Battle of Utsunomiya Castle
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| Battle of Utsunomiya Castle | |||||||||
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| Part of Boshin War | |||||||||
 Utsunomiya castle during the Edo period. |
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| Combatants | |||||||||
| Imperial Army made up of forces from the Matsumoto, Kurohane, Mibu, Iwamurata, Suzaka, Hikone, Ogaki, Utsunomiya, and Kasama domains. | Loosely organized former Shogunate forces | ||||||||
| Commanders | |||||||||
| Imperial Japanese Army under Satsuma and Chōshū | Otori Keisuke, Hijikata Toshizo, others. | ||||||||
| Strength | |||||||||
| Unknown | 2,000 | ||||||||
| Casualties | |||||||||
| Unknown | Unknown | ||||||||
| Boshin War |
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| Toba-Fushimi – Awa – Kōshū-Katsunuma – Utsunomiya Castle – Ueno – Hokuetsu - Bonari Pass – Aizu – Miyako Bay – Hakodate – Hakodate Bay |
The Battle of Utsunomiya Castle (Japanese:宇都宮城の戦い) was a battle of the Japanese Boshin War which occurred in May of 1868. It occurred as the troops of the Bakufu were heading north towards Nikkō and Aizu.
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[edit] Background
In the early spring of 1868, former Tokugawa retainers under Ōtori Keisuke and Hijikata Toshizō had gathered at Kōnodai (国府台), having left the shogun's capital of Edo en masse. However, there were small numbers of men of Aizu under Akizuki Noborinosuke and Kuwana troops under Tatsumi Naofumi also present, as well as a handful of former Shinsengumi, such as Shimada Kai.[1] While much of their numbers were samurai, there were also many members of other social classes present, particularly under Ōtori's direct command. Their objective was Utsunomiya, a castle town on the road northward to Nikkō and Aizu, which was a position of vital strategic importance. The daimyō of Utsunomiya, Toda Tadatomo, was absent, as he had been charged by Tokugawa Yoshinobu with traveling to Kyoto and submitting a letter of apology and submission.[2] However, upon his arrival in Ōtsu, he was met by Satsuma-Chōshū forces, and placed under confinement, as such a message reaching the ears of the Emperor might have resulted in a premature pardon that would have complicated the Sat-Cho alliance's anti-Tokugawa military objectives.[3] This left Utsunomiya in the hands of Tadatomo's retired predecessor, Toda Tadayuki, who also advocated surrender but was not involved in the efforts of the former Shogunate.
[edit] Events Leading to the Battle
In the days prior to the attack, the former Shogunate forces were moving quickly in the area from castle to castle, with Hijikata taking two domains-- Shimotsuma and Shimodate-- on the May 7 and May 8, respectively. However, as these domains were small and their daimyō had fled, they did not have much in terms of money or supplies, and Hijikata was unable to acquire what he had hoped for.[4] Almost simultaneously, a peasant riot broke out in Utsunomiya, giving the former Shogunate forces the perfect opportunity to strike, which they seized without delay.[5] Ōtori's forces launched their attack on the castle on the morning of May 10, 1868, facing off against the combined Imperial force made up of troops from Matsumoto (Shinano Province, 60,000 koku), Kurohane (Shimotsuke Province, 18,000 koku), Mibu (Shimotsuke Province, 18,000 koku), Iwamurata (Shinano Province, 18,000 koku), Suzaka (Shinano Province, 12,000 koku), Hikone (Ōmi Province, 350,000 koku), Ōgaki (Mino Province, 100,000 koku), Utsunomiya (Shimotsuke Province, 77,000 koku), and Kasama (Hitachi Province, 80,000 koku).