Battle of Takamatsu, 1562

Order of battle

The Mori army was commanded by Daimyo Takamoto himself, including his son and heir, the young Mori Sanemune, who had recently come of age.

The Mori army consisted of: 3 generals, 1 yari cavalry, 2 light cavalry, 1 bow cavalry, 3 nagingata samurai, 1 nagingata monks, 3 yari samurai, 1 katana samurai, 1 wako raiders, 1 ashigeru arquebus, 1 ashigeru bomb and 2 samurai bow units. About 1700 men in all.

The Chokosabe army consisted of: 5 general units, 1 light cav, 5 yari samurai,  8 samurai bows, 1 ashigeru bows, 1 yari ashigeru. About 1790 men in all. Many Chosokabe kinsmen and their bodyguards, possibly even the Daimyo himself, were present.

Initial assessments

The expert Chosokabe samurai archers are the enemy's greatest strength. The Mori's strength is in their  melee units - such as the heavy nagingata samurai, warrior monks, katana samurai and wako raiders. Even though the Mori army consists of many well armored samurai, they must not be allowed to be exposed to enemy fire for too long. The Mori must close the gap fast and engage the Chosokabe, especially their archers, in melee combat. The Chosokabe will want to make use of their relatively fewer melee units to pin and delay the Mori army for as long as possible while their archers whittle them down with arrows.

Dispositions

There is a terrible thunder storm on the day of the battle. Lightning flashes threateningly on the horizon. The Mori army is placed with its left on the slope of a hill and the center and right on the plain. Daimyo Takamatsu, together with one unit of wako raiders, nagingata warrior monks, light cavalry and bow cavalry each, are in reserve.

The Chosokabe main army enter the field opposite the right flank of the Mori army. A unit of Chosokabe yari samurai appear at the rear of the Mori army.

Opening phase

Mori Takamoto only assigns one unit of bow cavalry to harass and draw away the Chskb samurai at the rear. This will prove to be a tactical error on hindsight.

The rest of the Mori army charges towards the Chskb army. The Chskb cavalry - including generals and bodyguard - lead the attack charging at the Mori center and right.

At the Mori right, three units of Chskb cavalry execute a brilliant flanking manouveur. They slip past the first line of melee units and are able to harass the missile units behind. A unit of Mori yari cavalry on the right was in a position to block the flanking Chskb cavalry but, in an act of unspeakable cowardice, withdrew behind the arquebusiers.

A unit of Chskb bodyguard cavalry turn on the Mori arquebusiers pitting speed against firepower. However, the heavy cavalry, galloping on the sodden ground, do not reach the arquebusiers before they are able to let off a single volley which is sufficient to decimate and route the cavalry.

The Mori archers are harassed by Chskb cavalry until Mori Takamoto orders his N warrior monk reserves into the fray. The N warrior monks are elite spearmen expert at fighting cavalry. The Chskb cavalry do not stand a chance.

Middle phase

As the initial shock of the Chskb cavalry charge is spent, and they are torn apart by Mori spears, the Chskb yari troops follow up swiftly with a second blow against the Mori center and right. However, the loss of their generals has a detrimental effect on the Chskb's morale for the remainder of this battle.

The Mori left consisting of Y and N samurai and light cavalry, are slow in joining the battle as they trudge laborously up and over the hill. But as they descend the hill they see and unrestricted path to the soft center of the Chskb army - the samurai archers. However, there is considerable amount of ground to cover as they are at the extreme end of the battle.

The Chskb either fail to see or choose to ignore the danger on the right. The Chskb fight like wolves at the center and the left. They are successful in pinning down the Mori for a considerable length of time while their archers rain arrows upon them. But the Mori refuse to break. The presence of their general inspires and rallies them. The Mori commit all reserves to the battle.



Wako raiders join the battle in the center



In the meantime, the Mori light cavalry from the left closes the distance rapidly and are first to engage the Chskb bow samurai. This is a sacrificial charge as the Chskb bow samurai are elite units and do not break that easily even when attacked by cavalry. The light cavalry make easy targets for the Chskb archers and are decimated.

In the meantime, the single unit of Chskb Y samurai in the rear becomes a nuisance. They cause some panic when they get close enough to threaten the Daimyo. Eventually, it takes three units to destroy them - units which would have been better employed elsewhere.

Final phase

But when the Chskb are broken in the center, and the mass of the Mori army begins to converge on the Chskb samurai archers, the battle enters its final decisive phase.



The Mori attack with bombs (but it would seem that most of the victims were Mori)



Against N samurai, Y samurai, cavalry, K samurai, wako raiders and even fire bombers attacking from all directions, and without effective leadership, even the elite Chskb bow samurai are forced to flee.

Aftermath

This battle was a victory of sorts for the Mori. Inspite of some costly errors of judgement, it was a tactical victory as they inflicted significantly more casualties (about 1300-1400) on the Chskb. It will probably prove to be a strategic victory in the long run as many key Chskb generals lost their lives. But in the short term, the Mori losses were so great (about 700-800) that Mori Takamoto decided to abandon the conquest of Sanuki and sail home to replenish his army. It will be some seasons before the Mori are ready to go on the offensive again. The bravery and sacrifice of the Chosokabe has saved Shikkoku...for now.