Battle of Utsunomiya Castle The was a battle between pro - Imperial and Tokugawa shogunate forces during the Boshin War in Japan in May 1868 . It occurred as the troops of the Tokugawa shogunate were retreating north towards Nikkō and Aizu . Background . In early spring 1868 , former Tokugawa retainers under Ōtori Keisuke and Hijikata Toshizō left the shogun ' s capital of Edo en masse and gathered at Kōnodai ( 国府台 ) . There were small numbers of men of Aizu under Akizuki Noborinosuke and Kuwana troops under Tatsumi Naofumi also present , as well as a handful of surviving " Shinsengumi " , such as Shimada Kai . While many of their numbers were samurai , there were also many members of other social classes present , particularly under Ōtori ' s direct command . Their objective was Utsunomiya , a castle town on the road northward to Nikkō and Aizu , which was a position of vital strategic importance . The daimyō of Utsunomiya , Toda Tadatomo , was absent , as he had been charged by Tokugawa Yoshinobu with traveling to Kyoto and submitting a letter of apology and submission . Upon his arrival in Ōtsu , Toda was met by Satsuma - Chōshū forces and placed under confinement , as such a message reaching the ears of Emperor Meiji might have resulted in a premature pardon that would have complicated the alliance ' s anti - Tokugawa military objectives . This left Utsunomiya in the hands of Tadatomo ' s retired predecessor , Toda Tadayuki , who also advocated surrender , but was not involved in the efforts of the former Shogunate . Events leading to the battle . In the days prior to the attack , the former Shogunate forces were moving quickly in the area from castle to castle , with Hijikata taking two domains in Hitachi province — Shimotsuma and Shimodate — on May 7 and May 8 . However , as these domains were small and their daimyō had fled , they did not have much in terms of money or supplies , and Hijikata was unable to acquire what he had hoped for . Almost simultaneously , a peasant riot broke out in Utsunomiya , giving the former Shogunate forces the perfect opportunity to strike , which they seized without delay . Ōtori ' s forces launched their attack on the castle on the morning of May 10 , 1868 , facing off against the combined Imperial force made up of troops from Matsumoto ( Shinano Province , 60 , 000 " koku " ) , Kurohane ( Shimotsuke Province , 18 , 000 " koku " ) , Mibu ( Shimotsuke Province , 18 , 000 " koku " ) , Iwamurata ( Shinano Province , 18 , 000 " koku " ) , Susaka ( Shinano Province , 12 , 000 " koku " ) , Hikone ( Ōmi Province , 350 , 000 " koku " ) , Ōgaki ( Mino Province , 100 , 000 " koku " ) , Utsunomiya ( Shimotsuke Province , 77 , 000 " koku " ) , and Kasama ( Hitachi Province , 80 , 000 " koku " ) . The castle fell the same day , with Toda Tadayuki escaping to Tatebayashi . Ōtori , leading the main element of the army , entered the castle on the 20th , and his forces emptied out the rice stored in the castle , and handed it out to the townsfolk , who , as previously noted , had been rioting for the past several days . Efforts were then made to strengthen the position of Ōtori ' s force . Ōtori ' s men , now linked up with Hijikata ' s force , including others such as former " Shinsengumi " member Nagakura Shinpachi ' s unit Seiheitai , headed north to Mibu , where they intended to hide and lie in wait ; however , upon their arrival they discovered that Satsuma forces had already taken the castle . The Satsuma troops , shocked at the sudden appearance of the enemy , withdrew into Mibu Castle and mounted a defense ; and while the attackers had intended to set fire to the castle town , a torrential rain began , and made that impossible . Despite their best efforts , this combined unit was not able to take Mibu Castle , and withdrew to Utsunomiya after sustaining a total of 60 men killed and wounded , including eight officers . From the south , the Imperial army , with Satsuma and Ōgaki forces leading the way , swept up in a northeastward direction over the Mibu - kaidō road on May 14 , launching a counterattack which resulted in the re - capture of Utsunomiya Castle on the same day . Faced with defeat , Ōtori ' s forces withdrew northward , by way of Nikkō , on to Aizu . Aftermath . While the Aizu domain previously advocated surrender and peaceful negotiation first and resistance second , the entrance of massive numbers of loyalists to the former Shogunate , following their retreat from Utsunomiya , forced its hand firmly into the realm of armed resistance : " . . . soldiers of the Shogunate , who supported continued war , began decamping en masse and leaving Edo for Aizu , which necessitated Aizu ' s stance to be changed to one that was pro - war . Men such as senior councilor Saigō Tanomo and agriculture magistrate Kawahara Zenzaemon continued to push for allegiance and submission , however , they were not heard , and the clouds of war spread over northeastern Japan . . . " In later years , Ōtori wrote an account of the battle , titled " Nanka Kikō " ( 南柯紀行 ) , which appeared in " Kyū Bakufu " ( 舊幕府 ) , a magazine devoted to documenting Bakumatsu history , which he helped edit .