NOBUNAGA BIRTHDAY PROJECT ⑤ Some Insight into Nobunaga's Parents

Inspired by the online event of Nagoya Omotenashi Bushotai dedicated to the birthday of Nobunaga past year, I decided to join the celebrations this year too, providing a new post dedicated to Nobu every week, until June 23 😄 ^{Source: 日本歴史紀行}
In the previous contributions I investigated the figure of Nobunaga thought his reputations and the symbology suggested by his character. In these last articles, I'll indulge myself in some historical speculations concerning Nobunaga's origins. Here I talk about his parents and his family situation, included the interpretations in literature and movies.

Ok, let's start by introducing the parents of Nobunaga, two figures who are still quite elusive nowadays.

Oda Nobuhide was born in 1511 as lord of Shobata Castle, the first son of Oda Nobusada, one of the three "magistrates" (奉行, bugyo) of Kiyosu.
With the death of his father (1526∼1527), Nobuhide inherited both Nobusada's title and his dominion over Tsushima, an important port city facing the Kiso river. Shortly after his succession, he would face his first internal turmoil in 1532 by the hands of clan head Oda Tatsukatsu (or "Michikatsu") of Kiyosu Castle and another of the three magistrates, Oda Tozaemon of Odani Castle. They made peace the year after, and to show his authority and cement his relations he invited a famous kemari master from Kyoto to Shobata to entertain his guests.

It should be around this time that Nobuhide married Lady Dota (or "Lady Uchida"), as Nobunaga was born in 1534, after Nobuhide divorced from his first wife, a daughter of Oda Tatsukatsu.
I assume he divorced the daughter of Tatsukatsu during the turmoil of the previous years.

Nothing much is known about Lady Dota, not her year or place of birth, nor her real name. Even her origins are debated: she's usually considered a daughter of Dota Masahisa, but the documents asserting so seemed forged in later years. Anyway, these sources were considered enough to grant the ruins of Dota Castle a very cute statue of Lady Dota and "Kipposhi". ^{Source: 46meguri}

According to the records Tsushima Okashiki (津島大橋記) and Kanjouroku (干城録), the mother of Nobunaga was the daughter of Kojima Nobufusa, a lord of Dota, in the Kani district of Mino province.
If this theory was correct, it would be interesting to note how Nobuhide took a wife from the neighbouring yet hostile province of Mino instead of favouring a wife from the Ikoma's.

The third theory, coming from the records of Minokoku Shokyūki (美濃国諸旧記), seems to identify Lady Dota with a daughter of Rokkaku Takayori, making her hail from Omi province.
Quite ironic, considering how Nobunaga defeated the Rokkaku in 1568 on his way to Kyoto.

Nobuhide captured Nagoya Castle from the Imagawa in 1538; he would lately grant it to Nobunaga, who was still a child, as he would move permanently to Furuwatari Castle in 1539. From here he would get hold of Atsuta, another important port city.
As Nobunaga was still young, the house management of Nagoya Castle was assigned to Hirate Masahide, a loyal retainer of Nobuhide. When Nobuhide was out to battle instead, the manager of Furuwatari Castle was Yamada Yaemon.
It's not clear how old Nobunaga was when he moved to Nagoya Castle, but considering that the mother of Ikeda Tsuneoki took care of him, signaling the absence of Lady Dota, it's possible that he was quite young, maybe 4∼5 years old.

Nobuhide lived with Lady Dota and his son Nobuyuki (also "Nobukatsu", "Tassei" and "Nobunari") in Furuwatari Castle until 1548, when he moved permanently to Suemori Castle.
He felt hill on 1551, and Nobuyuki took his place in the administration of the castle. ^{Source: "Kirin ga kuru" taiga drama}
Nobuyuki in fiction is usually portrayed as a pampered, untalented young man, but it must be noted that since Nobuhide's illness, he was the one who attended to the business of the Atsuta area, assisted by Nobunaga. As Nobuhide, the head of the clan was still alive, they acted as his subordinates showing no signs of rivalry.
As Nobuhide died in 1552, Nobunaga in Nagono and Nobuyuki in Suemori were part of a dual system that would grant the control of the Oda territory, expecially against certain rowdy relatives.

Historian Muraoka Mikio noted how in the Shinchoukoki both Nobunaga and Nobuyuki appeared as "equals" in their position as mourners at Banshoji, and how Nobunaga's outrageous act to throw incense against the altar during his father's funeral may be interpreted as a gesture of dissatisfaction because Nobuhide didn't declare a successor clearly.
In other essays is also noted how Nobuyuki inherited Suemori Castle, which was the seat of the head of the clan, and how he was supported by key vassals like Shibata Katsuie and Sakuma Morishige, but the Shinchoukoki noted how it was Nobunaga that after Nobuhide's death conceded Nobuyuki to stay in Suemori, and that attached Shibata Katsuie and Morishige Jiemon. As Nobunaga was the older brother, he probably mantained some authority over his younger brother.

