or was a prominently-placed figure in late-Sengoku period

Sengoku period

The or Warring States period in Japanese history was a time of social upheaval, political intrigue, and nearly constant military conflict that lasted roughly from the middle of the 15th century to the beginning of the 17th century. The name "Sengoku" was adopted by Japanese historians in reference...

. She was a concubine and second wife of Toyotomi Hideyoshi

Toyotomi Hideyoshi

was a daimyo warrior, general and politician of the Sengoku period. He unified the political factions of Japan. He succeeded his former liege lord, Oda Nobunaga, and brought an end to the Sengoku period. The period of his rule is often called the Momoyama period, named after Hideyoshi's castle...

, who was then the most powerful man in Japan. She also became the mother of his son and successor, Hideyori

Toyotomi Hideyori

was the son and designated successor of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the general who first united all of Japan. His mother, Yodo-dono, was the niece of Oda Nobunaga....

. She was also known as Lady Chacha (茶々). After the death of Hideyoshi, she took the tonsure, becoming a Buddhist nun and taking the name Daikōin (大広院).

The great wealth and changing fortunes of her husband and son affected Yodo-dono's life as well. Surviving record books from luxury goods merchants provide insight into patterns of patronage and taste amongst the privileged class of women like Yodo-dono and her sisters.

Genealogy

Yodo-dono, also called in her youth, was the eldest of three daughters of the Sengoku period

Sengoku period

The or Warring States period in Japanese history was a time of social upheaval, political intrigue, and nearly constant military conflict that lasted roughly from the middle of the 15th century to the beginning of the 17th century. The name "Sengoku" was adopted by Japanese historians in reference...

 daimyo

Daimyo

is a generic term referring to the powerful territorial lords in pre-modern Japan who ruled most of the country from their vast, hereditary land holdings...

, Azai Nagamasa

Azai Nagamasa

was a Daimyo during the Sengoku period of Japan. His clan, the Azai, were located in northern Ōmi Province, east of Lake Biwa. He was both the brother-in-law of Oda Nobunaga, starting in 1564, and one of Nobunaga's enemies from 1570-1573. Nagamasa and his clan were utterly destroyed by Oda...

. Her mother, Oichi

Oichi

or a female historical figure in the late Sengoku period. She is known primarily as the mother of three daughters who married well -- Yodo-dono, Ohatsu and Oeyo....

 was the younger sister of Oda Nobunaga

Oda Nobunaga

was the initiator of the unification of Japan under the shogunate in the late 16th century, which ruled Japan until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was also a major daimyo during the Sengoku period of Japanese history. His opus was continued, completed and finalized by his successors Toyotomi...

.

After Nagamasa's death, Toyotomi Hideyoshi

Toyotomi Hideyoshi

was a daimyo warrior, general and politician of the Sengoku period. He unified the political factions of Japan. He succeeded his former liege lord, Oda Nobunaga, and brought an end to the Sengoku period. The period of his rule is often called the Momoyama period, named after Hideyoshi's castle...

 became the adoptive father and protector of Cha-Cha. Her status changed when she became his concubine. Her status and her name were changed again when Yodo-dono became the mother of a male heir for the aging Taiko

Taiko

means "drum" in Japanese . Outside Japan, the word is often used to refer to any of the various Japanese drums and to the relatively recent art-form of ensemble taiko drumming...

.

Yodo-dono's middle sister, Ohatsu was the wife of Kyōgoku Takatsugu

Kyōgoku Takatsugu

was a daimyo of Omi Province and Wakasa Province during the late-Sengoku Period of Japan's history.Takatsugu is recognized as the founder of the modern Kyōgoku clan. His forebears had been powerful since the 13th century, but their fortunes had waned after the Ōnin War...

 and the mother of Kyōgoku Tadataka.

Yodo-dono's youngest sister, Oeyo

Oeyo

, , or : 1573 – September 15, 1626) was a prominently-placed female figure in late-Sengoku period. She married three times, first to Saji Kazunari, then to Toyotomi Hideyoshi's nephew Toyotomi Hidekatsu. Her third and last husband Tokugawa Hidetada became the second Tokugawa shogun...

