Toyotomi Hideyori Early life . When Hideyoshi died in 1598 , the five regents he had appointed to rule in Hideyori ' s place began jockeying amongst themselves for power . Tokugawa Ieyasu seized control in 1600 , after his victory over the others at the Battle of Sekigahara . Hideyori ' s arranged marriage to Senhime , the seven - year - old granddaughter of Ieyasu , was designed to mitigate Toyotomi clan dissension and plotting . In this period , the eight - year - old boy practiced calligraphy with phrases wishing for peace throughout the world . However , Ieyasu continued to view the young Hideyori as a potential threat . Tokugawa forces attacked Hideyori in the Siege of Osaka in the winter of 1614 . The attack failed , but Hideyori was induced to sign a truce and dismantle the defenses of his stronghold Osaka Castle . War with Ieyasu . In April 1615 , Ieyasu received word that Toyotomi Hideyori was gathering even more troops than in the previous November , and that he was trying to stop the filling of the moat of Osaka Castle . Toyotomi forces ( often called the Western Army ) began to attack contingents of the Shogun ' s forces ( the Eastern Army ) near Osaka . On June 5 , 1615 . As Toyotomi ' s forces began to lose the battle , a smaller force led directly by Hideyori sallied forth from Osaka Castle too late , and was chased right back into the castle by the advancing enemies . There was no time to set up a proper defense of the castle , and it was soon set ablaze and pummeled by artillery fire . Hideyori and his mother committed seppuku , and the final major uprising against Tokugawa rule for another 250 or so years was put to an end . His widow remarried but later became a Buddhist nun . According to James Murdoch ' s " A History of Japan During The Century of Early Foreign Discourse " , based heavily upon the works of many Japanese sources ( the Nihon Shoki , Miyoshi - Ki , and many more ) as well as heavily based off the writings of the Jesuits , their annual letters , the letters of Will Adams and the diaries of Adams ' Dutch comrades , the events of Hideyori ' s death and the final fall of Osaka Castle were as such . Yukimura Sanada had been tactician of the climactic battle outside the gates of Osaka . Recognizing that they had a serious numerical disadvantage , they decided to attempt a tactic of inducing surprise and confusion in the Tokugawa camp . This was to be affected by first , Osaka captain Akashi Morishige getting behind the Tokugawa van , which would then be taken with Akashi ' s surprise attack , fall on Akashi , allowing Sanada with his troops and Mori Katsunaga , who was in charge of the Osaka Ronin , to fall into the Tokugawa front . When the confusion was to be at its height , Hideyori would have marched out of Osaka castle with his home troops and would in theory be the final blow to the Tokugawa . What happened , according to Murdoch , was that Akashi was not able to get behind the Tokugawa troops , having been discovered and engaged before he emerged from the lanes . Whats more , the plans fell apart as Mori ' s Ronin , ever eager to fight , began shooting at the Tokugawa ranks , not waiting for Sanada ( who was serving as Commander of the battle , in addition to being the tactician of the battle ) to command them to do so . Sanada at once told the ronin to stop but they only doubled their efforts . Mori Katsunaga , deciding to take advantage of his ronin ' s eagerness , then decided to launch them forward nevertheless . Upon this , Sanada realized in order to keep any structure of his original plan , he too , would need to engage alongside the ronin . He decided then to launch himself alongside Katsunaga ' s force , straight into the Tokugawa , while dispatching a messenger to Hideyori to march out at that very moment instead of a bit further on as had been decided in the plan . Hideyori began moving with his troops to leave Osaka . Meanwhile , the Osaka troops had been doing quite well in spite of the numerical disadvantage . It has even been said , in Murdoch ' s book , as he goes to show in an extract from a missionaries letter regarding the event ( and it should be noted , there were several inside Osaka castle at this point ) that the Osaka assault was actually quite successful and drove the Tokugawa back quite promptly . The plan of creating Tokugawa confusion worked and according to the Jesuits , Ieyasu himself , serving as the ultimate reinforcement to the center force , had told his men to kill him if victory seemed for nigh . Not only did the Jesuits write this , but , in another account , Murdoch states that Ieyasu had at least for some time had designs of hara - kiri because victory seemed to be escaping him . According to Siebold , at this critical moment , as Hideyori was leaving Osaka to enter the fray , Ieyasu sent forth into