The Incident at Honnoji occurred when Nobunaga Oda was forced to commit suicide by his rebellious retainer, Mitsuhide Akechi, in a military coup. Nobunaga's suicide and Mitsuhide's rise to power led to Mitsuhide's death at the Battle of Yamazaki not long after.
Nobunaga Oda dispatched his generals Katsuie Shibata, Mitsuhide Akechi, and Hideyoshi Toyotomi to subdue the other clans of Japan, including the powerful Mori and Uesugi clans. In 1582, Nobunaga Oda sent Mitsuhide to assist Hideyoshi, who was struggling in his campaign against the Mori, and Nobunaga, intending to follow as backup, moved from his castle to the temple at Honnoji. However, Mitsuhide betrayed Nobunaga and surrounded Honnoji. Nobunaga's bodyguard Ranmaru Mori decided to set fire to the area and buy Nobunaga some time to escape, and Nobunaga made his way towards the main square as his retainers and family attempted to fight off the rebels. His wife Nohime was slain by Motochika Chosokabe's men, who arrived to support Mitsuhide; Nobunaga's son Nobutada Oda was also killed. When Mitsuhide arrived, Nobunaga decided against escaping, and decided to fight to the death against Mitsuhide. Ranmaru Mori was the last of Nobunaga's retainers to die in battle, and Nobunaga duelled against Mitsuhide. Nobunaga fought Mitsuhide to a draw, but the demonic Nobuanga ultimately agreed with Mitsuhide's blatant desire for change and looked forward to Hideyoshi and Ieyasu Tokugawa's ambitions, and he spared his retainer and walked off into the burning temple. Nobunaga committed seppuku in the burning Honnoji Temple, and his body was turned to ashes, as were those of his slain retainers. Akechi went on to enter Azuchi Castle and began sending messages to the Imperial Court to boost his position and force them to recognize him as Shogun.
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