Anjō Motonobu

, is a daimyō from the Sengoku Period of Mitoyagi. He is the leader of the Anjō clan from 1572 until his death at the battle of Mogami in 1589. He was regarded as one of Honda Shigetada's most reliable and trusted advisors, and his daughter Hatsu-no-kata was the primary wife of Shigetada. 
The Anjō clan under Motonobu was under the Taketoyo clan but were demoted from the fudai to the tozama after the maneuvers by the Taketoyo adviser Hachisuka Koroku; in an attempt to take over the small, but strategic town of Mikata from the Anjō. In response, Motonobu cut off all of his ties to the Taketoyo and sided with Ogasawara Terumasa, sending his daughter Hatsu-no-kata to be wed to Terumasa. However, Terumasa refused to be married to her but Honda Shigetada suggested to be married with her as a vassal of the Ogasawara and support the Anjō clan. Motonobu, moved by the act, decided to become a vassal of Shigetada.
As Shigetada's vassal, Motonobu quickly became known for his mastery of marine and water warfare, securing victories for the Honda clan at the invasions of Musashino and Yagikoshu. He was also instrumental in building several ships that would become the backbone of the first navy of Mitoyagi, the Anjō-Murakami Suigun. However, during the invasion of Yagikoshū, he was mortally wounded at the Battle of Mogami after being trapped by the Uesugi forces in the Sai River. He was swept into the village of Kozuke-Sai after the battle, where he died in 3 October 1589. Honda Shigetada, later the Emperor Shirakawa, would later rename the town of Mogami to Anjō, where it would be later absorbed by Saikawa in 2008 to become Anjō-Saikawa.
==Early Life==
Motonobu was born in in the province of Miyagi, Okaiken. He was the son of Anjō Motonaga, a vassal of the Taketoyo clan who were the lords of Kyoshu. Motonobu's family lived in a small village on the outskirts of Mikata, surrounded by rice paddies and lush green mountains. Despite being born into a samurai family, Motonobu spent much of his early childhood playing by the river that ran through the village, chasing after fish.
As he grew older, Motonobu's family moved into a larger home in the town of Mikata, where his father worked as an administrator for the Taketoyo clan. Mikata was a bustling town, home to traders and merchants from all over Okaiken, and Motonobu was fascinated by the sights and sounds of the marketplaces and the busy streets.
In his early teens, Motonobu began to receive samurai training from his father and other members of the Anjō clan. He learned how to use a sword and bow, as well as other martial arts techniques, and spent long hours practicing in the clan's home. Despite his samurai training, Motonobu never lost his love for the outdoors, and he continued to spend much of his free time exploring the surrounding countryside. He would often hike up into the mountains or paddle his way down the river, always eager to discover new sights and adventures. It was during one of these excursions that he first encountered the neighboring province of Sanno and its powerful daimyō, Ogasawara Terumasa, who would ultimately play a pivotal role in Motonobu's life.
==Leader of the Anjō clan==
==Switching Allegiances==
==Service under Honda Shigetada==
===Invasion of Musashino===
===Invasion of Yagikoshu and Head of the Left Army===
350px|thumb|left|A modern interpretation of Motonobu's appearance as he invades the island of Yagikoshu.
===Battle of Tsudanouchi===
In Tsuitsui, the Honda clan sought to secure the strategically significant region. The Honda clan turned to him to break the defensive lines and open an assault to the town. His plan involved a coordinated attack utilizing both land and sea forces, aiming to overwhelm the enemy and establish a dominant presence in the region. Motonobu's leadership and advanced ships initially granted the Honda forces an advantage. The army was able to break the first line of defense at Tsuruguchi, disrupting enemy supply lines. However, the Ino clan regrouped and launched a fierce counterattack to the west of Tsudanouchi. Motonobu's troops, facing exhaustion, struggled to maintain their position. Recognizing the futility of continuing the fight under such adverse conditions, he ordered a tactical retreat. This difficult choice, while seemingly a defeat, was a strategic necessity to preserve the lives of his soldiers and the core of his forces. By withdrawing to a more defensible position, Motonobu ensured that the Honda clan would survive and be able to regroup for a future counteroffensive. Motonobu's reputation as a skilled tactician and warrior remained unscathed. His subsequent engagements showcased his ongoing contributions to the Honda clan's military strategies. The Battle of Tsuitsui highlighted the importance of naval power and strategic planning.
==Death==
After being defeated at the Battle of Tsuitsui on 2 September 1589, Motonobu retreated to Mogami castle on 4 September 1589. There, he had asked Shigetada through messengers to send more troops for the left army by five weeks or risk losing the entire left army. Mogami castle lay in a floodplain and the monsoon season had just begun. Motonobu had mastered water battles from an offensive standpoint but had never in defense. On 19 September 1589, Shigetada replied back through another messenger, writing that his own forces were in trouble from the Uesugi forces and suggested Motonobu to retreat 40 miles to Fukuda castle. However, the messenger was intercepted by the Uesugi forces and was killed. Shigekawa Toshiyuki, a retainer of the Uesugi, would use the intercepted intel and instructions against Motonobu's forces. Motonobu, anticipating his death after never receiving Shigetada's orders, wrote a death poem to Shigetada as a response; saying that it would be the last time they would hear from each other. It read like a suicide note once Shigetada receives it.