, also known as Ogō, was the principal wife of Shogun Tokugawa Hidetada

Tokugawa Hidetada

was the second shogun of the Tokugawa dynasty, who ruled from 1605 until his abdication in 1623. He was the third son of Tokugawa Ieyasu, the first shogun of the Tokugawa shogunate.-Early life :...

 and the mother of his successor Tokugawa Iemitsu

Tokugawa Iemitsu

Tokugawa Iemitsu was the third shogun of the Tokugawa dynasty. He was the eldest son of Tokugawa Hidetada, and the grandson of Tokugawa Ieyasu. Iemitsu ruled from 1623 to 1651.-Early life :...

.

Early years

In 1570, her father, Nagamasa, broke his alliance with Oda Nobunaga and there was a three year period of fighting until 1573 when Nobunaga's army surrounded Nagamasa at Odani Castle

Odani Castle

was a Sengoku period mountain-top castle located in the present day town of Kohoku in Higashiazai District, Shiga Prefecture, Japan. Only the ruins remain today. It was the home castle of the Azai clan and the mountain it was built upon was considered to be impregnable...

. Nobunaga, however, requested the safe return of his sister, Oichi. Yodo-dono along with her mother, and her two sisters left the castle with her. Odani Castle fell, and amongst those who died were Lady Yodo's father and her brother.

Nobunaga's death in 1582 caused open hostilities between Katsuie and Toyotomi Hideyoshi over the issue of succession. Katsuie's forces were defeated at the Battle of Shizugatake

Battle of Shizugatake

The was a battle in Sengoku period Japan between supporters of Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Oda Nobutaka.In May, 1583, a former general of Nobunaga's named Shibata Katsuie coordinated a number of simultaneous attacks on Shizugatake, a series of forts held by Hideyoshi's generals among whom was Nakagawa...

.

However, before Oichi perished, she passed Cha-Cha and her other daughters to the care and protection of Hideyoshi.

Concubine of Hideyoshi

Yodo-dono became Hideyoshi's concubine and soon moved to Yodo Castle (from which she took her title). Hideyoshi's wife, Nene

Nene (person)

or One was an aristocratic lady during the Sengoku and Edo periods of Japanese history known for her intelligence and marriage to Toyotomi Hideyoshi...

, was said to be unable to conceive; and thus Lady Yodo inherited many of her privileges. She had two sons with Hideyoshi, Tsurumatsu, who died young, and Hideyori

Toyotomi Hideyori

was the son and designated successor of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the general who first united all of Japan. His mother, Yodo-dono, was the niece of Oda Nobunaga....

 born in 1593 who became the designated successor of Hideyoshi.

In 1594, the family moved to Fushimi Castle

Fushimi Castle

', also known as Momoyama Castle or Fushimi-Momoyama Castle, is a castle in Kyoto's Fushimi Ward. The current structure is a 1964 replica of the original built by Toyotomi Hideyoshi.-History:...

, but tragedy befell when Hideyoshi died in 1598 and the Toyotomi clan lost much of its influence and importance. Yodo-dono moved to Osaka Castle

Osaka Castle

is a Japanese castle in Chūō-ku, Osaka, Japan.Originally called Ozakajō, it is one of Japan's most famous castles, and played a major role in the unification of Japan during the sixteenth century of the Azuchi-Momoyama period.-Description:...

 with her son Hideyori and plotted the restoration of the Toyotomi clan.

Tokugawa Ieyasu

Tokugawa Ieyasu

 was the founder and first shogun of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan , which ruled from the Battle of Sekigahara  in 1600 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. Ieyasu seized power in 1600, received appointment as shogun in 1603, abdicated from office in 1605, but...

, who seized control from Hideyori after the death of his father, now viewed Hideyori as an obstacle to his unification of Japan. He laid siege to Osaka Castle in 1614, but the attack fell through, and subsequently he signed a truce with Hideyori.
However, in 1615, Ieyasu broke the truce and once again attacked Osaka Castle, and this time he succeeded. Yodo-dono and her son Hideyori committed suicide, thus ending the Toyotomi legacy.

