Battle of Ueno
| Battle of Ueno 上野戦争 | |
|---|---|
| Part of Ueno, Tokyo 35°42′56″N 139°46′26″E / 35.71556°N 139.77389°E | |
| Result | Imperial victory |
Satsuma
Chōshū
Tosa
SagaJinshotai
Choshu: Ōmura Masujirō
Satsuma: Saigō Takamori
Tosa: Itagaki Taisuke
Amano Hachirō
10,000 reinforcements
266 (during the first battle)
The Battle of Ueno (上野戦争, Ueno Sensō) was a battle of the Boshin War, which occurred on July 4, 1868 (Meiji 1, 15th day of the 5th month),[1] between the troops of the Shōgitai under Shibusawa Seiichirō and Amano Hachirō, and Imperial "Kangun" troops.
Prelude
Though the Shōgitai was mostly made up of former Tokugawa retainers and residents of the surrounding provinces, some domains supported the Shōgitai, such as Takada han (Echigo Province, 150,000 koku), Obama han (Wakasa Province, 103,000 koku), Takasaki han (Kōzuke Province, 52,000 koku), and Yūki han (Shimosa Province, 18,000 koku).[2]
Facing them were the combined forces of the
Shibusawa and Amano initially had the 2000-strong Shōgitai posted in Ueno to protect Tokugawa Yoshinobu, who was, at the time, in self-imposed confinement at Ueno's Kan'ei-ji Temple, as well as Prince Rinnōji no Miya Yoshihisa, who was the abbot of the temple,[4] and was to become the new dynastic leader of the Tokugawa resistance as "Emperor Tōbu".
From their base, the Shogitai had been harassing Imperial troops, creating trouble in Edo, thus forcing the Imperial side, although outnumbered, to take action.[5]
Battle
The Shōgitai took up positions around
"With our ample preparations we made short work of [the enemy], and this is an exceptional and extreme delight."
— Saigō Takamori[5]
Rinnōji no Miya escaped, reached Enomoto Takeaki's warship Chogei-maru and was dropped off further north, on the Pacific coast.[6] Harada Sanosuke of the Shinsengumi is said to have joined the Shōgitai, and died soon after this battle.[7] About 300 Shogitai are said to have died in the battle, and a thousand houses were burnt in collateral damages.
References
- ^ NengoCalc: 明治一年五月十五日; n.b., the old lunar calendar date is sometimes misidentified as "May 15th."
- ^ Mori Mayumi. Shōgitai Ibun. Tōkyō: Shinkōsha, 2004, p. 123.
- ^ Mori Mayumi. Shōgitai Ibun. Tōkyō: Shinkōsha, 2004, p. 170.
- ^ Gekidosuru Aizu Boshin Hen. Vol. 5 of Aizuwakamatsu Shi. Tōkyō: Kokushō-kankōkai, 1981, p. 138
- ^ a b c The last samurai Mark Ravina p.157
- ^ a b Yamakawa Kenjirō. Aizu Boshin Senshi Tōkyō: Tōkyō Daigaku Shuppankai, 1931, p. 196.
- ^ Kikuchi Akira. Shinsengumi Hyakuichi no Nazo. Tokyo: Shin Jinbutsu Oraisha, 2000, pp. 228–229.
Further reading
- Kikuchi Akira. Shinsengumi Hyakuichi no Nazo. Tōkyō: Shin Jinbutsu Ōraisha, 2000.
- Mori Mayumi. Shōgitai Ibun. Tōkyō: Shinkōsha, 2004.
- Steele, M. William. Against the Restoration. Katsu Kaishu's Attempt to Reinstate the Tokugawa Family. Monumenta Nipponica, Vol. 36, No. 3. (Autumn, 1981), pp. 299–316.
- Steele, M. William. Edo in 1868: The View from Below. Monumenta Nipponica, Vol. 45, No. 2. (Summer, 1990), pp. 127–155.
- Takano Kiyoshi. Tokugawa Yoshinobu: Gendai Nihon no Enshutsusha. Tōkyō: Nihon Hōsō Shuppan Kyōkai, 1997.
- Yamakawa Kenjiro. Aizu Boshin Senshi. Tokyo: Tokyo Daigaku Shuppankai, 1931.