Ishiyama Hongan-ji War

Siege of Ishiyama Hongan-ji

Date	August 1570 – August 1580
Location	Fortress of Ishiyama Hongan-ji; other ikki strongholds
Result	Kōsa surrenders

Belligerents

forces of Oda Nobunaga

Ikkō-ikki monks
Saika Ikki
Mōri clan

Commanders and leaders

Oda Nobunaga
Akechi Mitsuhide
Araki Murashige
Sakuma Nobumori

Kōsa
Shimozuma Nakayuki

Strength

at least 30,000

at least 15,000

The Ishiyama Hongan-ji War (石山合戦, Ishiyama Kassen^?), taking place from 1570 to 1580 in Sengoku period Japan, was a ten-year campaign by lord Oda Nobunaga against a network of fortifications, temples, and communities belonging to the Ikkō-ikki, a powerful faction of religious zealots. It centered on attempts to take down the Ikki's central base, the cathedral fortress of Ishiyama Hongan-ji, in what is today the city of Osaka. While Nobunaga and his allies led attacks on Ikki communities and fortifications in the nearby provinces, weakening the Hongan-ji's support structure, elements of his army remained camped outside the Hongan-ji, blocking supplies to the fortress and serving as scouts.

The Ikkō-ikki, leagues of warrior monks and commoners were among the last to stand in the way of Oda Nobunaga's bid to conquer all of Japan. Oda had fought the Ikki before, crushing their armies of Mikawa Province and other areas, and by 1570, their twin fortresses of Ishiyama Hongan-ji and Nagashima were their last bastions of strength. He besieged both fortresses simultaneously, attacking Ishiyama in August 1570 and Nagashima in 1571.

In August 1570, Oda Nobunaga left his castle in Gifu with 30,000 troops, and ordered the building of fortresses around Ishiyama. On September 12, the Ikkō-ikki launched a midnight stealth attack against Nobunga's Kawaguchi and Takadono. The Ikko were reinforced by soldier monks from Negoro in Kii and 3,000 musketeers, pushing Oda's army back.

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