Nagao Kagenaka (長尾景仲)
Kagenaka NAGAO (1388 - October 17, 1463) was a main retainer of Yamanouchi-Uesugi family which was Kanto Kanrei (Shogun's deputy for the Kanto region) during the middle of the Muromachi period. He also was a deputy of provincial governor of Kozuke Province and Musashi Province. He was a lord of the Shiroi-jo castle in Gunma District, Kozuke Province (now Shibukawa City [former Komochi Village], Gunma Prefecture). Kagenaka was the second son of Fusakage NAGAO, and his mother was a daughter of Kiyokage NAGAO. He was adopted by Kagemori NAGAO who was an elder brother of his mother, and succeeded to SHIRAI-NAGAO family. His Juryomei (a honorary name privately given by a lord) was Emonfu (literally means a headquarter of the Outer Palace Guards). His posthumous Buddhist name was Shoken. He was a father of Kagenobu NAGAO, Tadakage NAGAO and an official wife of Sukekiyo OTA. His grandchildren were Kageharu NAGAO (legitimate grandchild) and Dokan OTA (grandchild from a daughter married into another family).
Biography
In 1401, when Kagenaka was 14 years old, due to the death of his foster father, he succeeded to SHIRAI-NAGAO clan which was a family of senior vassals of UESUGI clan. He first assisted Norisada UESUGI together with Tadamasa NAGAO who was a main retainer of that time, and from then on, he served five lords of UESUGI clan. During the War of Zenshu UESUGI in 1416, Kagenaka beat a troop of Zenshu UESUGI at Yuigahama, and thanks to his victory, Norimoto UESUGI, Kanto Kanrei and Mochiuji ASHIKAGA, Kamakura Kubo (Shogun's deputy for Kamakura) managed to return to Kamakura.
In 1438, when Mochiuji rose in the Eikyo War to attack Norizane UESUGI, who was a heir of Norimoto, Tadamasa NAGAO sheltered Norizane in the Kozuke-Hirai-jo castle and rose in arms to attack Mochiuji. Kagenaka joined this war as a vice-commander, and he made a great contribution at the time when Tadamasa captured Mochiuji. Subsequently, during the Yuki War, he also rendered distinguished service. After Tadamasa died around 1443, Kiyokata UESUGI (a blood younger brother of Norizane and a governor of Echigo Province) acted as a family head on behalf of Norizane, who had left UESUGI family with his children, and Kiyokata asked Kagenaka to be a main retainer of YAMANOUCHI-UESUGI family.
However, Kiyokata died suddenly in 1446 (some said that he committed suicide), and as Norizane refused to return from his cloistered life, nobody succeeded to the position of Kanto Kanrei. Since Kamakura Kubo had already been abolished during the Eikyo War, the absence of two positions caused political paralysis in the Kanto region. Then, after consulting with Sukekiyo OTA, who was a main retainer of Ogigayatsu-Uesugi family and Kagenaka's son-in-low, Kagenaka called back the first son of Norizane, 竜忠 (Noritada UESUGI) to the family in order to have him succeed to Kanto Kanrei. However, Fusasada UESUGI, who had succeeded to a governor of Echigo Province from Kiyokata, and warlords of the Kanto region plotted to put up Eijuoumaru (Shigeuji ASHIKAGA), a bereaved child of Mochiuji ASHIKAGA, as a new Kamakura Kubo, and the Muromachi shogunate approved it. In 1447, Eijuoumaru and Noritada UESUGI moved to Kamakura, and Noritada was appointed to Kanto Kanrei. Eijuoumaru reached manhood two years later, in 1449, and was appointed to Jugoinoge (Junior Fifth Rank, Lower Grade)/the captain of the Left Division of Bureau of Horses. And also Eijuoumaru was allowed to call himself "Shigeuji ASHIKAGA (足利成氏)", borrowing one character (成) from the name of Seii Taishogun (commander-in-chief of the expeditionary force), Yoshinari ASHIKAGA (足利義成) (later, Yoshimasa ASHIKAGA), and was officially appointed 5th Kamakura Kubo. But Shigeuji started using bereaved children of warlords who died for Kamakura Kubo during the Eikyo War and Yuki War as his close aides, and it provoked antipathy among UESUGI clan and their vassals.
