social lines

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to defend their places of worship 
and communities in a collective manner.

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Merchants, villagers, monks, everyone
could be united by their common faith

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to try and drive daimyo rule
out of their land.

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[Auslin] By the end of the 1500s,
the Ikkō-ikki had a network across Japan.

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They built large temple fortresses…

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and they were rising up
in almost all of the provinces.

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[yells]

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[all yell]

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[Auslin] They had armies 
of monks and peasants.

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They answered to a higher authority.
They weren't willing to become subordinate

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to any of the great daimyo leaders,
including Oda Nobunaga.

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[in Japanese] Oda Nobunaga is…

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torturing our people.

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His deeds are of the devil.

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We must put from our minds any image 
of these Buddhist monks being peaceful men

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who spent their lives in prayer.

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They were a formidable military enemy.

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[all] Ho!

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[Auslin] If Nobunaga did not make
an example of them,

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and he felt that
they threatened his authority

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and would allow uprisings
throughout the country

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in the strategic points
that he wanted to control,

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he had to destroy them.

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[Garrett] When Nobunaga moved
against the Ikkō-ikki,

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he was aiming for its total eradication

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and the massacre of anyone
who stood in his way.

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[narrator] August, 1570.

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Nobunaga moves
to destroy the Ikkō-ikki forever.

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After crushing a number
of their fortresses,

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he decides to strike
at the heart of Buddhism in Japan.

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The temple complex Enryaku-ji.

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It is a decision that will threaten
everything he has worked to achieve.

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[in Japanese] We, as Buddhists, 
must not allow this.

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We shall not allow his actions.

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[Auslin] Enryaku-ji was by far the most 
politically influential Buddhist complex

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in Japan,

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and for centuries,
it had had political power that rivaled

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the great chieftains throughout Japan,
and had very close ties with the court.

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[in Japanese] Even though it is 
to disobey Buddha's teachings

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to take a life…

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And one thing that had enraged Nobunaga,

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who was
very vehemently anti-Buddhist anyway,

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was that these monks had given
refuge to his fleeing enemies.

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Not only that, it was so close to Kyoto,

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it literally overlooked the city,

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that here was a potential strategic threat
to Nobunaga’s survival.

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So he made the most fateful decision
of his career.

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He would attack and destroy

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the greatest monastery in Japan,
the Enryaku-ji.

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In September 1571,

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Nobunaga assembled an army of a size
that you would expect for a major battle

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against a serious enemy.

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[Garrett] Nobunaga's advance on Enryaku-ji
caused much of the civilian population

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to retreat to the top of a mountain,

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to the top of Mount Hiei where
the monastic complex of Enryaku-ji was.

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[soldiers yelling]

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[Garrett] Nobunaga ordered his troops 
to advance in a line up the mountain,

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murdering anyone they came across…

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[arquebus fires]

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…and burning any buildings.

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[flames crackling]

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[Auslin] During this period of Sengoku
warfare, there was brutality on all sides,

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but Enryaku-ji brought it
to a different level.

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-[whimpers, screams]
-[blade slashes]

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[Garrett] Sources characterized Nobunaga's
troops as wild animals.

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[groans]

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All Nobunaga's men reached
the top of the mountain

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and the central temple itself.

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And when Nobunaga's troops approached,
they gave an ultimatum to Enryaku-ji.

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They could display loyalty to him,

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or they could resist him and be destroyed.

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And they chose the latter.

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[Turnbull] The temple was burned,

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and the citizens of Kyoto could look up
into the eastern sky

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and see it lit up

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with the flames of the most famous
Buddhist monastery in Japan.

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[soldiers yelling]

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[Turnbull] Nobunaga’s men hunted down 
anyone who had escaped

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from the conflagration.

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[cries out in pain]

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-[in Japanese] Mother, are you all right?
-Run.

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Mother! Run away.

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Mother!

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[Garrett] This was an unsparing attack 
in which no one,

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be they monk, woman, or child…

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was exempted from assault.

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[crying]

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[woman continues crying]

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[Garrett] Nobunaga ordered
that all of them,

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every woman and every child,

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should be beheaded,

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which was a sight that even his own troops
could barely bear to watch.

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00:11:17,948 --> 00:11:20,826
It’s said that 20,000 people died

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in this greatest act
of tyranny and cruelty.

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It even disgusted
some of his most loyal generals.

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Akechi Mitsuhide,
himself a devout Buddhist,

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from that moment on

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began to have grave doubts
about Nobunaga's ability to rule.

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[Auslin] There’s clearly something 
pathological in Nobunaga’s character.

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00:11:48,895 --> 00:11:54,067
None of the daimyo shied away from using
force, but Nobunaga seemed to revel in it.

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-[woman crying]
-[blade slashes]

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[Auslin] This massacre was absolute.

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It’s said that there was a river of blood
that ran down the mountainside.

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00:12:01,491 --> 00:12:05,120
This, of course, was a message.
It was a message to other Buddhist sects.

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00:12:05,203 --> 00:12:10,083
It was also a message to the other daimyos
that Nobunaga would observe no boundary.

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00:12:11,251 --> 00:12:13,837
-[blade slashes]
-This man, who, for the first time,

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had a realistic chance of actually uniting
at least the central provinces of Japan

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was going to do it one way,
through bloodshed and through the sword.

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But his destruction of Enryaku-ji
would come back to haunt him later on.

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[narrator] The bloodshed continues 
as Nobunaga strikes

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00:12:33,982 --> 00:12:35,901
against more of their strongholds,

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00:12:35,984 --> 00:12:38,528
and puts countless Buddhists to the sword.

