Death

Toyotomi Hideyoshi died September 18, 1598. 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. Because of his failure to capture Korea, Hideyoshi's forces were unable to invade China. Rather than strengthen his position, the military expeditions left his clan's coffers and fighting strength depleted, his vassals at odds over responsibility for the failure, and the clans that were loyal to the Toyotomi name weakened. The dream of a Japanese conquest of China was put on hold indefinitely. The Tokugawa government later not only prohibited any further military expeditions to the Asian mainland, but closed Japan to nearly all foreigners during the years of the Tokugawa shogunate. It was not until the late 19th century that Japan again fought a war against China through Korea, using much the same route that Hideyoshi's invasion force had used.

After his death, the other members of the Council of Five Regents were unable to keep the ambitions of Tokugawa Ieyasu in check. Two of Hideyoshi's top generals, Katō Kiyomasa and Fukushima Masanori, had fought bravely during the war but returned to find the Toyotomi clan castellan Ishida Mitsunari in power. He held the generals in contempt, and they sided with Tokugawa Ieyasu. Hideyoshi's underage son and designated successor Hideyori lost the power his father once held, and Tokugawa Ieyasu was declared Shogun following the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600.

• 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.