Oda Yorinaga (織田頼長)
Yorinaga ODA (1582 to October 15, 1620), was the second son of Nagamasu ODA (Urakusai). His real mother was Unzenin dono, who was a daughter of Masahide HIRATE and the legitimate wife of Nagamasu. Therefore, it is inferred that he was Nagamasu's heir. He had another name, Hidenobu. He had popular names such as Magojuro, Samon and Unshoji Dohachi. His official rank was Jushiinoge (Junior Fourth Rank, Lower Grade) and Jiju (chamberlain).
Together with his father, Nagamasu, Yorinaga served Hideyori TOYOTOMI. In February 1608, he travelled to Edo under Hideyori's order as the emisary for New Year's call.. In July 1609, he was punished for helping Noritoshi INOKUMA, who was a noble, for running away, and became a masterless samurai. On the occasion of the Winter Battle of Osaka, it seems that he returned to the service of the Toyotomi family. According to "Tokugawa Jikki" ("The True Tokugawa Records"), however, a man who was involved in Noritoshi INOKUMA's running away, was Yorinaga's younger brother, Nagamasa ODA (a feudal lord). On his way back, on April 10, 1613, he visited Nobutoshi KINOSHITA who was staying in Kyoto.
On the occasion of the Winter Battle of Osaka, he holed up in the Osaka-jo Castle together with his father, Nagamasu, and defended the Tamatsukuri guchi of Ninomaru (second defensive circle). It is said that he commanded a unit consisting of more than ten thousand warriors including the rank and file. In December in the same year, the unit of Takatora TODO on Tokugawa's side started an attack due to a quarrel in the unit led by himself and the Battle at the Tanimachiguchi gate occurred. However, it is said that Yorinaga did not command his unit with an excuse of his illness.
In April 1615, on the occasion of the Summer Battle of Osaka, he left Osaka-jo Castle. According to one view, it was because he wanted to become the commander in chief for the Toyotomi family but his wish was not met. After he left the Osaka-jo Castle, he secluded from society and lived in Kyoto and devoted himself to Chanoyu (present tea ceremony) and succeeded Uraku-ryu (Uraku school of tea ceremony). As Yorinaga was a commander of the Toyotomi family, his father, Nagamasu, refrained from giving him a fief, and it seems that the bakufu (Japanese feudal government headed by a shogun) nor raise his to a daimyo.
On October 15, 1620 he died in Kyoto at the age of thirty-nine. He was buried in Choju-in Temple in Higashiyama. He had no legitimate wife. According to "Keizu Sanyo" (pedigree charts of Edo period), however, a daughter of Kyonyo was Yorinaga ODA's wife. He had a son, Nagayoshi ODA, and the first daughter (wife of Akiyoshi ICHIJO).