The is a Japanese
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 ...
family who were
daimyo and an important political force in the unification of Japan in the mid-16th century. Though they had the climax of their fame under
Oda Nobunaga
was a Japanese ''daimyō'' and one of the leading figures of the Sengoku period. He is regarded as the first "Great Unifier" of Japan.
Nobunaga was head of the very powerful Oda clan, and launched a war against other ''daimyō'' to unify ...
and fell from the spotlight soon after, several branches of the family continued as daimyo houses until the
Meiji Restoration
The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored practical imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Although there were ...
. After the Meiji Restoration, all four houses of the clan were appointed
Viscount
A viscount ( , for male) or viscountess (, for female) is a title used in certain European countries for a noble of varying status.
In many countries a viscount, and its historical equivalents, was a non-hereditary, administrative or judicia ...
in the new system of hereditary peerage.
History
Origins
The Oda family in the time of Nobunaga claimed descent from the
Taira clan
The Taira was one of the four most important clans that dominated Japanese politics during the Heian, Kamakura and Muromachi Periods of Japanese history – the others being the Fujiwara, the Tachibana, and the Minamoto. The clan is divided ...
, by
Taira no Chikazane
(1178-1225) was the last living member of the Taira clan. He was the son of Taira no Koremori, grandson of Taira no Shigemori, and great-grandson of Taira no Kiyomori. He and his brother, Taira no Takakiyo, were the only male members of the Tair ...
, a grandson of
Taira no Shigemori
was the eldest regent of the Taira clan patriarch, Taira no Kiyomori. He supported his father in the Heiji Rebellion. He died two years before his father. His son, Taira no Koremori, became a monk in 1184, and drowned himself. Oda Nobunaga cl ...
(1138–1179).
Taira no Chikazane established himself at Oda (
Echizen Province
was a province of Japan in the area that is today the northern portion of Fukui Prefecture in the Hokuriku region of Japan. Echizen bordered on Kaga, Wakasa, Hida, and Ōmi Provinces. It was part of Hokurikudō Circuit. Its abbreviated for ...
) and took its name. His descendants, senior retainers of the
Shiba clan
was a Japanese clan. Papinot, Jacques Edmond Joseph. (1906). ''Dictionnaire d’histoire et de géographie du Japon''; Papinot, (2003).html" ;"title="DF 58 of 80">("Shiba," ''Nobiliare du Japon'', p. 54 DF_58_of_80">("Shi_...
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