In fiction

A fictional character based on Yodo-dono appears in James Clavell

James Clavell

James Clavell, born Charles Edmund DuMaresq Clavell was an Australian-born, British novelist, screenwriter, director and World War II veteran and prisoner of war...

's Shōgun

Shogun (novel)

Shōgun is a 1975 novel by James Clavell. It is the first novel of the author's Asian Saga. A major bestseller, by 1990 the book had sold 15 million copies worldwide...

. This contrived protagonist is Lady Ochiba, who dislikes Toranaga (Tokugawa Ieyasu

Tokugawa Ieyasu

 was the founder and first shogun of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan , which ruled from the Battle of Sekigahara  in 1600 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. Ieyasu seized power in 1600, received appointment as shogun in 1603, abdicated from office in 1605, but...

) because he presumably knew her son wasn't fathered by the Taikō (Toyotomi Hideyoshi). However, she admires and trusts the Taikō's widow, Yodoko (Nene

Nene (person)

or One was an aristocratic lady during the Sengoku and Edo periods of Japanese history known for her intelligence and marriage to Toyotomi Hideyoshi...

), who urges both her and Toranaga that they marry so that Japan remains united, and when the heir, Yaemon (Toyotomi Hideyori

Toyotomi Hideyori

was the son and designated successor of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the general who first united all of Japan. His mother, Yodo-dono, was the niece of Oda Nobunaga....

) comes of age, he can safely take control. In James Clavell's later novels it is revealed that, just as in real history, Toranaga eventually besieged Ochiba and Yaemon in their castle, prompting them to commit suicide.

She also appears in Capcom

Capcom

is a Japanese developer and publisher of video games, known for creating multi-million-selling franchises such as Devil May Cry, Chaos Legion, Street Fighter, Mega Man and Resident Evil. Capcom developed and published Bionic Commando, Lost Planet and Dark Void too, but they are less known. Its...

's recent addition of the Onimusha series, Onimusha: Dawn of Dreams

Onimusha: Dawn of Dreams

Onimusha: Dawn Of Dreams, released in Japan as , is the fourth canonical installment of Capcom's Onimusha series, released in March 2006. Dawn of Dreams focuses on a new protagonist, Soki Onimusha: Dawn Of Dreams, released in Japan as , is the fourth canonical installment of Capcom's Onimusha...

, as Toyotomi Hideyoshi

Toyotomi Hideyoshi

was a daimyo warrior, general and politician of the Sengoku period. He unified the political factions of Japan. He succeeded his former liege lord, Oda Nobunaga, and brought an end to the Sengoku period. The period of his rule is often called the Momoyama period, named after Hideyoshi's castle...

's concubine and sister to playable character Ohatsu, who affectionately calls Yodo by her childhood name, "Cha-Cha". She was transformed into the Genma Mother Tree, and was replaced by Ophelia, who took on her form. Ophelia, the Genma High Priestess, is a member of the Genma Triumvirate

Triumvirate

A triumvirate is a political regime dominated by three powerful individuals, each a triumvir . The arrangement can be formal or informal, and though the three are usually equal on paper, in reality this is rarely the case...

, whose ultimate goal is to resurrect the Genma/Demon God of Light Fortinbras

Fortinbras

Fortinbras is the name of two minor fictional characters from William Shakespeare's tragedy Hamlet. The more notable is a Norwegian crown prince with a few brief scenes in the play, who delivers the final lines that represent a hopeful future for the monarchy of Denmark and its subjects...

 by using Hideyoshi as his vessel. Yodo was rescued by Soki and his friends, and she fled Fushimi Castle. At the end of the game, it is seen that Yodo now lives with her sister Ohatsu.

In the current 2011 Taiga drama, Gō: Hime-tachi no Sengoku, Cha-cha is portrayed by the actress, Rie Miyazawa

Rie Miyazawa

is a Japanese actress and former model.- Life and career :Rie Miyazawa was born in Tokyo and raised by her mother. Since her debut at age 11 in an advertisement for Kit Kat, she has many films, television shows, commercials, stage appearances and photo books to her credit. She starred in the...

.