Oda Nobunaga

Japanese warrior (1534-82). Through the innovative use of muskets he established his rule over half of Japan and began the process of unifying the country and restoring stability. In 1573 he overthrew the last Ashikaga shogun (Ashikaga Yoshiaki), and in 1576 he built his great castle of Azuchi. He was sympathetic to Jesuit missionaries, whom he wanted to use to counter the authority of the Buddhists; in 1571 he broke the ascendancy of the powerful Tendai sect. By his death he was dictator of half of Japan's provinces.