"My name shall cross several seas and reach the realms of the Hokuban", the letter's epilogue read. 
On 30 September 1589, while Motonobu and what was left of the Left army was preparing to cross the Sai River to retreat at Fukuda Castle, the Uesugi forces attacked from three sides. Some of the Left army regiments were able to return to Mogami castle but Motonobu was trapped in the middle of the river with the current steadily increasing from moderate rain in the morning, intensifying by the time of the skirmish. With the rain heavily pouring on the battlefield, Motonobu was unable to proceed with his horse and dismounted. He tried to tread his way back to Mogami castle but was encountered by two Uesugi soldiers who had pursued after him. The two soldiers were able to mortally wound Motonobu in a melee but was unable to kill him as he was swept away by the river's strengthening current when he fell. Motonobu was carried away by the current for five kilometres but miraculously never sank underwater during the ordeal; eventually Motonobu ended up at the shores of Kozuke-Sai, an outlying village that supports Mogami castle. He was later found by villagers, still conscious but was bleeding heavily. 
The villagers were able to move and hide Motonobu at one of the storehouses in the village. Motonobu, beginning to lose consciousness, mentioned to the villagers that he had failed his clan and Honda Shigetada. The villagers comforted Motonobu by providing bandages and tea but Motonobu temporarily lost his consciousness due to shock. On 2 of October 1589 he had regained his consciousness and begged for a villager to bring him a dagger so he can commit seppuku as he had lost his weapons in the river when he was swept away by the current. Much to Motonobu's disappointment, the villager was unable to bring the dagger as he was just a lowly merchant and none of the farmers are willing to give away their tools for a futile act, in addition, none of them have swords to behead him to complete the process of seppuku. The villagers instead comforted Motonobu by serving him more tea, fed him food and were able to stop external bleeding of Motonobu's wounds. However, the villagers realized that Motonobu had lost a considerable amount of blood when he was carried away by the river and was bleeding internally.
One of the merchants asked Motonobu if he had any requests for Honda Shigetada. Motonobu declined as he already sent him a letter telling him that he was going to die before venturing out of Mogami castle, and went on to say a word of gratitude to the merchant who did not abandon him even though the territory had returned to the Uesugi's control. He requested to have his body buried in the village if he dies as it was the first and last time that ordinary citizens had helped him. He then gave the villager one of his buddha amulets that he had been carrying, before Motonobu lost consciousness a final time. Motonobu died on 3 October 1589 at the age of 54 years old.
Days later, the village of Kozuke-Sai handed over Motonobu's body and his armour to Honda Shigetada, who was moved to tears knowing that he just lost one of his most important retainers of the clan. As what Motonobu had wished to the villagers, Shigetada promised that he would come to the village one day and bury Motonobu at Enkōji, the only temple of the village. Motonobu's body was cremated at Mikata, and his bones and ashes would be sent to Enkōji after the Uesugi were driven out by Shigetada in the Second Invasion of Yagikoshu. 
The remaining regiments of the Left army, under Sakakibara Yasuhide, retreated back to Kii castle on 6 October 1589, where he was able to sign a non-aggression pact with the Uesugi and allow them to return to Haruguni without harm.
==Appearance==
250px|thumb|right|Anjō Motonobu's Shōjō Jinbaori, on display at the National Museum of History, Okami, Okaiken.
From Western accounts, Anjō Motonobu was said to be a around 189 to 190 centimetres tall and was often depicted to have a large, muscular physical structure that often dwarfs other retainers and lords around him, including Honda Shigetada. He is often referred to as ōni-Motonobu due to his large physical appearance. Motonobu was often known for his physical strength, being able to lift an entire log by himself during the Battle of Morihama. Motonobu usually had long unkempt hair that was occasionally tied at the back and had grown a beard and a moustache. 
Unusual to other samurai armour during the era, Motonobu's armour doesn't include a sode(shoulder armour) and opts for a ripped kote (armoured sleeve), which exposes his arms and shoulders in combat. This makes him an intimidating figure in the battlefield as well as allowing Motonobu to have more flexibility to use his arm strength. Shigetada's son Honda Shigetomo would later adopt Motonobu's example of not including shoulder armour and opting for a ripped kote. Motonobu does not wear a kabuto (helmet) due to his long hair. Instead, he wears a head protection in a form of a hachigane (forehead protector) with sharp spikes. This often confused his adversaries as they thought of Motonobu as a regular Anjō foot soldier. 
In order to be identified as a retainer and vassal of the Honda clan, Motonobu wears a dark red shōjō jinbaori (vest). The materials used for the jinbaori came from Peilan and Kwangju. After being mortally wounded at the Battle of Mogami, Motonobu's shōjō jinbaori was found ripped due to the strength of the current that washed him off to Kozuke-Sai. The ripped jinbaori is currently on display at the National Museum of History in Okami.
==Legacy==
==In Popular Culture==
==References==
Category:Daimyos of Okaiken