Ashikaga Yoshiaki 足利 義昭
Shōgun
In office 1568–1573
Monarch	Ōgimachi
Preceded by	Ashikaga Yoshihide
Succeeded by	Tokugawa Ieyasu
Personal details
Born	5 December 1537 Ashikaga shogunate
Died	19 October 1597(1597-10-19) (aged 59) Azuchi–Momoyama period
Parents	Ashikaga Yoshiharu (father) Keiju-in, daughter ofKonoe Hisamichi (mother)
Signature

Ashikaga Yoshiaki (足利 義昭; 5 December 1537 – 19 October 1597)^[1] was the 15th and finalshōgun of theAshikaga shogunate in Japan who reigned from 1568 to 1573 when he staged arevolt and was overthrown.^[2] His father,Ashikaga Yoshiharu, was the twelfthshōgun, and his brother,Ashikaga Yoshiteru, was the thirteenthshōgun.^[3]

Ashikaga Yoshiaki was born to Ashikaga Yoshiharu on 5 December 1537.^[1] He entered Kofuku-ji temple as a monk, but when his older brother Yoshiteru was killed by theMiyoshi clan, he returned to secular life and took the name "Yoshiaki".^[4] At the time, the Ashikaga shogunate had been severely weakened; its authority was largely ignored across Japan. Regardless, various factions still fought to control the central government, as it still held some prestige despite its diminished status. Ashikaga Yoshiteru attempted to overthrow the Miyoshi who effectively controlled him, but his conspiracies led the Miyoshi andMatsunaga Hisahide to organize acoup d'état as well as force Yoshiteru to commit suicide. They then opted to installAshikaga Yoshihide as the fourteenth shogun in Kyoto, but were unable to control the capital.^[5]

In November 21 1567 he was transferred to An'yō-ji Temple inIchijōdani (present-dayFukui City, Fukui Prefecture), the base of theAsakura clan.^[6][7] In April 15 1568, he came of age and changed his name to Yoshiaki.^[6][7]

There was no effective central authority in Kyoto until Ashikaga Yoshiaki was able to enlist warlordOda Nobunaga to support his cause. The Oda armies enteredKyoto in 1568, re-establishing theMuromachi shogunate under Ashikaga Yoshiaki as a puppetshōgun. This marked the beginning of theAzuchi–Momoyama period. Ashikaga Yoshihide, the fourteenth shōgun, was deposed without ever entering the capital.^[8][9] Before long, Yoshiaki became dissatisfied with Oda Nobunaga's overlordship and tried to regain state power.^[9] In 1569, Yoshiaki's Nijō residence was constructed, becoming a notable symbol of his authority.^[10]

In 1573, Ashikaga Yoshiaki requested the aid of another warlord,Takeda Shingen, in overthrowing the Oda clan. Shingen led a force of about 30,000 westward and routed the army of Nobunaga's ally,Tokugawa Ieyasu, atMikatagahara. Upon receiving this news, Yoshiaki himself raised an army and plunged into battle against Nobunaga, but Shingen's army never reached Kyoto. Shingen had died of illness. Unaware of this, Yoshiaki continued his fight against Nobunaga but eventually surrendered. Nobunaga spared Yoshiaki's life but decided to banish him from Kyoto.^[11][12] Most historians consider this the Ashikaga shogunate's end. Yoshiaki became a Buddhist monk, shaving his head and taking the name Sho-san, which he later changed to Rei-o In.^[13] However, Yoshiaki did not formally relinquish his title as shogun. Accordingly, the empty shell of the Ashikaga shogunate could be said to have continued for several more years. Despite a renewed central authority in Kyoto and Nobunaga's attempt to unify the country, the struggle for power among warring states continued. Yoshiaki acted as a rallying point for anti-Oda forces. He even raised troops himself, and sent them to fight against Nobunaga's army during theIshiyama Hongan-ji War.^[14] In 1576, he sought the support of theMōri clan, the largestdaimyō in Western Japan, and moved his base to Tomo (present-dayFukuyama City). The approximately ten-year period that followed is sometimes referred to as the "Tomo Shogunate (鞆幕府)".^[15] Even after Nobunaga had died in 1582, the former shogun continued his efforts to regain power. According to historian Mary Elizabeth Berry, Yoshiaki still resisted Nobunaga'sde facto successorToyotomi Hideyoshi by 1590.^[16]

He died in 1597.^[12]

Ashikaga Yoshiaki'sstandard was a whiteHata-jirushi with golden lettering and a red sun. His banner was white and had "Hachiman Dai Bosatsu" written on it in black.^[12]

• Father: Ashikaga Yoshiharu
• Mother: Keijuin (1514–1565)
• Concubines:
  • Osako no Kata
  • Kosaki no Tsubone
• Children:
  • Ashikaga Yoshihiro (1572–1605)
  • Isshi Yoshitaka
  • Nagayama Yoshiari (1575–1635)
  • Yajima Hideyuki

The span of years in which Yoshiaki wasshōgun are more specifically identified by more than oneera name ornengō.^[17]

• Eiroku (1558–1570)
• Genki (1570–1573)
• Tenshō (1573–1592)

• Ackroyd, Joyce. (1982)Lessons from History: the Tokushi Yoron. Brisbane:University of Queensland Press.ISBN 9780702214851;OCLC 7574544
• Titsingh, Isaac. (1834).Nihon Ōdai Ichiran; ou,Annales des empereurs du Japon. Paris: Royal Asiatic Society, Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and Ireland.OCLC 585069
• Berry, Mary Elizabeth (1982).Hideyoshi. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.ISBN 9780674390256.
• Turnbull, Stephen (2004) [1st pub. 1998].The Samurai Sourcebook (3rd ed.). London: Cassell.ISBN 1-85409-523-4.
• Sansom, George (1961).A History of Japan, 1334–1615. Stanford University Press.ISBN 0804705259.{{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)
• Yamada, Yasuhiro (2019).足利義輝・義昭 [Ashikaga Yoshiteru and Yoshiaki]. ミネルヴァ日本評伝選 (in Japanese). ミネルヴァ書房.
• Kuno, Masashi (2017).足利義昭と織田信長 [Ashikaga Yoshiaki and Oda Nobunaga]. 中世武士選書 第40巻 (in Japanese). 戎光祥出版.ISBN 978-4-86403-259-9.

• 1537 births
• 1597 deaths
• 16th-century shōguns
• Ashikaga shōguns
• Ashikaga clan
• Japanese Buddhist clergy
• Buddhist clergy of the Azuchi–Momoyama period

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