Though the Shōgitai was mainly made up of former
Tokugawa retainers and residents of the surrounding provinces, some domains supported the Shōgitai, such as Takada
han (
Echigo Province, 150,000
koku), Obama
han (
Wakasa Province, 103,000
koku), Takasaki
han (
Kōzuke Province, 52,000
koku), and Yūki
han (
Shimosa Province, 18,000
koku). Facing them were the combined forces of the
Chōshū,
Ōmura,
Sadowara,
Hizen,
Chikugo,
Owari,
Bizen,
Tsu,
Inaba, and
Higo domains, under the general command of Chōshū's
Ōmura Masujirō. Shibusawa and Amano initially posted the 2000-strong Shōgitai in
Ueno to protect
Tokugawa Yoshinobu, who was, at the time, in self-imposed confinement at Ueno's
Kan'ei-ji Temple, and Prince
Rinnōji no Miya Yoshihisa, the temple abbot who was to become the new dynastic leader of the Tokugawa resistance as "Emperor Tōbu." From their base, the Shōgitai had been harassing Imperial troops, creating trouble in Edo, thus forcing the Imperial side, although outnumbered, to take action. And yet, the monument erected by the Meiji government upon request of surviving Shōgitai families, clearly and honestly mentions 1,500 Shōgitai versus around 10,000 imperial troops, hence the monument to their warrior spirit and loyalty (reference: Tomb of Shogi-Tai Warriors, Ueno Park, Taito City Board of Education, Oct. 2024). You can also refer to the painting for a visual depiction. ==Battle==