IMAGAWA YOSHIMOTO

'Imagawa Yoshimoto' (今川義元, 1519-June 12, 1560) was one of the leading ''daimyo'' (feudal lords) in early Sengoku period Japan. Based in Suruga Province, he was one of the three daimyo that dominated Tōkaidō region, or eastern Japan. As he was the 5th son, he was sent to a temple as a young boy where his name was changed to Baigaku Shōhō. Unrest broke out when his older brother Ujiteru died suddenly (some say he was poisoned). His half elder brother, Genkō Etan, tried to seize the heirship but the clan split into two factions. Yoshimoto's faction demanded that since Yoshimoto's mother was the consort of Ujichika, he was the rightful heir. Genkō Etan's faction demanded that since he was older, he was the rightful heir. Genkō Etan's mother was a concubine and a member of the Kushima family, but they were defeated and killed in the Hanakura-no-ran (Hanagura-no-ran). He changed his name to Yoshimoto at this point and succeeded the clan. His relations with the Hōjō clan worsened when he married Takeda Nobutora’s daughter (Ujizane's mother). He repelled the Hōjō, and wrested control of a wide area including Suruga, Totomi, and Mikawa. Later, Imagawa established a three-way alliance with Takeda and Hōjō, and set out toward the capital with Matsudaira Motoyasu of Mikawa. However, Yoshimoto was killed by a surprise attack by then young Oda Nobunaga at the Battle of Okehazama. Afterward, the Matsudaira declared independence from the Imagawa clan and allied with Nobunaga. Though a powerful daimyo in his own right, Imagawa Yoshimoto is now best remembered for his love of the ball game Kemari, and being the victim of the upstart Oda Nobunaga, and thus an early stepping stone in Nobunaga's career.

Contents

'Yoshimoto’s Officers:'

Appearances in popular fiction

'Yoshimoto’s Officers:'

Matsudaira Motoyasu

Okabe Motonobu

Matsui Munenobu

Udono Nagateru

Asahina Yasutomo

Ii Naomori

_{The following table denotes officers who do not have their own wikipedia article}

Abe Motozane

Ichinomiya Munekore

Ii Naochika

Iio Tsuratatsu

Iio Noritsura

Itami Yasunao

Katsurayama Ujimoto

Yamaguchi Noritsugu

Yamaguchi Noriyoshi

Yokoe Magohachi

Taigen Sessai

Miura Yoshinari

Appearances in popular fiction

Imagawa Yoshimoto is a playable character in the Koei action game ''Samurai Warriors: Xtreme Legends''. He also appeared early on in the company's action-strategy game ''Kessen III''. Both games depict Imagawa as a childish dandy, although ''Samurai Warriors'' takes this to an extreme by giving him a kemari (a Japanese kickball), which he uses as a weapon (though he used a generic sword in the original Samurai Warriors game). In his story mode ending, Yoshimoto miraculously manages to defeat both Takeda Shingen and Oda Nobunaga in Kyoto, and then plays kemari to his heart's content in front of the other warlords who look on in bemusement and disgust.
In Samurai Warriors 2 however, due to time constraints (as well as an overall shift away from Nobunaga's life towards the post-Nobunaga years), the Battle of Okehazama was shown as part of Nobunaga, Noh, and Mitsuhide's intro movies, and Yoshimoto was only mentioned and shown as the unseen occupant of a palanquin. However, in the upcoming Samurai Warriors 2: Xtreme Legends, both Yoshimoto and Okehazama will return with updated appearances and gameplay.
Yoshimoto is also featured as an unplayable character in the Japanese action game Sengoku Basara (as well as the sequel). The game was heavily retooled for the western market and renamed ''Devil Kings'', eliminating all references to Japanese history. Yoshimoto's character thus became Muri.
In the translation of ''Path of the Assassin'', a Dark Horse Comics translation of ''Hanzo no Mon'', which focuses on Tokugawa Ieyasu and Hattori Hanzō's perspectives, Yoshimoto is viewed more positively (perhaps ironically, compared to Nobunaga) and even decides during the Okehazama campaign to replace Ujizane with Ieyasu (then Matsudaira Motoyasu) as his heir, though dying before doing so.
Imagawa also appears briefly in Yoshihiro Takahashi's short manga, Kacchu no Senshi Gamu.