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00:12:40,071 --> 00:12:44,534
These actions enrage other powerful
warlords, known as daimyo,

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00:12:44,618 --> 00:12:46,870
and set Nobunaga on a collision course

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00:12:46,953 --> 00:12:50,123
with his most powerful
and formidable adversary yet.

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00:12:54,836 --> 00:12:57,422
[Turnbull] It wasn't just
the Buddhist establishment

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00:12:57,506 --> 00:13:01,259
who were shocked by Nobunaga's action
on Mount Hiei.

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00:13:01,343 --> 00:13:04,888
Many of the daimyo now became convinced

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00:13:04,971 --> 00:13:08,934
that Nobunaga was a cruel tyrant
who had to be overthrown.

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00:13:09,976 --> 00:13:14,940
However, only very few of them had
the resources whereby they could do it.

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00:13:17,275 --> 00:13:18,360
One of them did,

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00:13:19,069 --> 00:13:21,404
and his name was Takeda Shingen.

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00:13:25,575 --> 00:13:30,247
[Ledbetter] Takeda Shingen was a daimyo
of Kai Province, located in Central Japan.

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00:13:31,915 --> 00:13:37,337
He was known as a particularly fierce
military commander.

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00:13:38,922 --> 00:13:41,633
[Meyer] He became known widely
as the Tiger of Kai,

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00:13:41,716 --> 00:13:45,470
and he’s really one of the last people
who’s in a position

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00:13:45,554 --> 00:13:48,807
to check Nobunaga’s advance across Japan.

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00:13:48,890 --> 00:13:50,392
He has a complex reputation.

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00:13:50,475 --> 00:13:53,603
He's, on the one hand,
a man of incredible violence.

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00:13:53,687 --> 00:13:57,107
Certain crimes
are punished by being boiled alive.

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00:13:58,650 --> 00:14:01,903
On the other hand,
he is an ordained Buddhist monk.

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00:14:02,988 --> 00:14:06,533
A slogan associated with him refers
to one of the Buddha's sayings,

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00:14:06,616 --> 00:14:10,120
“Under heaven,
I alone am worthy of respect,"

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00:14:10,203 --> 00:14:14,165
and Shingen puts his own spin on it.
"I alone am worthy of being feared."

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00:14:16,293 --> 00:14:18,003
[Bender] Other daimyo recognized

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00:14:18,086 --> 00:14:22,173
that Takeda Shingen
was a very significant threat,

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00:14:22,716 --> 00:14:27,637
um, and that he was the head
of a formidable army.

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00:14:27,721 --> 00:14:30,390
What it really comes down to is that

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00:14:30,473 --> 00:14:34,769
Shingen knows that Nobunaga
is a major threat and vice versa.

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00:14:37,314 --> 00:14:39,983
[Ledbetter] After the destruction 
of the Enryaku-ji,

198
00:14:40,066 --> 00:14:44,237
Takeda Shingen decided that he needed
to take the offensive against Nobunaga.

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00:14:45,113 --> 00:14:48,325
He did so by first trying to eliminate

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00:14:48,408 --> 00:14:51,202
Nobunaga’s ally, Tokugawa Ieyasu.

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00:14:53,788 --> 00:14:56,708
[Auslin] He'd served Nobunaga
since the Battle of Okehazama

202
00:14:56,791 --> 00:14:59,628
and was one of his most trusted
generals and advisers.

203
00:15:03,506 --> 00:15:06,509
But Ieyasu’s lands lie
to the east of Nobunaga

204
00:15:06,593 --> 00:15:09,596
and the south of Shingen,
so he’s in between the two.

205
00:15:09,679 --> 00:15:13,975
And now, Shingen is going to attack
Ieyasu first and then turn on Nobunaga.

206
00:15:15,936 --> 00:15:20,148
This is the first step on an invasion
heading all the way to Kyoto

207
00:15:20,231 --> 00:15:22,901
to displace Nobunaga from Kyoto itself,

208
00:15:22,984 --> 00:15:26,613
so that Shingen could become
the new lord of the Imperial City.

209
00:15:31,117 --> 00:15:33,912
This was a dangerous situation
for Ieyasu,

210
00:15:33,995 --> 00:15:37,332
because at this point
he knows he is outnumbered,

211
00:15:37,415 --> 00:15:39,918
he's facing a very formidable general.

212
00:15:40,001 --> 00:15:44,047
But he does have one ace, and that is
his relationship with Oda Nobunaga.

213
00:15:44,130 --> 00:15:47,801
He can reach out to his powerful ally
and ask for help.

214
00:15:51,972 --> 00:15:53,765
[horse neighs]

215
00:15:56,226 --> 00:15:59,437
[Meyer] But Nobunaga at this point
is embroiled in this war

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00:15:59,521 --> 00:16:01,940
in Central Japan against
Buddhist establishments.

217
00:16:02,023 --> 00:16:04,025
Most of his forces are already engaged.

218
00:16:04,734 --> 00:16:10,198
He sends a paltry force of 3,000 middling
commanders at best to assist Ieyasu.

219
00:16:12,826 --> 00:16:15,412
This is a dangerous gamble for Nobunaga.

220
00:16:15,495 --> 00:16:19,833
If Ieyasu falls, then Nobunaga's
own home province of Owari

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00:16:19,916 --> 00:16:21,543
is probably the next target.

222
00:16:21,626 --> 00:16:24,713
But it's a gamble that, in many ways,
I think he had to make.

