Fukuchiyama Castle

Connection to Swords

The relationship between Akechi Mitsuhide and the sword is a particularly fascinating subject of study within the Oda Nobunaga command structure. Mitsuhide is said to have originated from Nobunaga's "Omamawari-shū" (personal guard), and as one of Nobunaga's most trusted generals, he is considered to have possessed exceptional acumen in sword appraisal. Among the spoils of war that Mitsuhide acquired during the pacification of Tanba, it is conjectured that fine swords held by Tanba's provincial lords were included. Tanba was adjacent to Kyoto, and high-quality blades forged by Kyoto master-smiths circulated abundantly in the region. Mitsuhide utilized these fine swords by presenting them as tribute to Nobunaga or bestowing them as rewards to his retainers, thereby strengthening master-servant relationships. The military force commanded by Mitsuhide in the Honnōji Incident is said to have numbered around 13,000 troops, and mobilizing such a force required adequate preparation of arms and swords. The smiths of Fukuchiyama castle-town can be positioned as participants in this military equipment preparation. After Mitsuhide's death, Fukuchiyama Castle saw successive changes in its castellans: Hashiba Hidekatsu, Sugihara Ietsugu, Onogi Shigenkatsu, and Arima Toyouji. Following the Battle of Sekigahara, Arima Toyouji established the domain, and successive daimyo continued: Okabe Nagamori, the Inaba family, and the Matsudaira (Fukizutsu) family; ultimately, from Kanbun 9 (1669) onwards, the Kutsugi family administered Fukuchiyama Domain until the end of the Edo period. During each daimyo's era, the castle-town smiths also underwent transformations, and Tanba's sword culture was transmitted through diverse practitioners throughout the Edo period. The Tanba smiths, influenced by Yamato-den and Yamashiro-den traditions, leveraged their geographical proximity to Kyoto to produce fine-quality swords. Records associated with Mitsuhide are concentrated at the Fukuchiyama City Local History Museum and the Mitsuhide Museum, where materials on sword fittings believed to have been in Mitsuhide's possession can also be consulted. Following the airing of "Kirin ga Kuru," there has been a renewed movement of reassessment regarding Mitsuhide, and Fukuchiyama's sword culture has likewise attracted renewed attention. For sword enthusiasts, Fukuchiyama Castle, as the seat of Mitsuhide—who possessed the dual nature of both "the treacherous general" and "the benevolent ruler"—provides important historical context for understanding the history of the Japanese sword.