Looking out toward Tokyo from the road into Satomi Park, the site of what was Konodai Castle

1564.  Satomi Yoshihiro looked out across the Edo River at the Hojo forces arraying against him, just as his father had 26 years prior.  The elder Satomi, Yoshitaka, was defeated by Hojo Ujitsuna in the first battle of Konodai and driven far into the Boso Peninsula before he was forced to submit to Hojo dominance.  Would Yoshihiro be more fortunate?

Looking down from the earthworks into one of the baileys of Konodai Castle. Today, the grounds are known as Satomi Park and are popular for bird watching, a brilliant view of Tokyo and the Edo river, and as a place to enjoy nature.

A few weeks ago, I shot with a model friend of mine up in Konodai, a neighborhood in Ichikawa, in Chiba prefecture, right on the border with Tokyo.  She knew of a beautiful forest park and flower garden on the Edo River that would be great for an outdoor portrait shoot, which Satomi Park definitely is.  What she didn’t realize is that Satomi Park was built on the site of the Sengoku period fortifications and the site of two Sengoku era battles over the ownership of Konodai Castle.  In 1538 and again in 1564, the Hojo Clan from Odawara clashed with the Satomi Clan over control of the Musashi plain.  This lead to a fierce rivalry and outright war.  We’ve talked about the later Hojo clan on more than one occasion.  However, his is the first time I’ve brought up the Satomi, so let’s talk about who they were.

These old coffins were at one time thought to be graves of the Satomi Clan samurai, but Edo period writers suggest that the graves were uncovered when the castle was built. Recent archaeology suggests that they date from the 6th or 7th century.  Who was buried here or who may have lived here before, is anybody’s guess.

The Satomi clan was not a long lasting clan by Japanese standards, especially compared to clans like the Fujiwara, Imagawa, or Takeda.  They were established in the late 12th or early 13th century in Kozuke Province (modern day Gunma) as an offshoot of the Nitta Clan, which was itself an offshoot of the much older Minamoto Clan (also called Genji). In the 1490s, they left Kozuke and took control of Awa Province, building Tateyama Castle to serve as their capital.  This gave them dominance over almost all of the Boso peninsula and soon put them at odds with emerging later Hojo Clan in Odawara, each wanting to exert influence over the larger Musashi Plain (modern day Tokyo and Kanagawa).  In 1524, The Satomi clashed with the Hojo in the old military capital of Kamakura, which sparked off a bitter feud between them.  The Satomi were also known to clash with the Imagawa and Takeda clans, though not to the same extent.  It was the Hojo that the Satomi would fight in their most notable campaigns.

Konodai Tenmangu Shrine located beside Satomi Park. The shrine was built on the old burial mound in the castle grounds in 1479 and moved to its current location beside the park in 1875.

in 1538, while the Hojo were preoccupied fighting the Imagawa Clan, Satomi Yoshitaka, along with allies from a smaller branch of the ruling Ashikaga Clan, saw an opportunity to expand their influence and march into Edo and Musashi Province.  Catching wind of this, Hojo Ujitsuna quickly rounded up what troops he could from Izu and Sagami and marched for Edo, meeting the Satomi forces at Konodai Castle.  The battle was hard fought, but the Hojo launched a three pronged attack which soon overwhelmed their enemies, destroying the Ashikaga contingent and driving the Satomi forces back to Awa.  Ujitsuna pursued Satomi Yoshitaka, eventually forcing him to submit to the authority of the Hojo in 1539.  Even so, the Satomi were able to inflict some damage during the campaign and destroy a couple of Hojo fortifications.   They may have lost the battle at Konodai and were forced to submit for now, but this was more of a setback than a decisive defeat.  A rematch was inevitable.

The view of Ichikawa, Chiba as seen from the hillside behind Mamasan Guhoji, a temple complex not far from Satomi park and the ruins of Konodai Castle.  If you’re in the area, the temple complex and nearby shrines are also worth a visit.

