Database: Oda Nobukatsu

Oda Nobukatsu was the second son of Oda Nobunaga. He was adopted by Tomofusa, the head of the Kitabatake clan who controlled Ise, and then took the name Kitabatake Nobuo. He succeeded his adoptive father Tomofusa in 1575. He engaged in poorly conceived campaign to reduce Iga in 1579 but was defeated. He hoped to become the suzerain of the Oda after his father's death in 1582 and, for this, chose to ally with Hideyoshi against his brother Nobutaka, who was supported by Shibata Katsuie. Nobukatsu defeated his brother and forced the latter to commit suicide. Subsequently, he allied with Tokugawa Ieyasu. Nobukatsu stood against Hideyoshi for a time but eventually rallied to him, renouncing any claim to his succession. In 1600, Nobukatsu sided with Tokugawa Ieyasu and during the two sieges of Osaka in 1614-1615, he consolidated his status as a daimyō. Despite his reputation as a poor general and a mediocre political tactician, Nobukatsu managed to navigate through different regimes and ensure a peaceful end, which in those difficult times was quite a feat.