In 1450, Mochisuke YANADA seized Nagao-go, Kamakura District, Sagami Province (now Nagaodai, Sakae Ward, Yokohama City) from NAGAO clan by the order of Shigeuji ASHIKAGA. As the name suggests, Nagao-go was the birthplace of NAGAO clan, and the Goryo-jinja shrine (Sakae Ward, Yokohama City) was the most important shrine for NAGAO clan, who performed religious services for their ancestors. Members of NAGAO family including Kagenaka were outraged by the capture of Nagao-go and made a fierce protest against Shigeuji, but Shigeuji refused to return Nagao-go to NAGAO clan.
On June 9 in the same year (the old calendar), Kagenaka NAGAO and Sukekiyo OTA attempted to launch a coup d'etat by invading Kamakura with 500 horse soldiers. However, since Shigeuji detected the coup d'etat before its launch, he fled from Kamakura and took refuge in Enoshima. On the following day, the troop of NAGAO and OTA families battled with the troop of Shigeuji at Yuigahama. The troop of NAGAO and OTA families was bitterly defeated, moreover, they knew that Kagenaka's lord, Noritada UESUGI, who did not know the background of the battle, sent a troop of OBATA clan to rescue Shigeuji. Therefore, Kagenaka NAGAO and Sukekiyo OTA fled to the Kasuya-no-yakata castle of Mochitomo UESUGI, who was Sukekiyo's lord and a family head of OGIGAYATSU-UESUGI clan. Noritada UESUGI had nothing to do with the coup d'etat, however, when he knew that the troop of NAGAO and OTA families attacked Shigeuji, he placed himself on probation (the Battle of Enoshima).
Subsequently, Shigeuji returned to Kamakura, and Noritada UESUGI resumed his duties in November. Thanks to Noritada's petition for mercy, Kagenaka NAGAO and others were granted amnesty. Even after that, some subjects of both Shigeuji and Noritada often seized each other's territory. Therefore, Noritada and Mochitomo plotted to defeat Shigeuji. But, on January 24, 1455, during the night when Kagenaka stayed at the Goryo-gu shrine for prayer, Noritada was killed by the troop of Shigeuji at Shigeuji's residence. As soon as Kagenaka heard the assassination of Noritada, he returned to Kamakura and promptly set fire to a residence of Kanrei (Shogun's deputy) and had the people who survived including the official wife of Noritada (a daughter of Mochitomo UESUGI) evacuate to the Kasuya-no-yakata castle of Mochitomo. After arriving at the Kasuya-no-yakata castle, Kagenaka consulted with the key persons of UESUGI clan including Mochitomo, and decided to call back Noritada's younger brother, Fusaaki UESUGI, who was living in Kyoto as a new Kanto Kanrei and to defeat Shigeuji. Kagenaka went to his own territory, Kozuke in order to call up more soldiers, and at the same time, he sent a messenger to the provincial governor of Echigo to call for reinforcements. In addition to that, Kagenaka sent his legitimate son, Kagenobu NAGAO, to Kyoto in order to report what was happening to the shogunate and to ask for shogunate's approval of Fusaaki's succession to Kanto Kanrei.
In 1456, Shigeuji left Kamakura to attack Kozuke Province, which was a main domain of UESUGI clan, and stayed at the Koan-ji temple in Fuchu, Musashi Province. As soon as Kagenaka NAGAO detected Shigeuji's action, he left for Fuchu with the soldiers of Kozuke and Musashi Provinces, and a troop of UESUGI clan also left for Fuchu to join the Kagenaka's troop. However, on February 16 (the old calendar), Kagenaka was defeated at the Battle of Bubaigawara-Musashi-Province and lost leading warlords including the head of OGIGAYATSU-UESUGI clan, Akifusa UESUGI. Only Kagenaka NAGAO barely survived at the battle and escaped to the Oguri-jo castle in Hitachi Province (now Chikusei City, Ibaraki Prefecture) with other survived soldiers. However, in May, the Oguri-jo castle was burned down by the attack of Shigeuji's troop, and Kagenaka fled to Kozuke Province. On the other hand, Shigeuji was also attacked by Noritada IMAGAWA, who sided with UESUGI clan, and had to leave Kamakura, and then took refuge at the Koga-jo castle in Shimousa Province and used the name "Koga Kubo" (the Kyotoku War).
The battles still continued in the Kanto region divided and ruled by two powers. Kagenaka continuously led the troop of UESUGI clan, and at the Battle of Ueno/Hanetsugihara in 1459, he defeated the troop of Shigeuji and called "the greatest strategist in the Kanto region" ("Kamakura Ozoshi [the military epic of Kamakura and Koga]").
In 1463, He died at the age of 76. Kagenaka committed himself to the prosperity of UESUGI clan, which was a life as Shogun's deputy for the Kanto region and SHIRAI-NAGAO clan over a lifetime.