And that brings us back to 1564 and Yoshitaka’s son standing on the ramparts of Konodai Castle, looking out at the approaching Hojo forces.  He and his 8,000 samurai had recently managed to recapture Konodai, again while the Hojo were off fighting elsewhere in Japan.  And, just like before, upon hearing that the Satomi were on the march again, Hojo Ujiyasu, son of Ujitsuna, raised an army to oppose them.  And the Hojo army numbered 20,000.  Satomi Yoshihiro and his forces were dug in and had strong defenses in the castle, but it would be a hard battle.  On January 7th, 1564, Ujiyasu made his move, sending two of his generals to cross the river and attack.  The Satomi marched out to meet the Hojo attack, but soon began falling back, drawing the Hojo forces toward the castle.  Ujiyasa could see what was going on, and knew that the Satomi were likely leading his forces into some sort of trap.  Ujimasa, however, had plans of his own, and wouldn’t fall for such a trick.  As Yoshihiro sprang his trap, the Hojo forces broke and fled back across the river.  The Satomi forces cheered and returned to the castle, believing they had won a great victory.  After all, the Hojo had fled.  They had even managed to kill two of Ujimasa’s commanders.  And so as night fell on January 7th, the Satomi samurai partied, drinking well into the night.  Hojo Ujimasa, however, was not finished, and the unprepared, hung over Satomi samurai were awakened at dawn on the 8th to the sounds of charging samurai from their rear.  Ujimasa had sent his son with a portion of his troops around to Yoshihiro’s rear the previous afternoon, while his main force retreated.  At dawn, the Hojo forces attacked from all sides, surprising the Satomi and leaving them completely surrounded.  One account suggests that the Satomi were so completely surprised and several men ran out of the castle to face the Hojo with out their armor.  Other’s ran out empty handed to be cut down by the Hojo troops.  The battle on the 9th was a rout.  Yoshihiro barely escaped with his life, and his young son, likely fighting in his first battle, was killed in the retreat.  Legends say that one of Yoshihiro’s young daughters arrived after the battle and, upon seeing the carnage on the field, wept until she died of a broken heart.  The Satomi were scattered, and while they would still resist Hojo domination, they were soundly beaten and would never challenge the Hojo in battle again.  Though it was the Satomi that would get the last laugh.

Monuments to the Satomi Clan samurai killed in the second battle of Konodai. The right most stone is dedicated to young Satomi Hirotsugu who was struck down by one of the Hojo commanders, Matsuda Yasuyoshi, as he fled the battle. Hirotsugu was just a boy in his first battle, barely 15, and legend states that on some cold nights, the stone weeps for the fallen boy.

In 1590, retainers of the Hojo clan attacked a castle promised to a vassal of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, leading to the final siege of Odawara Castle and the downfall of the Hojo Clan.  At the battle, Yoshihiro’s grandson and heir, Satomi Yoshiyasu, lead troops on Toyotomi’s side of the battle, allowing him to witness the end of his clan’s hated rival.  With the Hojo gone, Tokugawa Ieyasu took control of Edo and confirmed the Satomi clan’s place as the rulers of Awa province.  He even greatly expanded their holdings into modern day Ibaraki Prefecture in return for their support at the battle of Sekigahara.  These good fortunes wouldn’t last however.  While the Hojo couldn’t completely destroy the Satomi clan, the court politics of the Tokugawa Shogunate were a far more formidable enemy. 

The main gate of Mamasan Guhoji, a large temple complex not far from Satomi Park and the ruins of Konodai Castle. the foundations of the temple go back over a thousand years, but most of the structures are modern.  These temples were here when the Satomi Clan took control of the area.  It is likely that the Satomi would have been patrons of these religious sites.  Perhaps Satomi Samurai prayed here before the battles.

In 1613, Okubo Nakayasu, an administrator in the Tokugawa government in charge of the silver mines in Tokugawa held lands and member of the powerful Okubo clan, died, and after his death it was found that he was using his position and clan ties to commit fraud.  This would have been bad in and of itself, but the Okubo had run afoul of Honda Masanobu, one of Tokugawa Ieyasu’s most trusted advisers and later secretary under the second Shogun, Tokugawa Hidetada.  He was a powerful man, and the scandal around Okubo Nakayasu gave Honda the chance he needed to be rid of the Okubo once and for all.  And since the last Satomi Daimyo, Satomi Tadayoshi was related to the head of the Okubo clan by marriage and as such was caught up in the scandal.  He, along with the Okubo clan, was stripped of his holdings and exiled, where he died childless in 1622.  Today, all that remains of the Satomi clan are the monuments in Satomi Park and a handful of temples and shrines that still bear the Awa name.  Awa province was placed under the direct control of the Shogunate, Konodai Castle was torn down, and Tateyama Castle was abandoned for decades until a Tokugawa official established a small government office on the grounds.  The Satomi and all they built more or less ceased to be.  Even so, in the lands they once ruled, their memory still lives on.  Perhaps one day I will have to take a trip down to Tateyama, see the rebuild castle and see what else might remain of this once proud clan.

The bell tower of Mamasan Guhoji, a temple complex in Ichikawa, Chiba, only a short walk from Satomi Park and the ruins of Konodai Castle. This is one of few historic things left of the temple, along with the main gate and a 400 year old sakura tree. Even so, the grounds are worth visiting if you are in the area. Perhaps someday I will have to return to the area and explore further.