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 ...

clan A clan is a group of people united by actual or perceived kinship and descent. Even if lineage details are unknown, clans may claim descent from founding member or apical ancestor. Clans, in indigenous societies, tend to be endogamous, mea ...

that claimed descent from 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 ...

by way of the Kawachi Genji. It was a branch 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 ...

by the Ashikaga clan.

Origins

Ashikaga Kuniuji Ashikaga (足利) may refer to: * Ashikaga clan (足利氏 ''Ashikaga-shi''), a Japanese samurai clan descended from the Minamoto clan; and that formed the basis of the eponymous shogunate ** Ashikaga shogunate (足利幕府 ''Ashikaga bakufu''), a ...

, grandson of Ashikaga Yoshiuji, established himself in the 13th century at Imagawa ( Mikawa Province) and took its name. Imagawa Norikuni (1295–1384) received from his cousin the shōgun Ashikaga Takauji the province of Tōtōmi, and later that of Suruga.

Located at

Ounami no Kori, Mikawa (modern day Nishio, Aichi) mainly

Suruga Province was an old province in the area that is today the central part of Shizuoka Prefecture. Suruga bordered on Izu, Kai, Sagami, Shinano, and Tōtōmi provinces; and was bordered by the Pacific Ocean through Suruga Bay to the south. Its abbrev ...

and Tōtōmi Province during the Warring States period

Crests

*Two hikiryou *Yoshimoto's version of the akaitori (pictured) *Two hikiryou and a paulownia planted in white soil

Major figures

* Imagawa Sadayo * Imagawa Yoshitada *

Imagawa Ujichika was a Japanese ''daimyō'' of the Sengoku period. He was the 10th head of the Imagawa clan of Suruga Province. Ujichika was the son of Imagawa Yoshitada. He was the husband of Jukei-ni. Biography In 1476, Ujichika father, Yoshitada, invaded ...

* Imagawa Ujiteru * Imagawa Yoshimoto *

Imagawa Ujizane was a Japanese ''daimyō'' who lived in the Sengoku through early Edo periods. He was the tenth head of the Imagawa clan, and was a son of Imagawa Yoshimoto and the father of Imagawa Norimochi and Shinagawa Takahisa. Biography Ujizane was ...

Muromachi era

* Imagawa Sadayo, was a renowned Japanese poet and military commander who served as tandai ("constable") of

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 ...

under the Ashikaga bakufu from 1371 to 1395.

Sengoku era

After the death of Yoshimoto at the Battle of Okehazama in 1560, during 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 ...

, many Imagawa officers defected to other clans. Within a decade, the clan had lost all of its land holdings to the Tokugawa and Takeda clans. The Imagawa subsequently became masters of ceremonies in the service of the Tokugawa clan."Suruga Imagawa-shi" on Harimaya.com
(12 July 2008)

Clan castles

Separated by province name. *

: Imagawa Kan (later known as Sunpu Castle), Shizuhatayama Castle, Mochifune Castle, Tanaka Castle * Tōtōmi Province:

Kakegawa Castle is a ''hirayama''-style Japanese castle. It was the seat of various ''fudai daimyō'' clans who ruled over Kakegawa Domain, Tōtōmi Province, in what is now central Kakegawa, Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan. Background Kakegawa Castle is located ...

, Takatenjin Castle ( ja), Futamada Castle, Inui Castle,

Hamamatsu Castle is a replica ''hirayama''-style Japanese castle. It was the seat of various ''fudai daimyō'' who ruled over Hamamatsu Domain, Tōtōmi Province, in what is now central Hamamatsu, Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan under the Edo period Tokugawa s ...

, Utsuyama Castle. * Mikawa Province:

Yoshida Castle is a Japanese castle located in Toyohashi, southeastern Aichi Prefecture, Japan. At the end of the Edo period, Yoshida Castle was home to the Inaba clan, '' daimyō'' of Tateyama Domain. The castle was also known as , and later as Toyohashi C ...

Tahara Castle is a Japanese castle located in Tahara, southern Aichi Prefecture, Japan. At the end of the Edo period, Tahara Castle was home to the Miyake clan, ''daimyō'' of the 12,000 ''koku'' Tahara Domain. History Tahara Castle is located on a small ...

, Okazaki Castle, Anshō Castle *

Owari Province was a province of Japan in the area that today forms the western half of Aichi Prefecture, including the modern city of Nagoya. The province was created in 646. Owari bordered on Mikawa, Mino, and Ise Provinces. Owari and Mino provinces were ...

: Katsukake Castle, Ōtaka Castle, Narumi Castle

Edo period

* Shinagawa Takahisa, the son of

. He was a hatamoto and served the

Tokugawa clan The is a Japanese dynasty that was formerly a powerful '' daimyō'' family. They nominally descended from Emperor Seiwa (850–880) and were a branch of the Minamoto clan (Seiwa Genji) through the Matsudaira clan. The early history of this cl ...

. * Imagawa Norinobu, an Imagawa of the late Edo period, was a '' wakadoshiyori'' in the Tokugawa administration.

Key genealogies

Suruga # Imagawa Kuniuji (1243–1282) # Imagawa Morouji (1261–1323) #

Imagawa Norikuni was a Japanese samurai clan that claimed descent from the Seiwa Genji by way of the Kawachi Genji. It was a branch of the Minamoto clan by the Ashikaga clan. Origins Ashikaga Kuniuji, grandson of Ashikaga Yoshiuji, established himself in the ...

