was a daimyà  in Japanese Sengoku-period. He was the 21st chief of the Chà Âsokabe clan of Tosa Province (present-day Kà Âchi Prefecture), the ruler of Shikoku region.
He was the son and heir of Chà Âsokabe Kunichika and his mother was a daughter of the Saità  clan of Mino Province. His childhood name was Yasaburà  (å¼¥ä¸ÂéÂÂ). He is said to have been born in Okà  Castle in the Nagaoka district of Tosa. Motochika was a tall, fair-skinned, but quiet. His father, Kunichika, was said to have fretted about the boy's gentle nature (he seems to have been nicknamed Himewako, or 'Little Princess'); Kunichika's worries evaporated when Motochika later proved himself a skilled and brave warrior. When Motochika came of age, his father had already begun to draw away from the Ichijà  family, and Motochika would carry on his work.
In 1560, at the Battle of Tonomoto, Chà Âsokabe Kunichika captured Nagahama castle from the Motoyama clan. In response to this, Motoyama Shigetoki departed Asakura castle with 2,500 men to take the castle back. Kunichika intercepted him with 1,000 troops near Nagahama castle. This battle is noted for being Chà Âsokabe Motochika's first battle, in which he fought bravely, greatly impressing his father and his retainers.
In 1562, Chà Âsokabe Motochika attacked Asakura castle defeated Motoyama Shigetoki and by forming alliances with local families, Motochika was able to build his power base on the Kà Âchi plain.
In 1569, while being careful to remain ostensibly loyal to the Ichijà  family over the next few years, Motochika's power grew to the extent that he was strong enough to march on the rival Aki clan of east Tosa with 7,000 men, He defeated Aki Kunitora at Battle of Yanagare, then went on to take Aki Castle.
In the course of the decade he was awarded the court rank Ministry of Imperial Household (Kunai shà Â) and was sufficiently confident after the reduction of Aki to finally turn on the Ichijà  family.
In 1573, while still lord of the Hata district of Tosa, Ichijà  Kanesada was unpopular and had already suffered the defection of a number of important retainers. Seizing the opportunity, Motochika with his brother Kà Âsokabe Chikayasu, wasted no time in marching to attack on the Ichijà Â's headquarters at Nakamura, and Kanesada fled to Bungo, defeated.
In 1575, at the Battle of Shimantogawa (Battle of Watarigawa), he defeated the Ichijo family.
Following his conquest of Tosa, Motochika turned north and prepared for an invasion of Iyo province. The lord of that province was Kà Âno Michinao, a daimyo who had once been driven from his domain by the Utsunomiya clan, returning only with the assistance of the powerful Mà Âri clan. However, it was unlikely that Kà Âno could count on that sort of help again as the Mà Âri were embroiled in a war with Oda Nobunaga. Nonetheless, Chà Âsokabe's campaign in Iyo did not go off without a hitch.
In 1579, a 7,000 men Chà Âsokabe army, commanded by Kumu Yorinobu, met the forces of Kà Âno Michinao, led by Doi Kiyonaga at the Battle of Mimaomote. In the ensuing battle, Kumu Yorinobu was killed and his army defeated, though the loss proved little more than an unfortunate delay. The next year, Motochika led some 30,000 men into Iyo Province, and forced Kà Âno Michinao to flee to Bungo province.
In 1580, Oda Nobunaga disapproved of Motochika's conquest of Shikoku, despite being allied with them. This commotion started from Motochika's effort to respond the Miyoshi clan's threat, by strengthened ties not only with Nobunaga but also withÃÂ MÃ Âri Terumoto to isolate the Miyoshi clan diolomatically. However, Motochika did not change his policy even after Nobunaga began a full-scale invasion of Chugoku Region against the MÃ Âri clan, which caused Nobunaga to distrust grow suspicious about Motochika's allegiance. However, historian Yoshihiro Kawashima stated the relationship between the MÃ Âri and Chosokabe clans had already broken down by the time the MÃ Âri and Miyoshi clans made peace in 1575, and that the alliance between the Chosokabe and the Sanuki Kagawa clan (the adoption of Kagawa Chikazu) itself was the result of the shared interests of the two clans, who were pro-Oda and under threat from both the MÃ Âri and Miyoshi clans. Regardless the reason, Nobunaga only allowed Motochika to possess Tosa Province and the southern half of Awa Province and submit to him unconditionally after the provocation from Miyoshi Yasunaga who just recently submitted to Nobunaga.
