Nakagawa Hidenari
The Life of Warrior and Unexpected Daimyo
Born in Setsu Province, now south eastern Hyogo Prefecture in 1570, Nakagawa Hidenari was the second son of Nakagawa Kiyohide, a most able warrior killed in action holding Oiwayama-fort as the second vanguard of Hideyoshi's forces at the Battle of Shizugatake in 1583.
Nakagawa Hidemasa, Hidenari's older brother succeeded his father, however on October 24, 1592, during the Bunroku Invasion of Korea, Hidemasa was surrounded and killed by the enemy while practicing the samurai sport of falconry. He died without having produced or named an official heir, a most grave mistake, as this was often the cause of a warrior clan being dismissed.
The Nakagawa clan, fearing that they would be stripped of their title for this blunder, reported that Hidemasa had been "killed in battle," — a much more attractive samurai like death than being embarrassingly captured and killed while enjoying sports. However this cover up was soon discovered and for that the Nakagawa clan incurred the wrath of Toyotomi Hideyoshi. However, in recognition of his late father Kiyohide's excellent record and military achievements in the Battle of Shizugatake, Hidenari was allowed to inherit half of his brother's estates, 66,000 koku and lands in the Miki region of Harima Province.
On December 6 of the same year, Toyotomi Hideyoshi issued a document to Miyanaga Nagahisa (Lord of Inaba Tottori Castle), Araki Shigetake (Lord of Inaba Wakasa Castle), Nanjo Mototsugu (Lord of Hoki Hagoromoishi Castle), and Kakiya Tsunemasa (Lord of Inaba Urazumi Castle) informing them that he had ordered Nakagawa Hidenari to succeed Nakagawa Hidemasa, who had been “killed in battle after encountering an ambush while under-staffed in Korea”, and that in the future, he would not approve the succession of any person who was killed in battle due to carelessness. An ominous warning to those mentioned to promptly register an heir.
As a daimyo now greatly obliged to Hideyoshi, Hidenari too was dispatched to Korea, seeing action in a number of battles mostly under the command of warlord Todo Takatora. During the 1597 invasion, Nakagawa Hidenari mobilized 1,500 men and participated in the capture of Hwangseoksanseong Fortress on August 16. After the Jeonju War Conference on the 26th, where all the generals gathered, he was instructed to take control of Taejin and Gwangju regions together with the Ikeda clan. He then participated in the Jeongeup Conference of September 16, where the strategy for Jeolla Province was reaffirmed, and fought in numerous battles from Chungcheong Province to Jeolla Province.
During the Korean Invasion, peonies were brought back from Korea by Hidenari and planted in the grounds of Oka Castle and several local temples. These were replanted and divided several times. One that remains today is located to the right of the bell tower at the Sanmon gate of Eiyu-ji Temple in Taketa City, Oita Prefecture, which was built in 1644 by Hidenari’s son, the second feudal lord, Nakagawa Hisamori, to commemorate the soul of his grandfather. The Eiyu-ji Temple holds a peony festival and memorial services every year on April 20th, when the peonies bloom.
His fine services to the Toyotomi administration had Nakagawa Hidenari transferred and made Daimyo of Bungo Province (Oita Prefecture) with a raise from 66,000 to 74,000 koku. Upon the death of Hideyoshi, Nakagawa then remained loyal to the young Toyotomi Hideyori.
Despite his close association with the Toyotomi, in 1600, at the Battle of Sekigahara, he allied himself with the Tokugawa cause, and although he was absent from the actual battlefield, he was involved in the attack on Usuki Castle and defeated his neighbouring daimyo, the Western allied Ota Kazuyoshi. In recognition of his achievements, Tokugawa Ieyasu allowed him to retain his lands and income.
Nakagawa Hidenari died 12 years after the Battle of Sekigahara, on September 9, 1612 aged 43.