The Battle of Sekigahara: The Greatest, Bloodiest, Most Decisive Samurai Battle Ever

by Chris Glenn

Sekigahara was the greatest samurai battle in history. Japan had long been at civil war until brought under the rule of Oda Nobunaga, and then, following his death at the hands of a traitorous general, that of Toyotomi Hideyoshi. It was Hideyoshi who completed the unification of Japan and ushered in a period of peace.

After Hideyoshi’s death in 1598, a power struggle emerged between those loyal to the Toyotomi, and those who supported the second most powerful warlord, Tokugawa Ieyasu. With Hideyoshi gone, Ieyasu made moves that brought the ire of a number of his contemporaries, and soon the entire country was divided into two great armies, East and West. Leading the loyalist cause was Ishida Mitsunari, who gathered a force of around 130,000 samurai, while the Tokugawa commanded just 80,000.

Both sides hurried to seize strategically vital highways and castles. These attacks and sieges culminated in the decisive Battle of Sekigahara. Fought on 21 October 1600, the battle lasted just six hours, but saw the deaths of an estimated 30,000 samurai, the destruction of a number of noble families and the creation of the Tokugawa Shogunate that was to rule Japan for 260 years of relative peace. The loyalist forces, despite their superior numbers and excellent battle formations, were defeated.

In his exploration of the battle, Chris Glenn reveals the developments that led up to the outbreak of war, the characters involved, how the battle itself unfolded, and the aftermath. The weapons and armor of the time are also fully explained, along with little known customs of the samurai and their warfare.

Genres: Japan, History, Nonfiction

216 pages, Paperback

Published October 31, 2024

Reviews

[Marquise · Rating 4 out of 5]

For all of you "Shogun" addicts out there: This is the battle alluded to in the last scene in the show and that'll make Toranaga-sama the sei-i taishogun. We don't know if the showrunners will develop the battle itself in Season 2 or leave it to mentions offscreen, but so you don't feel completely lost on the history once we all resume our enthusiastic watching, I recommend to get your hands on this book and learn a thing or two about how Toranaga/Ieyasu kicked Ishido's behind.

Now that I've read this, I think it'd be a mistake to waste the opportunity to depict this battle in Season 2 of "Shogun." Not only for how epic it would be visually and cinematographically but because of how important this battle is to the history of the Shogun. No Sekigahara, no Tokugawa, it's as simple as that.

Mr Glenn, the author, has done a good job summing up the buildup to the battle, the battle itself, and the immediate aftermath. You don't need to be very versed in the Sengoku period, you'll still understand the context leading up to the battle thanks to how succinctly and clearly Glenn lays the facts out. Of course, it's not very extensive and some things are simplified, so you'll still need a more in-depth history book for the ins-and-outs of the Shogunate period, but you will get a very competent rundown of the basics that's not superficial. Incidentally, it was amusing that Glenn says that he got interested in Sekigahara because of the novel "Musashi," because that's similar to how I got into it myself (for me, it was Clavell's novel, I wanted to know what had happened in Sekigahara.)

The part of the battle itself is more detailed, you get a full rundown of battle alignments, combat progress, which daimyo is on whose side, how many samurai each daimyo brought to the field for each side, who went in first, who fought the hardest, the geography and climate conditions, how long it lasted, and et cetera. I think maps were a bit lacking here, I had to look up pictures of Sekigahara in actuality to have a better idea of location, so I'd say maps were the weakness in this book.

The part about the aftermath is the shortest, it mainly deals with the immediate actions, like the ceremonies held post-combat (the observation of the skulls and the victors' ceremony of acknowledgement). I didn't know the Japanese at the time had this macabre custom of looking for hints of the future in beheaded heads, but I should've figured that out because of Ancient Rome (ha!) also having macabre ceremonies that wouldn't have disgraced the samurai. This part isn't for the squeamish, for sure, even though Glenn isn't explicit about it, mindful as he is that this is a book for the general readership.

In sum, it was pretty good to learn the details of the battle. I also liked (and had a good chuckle at) the closing line, a quote from an old Japanese poem:

Oda Nobunaga made the rice cakes, Toyotomi Hideyoshi baked the rice cakes, and Tokugawa Ieyasu ate them all.

So true in its hilarious simplicity. This haiku should've been the first Shogun's epitaph.

[Betsy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have been interested in Sekigahara and Tokugawa Ieyasu since I first saw the original version of 'Shogun' on TV and read the terrific book by James Clavell. So I have read several books about the subject since then. This massively detailed but fairly short book gives lots of information on the great battle in 1600; in fact, it might seem overwhelming unless you aleady know something about the subject. It could use more maps, but does have some photos of various sites of interest.

The Samurai battles were bloody and had some notable acts of courage and sacrifice. This book spotlights the biggest and most telling which brought relative peace to Japan for over 250 years.