There are many different portrayals of the relationship between Nobuhide and Nobunaga. ^{Source: "Kirin ga kuru" taiga drama}
In most fictional interpretations, Nobuhide is aware of Nobunaga's wit and treated him as his legitimate successor. In others, he's disgusted with his shenanigans, and doesn't hesitate to separate him from the "rest of the family".
If anything, this shows a degree of respect for Nobunaga's abilities, or at least the high consideration that Nobuhide had for his guardian, Hirate Masahide, as Nobunaga was de facto the ruler of a castle and of a big portion of Owari, the prosperous area of Tsushima included, since he became of age.

Masahide commited seppuku to protest against Nobunaga's behaviour in 1553, as he coveted the post of Kazusa no suke ("Assistant Governor of Kazusa Province") without getting permission from the Imperial Court.
Again, this is another relationship that was edulcorated in fiction: apparently, Masahide and his sons endured Nobunaga's behaviour hardly.

After Nobuhide and Masahide's death, the situation around Owari was this: Both Nobunaga and Nobuyuki had strong foes to deal with: Nobunaga had the other Oda Branch in Kiyosu Castle as a sempiternal cause of troubles, but Nobuyuki had to control the border threatened by the Imagawa forces; when the Yamaguchi of Narumi Castle revolted and supported the Imagawas, Owari as a whole was in peril.

Despite the next revolts and turmoils between clansmen though, Nobuhide's plan to divide the control of the domain between his two sons looked quite sound. One would think if a farsighted man as Nobuhide would consider this plan if he wasn't confident of the good relationship between the two brothers.

Another interesting relation to consider was that of Nobunaga and Lady Dota.
Usually in fiction it's given for granted that Lady Dota disliked Nobunaga and favoured Nobuyuki. ^{Source: "Kirin ga kuru" taiga drama}
Given that pretty much everyone did so back then, one of the reasons that may have made Lady Dota uncomfortable with Nobunaga would have been the premature death of Hidetaka, a younger sibling of Nobunaga and Nobuyuki, in 1555.
He was mistakenly killed by Oda Nobutsugu, lord of Moriyama Castle, and as Nobuyuki went and set fire to the whole place in retalliation, Nobunaga dismissed the incident and blamed Hidetaka for his behaviour.

Anyway, rather than Lady Dota, the source of the rebellion against Nobunaga was among the Oda's retainers. Fueled by the treacherous Hayashi brothers, the first rebellion of Nobuyuki was staged on 1556 and climaxed in the Battle of Ino.
Even if in this occasion Nobunaga killed Hayashi Michitomo, the struggles between Nagoya Castle and Suemori Castle continued, and it was Lady Dota who forced Nobuyuki and the other retainers to ask for forgiveness, given how threatening the Imagawas were, still pressing on their borders.
Nobunaga pardoned them, the treacherous Hayashi Hidesada included.

Nobuyuki rebelled again in 1559, this time fueled by Oda Nobukata of Iwakura Castle, and again it was both Katsuie and Lady Dota to urge him to see his brother, who was feigning an illness to assassinate him.
I'm not saying that Lady Dota conspired with Katsuie to kill Nobuyuki, but the fact that Nobunaga's illness was a trap was quite obvious in the context, and it must be noted how the younger brother was indeed the weak gear in the dual system envisioned by Nobuhide.

After the death of Nobuyuki, Lady Dota moved to Kiyosu with Nobunaga. Here Lady Dota helped taking care of her nephews. She would do the same with the daughters of Ichi, after she was widowed of Azai Nagamasa in 1573 and joined Nobunaga in Gifu Castle.

Lady Dota whereabouts after this are uncertain, what we know is that after Nobunaga's death she moved to live with his second son, Nobukatsu (or "Nobuo") in Kiyosu Castle.
When Nobukatsu lost Hideyoshi's favour in 1590, she moved again, this time to live with her younger son, Oda Nobukane, in Tsu Castle. According to the sources she died there in 1594.

Very little is know about the actual thoughts and opinions of Nobunaga of these people, so we can only guess stuff from details, without trying to get too charmed by fictional portrayals. ^{Source: "Kirin ga kuru" taiga drama}
In the end I assume that both Nobuhide and Lady Dota had no peculiar feelings pro or against their son-- He was seen as an asset for the clan, just like Nobuyuki-- And if anything, Lady Dota had way more reasons to be let down by Nobuyuki's lack of character and insight than Nobunaga's foolish days in his youth.