Early Life

Very little is known for certain about Hideyoshi before 1570, when he begins to appear in surviving documents and letters. His autobiography starts in 1577 but in it Hideyoshi spoke very little about his past. According to tradition, he was born in Owari Province, the home of the Oda clan (present day Nakamura-ku, Nagoya in Aichi Prefecture). He was born of no traceable samurai lineage, being the son of a peasant-ashigaru (foot soldier) named Yaemon. He had no surname, and his childhood given name was Hiyoshi-maru (日吉丸) ("Bounty of the Sun") although variations exist.

Many legends describe Hideyoshi being sent to study at a temple as a young man, but he rejected temple life and went in search of adventure. Under the name Kinoshita Tōkichirō (木下 藤吉郎), he first joined the Imagawa clan as a servant to a local ruler named Matsushita Yukitsuna (松下之綱). He traveled all the way to the lands of Imagawa Yoshimoto, daimyō of Suruga Province, and served there for a time, only to abscond with a sum of money entrusted to him by Matsushita Yukitsuna.

• Outline of Toyotomi Hideyoshi (1537-1598)
  

  HISTORIC PEOPLE

  Toyotomi Hideyoshi (1537-1598)

  Toyotomi Hideyoshi was a preeminent daimyō, warrior, general, samurai, and politician of the Sengoku period who is regarded as Japan's second "great unifier". He succeeded his former liege lord, Oda Nobunaga, and brought an end to the Warring States period. The period of his rule is often called the Momoyama period, named after Hideyoshi's castle. View Toyotomi Hideyoshi (1537-1598) »

  Early Life: Very little is known for certain about Hideyoshi before 1570, when he begins to appear in surviving documents and letters. His autobiography starts in 1577 but in it Hideyoshi spoke very little about his past.

  Service under Nobunaga: In 1558, he joined the Oda clan, now headed by Oda Nobunaga, as an ashigaru. He became one of Nobunaga's sandal-bearers and was present at the Battle of Okehazama in 1560 when Nobunaga defeated Imagawa Yoshimoto to become one of the most powerful warlords in the Sengoku period.

  Rise to Power: After the assassinations at Honnō-ji of Oda Nobunaga and his eldest son Nobutada in 1582 at the hands of Akechi Mitsuhide, Hideyoshi, seeking vengeance for the death of his beloved lord, made peace with the Mōri clan and defeated Akechi at the Battle of Yamazaki.

  Pinnacle of Power: The 1590 Siege of Odawara against the Hōjō clan in the Kantō region eliminated the last resistance to Hideyoshi's authority. His victory signified the end of the Sengoku period.

  Decline of Power: The stability of the Toyotomi dynasty after Hideyoshi's death was put in doubt with the death of his son Tsurumatsu in September 1591.

  Death: His death was kept secret by the Council of Five Elders to preserve morale, and the Japanese forces in Korea were ordered to withdraw back to Japan by the Council of Five Elders.

  Cultural Legacy: Toyotomi Hideyoshi changed Japanese society in many ways. These include imposition of a rigid class structure, restriction on travel, and surveys of land and production.

RESOURCES
This article uses material from the Wikipedia article "Toyotomi Hideyoshi (1537-1598)", which is released under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike License 3.0.