Who Is Niwa Nagahide (Niwa Goroza)?
Nobunaga's versatile chief retainer
Niwa Gorozaemon Nagahide
Niwa Nagahide was a chief retainer of the Oda clan who served Nobunaga from a young age. Commonly called Gorozaemon, he handled not only fighting but also behind-the-scenes work such as castle building. He is said to have been nicknamed "Rice Goroza" (Kome Goroza) because he was as indispensable as rice.
In the Mino campaign of Episode 5, he works both as a go-between, winning over powerful Mino figures such as Sato Kii-no-kami of Kajita Castle, and in attacking castles. In Episode 6 he is one of the commanders at Mitsukuri Castle, and his name also appears in the Echizen campaign of Episode 7. He is always on hand at Nobunaga's crucial moments.
He is also famous for later overseeing the construction of Azuchi Castle. After Nobunaga's death, he fought Akechi Mitsuhide alongside Toyotomi Hideyoshi and took part in the Kiyosu Conference, the talks that decided what would follow Nobunaga. He died in 1585.
Episodes featuring this character3
NEWEpisode 5
He Beat an Army. He Can't Beat a Hill.Siege of Inabayama Castle
Oda Nobunaga crushed an army of 45,000, yet for years one mountain castle has him saying "Going home." He strips away the enemy's allies one by one, then moves without waiting for the hostages, so fast that even his own side is stunned.
19 pages
NEWEpisode 6
Keep the Title. Give Me the Ports.Nobunaga's March on Kyoto
Backing a nobleman who has lost everything, Oda Nobunaga takes a mountain castle in a single day and fills Kyoto with long vermilion spears. Then, drawing on the stories told about him, this episode shows the man who turned down the high rank a weeping shogun offered with the word "Father," and asked only for a few towns of ports and roads.
19 pages
NEWEpisode 7
He Was Winning. Then He Ran for His LifeThe Retreat from Kanegasaki
With victory in sight, Nobunaga hears that his sister's husband has turned on him. He laughs it off, but the reports keep coming. "Right or wrong hardly matters now," he says, then leaves the win and his pride behind and races through dark mountain trails to Kyoto.
19 pages