Which 1582 incident began when Akechi Mitsuhide attacked Oda Nobunaga at Honnō-ji?

The Honnō-ji Incident began when Akechi Mitsuhide attacked Oda Nobunaga at Honnō-ji in 1582.

On 21 June 1582, according to the Gregorian calendar commonly used in modern histories, Akechi Mitsuhide turned his forces against Nobunaga while Nobunaga was staying at the Honnō-ji temple in Kyoto. Nobunaga was surprised and, facing overwhelming numbers, died during the attack. The incident abruptly removed one of Japan’s most powerful unifiers.

Mitsuhide’s victory was short-lived. Toyotomi Hideyoshi quickly withdrew from western Japan, confronted Mitsuhide at the Battle of Yamazaki, and defeated him within days. Nobunaga’s death therefore created a succession crisis but did not stop the process of political unification. The event is distinct from the later Battle of Yamazaki, which decided Mitsuhide’s fate.