223
00:16:24,796 --> 00:16:26,423
Too many other wars to fight.

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00:16:30,552 --> 00:16:34,014
[Ledbetter] Now, Takeda Shingen
had around 35,000 troops.

225
00:16:36,141 --> 00:16:38,977
Ieyasu had around 8,000 troops.

226
00:16:43,231 --> 00:16:45,483
[in Japanese] We meet them in the field.

227
00:16:46,151 --> 00:16:49,404
We will fight the Takeda and destroy them!
No weakness!

228
00:16:50,655 --> 00:16:53,742
Yet he still decided
to meet Shingen in the field.

229
00:16:54,909 --> 00:16:57,245
[Meyer] The main reason 
he chooses to do this

230
00:16:57,328 --> 00:17:01,958
is because he believes a show of strength
is necessary for his own vassals.

231
00:17:02,042 --> 00:17:05,545
Loyalty for a samurai at this point
is a two-way street.

232
00:17:05,628 --> 00:17:08,506
They're loyal to people who win,
who can protect them.

233
00:17:08,590 --> 00:17:10,842
The lord who cannot 
protect his own territory

234
00:17:10,925 --> 00:17:13,386
from being robbed
by an army coming through…

235
00:17:13,470 --> 00:17:14,929
Is that a lord worth following?

236
00:17:21,728 --> 00:17:24,522
[narrator] January 25th, 1573.

237
00:17:25,356 --> 00:17:28,568
Ieyasu ignores
his commanders' calls to back down.

238
00:17:30,028 --> 00:17:32,155
He moves his men to confront Shingen.

239
00:17:33,031 --> 00:17:37,786
He is outnumbered three to one.
But despite the odds, Ieyasu attacks.

240
00:17:39,621 --> 00:17:45,668
Within hours, Shingen’s superior tactics
and numbers annihilate Ieyasu’s forces.

241
00:17:45,752 --> 00:17:46,961
Mad with grief,

242
00:17:47,045 --> 00:17:51,257
Ieyasu fights on and must be dragged
to safety by his loyal retainers.

243
00:18:06,231 --> 00:18:08,817
[Ledbetter] This was a humbling defeat
for Ieyasu.

244
00:18:09,484 --> 00:18:11,778
He had tried to stand up
to a superior force,

245
00:18:11,861 --> 00:18:14,531
like his ally Nobunaga
had done several times,

246
00:18:14,614 --> 00:18:16,032
and was defeated decisively.

247
00:18:21,121 --> 00:18:23,998
[Meyer] The loss is very demoralizing 
for Ieyasu,

248
00:18:24,082 --> 00:18:26,459
as is the fact that the very next year,

249
00:18:26,543 --> 00:18:28,294
the armies of the Takeda do return

250
00:18:28,378 --> 00:18:32,173
and take several castles from him,
and he feels utterly unable to stop it.

251
00:18:32,257 --> 00:18:34,425
He doesn't even put an army out to try.

252
00:18:39,556 --> 00:18:43,351
[Bender] Takeda Shingen
completely has Ieyasu on the ropes, uh,

253
00:18:43,434 --> 00:18:47,021
and if he wanted to deliver
that final knockout blow, he could have.

254
00:18:48,314 --> 00:18:53,027
But in the early part of that decade,

255
00:18:53,111 --> 00:18:58,408
in the midst of this great success
that Shingen has enjoyed, uh, he dies.

256
00:19:00,910 --> 00:19:05,039
The consensus
is that he probably died of liver cancer.

257
00:19:05,123 --> 00:19:09,210
A kind of unceremonious end
to this illustrious warlord.

258
00:19:11,671 --> 00:19:14,757
Before his death, he gave
instructions to his senior retainers

259
00:19:14,841 --> 00:19:17,552
that they were to keep it secret
for three years…

260
00:19:24,309 --> 00:19:29,606
so that his heir, Takeda Katsuyori,
could consolidate his control of Kai

261
00:19:29,689 --> 00:19:35,111
and the retainers underneath him,
before mounting any further operations.

262
00:19:41,201 --> 00:19:44,537
Takeda Katsuyori was
an accomplished general.

263
00:19:44,621 --> 00:19:46,748
He had performed bravely in battle.

264
00:19:47,248 --> 00:19:51,836
His biggest problem was garnering the
support of his father’s senior generals.

265
00:19:53,046 --> 00:19:57,342
These were Shingen’s old guard,
who had been with him his entire life.

266
00:19:58,301 --> 00:20:01,679
And he’s in direct competition
with the memory of his father.

267
00:20:03,848 --> 00:20:06,601
His father was this gigantic character.

268
00:20:15,568 --> 00:20:17,820
[Meyer] Not all of his retainers 
trust him.

269
00:20:17,904 --> 00:20:19,697
You see, Katsuyori's mother

270
00:20:19,781 --> 00:20:24,118
was one of the people who Shingen
had taken by force as a concubine.

271
00:20:24,202 --> 00:20:26,913
So, many of the Takeda retainers
didn't trust Katsuyori.

272
00:20:26,996 --> 00:20:28,790
They thought, "He's a bastard.

273
00:20:28,873 --> 00:20:31,125
He comes from
this extramarital relationship,

274
00:20:31,209 --> 00:20:33,920
and he might not really
be loyal to the cause."

275
00:20:38,383 --> 00:20:42,553
[Auslin] As Kasuyori tries to make his
name as the leader of the Takeda clan…

276
00:20:45,014 --> 00:20:47,934
he receives an unexpected
but very welcome letter.