(1295?-1384) # Imagawa Noriuji (1316–1365) # Imagawa Yasunori (1334?-1409?) # Imagawa Norimasa (1364–1433) # Imagawa Noritada (1408-1461?) # Imagawa Yoshitada #

# Imagawa Ujiteru # Imagawa Yoshimoto #

# Imagawa Naofusa (1594–1662) #

Imagawa Ujinari was a Japanese samurai clan that claimed descent from the Seiwa Genji by way of the Kawachi Genji. It was a branch of the Minamoto clan by the Ashikaga clan. Origins Ashikaga Kuniuji, grandson of Ashikaga Yoshiuji, established himself in the ...

(1642–1673) # Imagawa Ujimichi (1668–1699) # Imagawa Noritaka (1694–1712) # Imagawa Norinushi (1698–1728) # Imagawa Norihiko (1716–1749) # Imagawa Noriyasu (1731–1784) # Imagawa Yoshiaki (1756–1818) #

Imagawa Yoshimochi was a Japanese samurai clan that claimed descent from the Seiwa Genji by way of the Kawachi Genji. It was a branch of the Minamoto clan by the Ashikaga clan. Origins Ashikaga Kuniuji, grandson of Ashikaga Yoshiuji, established himself in the ...

(1786–1839) # Imagawa Yoshiyori (1810–1841) # Imagawa Norinobu # Imagawa Yoshihito (1854-1872) Tōtōmi * Imagawa Sadayo (1326-1420?) * Imagawa Nakaaki * Imagawa Sadaomi * Imagawa Sadasuke * Imagawa Norimasa (?-1464) * Imagawa Sadanobu (?-1474) Tōtōmi (Horikoshi branch) * Horikoshi Sadamoto (?-1537) * Horikoshi Ujinobu * Horikoshi Sadatada * Horikoshi Sadahisa *

Horikoshi Sadayoshi Horikoshi (written: ) is a Japanese surname. Notable people with the surname include: *, Japanese aerospace engineer *, Japanese manga artist *, Japanese voice actress *, Japanese weightlifter See also *Horikoshi High School is a private high ...

* Horikoshi Sadatsugu Tōtōmi (Sena branch) * Sena Kazuhide * Sena Ujisada *

Sena Ujitoshi Sena may refer to: Places * Sanandaj or Sena, city in northwestern Iran * Sena (state constituency), represented in the Perlis State Legislative Assembly * Sena, Dashtestan, village in Bushehr Province, Iran * Sena, Huesca, municipality in Hue ...

* Sena Ujiakira * Sena Masakatsu * Sena Kiyosada

Notable members

* Jukei-ni * Lady Tsukiyama * Lady Hayakawa

Notable retainers

* Matsudaira Motoyasu *

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 ...

* Okabe Motonobu *

Matsui Munenobu was a Japanese samurai of the Sengoku period. He was also known as Matsui Gohachirō. Born the son of Matsui Sadamune, he was a retainer of the Imagawa clan. After the death of his brother in the year Eiroku-2 (1559), he became lord of Futamata Ca ...

* Udono Nagateru * Asahina Yasutomo *

Ii Naomori was a retainer of the Japanese Imagawa clan during the Sengoku period of the 16th century. During the Battle of Okehazama in 1560, Naomori was killed while trying to protect his lord, Imagawa Yoshimoto during the attack led by Oda Nobunaga, who ...

Abe Motozane was a Japanese samurai of the Sengoku period, who first served the Imagawa clan. He was involved in the defense of Sunpu Castle, but had to retreat when Takeda Shingen attacked. He later served Tokugawa Ieyasu was the founder and first ...

* Ichinomiya Munekore *

Ii Naochika was a Japanese samurai of the Sengoku period, who served the Imagawa clan. It was planned that he would marry Ii Naomori's daughter Naotora but then he fled to Shinano, to avoid committing suicide caused by slander from an Imagawa retainer. ...

Ii Naotora Ii Naotora (井伊直虎, d. 12 September 1582) was a daimyō of the Sengoku period. She was the daughter and only child of Ii Naomori, the eighteenth head of their clan. She was primarily the head of Ii clan and retainer of the Imagawa clan, bec ...

Iio Tsuratatsu was a Japanese samurai of the Sengoku period who served the Imagawa clan was a Japanese samurai clan that claimed descent from the Seiwa Genji by way of the Kawachi Genji. It was a branch of the Minamoto clan by the Ashikaga clan. Orig ...

Otazu no kata Pago de Otazu is a branch of Bodega Otazu, a Spanish winery in Navarre, Spain. The Pago de Otazu branch uses the Vino de Pago wine appellation, a classification for Spanish wine applied to individual vineyards or wine estates, unlike the Denomin ...

* Katsurayama Ujimoto * Taigen Sessai * Iio Noritsura *

Itami Yasunao 270px, Gogadzuka Kofun 270px, Aerial view of Itami city center 270px, Konoike inari shihi 270px, Arioka Castle ruins ) is a city located in Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 197,215 in 83580 households and a ...

Yamaguchi Noritsugu Yamaguchi may refer to: People *Yamaguchi (surname), the 14th most popular Japanese surname. Places *Yamaguchi Prefecture, the westernmost prefecture of Honshū island of Japan **Yamaguchi (city), capital of Yamaguchi Prefecture *** Yamaguchi St ...

* Yamaguchi Noriyoshi * Yokoe Magohachi *

Fuji Nobutada was a Japanese samurai of the Sengoku period, who served the Imagawa clan was a Japanese samurai clan that claimed descent from the Seiwa Genji by way of the Kawachi Genji. It was a branch of the Minamoto clan by the Ashikaga clan. Orig ...

Popular culture

Imagawa is a playable nation in

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 ...

Notes

References

*{{in lang, ja}
"Suruga Imagawa-shi" on Harimaya.com
(12 July 2008) Japanese clans Ashikaga clan