Shibata Katsuie

or was a Japanese samurai and military commander during the Sengoku period. He was retainer of Oda Nobuhide. He served Oda Nobunaga as one of his trusted generals, was severely wounded in the 1571 first siege of Nagashima, but then fought in the 1575 Battle of Nagashino and 1577 Battle of Tedorigawa.

Early life

Katsuie was born in the village of Kamiyashiro (present-day Meitō-ku, Nagoya), a branch of the Shiba clan (who descended from the Ashikaga clan, and were the former suzerains of the Oda clan). Note the differences between , , and the .

Katsuie was the retainer of Oda Nobuhide and later Oda Nobuyuki. In 1547, he fought at the Battle of Kanōguchi against the Saito clan and, in 1548, Katsuie took part in the second Battle of Azukizaka against Imagawa clan.

In 1556, when control of the Oda clan was contested, Katsuie initially supported his lord, Nobuyuki, against his elder brother Oda Nobunaga. Katsuie launched a coup d'état against Nobunaga. He was defeated at the Battle of Inō, and, in the aftermath, Nobunaga had his brother executed. But, impressed with the retainer's loyalty and bravery, Nobunaga spared Katsuie's life. Katsuie then pledged his services to Nobunaga, earning his praises.

In 1556, according to the records from the Tosho Gunkan, Sakai Tadatsugu defended Fukutani Castle, which was being besieged by 2,000 cavalry troops from the Oda Clan led by Shibata Katsuie. Tadatsugu managed to repel Katsuie's forces as he led a sallying force outside the castle and routed them.

Service under Nobunaga

Due to his identity, he didn't hold any important position during the Battle of Okehazama against the Saitō clan. But he was ordered to be a Bugyō in 1565.

In late 1568, Katsuie was pardoned by Nobunaga, along with Hosokawa Fujitaka, Hachiya Yoritaka, Mori Yoshinari and Sakai Masahisa attacked Iwanari Tomomichi at Shōryūji Castle.

In 1570, while the Oda–Tokugawa coalition fought at the Battle of Anegawa against the Asakura and Azai clans, Katsuie was at Chōkō-ji castle, under siege by 4,000 soldiers of the Rokkaku clan. Katsuie eventually won via an all-out attack, forcing the Rokkaku to retreat. He and Hashiba Hideyoshi protected the left flank.

In 1576, after gaining control of Echizen, he took command of Kitanosho Castle (Hokujō) and was ordered to conquer the Hokuriku region.

In 1577, Nobunaga sent an army led by Shibata Katsuie and some of his most experienced generals to reinforce Shigetsura from Noto province against Uesugi Kenshin at the Battle of Tedorigawa.

In 1580, he led an army, which included his general Sakuma Morimasa in a fight against the Kaga Ikko-ikki at Kanazawa Gobo. but he later supported Oda Nobutaka, Nobunaga's third son, for whom Katsuie had performed the genpuku ritual. He then allied with Oda Nobutaka and Takigawa Kazumasu against Toyotomi Hideyoshi who was allied with Oda Nobukatsu. Tension quickly escalated between Hideyoshi and Katsuie, and the following year they clashed at the Battle of Shizugatake.

Battle of Shizugatake

In 1583, Katsuie sent his nephew Sakuma Morimasa to besiege Takayama Ukon and Nakagawa Kiyohide at Shizugatake. Morimasa ignored Shibata's orders to withdraw to Ōiwa and was captured and beheaded by Toyotomi Hideyoshi's returning forces. Katsuie was defeated and retreated back into Echizen, all the way to Kitanosho Castle, which was taken in 3 days.

During the siege, Katsuie implored his wife, Oichi, to take their daughters and leave, but she decided to stay and die with him, while letting their daughters escape. After setting fire to his castle, Katsuie committed seppuku.

His death poem was:

Natsu no yo no yumeji hakanaki ato no na o kumoi ni ageyo yamahototogisu

"Fleeting dream paths, In the summer night! O bird of the mountain, Carry my name beyond the clouds."

Family Wife: Oichi (1547–1583) Step-daughters: Yodo-dono (1569–1615) Ohatsu (1570–1633) Oeyo (1573–1626) Adopted sons:

Shibata Katsumasa

In popular culture Shibata Katsuie is a playable character in Koei Tecmo's Samurai Warriors 2: Empires and all subsequent Samurai Warriors, the Warriors Orochi games, and Sengoku Basara 4. He appears in Nioh 2 and Fate/Grand Order as a side character.