Miyoshi Chōkei

Miyoshi Chōkei (1522–1564) was a Sengoku daimyō who may be called the "first ruler of the realm," having subdued Kyōto and the Kinai region before the rise of Oda Nobunaga. As head of the clan of the Miyoshi family, based in Awa (present-day Tokushima Prefecture), he expanded his power. In 1549 he expelled the kanrei (shogunal deputy) Hosokawa Harumoto and seized actual power. In 1553 (Tenbun 22) he drove Ashikaga Yoshiteru out of Kyōto, forcing him to flee to Kutsuki in Ōmi. In 1558 a reconciliation with Yoshiteru was concluded, and Yoshiteru returned to the capital, whereupon Chōkei effectively held the realm.

Chōkei possessed a fine ability as a warrior along with a deep appreciation for culture and the arts. He was fond of renga poetry and the tea ceremony, and he patronized many cultural figures. His principal castle, Iimoriyama Castle in Kawachi Province, was among the largest mountain castles of its time and also served as a cultural salon. The Miyoshi house had outstanding men, including his younger brothers Miyoshi Jikkyū, Ataka Fuyuyasu, and Sogō Kazumasa, and the retainer Matsunaga Hisahide, and under Chōkei a great regime was formed.

But the last years of Chōkei were colored by tragedy. The successive deaths of his younger brothers Sogō Kazumasa and Miyoshi Jikkyū, and of his eldest son, Yoshioki, wore down his body and mind. In 1564 he had his younger brother Ataka Fuyuyasu killed at Iimoriyama Castle, his residence castle. Chōkei died in 1564 at the age of 43. After his death the Miyoshi house declined rapidly, and it eventually yielded the central role of the age to Oda Nobunaga with the latter's entry into Kyōto. In recent years Chōkei has been reassessed as a "forerunner of Nobunaga."