(December 7, 1561 – October 22, 1626) was a Japanese daimyō of the Azuchi–Momoyama period through early Edo period. Hiroie's father was Kikkawa Motoharu and his mother was a daughter of Kumagai Nobunao. Biography He initially was named Tsunenobu (経信) and made his debut on the battlefield on 1578 against Amago Katsuhisa with his father. On 1583, he was sent to then the de facto ruler Hashiba Hideyoshi as a hostage. From 1586 to 1587, his father and his elder brother Kikkawa Motonaga both died and he became the head of Kikkawa clan. Around this time, he changed his name to Hiroie. Unlike his father and his elder brother who was known for the battlefield bravery, Hiroie preferred strategy and diplomacy to win on a battlefield and was highly praised by Hideyoshi for holding the Mōri clan together after the death of Kobayakawa Takakage. During the Seven-Year Korean War, he is noted for the defeat of a much larger "Ming army" at the siege of Ulsan castle. Battle Of Sekigahara In the Battle of Sekigahara on 1600, Hiroie judged that the Tokugawa side would win. However, as one of the five leading elders of the Toyotomi government, Mōri Terumoto and several of the Mōri clan's retainers was supportive of the pro-Toyotomi forces led by Ishida Mitsunari. In order to ensure the survival of the clan, Hiroie made a secret pact with the Tokugawa side through Kuroda Nagamasa, promising to Mōri neutrality during the battle in exchange for guarantees of the existing Mōri domains. Although Mōri Terumoto was made the nominal commander-in-chief of the western army, he remained in the Osaka Castle. Instead, the Mōri field army joined the rest of the western forces under the command of Mōri Hidemoto, with Hiroie commanding the vanguards. On the day of the actual battle, September 15, the Mōri army deployed on the flank of the Tokugawa forces. However, when Hidemoto ordered an assault, Hiroie refused to comply and used the vanguards under his command to block off the attack routes. Hiroie was thus able to prevent the bulk of the Mōri army from engaging the Tokugawa troops. The bulk of the Mōri army therefore never actually took part in the battle. However, after Tokugawa Ieyasu emerged victorious, several documents incriminating Mōri Terumoto were found in the Osaka Castle. Ieyasu believed the documents showed that Terumoto was involved more deeply in the western army