Araki Murashige

Japanese: 荒木村重 - あらき・むらしげ

Year of death: May 4, 1586 (June 20, 1586)
Year of birth: Tenbun 4 (1535)
A military commander from the Sengoku period. There is a theory that he was a descendant of the Hatano clan of Taki County, Tanba Province (Hyogo Prefecture). Son of Takamura (Yoshimura). Commonly known as Yasuke. Settsu no Kami. Buddhist name Michikaoru. Since his father's generation, he served Ikeda Katsumasa, a local lord of Settsu, but in October 1568, unable to withstand the attack of Oda Nobunaga, he followed Katsumasa and surrendered. In January of the following year, during the Honkokuji Incident, in which the Miyoshi Triumvirate attacked Ashikaga Yoshiaki, he accompanied Katsumasa and repelled them. After that, when the Ikeda clan was weakened by internal strife, he rose to prominence as a powerful vassal. In 1573, he became the lord of Ibaraki Castle, drove Wada Koremasa from Takatsuki Castle, and brought the eastern half of Settsu under his control. In July of the same year, he participated in Yoshiaki's uprising at Makishima Castle on the side of the Oda. As a result of his achievements, he was given control of the entire Settsu province. In 1572, he expelled Katsumasa to Mount Koya, killed Itami Tadachika in Itami Castle, and took over the castle, renaming it Arioka Castle. After that, he was in charge of military affairs in the Sanyo region, and in 1576, he attacked the Urakami clan in Harima, and the following year, he served as maritime security for Amagasaki and prepared for the Hongan-ji Temple. In 1577, he participated in the attack on Saika in Kii, and the following year, together with Hashiba (Toyotomi) Hideyoshi and others, he joined the reinforcements for Amago Katsuhisa, lord of Kozuki Castle in Harima, and confronted the Mori clan. However, in October of the same year, Nobunaga became suspicious of him after a family member of his cousin, Nakagawa Kiyohide, told him that he had sold rice to the Hongan-ji Temple. He tried to explain himself but failed, and it is said that he finally decided to rebel. Thus, he switched sides to the Hongan-ji Temple and the Mori clan, and together with Kiyohide and Takayama Ukon, he raised an army against Nobunaga, but he was attacked by Takigawa Kazumasu, Akechi Mitsuhide, and others, and was besieged for 10 months. Later, in September of the same year, Murashige secretly escaped the siege of Arioka Castle and entered Amagasaki Castle, but Arioka Castle fell in November. Nobunaga took over 30 people, including Murashige's wife, hostage. Murashige's relative Hisaemon went to Amagasaki to persuade him to surrender, but he would not listen. Nobunaga executed 36 of his wives and daughters in Kyoto, and executed over 600 of his retainers and their wives and daughters by pecking or burning at the stake. Murashige fled to Hanasumi Castle, but it was captured in July of the following year and he fled to a province under the Mori clan. After the Honnoji Incident, he lived in Sakai, studied tea ceremony under Sen no Rikyu, and was appointed as a master by Hideyoshi. He died in Sakai. It is said that Iwasa Matabei, a master of genre paintings from the early modern period, was his surviving son.

(Kyoji Morita)

Source: Asahi Japanese Historical Biography: Asahi Shimbun Publications Inc. About Asahi Japanese Historical Biography

Japanese:

没年：天正14.5.4(1586.6.20)
生年：天文4(1535)
戦国時代の武将。丹波国多紀郡(兵庫県)波多野氏の一族の出自という説がある。高村(義村)の子。通称弥介。摂津守。法名道薫。父の代から摂津国人池田勝正に仕えたが,永禄11(1568)年10月,織田信長の来攻に支え切れず勝正に従って降伏。翌年1月,三好三人衆が足利義昭を攻めた本国寺の変では,勝正に従軍してこれを撃退した。その後池田氏が内訌で弱体化すると有力家臣として台頭。天正1(1573)年,茨木城主となって和田惟政を高槻城から追い,摂津東半国を勢力下に置く。同年7月,義昭の槙島城蜂起には織田方として参戦。その功により摂津一国の支配を委ねられた。天正2年勝正を高野山に放逐し,伊丹城の伊丹忠親を滅ぼし,同城を接収して有岡城と改名。以後山陽方面の軍事を担当し,翌3年播磨浦上氏を攻撃,さらにその翌年には尼崎の海上警備を務めて本願寺に備えた。同5年紀伊雑賀攻めに従軍,翌年羽柴(豊臣)秀吉らと共に播磨上月城主尼子勝久への援軍に加わり毛利氏に対峙した。しかし,同年10月従兄弟に当たる中川清秀の家人が本願寺へ米を売却したという密告により信長に疑われ,釈明しようとしたが果たさず,ついに反逆を決意したといわれる。こうして本願寺,毛利氏側に寝返って,清秀や高山右近らと共に反信長の兵を挙げたが,滝川一益,明智光秀らの攻撃を受け,籠城10カ月におよんだ。その後村重は,同7年9月,ひそかに有岡城の包囲を逃れて尼崎城に入ったが,有岡城は11月に陥落。信長は村重の妻をはじめ30人余を人質とした。村重の同族久左衛門が尼崎に赴いて降伏を説得したが聞き入れず,信長は妻女36人を京都に斬り,家臣およびその妻女600人余を礫刑,火刑に処した。村重は花隅城に逃れたが,翌年7月攻め落とされて毛利氏分国に逃亡。本能寺の変後は堺に居住,千利休に茶を学び,宗匠として秀吉に起用された。堺で死去。近世初期風俗画の名手,岩佐又兵衛はその遺子という。

(森田恭二)

出典　朝日日本歴史人物事典：（株）朝日新聞出版朝日日本歴史人物事典について　情報

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