Osaka the son of Osaka captain Ono Harunaga who had been a hostage to the Tokugawa . Ono Harunaga ' s son entered the castle and immediately dispatched a letter from Tokugawa to his father . The letter said " Do not let Hideyori leave the castle . In the castle is a conspiracy and as soon as Hideyori leaves it he will be attacked from the rear . " It is because of this letter , according to Siebold , that Hideyori ' s portion of the plan miscarried . He was just about to leave when he was brought word of its contents , and at this point , stalled in entering the fray . Eventually , despite the ferocity and initial victories of the Osaka troops , the numerical advantage of the Tokugawa forces proved too much . According to the Nihon Senshi : " Hideyori , when he received intelligence of the defeat of his ronin , said , " Death is what I have been ready to meet for long , " and was about to sally from the castle in order to fight his very last battle when he was stopped by Hayami , one of his seven captains , who urged that a commander - in - chief should not expose his person among the promiscuous dead . Let Hideyori defend the castle to the last ; when it fell , it would be time to take a decision ! " And amidst the ensuing chaos , Hideyori fell back . The castle was fired and general chaos ensued . This Hayami , one of his seven captain ' s , eventually lead Hideyori , his wife , the daughter of the Shogun and grand daughter of Ieyasu , and his mother , Yodogimi to a fire proof keep in the castle . From here , Hideyori ' s wife , the daughter of the Shogun , left to beg of her father and grand father to spare Hideyori . According to Murdoch , when she finally reached the Shogun , Hidetada , he had remarked coldly to her , " Why don ' t you die with your husband ? " which was customary . However , Ieyasu feigned compassion and instructed Tokugawa captains Ii and Ando to see to Hideyori ' s safe retreat . Hideyori , however , remained in the fire - proof keep with his mother and , having sent dispatches to Ieyasu and Hidetada , waited for a response . He was given none and , upon his fire - proof keep being fired upon by the forces of Ii and Ando , allegedly then committed ritual suicide and the keep was destroyed . Although Ii had been tasked with seeing to Hideyori ' s safe retreat , when , shortly after , Ii had reported the affairs to Ieyasu and told of his exceeding the orders he ' d been given and , thereupon asked Ieyasu to punish him accordingly , according to Murdoch ' s book , Ieyasu merely nodded without saying anything and Ii left Ieyasu ' s presence . Not but a few weeks later Ii received a raise on his revenue at Hikone , in Omi , the sum going from 180 , 000 koku to 230 , 000 koku and still , later on , in 1617 to 280 , 000 koku . Survival myths . In spite of this , still , Hideyori ' s actual corpse was never discovered and during those years , a popular rumor persisted that Hideyori had indeed escaped Osaka . The rumors had enough merit to concern the Tokugawa shogunate , all this according to Murdoch ' s book . The matter was serious enough that it found mention in the journals of Cocks , the Dutch comrade of William Adams . The following extracts from Cocks ' journal explain the matter at hand : " September 18th , 1616 Capt . Adames went againe to the Cort [ at Yedo ] to procure our dispatch , and fownd all the Councell busyed about matters of justice of lyfe and death ; and amongst the rest , one man was brought in question about Fidaia Samme [ Hideyori ] , as being in the castell with him to the last hower . This man was racked and tormented veru much , to make hym confes where his master was , or whether he were alive or dead ; but I canot heare wether he confessed anything or no . " " May 5th , 1616 The sonne of Tuan Dono of Langasaque [ Nagasaki ] [ i . e the brother of the Japanese Jesuit killed at the storming of Osaka ] , departed to sea with 13 barkes laden with souldiers to take the iland Taccasange , called per them soe , but by us Isla Fermosa . And it is reported he is at Goto , staying for more succors which are to come from Miaco , and thought they mean to goe for Lequea [ Loochoo ] , to look for Fidaia Samme [ Hideyori ] . " " July 7th , 1616 Speeches geven out that the Tono , or King , of Xaxma [ Satsuma ] meaneth to make wars against the new Emperor [ Hidetada ] in right of Fidaia Samme [ Hideyori ] , whom they report to be alive , and that he meaneth to begyn with Langasaque . This is now the common report . " " October 15th , 1616 And it is said Fidaia Samme is alive ; but what will com hereof I know not . " Hideyori ' s son Kunimatsu ( age 8 ) was captured and beheaded ; his daughter Naahime ( Princess Naa ) ( age 7 ) was sent to Tōkei - ji , a convent in Kamakura , where she later became the twentieth abbess Tenshū Hotai ( 1608 - 1645 ) .