277
00:20:48,559 --> 00:20:53,189
The letter comes from the wife of one
of his greatest enemies, Tokugawa Ieyasu.

278
00:20:55,566 --> 00:20:57,944
And it seems almost too good to be true.

279
00:21:02,615 --> 00:21:05,910
Lady Tsukiyama was
secretly sending letters

280
00:21:05,994 --> 00:21:11,207
to the leader of Ieyasu's archenemy,
Takeda Katsuyori.

281
00:21:12,709 --> 00:21:15,837
[Kitagawa] Lady Tsukiyama
and Tokugawa Ieyasu married

282
00:21:15,920 --> 00:21:17,130
when they were very young,

283
00:21:17,213 --> 00:21:19,549
like 14 or 15 years old.

284
00:21:19,632 --> 00:21:22,051
It was an arranged marriage
to make peace.

285
00:21:25,221 --> 00:21:27,640
But because
this was an arranged marriage,

286
00:21:27,724 --> 00:21:30,226
their relationship was never good.

287
00:21:34,605 --> 00:21:39,152
They then, uh, lived together
for 13 years, and they had a son.

288
00:21:40,445 --> 00:21:45,241
Lady Tsukiyama was extremely proud,
jealous, tempestuous,

289
00:21:45,325 --> 00:21:47,994
bad-tempered,
very difficult to get along with.

290
00:21:48,870 --> 00:21:54,250
Ieyasu started to take concubines,
and then he had a number of concubines.

291
00:21:55,793 --> 00:22:00,298
Well, Ieyasu certainly came to prefer
the company of his concubines. Um…

292
00:22:01,382 --> 00:22:04,844
All men of power in those days
had concubines,

293
00:22:04,927 --> 00:22:08,973
but we do know that Lady Tsukiyama
had a jealous personality,

294
00:22:09,057 --> 00:22:12,185
so she very probably, um, was jealous

295
00:22:12,268 --> 00:22:15,688
of the fact that he had
some 19 or 20 concubines.

296
00:22:16,814 --> 00:22:19,859
So, as far as she was concerned,
she got a pretty raw deal.

297
00:22:29,827 --> 00:22:35,875
In these letters, she said that she would
betray Ieyasu and Oda Nobunaga,

298
00:22:35,958 --> 00:22:37,335
and in exchange…

299
00:22:38,628 --> 00:22:42,507
could he please give her son sanctuary
and give him lands

300
00:22:42,590 --> 00:22:46,844
and could he also provide her with
a husband from among his generals?

301
00:23:00,525 --> 00:23:02,652
[horse neighs]

302
00:23:02,735 --> 00:23:04,737
[horse galloping]

303
00:23:09,575 --> 00:23:14,831
[Bender] So, Katsuyori may have thought,
"Here is my chance to eliminate Ieyasu."

304
00:23:16,624 --> 00:23:21,546
This would really solidify his position
as the new Takeda family head.

305
00:23:23,047 --> 00:23:28,428
And it would also do a lot to really gain
the firm support of his retainers.

306
00:23:30,638 --> 00:23:34,642
[Downer] Takeda Katsuyori answered
and said, "This is fine."

307
00:23:34,725 --> 00:23:37,603
And yet she named the general
who he would marry to her.

308
00:23:47,655 --> 00:23:49,365
[bell dings]

309
00:23:50,533 --> 00:23:53,786
[Ledbetter] Instead of waiting three years
as his father dictated,

310
00:23:53,870 --> 00:23:55,955
Katsuyori decided to move earlier.

311
00:23:56,038 --> 00:24:00,751
And this would lead to one of the most
iconic clashes of the Sengoku period.

312
00:24:04,755 --> 00:24:09,844
In 1575, Katsuyori takes his forces
and follows essentially the same route

313
00:24:09,927 --> 00:24:12,096
that his father had several years before.

314
00:24:14,223 --> 00:24:18,978
For Ieyasu, once again,
this is an invasion into his territory.

315
00:24:22,064 --> 00:24:24,150
Tokugawa Ieyasu is aware of the threat

316
00:24:24,233 --> 00:24:28,488
because he has received messengers
detailing the size of the Takeda force,

317
00:24:28,571 --> 00:24:30,072
about 15,000 men.

318
00:24:31,782 --> 00:24:33,409
And if he cannot stop them,

319
00:24:34,577 --> 00:24:37,371
they potentially
will eliminate him completely.

320
00:24:39,832 --> 00:24:43,294
The situation, as Ieyasu sees it,
is grave.

321
00:24:44,629 --> 00:24:47,048
And he dashes off a message to Nobunaga.

322
00:24:47,965 --> 00:24:50,134
Ieyasu has been a steadfast ally

323
00:24:50,218 --> 00:24:52,678
the entire time
of their relationship together.

324
00:24:53,262 --> 00:24:57,475
He has fought battles
side by side with Nobunaga,

325
00:24:58,726 --> 00:25:00,728
at times, come to rescue Nobunaga.

326
00:25:16,827 --> 00:25:18,204
And he tells Nobunaga…

327
00:25:19,038 --> 00:25:21,374
"I have done all these things for you.

328
00:25:22,583 --> 00:25:25,628
If you don’t send reinforcements now,

329
00:25:26,212 --> 00:25:27,588
I will change sides.

330
00:25:27,672 --> 00:25:31,008
And with Katsuyori,
we will invade your lands,

331
00:25:31,092 --> 00:25:34,178
I will take your castles,
and we will defeat you.”

