Battles of Kawanakajima

Battles of Kawanakajima
	Part of the Sengoku period
	; The Battle of Kawanakajima, Shingen on the left and Kenshin on the right; woodblock print by Utagawa Hiroshige (1845)
Date	1553, 1555, 1557, 1561, 1564
Location	Kawanakajima, Shinano Province, Japan36°38′55″N 138°11′41″E / 36.648611°N 138.194722°E
Result	Inconclusive
Belligerents
Takeda clan	Uesugi clan
Commanders and leaders
Takeda Shingen; Takeda Nobushige †; Yamamoto Kansuke †; Anayama Nobutada; Kōsaka Masanobu; Hoshina Masatoshi; Sanada Yukitaka; Sanada Nobutsuna; Hajikano Tadatsugu †; Baba Nobuharu; Morozumi Torasada †;	Uesugi Kenshin; Uesugi Kagenobu; Kakizaki Kageie; Amakasu Kagemochi; Irobe Katsunaga; Shibata Naganori; Yasuda Nagahide; Murakami Yoshikiyo; Nagao Fujikage; Takanashi Masayori; Honjō Shigenaga;
Strength
4th battle: 20,000	4th battle: 13,000
Casualties and losses
4th battle: 4,000+	4th battle: 3,000+
	class=notpageimage\| Location within Nagano Prefecture Battles of Kawanakajima (Japan)

The Battles of Kawanakajima (川中島の戦い, Kawanakajima no tatakai) were a series of battles fought in the Sengoku period of Japan between Takeda Shingen of Kai Province and Uesugi Kenshin of Echigo Province from 1553 to 1564. Shingen and Kenshin contested each other for control of the plain of Kawanakajima between the Sai River and Chikuma River in northern Shinano Province, located in the present-day city of Nagano.^[1]^[2] The battles were triggered after Shingen conquered Shinano, expelling Ogasawara Nagatoki and Murakami Yoshikiyo, who subsequently turned to Kenshin for help.^[3]

Five major battles of Kawanakajima occurred: Fuse in 1553, Saigawa in 1555, Uenohara in 1557, Hachimanbara in 1561, and Shiozaki in 1564.^[4] The most famous and severe battle was fought on 18 October 1561 in the heart of the Kawanakajima plain, thus being known the Battle of Kawanakajima.^[4] The battles were ultimately inconclusive and neither Shingen or Kenshin established their control over the plain of Kawanakajima.

The Battles of Kawanakajima became one of "the most cherished tales in Japanese military history", the epitome of Japanese chivalry and romance, mentioned in epic literature, woodblock printing, and movies.^[4]

^ Turnbull 2013, p. 11.
^ Turnbull, Stephen (1987). Battles of the Samurai. Arms and Armour Press. pp. 41–56. ISBN 0-85368-826-5.
^ Sato, Hiroaki (1995). Legends of the Samurai. Overlook Duckworth. pp. 214–220. ISBN 978-1-59020-730-7.
^ ^a ^b ^c Turnbull 2013, pp. 7–8.

[FOOTNOTETurnbull201311-1] Turnbull 2013, p. 11.

[Turnbull-2] Turnbull, Stephen (1987). Battles of the Samurai. Arms and Armour Press. pp. 41–56. ISBN 0-85368-826-5.

[Sato-3] Sato, Hiroaki (1995). Legends of the Samurai. Overlook Duckworth. pp. 214–220. ISBN 978-1-59020-730-7.

[FOOTNOTETurnbull20137–8-4] Turnbull 2013, pp. 7–8.

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