Stories of the Japanese 00794 [Late Kamakura Period] The Battle of Sekido and the Battle of Tsurumi
Originally, I had written that 'a memorial service is held on the 16th of every month,' but thanks to kojuro-san, who actually visited Kannon-ji Temple and confirmed that the memorial service is held on May 16th every year, I was able to update this article with the latest information. Thank you, kojuro-san!
May 16, Genko 3 / Shokei 2 (1333), the day the Battle of Bubaigawara ended. Another battle broke out between the retreating Shogunate army and the Nitta army pursuing them. This was the Battle of Sekido (Tama City, Tokyo).
Hojo Yasuie, who had retreated from Bubaigawara, set up a defensive line at Sekido with an army of 50,000. In this location called Sekido, there was the 'Kasumi-no-Seki,' a checkpoint established by the Kamakura Shogunate.
The momentum-filled Nitta army launched an all-out attack on this checkpoint. Playing an active role amidst the struggling Shogunate army
were Hojo clan retainers Yokomizo Takasada (?-1333) and Abo Dotan (?-1333). Yokomizo and Abo stood their ground before the enemy to allow their commander Yasuie to escape, meeting a heroic death in battle. Even today, the graves of Yokomizo and Abo remain at the Sekido battlefield site, and at the nearby Kannon-ji Temple, a memorial service is held every May 16th for the soldiers who died in the battle.
In the end, the Battle of Sekido also ended in a victory for the Nitta army, and the Shogunate army fled back to Kamakura.
Around the same time, a battle between the Shogunate army and the anti-Shogunate forces was also taking place in Tsurumi (Tsurumi Ward, Yokohama). The Shogunate side had planned to send a separate detachment led by Kanazawa Sadamasa, apart from the main force led by Hojo Yasuie, to target the Nitta army from the flank. Meanwhile, Oyama Hidetomo (?-1335) and Chiba Sadatane, who were siding with Nitta Yoshisada, were also heading toward Kamakura separately from the main Nitta army, and the two sides encountered each other in Tsurumi, leading to a battle.
The Shogunate side was defeated in this battle as well, and Kanazawa Sadamasa fled back to Kamakura.
Among those who fled back to Kamakura was Nagasaki Takashige (?-1333). Takashige was the son of Takasuke and the heir who was supposed to succeed to the head of the Nagasaki family. Takashige returned covered in blood, having taken 15 enemy heads and been struck by arrows.
Nagasaki Enki welcomed his wounded grandson, and while tending to his wounds, said,
'They say that to see the quality of a child, look at his father, but I was wrong to treat you poorly, thinking you were of no use to our Lord.'
He praised his grandson, whom he usually only scolded, with tears in his eyes. There are no records to confirm what kind of incompetent grandson Takashige was usually, but it seems Enki was worried about whether he could let his son Takasuke and his grandson Takashige succeed to the head of the Nagasaki family, as both seemed incompetent.
Takashige also bowed with tears in his eyes, and just as the grandfather and grandson were embracing, news reached Kamakura that the Rokuhara Tandai had fallen. The Shogunate was enveloped in a gloomy atmosphere.
The Shogunate tried to keep the news of the fall of Rokuhara from the enemy, but the information eventually leaked to the Nitta army. With the morale of the Nitta army greatly boosted, the Battle of Kamakura finally began on May 18th.