Nobunaga's Conquest of Kyoto

Nobunaga refused all official appointments by the Shogun, by the Emperor. He was happy instead to remain the power behind the throne,. And in this new position of essential political supremacy, he did some very clever political moving and shaking. The Asakura clan had plenty of friends in higher places - including Nobunaga's brother-in-law Azai Nagamasa. They broke their alliance with the Otos straight away to fight instead with the Asakura. This is where Matsudara Takichiyo comes back into the story; a bloke who defected from the Imagawa after the Battle of Okahazami. In 1567 Tokugawa Ieyasu changed his