[6] The castle fell the same day, with Toda Tadayuki escaping to Tatebayashi han[7]. Ōtori, leading the main element of the army, entered the castle on the 20th, and his forces emptied out the rice stored in the castle, handing it out to the townsfolk, who, as previously noted, had been rioting for the past several days.[8] Efforts were then made to strengthen the position of Ōtori's force. A combined unit of former Shogunate retainers and Aizu men, including former Shinsengumi member Nagakura Shinpachi's unit Seiheitai,[9] headed north to Mibu han, where they intended to hide and lie in wait; however, upon their arrival they discovered that Satsuma forces had already taken the castle. The southerners, shocked at their sudden appearance, entered the castle and mounted a defense; and while the attackers had intended to set fire to the castle town, a torrential rain began, and made that impossible. Despite their best efforts, this combined unit was not able to take Mibu Castle, and withdrew to Utsunomiya after sustaining a total of 60 men killed and wounded, including eight officers.[10] Subsequently, the Imperial army, with Satsuma and Ōgaki forces leading the way,[11] swept up in a northeastward direction over the Mibu-kaidō road on May 14, launching a counterattack which resulted in their taking of the castle on the same day.[12]
Faced with defeat, Ōtori's forces withdrew northward, by way of Nikkō, on to Aizu.[13]
[edit] Aftermath
It is important to note that while the Aizu domain previously advocated surrender and peaceful negotiation first and resistance second, the entrance of massive amounts of former Shogunate troops and others, following their retreat from Utsunomiya, forced its hand firmly into the realm of armed resistance:
"...soldiers of the Shogunate, who supported continued war, began decamping en masse and leaving Edo for Aizu, which necessitated Aizu's stance to be changed to one that was pro-war. Men such as senior councilor Saigō Tanomo and agriculture magistrate Kawahara Zenzaemon continued to push for allegiance and submission, however, they were not heard, and the clouds of war spread over northeastern Japan..."[14]
In later years, Ōtori would write an account of the battle, titled Nanka Kikō (南柯紀行), which would appear in Kyū Bakufu (舊幕府), a magazine devoted to documenting Bakumatsu history, which he helped edit.
[edit] Notes
- ^ Ōtori Keisuke. "Nanka Kikō". Kyū Bakufu 1 (1898): 21.
- ^ Abe Akira, “Utsunomiya-han”, in Hanshi Daijiten, Vol. 2 (Kantō). Tōkyō: Yūzankaku, 1989, p. 189.
- ^ Ibid.
- ^ Kikuchi Akira, Shinsengumi Hyakuichi no Nazo. Tōkyō: Shin Jinbutsu Ōraisha, 2000, p. 217
- ^ Abe, p. 189.
- ^ Yamakawa Kenjirō, Aizu Boshin Senshi. Tōkyō: Tōkyō Daigaku Shuppankai, 1931, pp. 232-33
- ^ Ibid, p. 233
- ^ Ibid.
- ^ Nagakura Shinpachi. Shinsengumi Tenmatsu-ki. Tōkyō: Shin Jinbutsu Ōraisha, 2003, p. 180.
- ^ Yamakawa, p. 235
- ^ Yamakawa, p. 235.
- ^ Abe, p. 189.
- ^ Yamakawa, p. 236
- ^ Hoshi Ryōichi, "Aizu-han no Kakuryō to Hanron", in Matsudaira Katamori no Subete, Tsunabuchi Kenjō, ed. Tōkyō: Shin Jinbutsu Ōraisha, 1984, p. 117.
[edit] References
- Abe Akira, “Utsunomiya-han”, in Hanshi Daijiten, Vol. 2 (Kantō). Tōkyō: Yūzankaku, 1989.
- Kikuchi Akira, Shinsengumi Hyakuichi no Nazo. Tōkyō: Shin Jinbutsu Ōraisha, 2000.
- Nagakura Shinpachi, Shinsengumi Tenmatsu-ki. Tōkyō: Shin Jinbutsu Ōraisha, 2003
- Ōtori Keisuke. "Nanka Kikō". Kyū Bakufu 1 (1898), 20-58.
- Tsunabuchi Kenjō, ed. Matsudaira Katamori no Subete Tōkyō: Shin Jinbutsu Ōraisha, 1984.
- Yamakawa Kenjirō. Aizu Boshin Senshi. Tōkyō: Tōkyō Daigaku Shuppankai, 1931.