[Robert Neil Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

In just six hours, on 21 October 1600, an estimated 30,000 Japanese soldiers, belonging to many samurai clans, fell in the Battle of Sekigahara. This was by any measure a major battle in the early modern period, yet few outside of Japan have even heard of it, argues Chris Glenn. He sets out to fix that in this engaging narrative.
It takes a while for Glenn to get to the battle, which comes fully halfway through the book. That is because setting the scene is no easy task given the complexity of political relations in Japan in the years leading up to the climactic battle. Glenn leads us through those with a series of biographical narratives and a political geography lesson. Then he arrives at the immediate causes of the war leading to Sekigahara, which was essentially a conflict for power between rival eastern and western clans. The lead-in to the battle is filled with skirmishes and sieges, but also includes fascinating asides such as the pre-battle ceremony.
Glenn paints a vivid picture of the battlefield as the troops moved into position. He pauses to describe the various types of units involved, their weapons, and their tactics. Then we are into the battle, beginning with the state of the battlefield and the orders of battle, then onto the start of the fighting, which began with an attack by 30 cavalrymen against 17,000 enemy troops! Intense combat was soon widespread, however, creating confusion and a subsequent bloodbath, helped in no small part by battlefield defections and miscommunication. It was the Western army that suffered defections the most and it collapsed after some ferocious fighting. Glenn then describes the grisly, post-battle head viewing ceremony and narrates the aftermath of this decisive battle. A timeline and useful Who’s Who of Sekigahara concludes Glenn’s account.
Written in an anecdotal style of stories and sketches spun around a central narrative, Glenn’s informative and entertaining chronicle of the Battle of Sekigahara is a stand-out contribution to Samurai military history. This is a book that, while complete in itself as a battle narrative, prompts further reading into the world of the samurai, which often seems quite bizarre to readers more accustomed to the practical demands of warfare. The peculiar code of the samurai permeates the battle and Glenn’s account. It is fascinating reading, and for those with even a passing interest in samurai warfare, eye-opening and enlightening.

[Pedro Pascoe · Rating 3 out of 5]

A functional, informed history of Sekigahara that could have done with a proofread for a few minor slips.
Even with my familiarity of Japanese, I was nearly overwhelmed with the torrent of Japanese names presented here. I was really only familiar with Tokugawa (hence wanting to read more and broaden my knowledge of this pivotal point in Japanese history), so keeping up with who was who was a bit of a task, even with the who's who guide in the back of the book.
I'm not sure how much this account could have been more engaging, except perhaps to put it in more historical context or perhaps tease more human stories out of it, but I'm guessing that the best was done with sources available. And by all accounts it seems that Glenn is positioned to take advantage of any available sources, so perhaps this is for now the best account in English we can currently hope for.
And that marks the importance of this account, in that is it one of only 3 books in English I can think of on the top of my head, that has Sekigahara as its topic. For all that, it's a book that describes the major engagements, with mainly relevant narrative diversions sprinkled in, some of which provide a genuine insight into Japanese Military history, and culture as a whole. I would recommend viewing an animated map on Youtube as a companion piece to this book to cement the overview of this significant battle.

[Gordon Rose · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love books that are written by people who absolutely embody their field. Chris Glenn is one such person. Japananese armorer, local tourism ambassador for Sekigahara, he knows the story of this battle inside out. Setting the scene by introducing key players; Oda Nobumaga and Hideyoshi, he shows the growth of influence of Ieyasu and Mitsunari and how notion of East and West start to form around loyalist and usurper causes. Political maneuvering, sieges, and ultimately the battle itself follow - on a scale that would not be seen until Waterloo, 200 years later and 5000 miles away. The sheer depth and thoroughness make for a heavy read; pen and paper are required to have any chance of keeping up with who’s who - and the reader would have appreciated many more maps to keep track of where various events are taking place - particularly if not familiar with Japanese names or 17th century Japanese fiefdoms. As such it’s a book that can and nearly must be read many times over to get a full understanding of all the moving parts of the story.

[Paul Hoff · Rating 4 out of 5]

Glenn does a marvelous job keeping track of the daimyo who ended up at Sekigahara to fight for the control of Japan and he delivers a comprehensive review of the battle.

Lacking is a good discourse on the Siege of Odawara and the ten years between the destruction of the Go Hojo clan and the Sekigahara battle. Tokugawa's assignment to the Council in charge of looking after Toyotomi Hideyoshi's heir strengthened his massive control of eastern provinces and skillful use of marriages to continue his ascendence. The events of 1590 deserve treatment in this book. Or even a book of their own!

[Kyle Maguire · Rating 4 out of 5]

An informative and detailed account of the titular battle, as well as the key figures and events leading up to it.

This book takes an educational approach. Those looking for a dramatic retelling of events won't find it here. Those, however, wishing to expand their knowledge and read a historical account will be very satisfied.

The book has some punctuation issues now and then, as well as some run-on sentences, but otherwise was an enjoyable read. I left entertained, more knowledgeable, and happy with my time spent with this book, and I strongly recommended it for those interested in learning more Japanese history.

[Antonio Bustillo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent.

[Alex Vilt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent depiction of the famous battle w/ all the required details.
I enjoyed every page of it.