Japanese Wars (No America)

Jesuit rise to power
Dated from 1567 to 1639 by traditional European estimates, the Japanese wars are the name given to the series of conflicts which dominated the Japanese archipelago in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. Arising out of the chaos of the Sengoku period, when the power of the Ashikagan shogunates in Kyoto broke down, many disparate daimyos fought amongst themselves as they attempted to take the Imperial capital and secure power.

The traditional beginning date of 1567 marks the capture of Inabayama Castle by Oda Nobunaga, arguably the most famous general of the period. He was aided in this by around 3,000 (although the figure is much disputed) Portuguese and Spanish soldiers, under the command of Kuroda Kanbei. They had been sent by King Philip II of Spain and King Sebastian of Portugal, who had been appealed to by the Jesuits, namely Francisco Cabral, supposedly to protect Christian interests in Japan in the face of turmoil and violent reactions against their missionary work in the Ashikagan Wars. After the successful siege, Oda Nobunaga declared his intention to conquer "all the world by force of arms" and signed a treaty with Cabral, promising to further Christian interests in supplied with further troops and importantly arquebuses. While never publicly espousing Christianity himself, many believe that Oda was later baptised at Inabayama (renamed to Gifu by Oda) by Luis Frois, a Jesuit missionary who he befriended.

In 1568 Oda defeated the last Ashikagan shogun, Yoshiaki, and took Kyoto, the symbolic seat of power.

This alliance of the Jesuits, backed by Iberian arquebusiers, and Oda Nobunaga, proved very successful, with victories at Anegawa over the Asakura Clan and at Nagashima over the Ikko-ikki, a group of warrior monks who had rallied the peasantry behind zealous Pure Land Buddhist beliefs. They were outraged by Oda's courting of the foreign Christian powers and resisted Oda's rule, resulting in a extended siege and over 10,000 deaths, many civilian. The battle of Nagashino was another decisive victory for Oda, who employed Sancho Da Bahia as the leader of the European contingent in his armies.

Reaction under Toyotomi Hideyoshi
However in 1582, following Oda's sudden assassination, or forced suicide at Honno-ji by Akechi Mitsuhide, Toyotomi Hideyoshi defeated his rivals at Yamazaki and within a month had consolidated his position as Oda's successor. Hideyoshi had been wary of the Christians influence at Oda's court and over the next 5 years made moves to exclude them from court. By 1587, Europeans and Kirishitan Daimyos were no longer welcome at Kyoto and many missionaries relocated to the court of the Hojo, one of the last clans with a degree of independence.

After the fall of Odawara in 1590, the Jesuits were expelled from his realm by Toyotomi Hideyoshi. He saw the missionaries as an external threat, with many Japanese lords converting to have better access to arms and other products brought by European trade.

His attempts to stop missionary activity culminated in the crucifixion of 50 Christians (26 in OTL) in 1592, with other executions occurring throughout the 1590s.

Rapprochement under Tokugawa Ieyasu
This provoked outrage in the courts of Europe, with Philip II promising to send 5,000 men to aid the persecuted Kirishitans. The forces, slightly less than had been promised and mostly gathered from Spanish possession in the Philippines, finally arrived in 1597, as Hideyoshi's health was failing. To secure the rule of his son Toyotomi Hideyori, he had appointed the most powerful daimyos to a Council of Five Elders who would serve as regents during the minority of his son. However Tokugawa Ieyasu saw the opportunity to strengthen his position and sought an alliance with the European forces, under Ambrogio Spinola.

These troops were present at the decisive Battle of Sekigahara in 1600, which decided the future of the Japan and established the Tokugawa shogunate.