332
00:25:34,762 --> 00:25:38,140
This is a pretty drastic thing
to be telling Oda Nobunaga.

333
00:25:39,725 --> 00:25:42,478
[Bender] If Nobunaga lost,

334
00:25:42,562 --> 00:25:45,940
this would arguably be
the most serious defeat

335
00:25:46,023 --> 00:25:48,401
that he had suffered up to this point.

336
00:25:48,484 --> 00:25:53,656
And what it would mean is a complete halt
to any kind of eastward expansion.

337
00:25:55,324 --> 00:26:00,413
[Meyer] Nobunaga also relies on this aura
of fear, this aura of invincibility.

338
00:26:00,496 --> 00:26:04,041
If he starts developing a reputation
as a man who can be beaten,

339
00:26:04,125 --> 00:26:08,004
it could become a real rallying point
for opposition to his rule.

340
00:26:12,466 --> 00:26:14,927
[Ledbetter] Ieyasu was right
and Nobunaga knew it.

341
00:26:15,511 --> 00:26:20,516
He sends a letter promising support
along with a significant amount of gold,

342
00:26:20,600 --> 00:26:24,395
gathers his forces,
and travels to meet with Ieyasu.

343
00:26:28,733 --> 00:26:30,776
[narrator] June, 1575.

344
00:26:31,569 --> 00:26:34,530
Nobunaga and Ieyasu combine forces

345
00:26:34,614 --> 00:26:37,325
and together they march
to confront Katsuyori.

346
00:26:39,827 --> 00:26:44,624
Nobunaga and Ieyasu’s armies stop
at the Plains of Shitaragahara,

347
00:26:44,707 --> 00:26:48,794
a few miles from where Katsuyori
and his army are now encamped.

348
00:26:50,546 --> 00:26:52,673
Now, on the eve of the battle,

349
00:26:52,757 --> 00:26:55,801
Nobunaga begins to execute a bold plan

350
00:26:55,885 --> 00:27:00,514
that he hopes will help him beat the most
formidable army he has ever faced.

351
00:27:11,859 --> 00:27:14,695
[Meyer] One of the fascinating things
about Oda Nobunaga

352
00:27:14,779 --> 00:27:17,615
is that, for lack of a better term,
he does his homework.

353
00:27:17,698 --> 00:27:20,201
He's well-prepared 
for the people he fights.

354
00:27:21,744 --> 00:27:24,664
The Takeda clan, militarily,
is known for the speed

355
00:27:24,747 --> 00:27:26,832
with which they can
redeploy their troops.

356
00:27:26,916 --> 00:27:28,751
If they’re left unchecked,

357
00:27:28,834 --> 00:27:32,421
they can move their forces around
extremely rapidly, something that

358
00:27:32,505 --> 00:27:35,800
can be damaging if you’re not
prepared for it on the battlefield.

359
00:27:37,134 --> 00:27:41,472
[Auslin] To try and blunt the attack,
Nobunaga builds a series of palisades

360
00:27:41,555 --> 00:27:44,141
that he hopes will slow down
the enemy forces.

361
00:27:45,351 --> 00:27:50,481
These obstacles were placed
so that as the Takeda moved forward,

362
00:27:50,564 --> 00:27:52,566
their advance would be disrupted.

363
00:27:52,650 --> 00:27:59,281
The entire point was to lure the Takeda
into what essentially would be kill zones.

364
00:27:59,365 --> 00:28:03,160
Once they were there, these obstacles
would disrupt their movement.

365
00:28:05,579 --> 00:28:10,209
And that’s where the Oda and the Tokugawa
gunners would do their damage.

366
00:28:12,586 --> 00:28:17,341
[Bender] However, one of the big 
weaknesses of muskets in this era

367
00:28:17,425 --> 00:28:21,220
is that reloading times are very long,

368
00:28:21,303 --> 00:28:25,057
and according to the traditional account,

369
00:28:25,141 --> 00:28:29,562
Nobunaga invented
this great technique to mitigate that,

370
00:28:29,979 --> 00:28:32,398
uh, in what is known 
as the three-shot volley.

371
00:28:34,066 --> 00:28:37,737
[Ledbetter] There would be units 
of arquebuses

372
00:28:37,820 --> 00:28:40,322
combined with two or three archers.

373
00:28:41,157 --> 00:28:43,868
While the arquebuses were reloading,

374
00:28:43,951 --> 00:28:47,872
the bowman could cover that dead time.

375
00:28:47,955 --> 00:28:52,918
Because those would be staggered times,
you get the effect of a rotating fire.

376
00:28:54,587 --> 00:28:57,006
[Bender] And behind Nobunaga's gunners,

377
00:28:57,089 --> 00:29:03,637
he has troops who are equipped with pikes
to get the rider off of the horse,

378
00:29:03,721 --> 00:29:07,516
who could then be attacked
with swords or spears.

379
00:29:08,684 --> 00:29:12,772
[in Japanese] Oda’s troops are here.
If we attack from this direction,

380
00:29:12,855 --> 00:29:14,148
we can win.

381
00:29:15,065 --> 00:29:17,318
[Ledbetter] The Takedas' typical tactic

382
00:29:17,401 --> 00:29:20,446
was to try to move around their opponent,

383
00:29:20,529 --> 00:29:23,032
encircle them,
and then defeat them from all sides.

384
00:29:24,200 --> 00:29:28,287
[Bender] Katsuyori was convinced 
that he could win this encounter,

385
00:29:28,370 --> 00:29:30,080
as did his followers.

