was 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 ...

family whose power stretched from the

Kamakura period The is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura shogunate, officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by the first ''shōgun'' Minamoto no Yoritomo after the conclusion of the Genpei War, which saw the struggle b ...

through the

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 ...

, spanning over 400 years. The clan's hereditary lands lay in

Kyūshū 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 ...

Origins

The first family head,

Ōtomo Yoshinao Ōtomo Yoshinao (大友能直, January 29, 1172 - December 20, 1223) was a Japanese samurai lord and ''gokenin'' of the early Kamakura period. He was a close retainer of shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo, even called his "matchless favorite", and s ...

(1172–1223), took the name from the Ōtomo territory in

Sagami Province was a province of Japan located in what is today the central and western Kanagawa Prefecture. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Kanagawa''" at . Sagami Province bordered the provinces of Izu, Musashi, and Suruga. It had access to the Pac ...

. The clan claims descent from

Emperor Seiwa was the 56th emperor of Japan,Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'') 清和天皇 (56)/ref> according to the traditional order of succession. Seiwa's reign spanned the years from 858 through 876.He was also the predecessor of Takeda ryu. T ...

(850-881) through the

Seiwa Genji The is a line of the Japanese Minamoto clan that is descended from Emperor Seiwa, which is the most successful and powerful line of the clan. Many of the most famous Minamoto warriors, including Minamoto no Yoshiie, Minamoto no Yoritomo, the f ...

lineage of the

Minamoto clan was one of the surnames bestowed by the Emperors of Japan upon members of the imperial family who were excluded from the line of succession and demoted into the ranks of the nobility from 1192 to 1333. The practice was most prevalent during th ...

. Although the clan genealogy claims Yoshinao to be an illegitimate son of

Minamoto no Yoritomo was the founder and the first shogun of the Kamakura shogunate of Japan, ruling from 1192 until 1199.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Minamoto no Yoriie" in . He was the husband of Hōjō Masako who acted as regent (''shikken'') after his ...

, it has been concluded that he was in fact a descendant 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 ...

History

Following the establishment of the

Kamakura shogunate The was the feudal military government of Japan during the Kamakura period from 1185 to 1333. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Kamakura-jidai''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia'', p. 459. The Kamakura shogunate was established by Minamoto no ...

in 1185, Yoshinao were granted the post of Constable (''

Shugo , commonly translated as “(military) governor,” “protector,” or “constable,” was a title given to certain officials in feudal Japan. They were each appointed by the ''shōgun'' to oversee one or more of the provinces of Japan. The pos ...

'') of Bungo and

Buzen Province was an old province of Japan in northern Kyūshū in the area of Fukuoka Prefecture and Ōita Prefecture. It was sometimes called , with Bungo Province. Buzen bordered on Bungo and Chikuzen Provinces. History The ruins of the ancient capital ...

s in Kyūshū. As the Ōtomo were one of the major clans of Kyūshū, along with the Shōni and the Shimazu, they had a central role in organizing efforts against the

Mongol invasions of Japan Major military efforts were taken by Kublai Khan of the Yuan dynasty in 1274 and 1281 to conquer the Japanese archipelago after the submission of the Korean kingdom of Goryeo to vassaldom. Ultimately a failure, the invasion attempts are of m ...

in 1274 and 1281. They also played an important role in the establishment of the

Ashikaga shogunate The , also known as the , was the feudal military government of Japan during the Muromachi period from 1336 to 1573.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Muromachi-jidai''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia'', p. 669. The Ashikaga shogunate was establi ...

, in the 1330s. Ōtomo warriors fought alongside those of

Ashikaga Takauji was the founder and first '' shōgun'' of the Ashikaga shogunate."Ashikaga Takauji" in ''The New Encyclopædia Britannica''. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 15th edn., 1992, Vol. 1, p. 625. His rule began in 1338, beginning the Murom ...

and enabled him to win a number of key battles, including the battle of Sanoyama; this helped to ensure them powerful government positions in the new shogunate. A powerful clan throughout the Sengoku period (1467–1573), the Ōtomo are especially notable as one of the first clans to make contact with Europeans, and to establish a trade relationship with them. In or around 1542, three Portuguese ships were carried by a typhoon to the island of

Tanegashima is one of the Ōsumi Islands belonging to Kagoshima Prefecture, Japan. The island, 444.99 km2 in area, is the second largest of the Ōsumi Islands, and has a population of 33,000 people. Access to the island is by ferry, or by air to Ne ...

, just off the coast of Kyūshū. Within ten years, trade with the Portuguese was fairly regular and common in Kyūshū. The

Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

missionary

Francis Xavier Francis Xavier (born Francisco de Jasso y Azpilicueta; Latin: ''Franciscus Xaverius''; Basque: ''Frantzisko Xabierkoa''; French: ''François Xavier''; Spanish: ''Francisco Javier''; Portuguese: ''Francisco Xavier''; 7 April 15063 December ...

arrived in Japan in 1549, and soon afterwards met with

Ōtomo Sōrin , also known as Fujiwara no Yoshishige (藤原義鎮) and Ōtomo Yoshishige (大友義鎮), was a Japanese feudal lord (''daimyō'') of the Ōtomo clan, one of the few to have converted to Roman Catholicism (Christianity). The eldest son of , he ...

