The Tokugawa Go-San-ke,

The Three Noble Houses of the Tokugawa

Tokugawa Ieyasu had watched as the first of the unifiers of Japan, Oda Nobunaga, was struck down in his prime by one of his own generals, Akechi Mitsuhide in the Honno-ji Incident of June, 1582. Ieyasu had also watched in horror as Nobunaga’s son and heir, Oda Nobutada had also been attacked and killed by the Akechi forces immediately afterwards while he bivouacked in nearby Nijo Castle. Ieyasu had also watched the Oda generals bicker amongst themselves as Nobunaga’s second and third sons vied to take the helm.