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Ukita Hideie (宇喜多秀家, 1573-December 17, 1655) was the daimyo of Bizen and Mimasaka provinces (modern Okayama Prefecture), and one of the council of Five Elders appointed by Toyotomi Hideyoshi. Son of Ukita Naoie, he married Gohime, a daughter of Maeda Toshiie. Having fought against Tokugawa Ieyasu in the Battle of Sekigahara he was exiled to the island prison of Hachijōjima, where he died.

[edit] Rise to Prominence

Hideie's father Naoie was daimyo of Bizen province and initially opposed, but later sided with Oda Nobunaga. Naoie died in 1581, and in 1582 Hideie became the head of the Ukita clan. As Hideie was still young, it was Hideie's uncle [Tadaie] who acted as leader of the Ukita army (under Toyotomi Hideyoshi) during the seige of Bitchu Takamatsu Castle in 1582. Nobunaga was assassinated on June 2nd of that year, but the seige continued until the castle fell two days later. Hideyoshi raced back to Kyoto, leaving the Ukita clan in charge of Bizen, Mimasaka and parts of Bichu provinces. The Ukita were also to keep watch on Mori Terumoto to the west.

In 1586, Hideie was married to Hideyoshi's adopted daughter, Gohime. (She had been adopted by Hideyoshi from Maeda Toshiie.)

Hideie joined Hideyoshi's military campaigns in Shikoku(1585), Kyushu(1586) and the Siege of Odawara(1590). Following the unification of Japan under Hideyoshi, Hideie joined the Korean campaigns, returning in 1598 to serve as one of Hideyoshi's five counselors, along with Maeda Toshiie, Uesugi Kagekatsu, Mori Terumoto, and Tokugawa Ieyasu.

[edit] Battle of Sekigahara

Hideyoshi died in 1598, leaving his five-year-old son Hideyori as his successor and Tokugawa Ieyasu moved to take control. Hideie contributed 17,000 men to the Toyotomi army at the Battle of Sekigahara but they were defeated after many of their "allies" defected to the Tokugawa side. One of these defectors was Kobayakawa Hideaki, who was granted Okayama Castle and surrounding Ukita territories as the spoils of war.

Hideie escaped from the confusion of the battlefield, but was later found and exiled to the island of Hachijōjima. His family peacefully handed over Okayama castle and sought refuge elsewhere. Hideie was able to correspondend with them and often received gifts from the mainland, eventually outliving his wife and all of the Nobunaga era samurai. He had numerous children on Hachijo, and some of his decendents later returned to the mainland.

[edit] External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Ukita Hideie

• Okayama City's page on Hideie(in Japanese)

v • d • e Prominent people of the Sengoku period Three major daimyo Oda Nobunaga · Toyotomi Hideyoshi · Tokugawa Ieyasu Other daimyo Azai Nagamasa · Chōsokabe Motochika · Date Masamune · Hōjō Sōun · Hōjō Ujiyasu · Imagawa Yoshimoto · Maeda Toshiie · Matsunaga Hisahide · Mōri Motonari · Ōtomo Sōrin · Saitō Dōsan · Sanada Masayuki · Shimazu Yoshihisa · Shimazu Yoshihiro · Takeda Shingen · Uesugi Kenshin · Uesugi Kagekatsu · Ukita Hideie Other notable military individuals Akechi Mitsuhide · Fukushima Masanori · Fūma Kotarō · Hattori Hanzō · Hōjō Ujimasa · Honda Tadakatsu  · Kobayakawa Hideaki  · Honganji Kennyo · Ii Naomasa · Ishida Mitsunari · Ishikawa Goemon · Katō Kiyomasa · Maeda Keiji · Naoe Kanetsugu · Oda Nobutada · Ōtani Yoshitsugu · Saika Magoichi · Sanada Nobuyuki · Sanada Yukimura · Shibata Katsuie · Shima Sakon · Tachibana Ginchiyo · Takeda Katsuyori · Takenaka Shigeharu · Toyotomi Hideyori · Yamamoto Kansuke Others Emperor Ōgimachi · Hosokawa Gracia · Komatsuhime · Izumo no Okuni · Kaihime · Miyamoto Musashi · Mori Ranmaru · Nene · Nōhime · Oichi · Sasaki Kojirō

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