Overview
Nobunaga broke his rivals by deploying matchlock guns on a massive scale at Nagashino in 1575, but died in the Honno-ji incident of 1582, betrayed by Akechi Mitsuhide. Hideyoshi avenged him within a fortnight and finished the work of unification, then set about freezing the society that had let a peasant’s son rise: a nationwide cadastral survey, a sword hunt in 1588 that disarmed the villages, and edicts that made the line between warrior and farmer hereditary. He also invaded Korea twice, in 1592 and 1597, and both campaigns failed.
Key developments
Toyotomi Hideyoshi completed the unification with the fall of Odawara (1590). He froze the social order with the sword hunt (1588) and nationwide land surveys, and twice invaded Korea (1592–1598) — campaigns that caused great suffering in Korea and ended with his death. The era’s culture was opulent, known for grand castles and gold-screen painting; the tea master Sen no Rikyu (d. 1591) was active in this period.
End and transition
Tokugawa Ieyasu won the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600 and became shogun in 1603, opening the Edo period.