In 1565, when the thirteenth Seii taishogun (literally, "great general who subdues the barbarians") Yoshiteru ASHIKAGA was assassinated by Hisahide MATSUNAGA and Miyoshi sannin shu (Three subordinates of the Miyoshi clan: Nagayasu MIYOSHI, Masayasu MIYOSHI, and Tomomichi IWANARI) in the Eiroku Incident, Fujihide and his brother Fujitaka enthroned Kakukei ICHIJOIN (later, Yoshiaki ASHIKAGA) and asked the Asakura clan in Echizen Province for help.
永禄8年（1565年）に第13代征夷大将軍足利義輝が松永久秀・三好三人衆に暗殺されると（永禄の変）、藤英は弟の藤孝とともに一乗院覚慶（後の足利義昭）を擁立して越前国朝倉氏を頼る。