Why was Nobunaga Oda considered evil?

[EmmieLovesAkuma]

I don't think he was all that bad. He only did what he had to in order to unite Japan under a common ruler. Japan was in a lot of strife during the Sengoku period, with shoguns trying to claim land for themselves and killing each other to take control of the prefectures. Nobunaga knew that in order for there to be peace, someone had to step up and take control, and he was the only with the balls to do it.

The people he killed had been given multiple grace periods and chances to come under his rule, but they refused and continued to oppose his warnings, so he made an example of them. Anybody else would have done the same thing in his position. Think about it. With an entire country's unity at risk, and multiple armies at your doorstep, would you risk an uprising just when your goals are on the eve of success? Nobunaga achieved the impossible. Why is he viewed in such a bad light?

I consider him a hero of medieval Japan. I think he deserves more honor and respect than he's been given. Without Nobunaga, Japan would have been a very different country.

[Nerdvana]

For Oda Nobunaga , his bad rep is mainly due to the way he fought the Ishiyama Hongan-ji and Ikko-ikki , notably two massacres , one where more than 30,000 people died , women and children included , and when he burned Mt Hiei killing thousands of people. Then there is also the suspicion about the death of his father and uncle , and also the fact that he got rid of Nobuyoki (his brother who was allegedly plotting against him with the help of Nobunaga's mother , but of course , there was no proof , only suspicions)

the way he treated mercilessly the Ikko-Ikki shocked even Shingen , his own Oda generals and many people of that time , because Mt Hiei was sacred since centuries , nobody ever dared to do such a thing etc. Also his bad rep is also due to his eccentricity in his later life , when he declared himself "living God " (which was not understood by the population , in fact he did that because he was aware of his historical importance , because being the First unifier of Japan , in order to make sure Japan will not be split again , he declared himself living God to make sure any future attempt to break what he built.

But no doubt, he was a man ahead of this time. Nobunaga is known for numerous military, political, economic, and cultural activities, accomplishments and innovations, including his innovative use of firearms and business knowledge.

[bastuss]

He was both heartless and genius warlord back then , you know why one of his trusted general , akechi mitsuhide , betray and killed him in honnoji? Because he used to be merciless even to common people , which ended up killing akechi mitsuhide's mother..

[EmmieLovesAkuma]

Heartless does not equal evil, though. Nobunaga couldn't afford to be a soft ruler, not when an entire country was falling apart at the seams. I know he made some pretty stupid decisions, but does that really mean he deserves to be tossed aside in Japan's history? Every ruler who ever lived made dumb decisions.

[bastuss]

I understand your point, but i dont think he was tossed from japan' history , his fame is easily equal to other famous warlord back then, like tokugawa ieyashu, takeda shingen, uesugi kenshin , etc..

[EmmieLovesAkuma]

Well, yeah, but he may as well have been blotted out with the way people talk about him today, like he's a blemish on their history.

[bastuss]

Hahah i see , personally , i believe common people is the most important fundamental of any nation , so any leader should maintain his/her virtue and benevolence to his/her people..
just like nerdvana said , nobunaga quality back then made him as most fearsome warlord , on 1570 a. d. Almost all of regional warlords from entire country form a coalition to oppose him alone..

[AnimeDreama]

Nobunaga committed many acts of atrocity during the Warring States Era, not the least of which resulted in the massacre of nearly 60,000 innocents and the burning of the sacred Mount Hiei. Although I do agree that he was a great and powerful ruler, the overlooking of his war crimes is a disgrace to Japanese history and his memory as well.

Yes, he was responsible for uniting Japan. Yes, he was also responsible for many of Japan's traditions, including the widespread use of kabuki theater (the creation of which is ascribed to Izumo no Okuni), which later was reformed by Tokugawa Ieyasu, a reformed business model, and a revolutionary firearm squadron.

He was a radical leader, and it was his brashness that led to his demise at the hands of Mitsuhide Akechi, his closest general and friend.

[EmmieLovesAkuma]

I see where you are coming from, but I still stand by my belief that he deserves more honor and respect. I understand that the Japanese despise him for his war crimes, but the fact is, things like that will happen in any war. And it was over 500 years ago. As stated before, without him, Japan would likely have crumbled into chaos for Lord knows how long. He was the cornerstone of Japanese society as we know. Don't you think he deserves a little recognition for that?

[AnimeDreama]

Of course he does. But the Japanese have long memories.

[LucyColes]

Thats the same argument as hitler. He did what he had to do to turn Germany from a failing country, to one of the greatest in the world.

[EmmieLovesAkuma]

Yes, I know. But Hitler's motives were purely evil. He wanted to exterminate an entire race and take over all of Europe, and destroy the West in revenge for forcing Germany to make reparations for World War I. Nobunaga only wanted a united Japan. That's the key difference.

[abundantlyrich]

I'm not going to take sides with this but every great character that leads and defends comes with a shade of grey.

[abundantlyrich]

I thought you were that other fairly well known user. AnimeDream, then i took a look at your profile... I was wrong.

[EmmieLovesAkuma]

LOL the way you typed that last line XD

And I agree with you about the "shade of grey" thing.

[abundantlyrich]

you two look very similar