Discover the Battlefield of Sekigahara

Visitors to Sekigahara may find it difficult to imagine that two vast armies once fought near this peaceful town to decide the future of a whole nation. On October 21, 1600, however, this is exactly what happened here at Sekigahara.

The plain of Sekigahara long served as an important crossroads between the east and west of Japan. It was located on the Nakasendo highway, one of the few major roads that connected the cities of Kyoto and Edo, and was nestled between several mountains—an easily defensible and ideal strategic position for Mitsunari to challenge Ieyasu’s forces.

Before industrialization brought trains and mass transit to Japan, people relied on just a handful of paved roads to travel over long distances. Kyoto and Edo were connected by the Tokaido highway along the southern coast, and the Nakasendo highway, which led inland through the mountains.

Sekigahara’s position directly on the Nakasendo was one of the critical factors that led to the battle taking place there. While the Tokaido passed over relatively flat and easy terrain, it also required the fording of several rivers, which would have significantly delayed a large army, leaving the Nakasendo as the only viable option.

In the lead-up to the battle, Tokugawa Ieyasu, already the most powerful warlord in Japan, had taken his army north to fight the Uesugi clan, who appeared to be preparing to rebel against Ieyasu. Seizing the opportunity, the daimyo Ishida Mitsunari, along with his anti-Tokugawa allies, raised their own army to stand against the Tokugawa.

Mitsunari decided to make his stand here at Sekigahara, hoping to use the hills in the northwest to his advantage. Ieyasu marched his own combined army from Edo onto the east side of the plains of Sekigahara. On the morning of October 21, 1600, the two armies would clash, leading to one of the largest, most dramatic, and consequential battles of Japanese history.

For anyone interested in exploring the battlefield, the perfect place to start is the Gifu Sekigahara Battlefield Memorial Museum, located near Sekigahara Station. Here, visitors can watch the events of the battle unfold through the Ground Vision, experience a vivid recreation of the battle at the Theater, and view a host of arms, armor, and related artifacts in the museum’s three Exhibition Rooms. On the building’s fifth floor, the Observation Deck offers a magnificent panoramic view over the entire valley, making it the perfect spot to get oriented before setting out to explore the battlefield itself.

With e-bikes available to rent from the museum’s information desk, it’s easy to cover the various battlefield sites in the space of a few hours.

Sekigahara is filled with many cultural and historical treasures. It’s located in the heart of Japan and less than an hour by train from Kyoto, making it easy to fit into your travel itinerary. If you’re looking for the next step, why not follow in the footsteps of Tokugawa Ieyasu in the Kiso Valley along a beautifully preserved stretch of the Nakasendo highway, or experience the next chapter in Japanese history at Nagoya Castle and the nearby Tokugawa Art Museum.