, ''shugo'' of Bungo and Buzen provinces, who would later be described by Xavier as a "king" and convert to

Roman Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

in 1578. Ōtomo was eager to secure for his clan further trade and contact with the Portuguese, seeing the technological and, more importantly perhaps, economic benefits that could be derived. In 1552, emissaries from the Ōtomo clan traveled to Goa with Xavier, to meet with the Portuguese Governor of

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area, the List of countries and dependencies by population, second-most populous ...

. Xavier and other Jesuit missionaries would return to Kyūshū, traveling and proselytizing; the Ōtomo were always well-disposed towards them, and they saw some success in Bungo as a result, converting many Japanese to Christianity. Towards the end of the 16th century, the Ōtomo fought both the Shimazu and Mōri clans, the latter of whom were expert sailors. Though they did not play a major role in the campaigns of

Tokugawa Ieyasu was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Tokugawa Shogunate of Japan, which ruled Japan from 1603 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was one of the three "Great Unifiers" of Japan, along with his former lord Oda Nobunaga and fello ...

which ended the Sengoku period, they did retain their domains into the

Edo period The or is the period between 1603 and 1867 in the history of Japan, when Japan was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional '' daimyo''. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengoku period, the Edo period was character ...

Clan Heads

# Ōtomo Yoshinao= (大友能直, 1172–1223) # Ōtomo Chikahide (大友親秀, 1195–1248) # Ōtomo Yoriyasu (大友頼泰, 1222–1300) # Ōtomo Chikatoki (大友親時, 1236–1295) # Ōtomo Sadachika (大友貞親, 1246–1311) # Ōtomo Sadamune (大友貞宗, ? –1334) # Ōtomo Ujiyasu (大友氏泰, 1321–1362) # Ōtomo Ujitoki (大友氏時, ? –1368) # Ōtomo Ujitsugu (大友氏継, ? –1401) # Ōtomo Chikayo (大友親世, ? –1418) # Ōtomo Chikaaki (大友親著, ? –1426), also called "Chikatsugu". # Ōtomo Mochinao (大友持直, ? –1445) # Ōtomo Chikatsuna (大友親綱, ? –1459) # Ōtomo Chikataka (大友親隆, ? –1470) # Ōtomo Chikashige (大友親繁, 1411–1493) # Ōtomo Masachika (大友政親, 1444–1496) # Ōtomo Yoshisuke (大友義右, 1459–1496) # Ōtomo Chikaharu (大友親治, 1461–1524) # Ōtomo Yoshinaga (大友義長, 1478–1518) # Ōtomo Yoshiaki (大友義鑑, 1502–1550) #

(大友宗麟, 1530–1587), originally Ōtomo Yoshishige (大友義鎮) # Ōtomo Yoshimune (大友義統, 1558–1610) # Ōtomo Yoshinori (大友義乗, 1577–1612) # Ōtomo Yoshichika (大友義親, 1597–1619)

Notable Members

* Ōtomo-Nata Jezebel (died 1587) – High priestess of

Usa Jingū The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territo ...

, wife of Ōtomo Sōrin and mother of Ōtomo Yoshimune * Myorin – Lady of Tsurusaki Castle *

(1530–1587),

Constable A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in criminal law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions. A constable is commonly the rank of an officer within the police. Other peop ...

of Bungo and

s * Ōtomo Yoshimune (1558–1610), heir of Otomo Sorin. *

Ōuchi Yoshinaga , formerly Ōtomo Haruhide (大友晴英), was a 16th-century Kyushu warrior who was invited by Sue Harukata, who had just taken control of the Ōuchi clan, to serve as the official head of the Ōuchi while Sue pulled the strings from behind. Yosh ...

(1532 – May 1, 1557), the younger brother of Ōtomo Yoshishige.

Notable retainers

* Tachibana Dōsetsu *

Tachibana Muneshige The term has at least two different meanings, and has been used in several contexts. People * – a clan of ''kuge'' (court nobles) prominent in the Nara and Heian periods (710–1185) * – a clan of ''daimyō'' (feudal lords) prominent in the Mu ...

* Takahashi Shigetane * Yoshihiro Akimasa * Usuki Akisumi * Shiga Chikamori

Popular culture

Otomo is a playable nation in the grand strategy games ''

Europa Universalis IV ''Europa Universalis IV'' is a 2013 grand strategy video game in the '' Europa Universalis'' series, developed by Paradox Development Studio and published by Paradox Interactive as a sequel to '' Europa Universalis III'' (2007). The game was ...

'', '' Sengoku'' as well as in '' Shogun 2''.

References

*Turnbull, Stephen (1998). ''The Samurai Sourcebook''. London: Cassell & Co. {{DEFAULTSORT:Otomo clan Japanese clans