The was a prominent

samurai were the hereditary military nobility and officer caste of medieval and early-modern Japan from the late 12th century until their abolition in 1876. They were the well-paid retainers of the '' daimyo'' (the great feudal landholders). They h ...

clan of Japan's

Sengoku period The was a period in History of Japan, Japanese history of near-constant civil war and social upheaval from 1467 to 1615. The Sengoku period was initiated by the Ōnin War in 1467 which collapsed the Feudalism, feudal system of Japan under the ...

. The most famous member of the clan is likely

Kikkawa Motoharu was the second son of Mōri Motonari, and featured prominently in all the wars of the Mōri clan. He became an active commander of the Mōri army and he with his brother Kobayakawa Takakage became known as the “Mōri Ryōkawa", or “Mōri's ...

(1530-1586), one of

Toyotomi Hideyoshi , otherwise known as and , was a Japanese samurai and ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) of the late Sengoku period regarded as the second "Great Unifier" of Japan.Richard Holmes, The World Atlas of Warfare: Military Innovations that Changed the Cour ...

's generals, who was adopted into the family. Along with the

Kobayakawa clan The was a Japanese samurai clan that claimed descent from the Taira clan. Their holdings were in the Chūgoku region. They were a powerful clan during the Sengoku period but were disbanded during the Edo period after the Battle of Sekigahara. Ho ...

, the Kikkawa played an important role in Hideyoshi's

Kyūshū Campaign is the third-largest island of Japan's five main islands and the most southerly of the four largest islands ( i.e. excluding Okinawa). In the past, it has been known as , and . The historical regional name referred to Kyushu and its surround ...

(1586-7), and later became daimyō in

Izumo province was an old province of Japan which today consists of the eastern part of Shimane Prefecture. It was sometimes called . The province is in the Chūgoku region. History During the early Kofun period (3rd century) this region was independent an ...

and

Iwakuni is a city located in Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan. History Iwakuni was formerly the castle town of the Iwakuni han, which was formed by Lord Hiroie Kikkawa after he was banished there for supporting the defeated shōgun. The Kikkawa clan ruled ...

after that.

Origins

The founder of the clan, Kikkawa Tsuneyoshi (吉川経義), was a son of Irie Kageyoshi (入江景義). The Irie clan descends through the Kudō clan from the Southern House of the

Fujiwara clan was a powerful family of imperial regents in Japan, descending from the Nakatomi clan and, as legend held, through them their ancestral god Ame-no-Koyane. The Fujiwara prospered since the ancient times and dominated the imperial court until th ...

. The family takes the name from a place called Kikkawa in Irie no sho domain, in Suruga province. Tsuneyoshi distinguished himself in the search and seizure of Kajiwara Kagetoki and gained a territory in Fukui no sho, in Harima Province. He then distinguished himself in the Jokyu War and became the jito of Oasa no sho in Aki Province In 1550, Kikkawa Okitsune was murdered by a conspiracy of

Mori Motonari Mori is a Japanese and Italian surname, and also a Persian pet name for Morteza. It is also the name of two clans in Japan, and one clan in India. Italian surname *Barbara Mori, Uruguayan-Mexican actress *Camilo Mori, Chilean painter *Cesare ...

, and the main branch of the Kikkawa clan was destroyed. Motoharu, the second son of Mori Motonari received Okitsune's name and estates.

Clan Heads

# Kikkawa Tsuneyoshi (吉川経義, 1132–1193), son of Irie Kageyoshi (入江景義), founder of the clan. # Kikkawa Tomokane (吉川友兼, 1159–1200) # Kikkawa Tomotsune (吉川朝経, 1182–1240) # Kikkawa Tsunemitsu (吉川経光, 1192–1267) # Kikkawa Tsunetaka (吉川経高, 1234–1319) # Kikkawa Tsunemori (吉川経盛, 1290–1358) # Kikkawa Tsuneaki (吉川経秋, ? –1383) # Kikkawa Tsunemi (吉川経見, ? –1435) # Kikkawa Tsunenobu (吉川経信, 1396–1456) # Kikkawa Yukitsune (吉川之経, 1415–1477) # Kikkawa Tsunemoto (吉川経基, 1428–1520) # Kikkawa Kunitsune (吉川国経, 1443–1531), his daughter married

Mōri Motonari was a prominent ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) in the western Chūgoku region of Japan during the Sengoku period of the 16th century. The Mōri clan claimed descent from Ōe no Hiromoto (大江広元), an adviser to Minamoto no Yoritomo. Motonari w ...

. # Kikkawa Mototsune (吉川元経, 1459–1522), he married the daughter of

Mōri Hiromoto was a local warlord (jizamurai) of Aki Province in the west Chūgoku region of Japan during the Muromachi period and Sengoku period of the 16th century. The Mōri clan claimed descent from Ōe no Hiromoto, an adviser to Minamoto no Yoritomo. ...

and sister of

. # Kikkawa Okitsune (吉川興経, 1508–1550), his mother was the daughter of

and sister of

. #

(吉川元春, 1530–1586), second son of

. # Kikkawa Motonaga (吉川元長, 1548–1587) #

Kikkawa Hiroie (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 w ...

(吉川広家, 1561–1625) # Kikkawa Hiromasa (吉川広正, 1601–1666) # Kikkawa Hiroyoshi (吉川広嘉, 1621–1679) # Kikkawa Hironori (吉川広紀, 1658–1696) # Kikkawa Hiromichi (吉川広逵, 1695–1715) # Kikkawa Tsunenaga (吉川経永, 1714–1764) # Kikkawa Tsunetomo (吉川経倫, 1764–1803) # Kikkawa Tsunetada (吉川経忠, 1766–1803) # Kikkawa Tsunekata (吉川経賢, 1791–1807) # Kikkawa Tsunehiro (吉川経礼, 1793–1837) # Kikkawa Tsunekira (吉川経章, 1794–1844) # Kikkawa Tsunemasa (吉川経幹, 1829–1867) # Kikkawa Tsunetake (吉川経健, 1855–1909)

Clan members of note

* Kikkawa Tsuneie (d. 1581) *

(1530-1586) - General under Hideyoshi; died in

* Kikkawa Motonaga (1547-1587) - Son of Motoharu *

(1561-1625) - Son of Motoharu; Daimyō of

Izumo Izumo (出雲) may refer to: Locations * Izumo Province, an old province of Japan * Izumo, Shimane, a city located in Shimane Prefecture ** Izumo Airport * Izumo-taisha, one of Japan's most ancient and important Shinto shrines Ships * ''Izumo ...

and later

* Kikkawa Hiromasa - Son of Motoharu *

Yoshikawa Koretari is a city located in Saitama Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 73,262 in 31,031 households and a population density of 2300 persons per km². The total area of the city is . Geography Located in far southeastern Saita ...

(1616-1694) - also known as Kikkawa Koretari; Shintō philosopher * Kikkawa Reika (1875-1929) -

Yamato-e is a style of Japanese painting inspired by Tang dynasty paintings and fully developed by the late Heian period. It is considered the classical Japanese style. From the Muromachi period (15th century), the term Yamato-e has been used to distingui ...

painter

References

*Frederic, Louis (2002). "Japan Encyclopedia." Cambridge, Massachusetts: Harvard University Press. *Turnbull, Stephen (1998). 'The Samurai Sourcebook'. London: Cassell & Co. Japanese clans Fujiwara clan {{Japan-clan-stub