386
00:29:30,164 --> 00:29:36,253
They had faced the Tokugawa before
and had won this spectacular victory.

387
00:29:38,714 --> 00:29:40,174
On the eve of the battle,

388
00:29:40,257 --> 00:29:43,636
it’s still fair to say
that it could have gone either way.

389
00:29:45,888 --> 00:29:48,390
[Meyer] A defeat 
could have been very damaging

390
00:29:48,474 --> 00:29:51,435
for Nobunaga's image around Japan.

391
00:29:51,519 --> 00:29:54,230
He's made a lot of enemies
by the mid-1570s.

392
00:29:54,313 --> 00:29:59,318
If he loses, it could become a real
rallying point for opposition to his rule.

393
00:30:02,279 --> 00:30:04,532
When the two sides
would clash in the morning,

394
00:30:05,241 --> 00:30:10,704
this would be one of the most decisive
and landmark battles in Japanese history.

395
00:30:10,788 --> 00:30:12,790
[wind whistling]

396
00:30:14,875 --> 00:30:16,126
[crow caws]

397
00:30:19,713 --> 00:30:21,549
[horse neighs]

398
00:30:21,632 --> 00:30:24,009
On the morning of the battle,
the Takeda advance

399
00:30:24,093 --> 00:30:28,347
and take up an attack position on
the ridgeline facing the Oda positions.

400
00:30:29,098 --> 00:30:31,100
[horse neighs]

401
00:30:31,267 --> 00:30:34,770
[Ledbetter] Everything's silent,
except for the movement of horses.

402
00:30:38,858 --> 00:30:42,111
Katsuyori can see 
the Oda positions, but…

403
00:30:42,194 --> 00:30:46,574
he's not real sure at this point
exactly what he's facing.

404
00:30:52,079 --> 00:30:54,331
[in Japanese] Troops ready? Charge!

405
00:30:57,501 --> 00:30:59,628
[Ledbetter] Imagine you're a Takeda troop,

406
00:30:59,712 --> 00:31:01,130
you see the enemy in front,

407
00:31:01,213 --> 00:31:02,798
-you charge.
-[soldiers yelling]

408
00:31:02,882 --> 00:31:04,508
[in Japanese] Fire!

409
00:31:06,385 --> 00:31:09,138
[Ledbetter] You start to get hit 
with musket fire.

410
00:31:12,266 --> 00:31:14,435
-[groans]
-And then arrow fire.

411
00:31:15,603 --> 00:31:16,729
[in Japanese] Charge!

412
00:31:17,396 --> 00:31:21,609
[Ledbetter] Leaders are encouraging you,
and you reach the first line of obstacles,

413
00:31:21,692 --> 00:31:24,778
and there are barricades
that you have to maneuver around.

414
00:31:25,362 --> 00:31:26,405
[in Japanese] Now!

415
00:31:27,615 --> 00:31:30,242
[Ledbetter] Meanwhile, the gunfire
is getting more intense.

416
00:31:30,326 --> 00:31:32,286
The arrows are starting to hit home.

417
00:31:32,369 --> 00:31:35,414
Your compatriots to your left
and your right are getting hit.

418
00:31:36,624 --> 00:31:40,085
The only way to get through this
is to get through these obstacles

419
00:31:40,169 --> 00:31:43,255
and engage with the enemy
and go hand-to-hand.

420
00:31:44,298 --> 00:31:45,382
[in Japanese] Attack!

421
00:31:45,466 --> 00:31:46,300
[soldier yells]

422
00:31:46,383 --> 00:31:48,385
-[soldiers battling]
-[arquebuses firing]

423
00:31:51,472 --> 00:31:54,016
[Meyer] Katsuyori keeps
sending troops forward.

424
00:31:54,642 --> 00:31:57,144
As long as he keeps up
that frontal attack,

425
00:31:57,227 --> 00:32:00,314
his enveloping maneuver
still has a chance of succeeding.

426
00:32:00,397 --> 00:32:01,899
[soldiers yelling]

427
00:32:03,943 --> 00:32:07,404
You have bullets and arrows
flying all over the place.

428
00:32:08,697 --> 00:32:11,867
Smoke obscuring views,
getting in your eyes.

429
00:32:13,035 --> 00:32:14,578
[soldiers yelling]

430
00:32:23,712 --> 00:32:28,217
They get hit from the side
with an onslaught

431
00:32:28,300 --> 00:32:31,053
of Oda foot soldiers coming at them.

432
00:32:31,845 --> 00:32:34,556
With their spears, their pikes.

433
00:32:34,640 --> 00:32:36,475
The Takeda are torn to shreds.

434
00:32:37,726 --> 00:32:41,689
This speaks to the fact that
Nobunaga's plan was to suck them in

435
00:32:41,772 --> 00:32:44,191
and basically hold them in this kill zone.

436
00:32:48,946 --> 00:32:51,740
Katsuyori is unwilling
at this point to give up.

437
00:32:51,824 --> 00:32:53,909
So he sends in the next wave.

438
00:32:53,993 --> 00:32:59,206
This happens three, four, five times,
and it's tearing the Takeda up.

439
00:32:59,748 --> 00:33:02,668
-[yells]
-[Ledbetter] This is pure slaughter.

440
00:33:09,550 --> 00:33:10,843
[in Japanese] Keep going!

