Taiko

by Eiji Yoshikawa

First published 1937

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4.5(1,066)

Born into poverty as Hiyoshi, the future Toyotomi Hideyoshi uses energy, intelligence and an instinct for people to rise through the armies of Oda Nobunaga. His career carries him from obscure service to the command of armies and castles as Nobunaga breaks the power of rival warlords and religious leagues.

After Akechi Mitsuhide’s attack at Honnō-ji destroys Nobunaga, Hideyoshi rapidly defeats the usurper and outmanoeuvres competing commanders, including Tokugawa Ieyasu. Yoshikawa presents the unification of Japan through Hideyoshi’s adaptability and ambition, while keeping the violence, calculation and unstable loyalties of the Sengoku period in view.

Hideyoshi’s ascent is remarkable because he lacks the hereditary position normally associated with great warlords. Administrative talent, military success and personal adaptability allow him to convert service under Nobunaga into independent authority. The novel follows that transformation while showing the compromises required to unify Japan before Tokugawa rule eventually gives the country a more durable political settlement.