Background
Nagamasa Azai was born in 1545 in Nagahama, Shiga. He was a son of Asai Hisamasa and father of Yodogimi, concubine of Toyotomi Hideyoshi. Known in childhood as Saruyasha, later as Shinkuro.
浅井 長政
Nagamasa Azai was born in 1545 in Nagahama, Shiga. He was a son of Asai Hisamasa and father of Yodogimi, concubine of Toyotomi Hideyoshi. Known in childhood as Saruyasha, later as Shinkuro.
In 1564 he joined Nobunaga in capturing the Kannon-ji castle in the province of Omi (Shiga Prefecture), defeating the warrior Rokkaku Yoshikata and his son and gaining control of half the province of Omi.
The following year Oda Nobunaga installed himself in Kyoto in the service of Shogun Ashikaga Yoshiaki, thereby expanding his own power, whereupon Naga- masa joined with Asakura Yoshikage and the Hongan-ji temple in doing battle with Nobunaga. He made a truce with Nobunaga at one stage, but fought again and was defeated at the battle of Anegawa in Omi in 1570.
From then on his fortunes tended to wane; he joined with the Asakura family and the monks of the Enryaku-ji temple on Mt. Hiei in resisting Nobunaga. However, in 1571 Nobunaga burned down the temples on Mt. Hiei, then in 1573 defeated Asakura Yoshikage. Finally, he attacked Nagamasa in Odani Castle, and Nagamasa, unable to hold his forces back, committed suicide in the castle at the age of twenty-eight.
He married Oda Nobunaga’s younger sister .