441
00:33:11,385 --> 00:33:14,263
[Meyer] As the day goes on,
it becomes clearer and clearer

442
00:33:14,346 --> 00:33:15,806
to the Takeda clan retainers,

443
00:33:15,889 --> 00:33:17,057
they won't win.

444
00:33:17,141 --> 00:33:18,559
[soldiers yelling]

445
00:33:19,435 --> 00:33:22,312
[Meyer] And so, 
many of them start to fall back,

446
00:33:22,396 --> 00:33:23,397
to retreat,

447
00:33:23,480 --> 00:33:28,569
and this really is the most dangerous
moment in any battle across human history,

448
00:33:28,652 --> 00:33:32,197
because when one side turns
and starts to run from the other,

449
00:33:32,281 --> 00:33:34,158
that's when the real killing starts.

450
00:33:36,285 --> 00:33:38,537
[Ledbetter] Katsuyori doesn't
want to retreat.

451
00:33:38,620 --> 00:33:40,456
He’s committed to fighting or dying.

452
00:33:41,498 --> 00:33:43,250
But as his forces disintegrate…

453
00:33:43,333 --> 00:33:44,418
[in Japanese] Charge!

454
00:33:44,501 --> 00:33:48,797
…his subordinate commanders
plead with him to escape,

455
00:33:48,881 --> 00:33:51,717
until one of them puts him on his horse,

456
00:33:52,468 --> 00:33:53,427
shoves him north,

457
00:33:54,219 --> 00:34:00,559
and Katsuyori is able to get back to his
own lands with a handful of his forces.

458
00:34:03,312 --> 00:34:05,064
[laughs]

459
00:34:05,147 --> 00:34:09,318
[Ledbetter] Over the course of the battle,
10,000 soldiers

460
00:34:09,401 --> 00:34:12,321
of Katsuyori's
are left dead on the battlefield.

461
00:34:12,404 --> 00:34:14,656
Many of the Takeda leadership…

462
00:34:16,200 --> 00:34:19,536
the generals
that had served Shingen for so long,

463
00:34:19,620 --> 00:34:23,499
were lying dead with their troops.

464
00:34:28,796 --> 00:34:34,051
Nagashino is often seen as
a watershed battle in global history

465
00:34:34,134 --> 00:34:40,099
because of Nobunaga’s supposed
technique of rotating volley fire.

466
00:34:40,182 --> 00:34:41,350
[groans]

467
00:34:41,433 --> 00:34:45,854
[Ledbetter] What’s really impressive 
is Nobunaga’s organization

468
00:34:45,938 --> 00:34:47,856
to develop this plan,

469
00:34:48,524 --> 00:34:52,945
to effectively use obstacles in a way
that modern armies train today,

470
00:34:53,654 --> 00:34:56,490
and put all this together into one plan

471
00:34:56,573 --> 00:34:59,493
designed to completely
annihilate his enemy.

472
00:35:03,205 --> 00:35:06,333
[Bender] The Battle of Nagashino
was a resounding success

473
00:35:06,416 --> 00:35:13,132
for Nobunaga and Ieyasu because
it dealt this very severe blow to…

474
00:35:14,216 --> 00:35:17,761
one of the three major
remaining eastern daimyo,

475
00:35:17,845 --> 00:35:23,475
and the one who was
closest to Nobunaga's domains.

476
00:35:25,269 --> 00:35:28,605
[Ledbetter] Katsuyori has been 
so psychologically traumatized

477
00:35:28,689 --> 00:35:29,565
by this event…

478
00:35:29,648 --> 00:35:30,858
[in Japanese] Leave now.

479
00:35:32,484 --> 00:35:34,695
…that this is really the last time

480
00:35:34,778 --> 00:35:37,865
he ventures
out of his own territory in force.

481
00:35:40,868 --> 00:35:44,037
[Bender] It took a few years
to fully eliminate the Takeda,

482
00:35:44,121 --> 00:35:47,499
but the writing was on the wall,
so to speak.

483
00:35:47,583 --> 00:35:53,714
They're never able to pose a serious
threat to Nobunaga after Nagashino.

484
00:36:00,220 --> 00:36:03,599
[Auslin] However, while this was
a resounding victory for Ieyasu,

485
00:36:04,016 --> 00:36:07,102
his success is undermined when
he finds out that his own wife,

486
00:36:07,186 --> 00:36:09,438
Tsukiyama, has been plotting
to betray him.

487
00:36:25,287 --> 00:36:27,247
[Downer] These letters were discovered.

488
00:36:28,040 --> 00:36:32,961
The story is that Nobunaga had inserted
some spies into Ieyasu's household.

489
00:36:33,045 --> 00:36:35,214
This is totally credible.

490
00:36:35,297 --> 00:36:38,091
Everybody had spies in every household, 
friend or foe.

491
00:36:38,175 --> 00:36:41,261
And the maid of Lady Tsukiyama,
it is said,

492
00:36:41,345 --> 00:36:45,682
found these letters
and passed them on to Oda Nobunaga.

493
00:36:49,311 --> 00:36:54,608
[in Japanese] There wasn’t much evidence,
and it was largely speculation,

494
00:36:54,691 --> 00:36:57,236
but they could not ignore the issue. 

495
00:36:57,319 --> 00:37:02,157
Therefore, Nobunaga
ordered Ieyasu to find a solution.

496
00:37:02,783 --> 00:37:03,659
Leave.

497
00:37:11,458 --> 00:37:12,668
[Tsukiyama gasps]

498
00:37:12,751 --> 00:37:15,712
[Kitagawa] Tokugawa Ieyasu
had to get rid of Lady Tsukiyama.

