There is the question guys, would Oda Nogunaga have conceived a victory against Takeda Shigen at the battle of Nagashino without the 3000 or so Arquebusiers? For those that have no clue what Nagashino was, it was a battle between the Takeda and the Oda in which the famous Takeda Cavalry was slaughtered by the many guns used by the Oda. That is just a breif overview of the happening within this huge battle, which made a turning point in Japanese warfare.
Since this battle, the way of the Samurai slowly disappeared as the guns were brought in. However, for the Daimyo, the loss of the way of life was of little importance now they had the key to gaining the title of shogun for their own. After the slaughter at Nagashino the nation woke up and realised, guns were the way, and infact, the way to expand their armies. What many overlook is the fact, Ashigaru's were commonly used, but poorly trained, because obviously, real skill needed to be learned over time, were as they were just poorly skilled and used the weapons to the best of their knowledge. Guns were, however, powerful but easy to use weapons, which meant Ashigaru became much more vital to their campaign as now they neeeded their people more than ever, to use these awesome weapons, and use them over a vast amount of troops.
But back to Nagashino. What if Oda had no guns, would he have been able to stand against the might of a Takeda Cavalry charge? Or would he have met his end? It is interesting to think how exactally the war would have turned out if Oda had not the gun power he did. Now it's time for you to discuss you views, would they have still become victorious? Or would Japan have no Oda shogunate?
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