Natsume Yoshinobu

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article or section may contain original research or unverified claims.
Please improve the article by adding references. See the talk page for details. (February 2008)

This article needs additional citations for verification.
Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (February 2008)

Natsume Yoshinobu (夏目吉信, Natsume Yoshinobu^?) (1517-1573) was a relatively senior retainer beneath the clan of Tokugawa throughout the latter Sengoku Period of Feudal Japan. As Yoshinobu began service as vassal to the Matsudaira before initially supporting Tokugawa Ieyasu's rise to power during the late 16th century, he would become holder of Hamamatsu castle, a strategic position essential to the balance of the Tokugawa's territory. Yoshinobu's mutual support to Ieyasu generally remains unknown, but service was seen during the Battle of Mikatagahara in 1573, at which he served as a leading general against the enemy forces of Takeda. Within this conflict, Yoshinobu scored a name for himself that would become a distinct memory of honor to the Tokugawa's prestige, for as Ieyasu intended on freeing his fellow generals that were trapped by the opposing side, Yoshinobu had been the one to subsequently persuade his lord into retreat, at the same time charging into the Takeda contingents, declaring himself to be Ieyasu. As the circumstances would have it, Yoshinobu was cut down before the enemy in a relatively short manner, which ultimately supported in the Tokugawa's retreat back to Hamamatsu.