499
00:37:15,796 --> 00:37:17,005
[in Japanese] Let me go!

500
00:37:17,839 --> 00:37:18,757
Let me go!

501
00:37:18,840 --> 00:37:20,968
[Kitagawa] So Ieyasu decided to expel her.

502
00:37:21,051 --> 00:37:25,430
But if she still survives,
then she might have done something more.

503
00:37:28,350 --> 00:37:30,352
[cries]

504
00:37:38,902 --> 00:37:40,487
-[blade slashes]
-[body thuds]

505
00:37:49,454 --> 00:37:51,164
Ieyasu takes it a step further.

506
00:37:51,248 --> 00:37:54,334
Ieyasu suspects his son
might attempt to do

507
00:37:54,418 --> 00:37:59,339
what a respectful, loyal son is supposed
to do and avenge his mother.

508
00:37:59,423 --> 00:38:02,884
So he orders his son
to be placed under house arrest.

509
00:38:06,763 --> 00:38:10,100
[Turnbull] But nevertheless,
under pressure from Nobunaga,

510
00:38:10,183 --> 00:38:14,938
Ieyasu was required to force
his own son to commit suicide.

511
00:38:17,441 --> 00:38:20,736
[Downer] Nobunaga at this point
was a very strong warlord,

512
00:38:20,819 --> 00:38:22,612
and Ieyasu had to do what he said.

513
00:38:22,696 --> 00:38:25,240
Also, Ieyasu needed 
to maintain that alliance.

514
00:38:25,324 --> 00:38:26,825
It was absolutely vital.

515
00:38:26,908 --> 00:38:29,661
So, no matter what he thought, um,

516
00:38:29,745 --> 00:38:34,166
if Nobunaga ordered him to execute
his own son, he had to do so.

517
00:38:37,753 --> 00:38:41,173
[Turnbull] It was the most dreadful thing
that could be asked of him,

518
00:38:41,256 --> 00:38:44,676
and it affected his relationship
with Nobunaga

519
00:38:44,760 --> 00:38:46,595
for the rest of their days together.

520
00:38:51,683 --> 00:38:55,562
[narrator] The victory at Nagashino
makes Nobunaga the most powerful warlord

521
00:38:55,645 --> 00:38:56,730
in the nation.

522
00:39:00,484 --> 00:39:03,570
Most of Central Japan
is now under his control.

523
00:39:06,323 --> 00:39:10,994
His dream of uniting all of the nation
under his own banner is closer than ever.

524
00:39:12,788 --> 00:39:14,539
But it has come at a price.

525
00:39:14,623 --> 00:39:19,336
Increasingly paranoid,
Nobunaga now sees enemies everywhere.

526
00:39:23,423 --> 00:39:25,717
[Turnbull] The betrayal by Lady Tsukiyama

527
00:39:25,801 --> 00:39:31,848
did nothing but add to the fears Nobunaga
had of enemies all around him,

528
00:39:31,932 --> 00:39:37,687
which amounted almost to a paranoid
feeling that everyone wanted rid of him.

529
00:39:40,148 --> 00:39:45,195
[Ashmore] Put yourself into Nobunaga’s
position once he realizes this.

530
00:39:48,990 --> 00:39:50,909
[imperceptible]

531
00:39:52,119 --> 00:39:56,498
[Ashmore] Anyone tilling a field,
anyone walking down the streets,

532
00:39:56,581 --> 00:40:02,170
any one of the maids in his service
could be preparing poison for a drink.

533
00:40:02,254 --> 00:40:06,925
It’s a very sobering thought
to realize that you are not safe.

534
00:40:10,512 --> 00:40:14,599
[Turnbull] In fact, there had been
several attempts on Nobunaga's life.

535
00:40:15,809 --> 00:40:19,229
The attempted assassin
came from the province of Iga.

536
00:40:20,313 --> 00:40:24,067
And Iga Province was one of
the smallest provinces in Sengoku Japan.

537
00:40:27,237 --> 00:40:31,950
[Ashmore] For 150 years,
these people had governed themselves,

538
00:40:32,033 --> 00:40:36,288
keeping out any and all intruders
into their domain.

539
00:40:38,373 --> 00:40:39,791
[Turnbull] When they fought,

540
00:40:39,875 --> 00:40:42,961
they joined together 
in self-governing communes,

541
00:40:43,044 --> 00:40:44,963
almost as a guerrilla army.

542
00:40:45,589 --> 00:40:51,219
And as such, they had raided Nobunaga's
lines of communication for several years.

543
00:40:51,303 --> 00:40:56,349
They were so good at these techniques
of irregular warfare,

544
00:40:56,433 --> 00:41:01,354
that this is what gave rise
to the legends of the ninja of Iga.

545
00:41:03,106 --> 00:41:07,360
They proved to be a thorn
in Oda Nobunaga's side.

546
00:41:08,778 --> 00:41:11,948
They had to go, by any means necessary.

547
00:41:12,032 --> 00:41:14,784
Nobunaga could not permit them to exist,

548
00:41:15,535 --> 00:41:20,040
for the sake of his own reputation
and the sake of his own security.

549
00:41:22,918 --> 00:41:25,337
[Turnbull] And it should have been 
a pushover,

550
00:41:26,004 --> 00:41:29,841
but it turned out to be one 
of the most vicious and bloody campaigns

551
00:41:29,925 --> 00:41:31,718
of Nobunaga's career.

552
00:41:38,183 --> 00:41:40,185
[closing theme plays]