With little interference from either the Mà Âri or the à Âtomo, Chà Âsokabe was free to press onwards, and in 1582, he stepped up ongoing raids into Awa province and defeated Sogà  Masayasu and the Miyoshi clan at the Battle of Nakatomigawa. Later, Motochika advanced to Sanuki province and defeated Sengoku Hidehisa at Battle of Hiketa.
By 1583, Chà Âsokabe Motochika had controlled Tosa Province, Iyo and subdued both Awa and Sanuki. Over the ensuing decade, he extended his power to all of Shikoku island, making Motochika's dream of ruling all of Shikoku a reality.
After unifying Tosa, he formed an alliance with Oda Nobunaga, who was promoting the unification project in the central government, through kinship with his wife.
In 1584, Toyotomi Hideyoshi won a political victory against Tokugawa Ieyasu, securing his position as paramount warlord. Hideyoshi began expanding his rule from outside his base in central Honshu and decided to invade Shikoku.
In 1585, Toyotomi Hideyoshi launched an attack against Chà Âsokabe Motochika, and seized Shikoku island, the smallest of Japan's four main islands.
In 1585, Toyotomi forces invaded Shikoku island with a force of 113,000 men, led by Ukita Hideie, Kobayakawa Takakage, Kikkawa Motoharu, Hashiba Hidenaga, and Hashiba Hidetsugu against 40,000 soldiers of the Chà Âsokabe clan. Despite the overwhelming size of Hideyoshi's army, Chà Âsokabe chose to fight to defend his territories. The campaign battles culminated in the siege of Ichinomiya Castle, which lasted for 26 days. Motochika surrendered, and forfeited Awa, Sanuki, and Iyo Provinces; Hideyoshi permitted him to retain Tosa.
Under Hideyoshi, in 1587 Motochika, Kà Âsokabe Chikayasu and his son Nobuchika participated in the invasion of neighboring Kyà «shà « in which Nobuchika died at Battle of Hetsugigawa. In 1590, Motochika led a fleet in the Siege of Shimoda and Siege of Odawara, and also fought in the Japanese invasions of Korea in 1592.
In 1596, the Spanish ship San Felipe was wrecked in Chà Âsokabe territory while en route from Manila to Acapulco. Motochika seized the cargo of the ship, and the incident escalated all the way up to Hideyoshi, leading to the crucifixion of 26 Christians in Nagasaki, the first lethal persecution of Christians by the state in Japan.
Motochika died in 1599 at age 60 at his mansion in Fushimi. His successor was Chà Âsokabe Morichika.
In addition to his leadership, Motochika is remembered for his '100-Article Code of the Chà Âsokabe' and his struggle to found an economically strong castle town, moving in the course of his career from Oko to Otazaka and on to Urado.
In the 1949 Mexican film Philip of Jesus, the character Prince Chokozabe (sic) is played by Rodolfo Acosta.
Motochika is a playable character from Samurai Warriors 2 Xtreme Legends onwards, where he wields a shamisen, he continuously calls himself as "The Bat King", due to Nobunaga historically referring to him as a "the bat who refuses to fly away from its home". This version of the character is also a playable character in Pokémon Conquest, with his partner Pokémon being Dewott and Samurott.
He is also a playable character in several Koei strategy games, as a selectable warlord in Nobunaga's Ambition series, and as a unlockable character in Taikou Risshiden IV and V.
Motochika is also a playable character in the Sony PlayStation game, Sengoku Basara where he wields an anchor and appears as a pirate. He also appears in the anime adaptation of the game '.
He is a playable warlord in '.