Kitabatake Clan

Kitabatake Clan History

The Kitabatake (北畠家 Kitabatake-ka) family or Kitabatake (北畠氏 Kitabatake-shi) clan of Ise province were descendants of Emperor Murakami (926 - 967).

They were fervent supporters of Emperor Go-Daigo during the early Nanboku-chō period led by the loyal imperial Kitabatake Chikafusa (北畠親房; 1293-1354) and remained allies of the Southern Court throughout that period.

This branch of the Kitabatake were descendants of a son of Chikafusa, Kitabatake Akiyoshi ( 北畠顕能; died 1383).

A different branch of the clan called Namioka or Kitabatake-Namioka was founded by another son of Chikafusa, Kitabatake Akiie (北畠顕家; 1318-1338), and ruled in northern Mutsu Province.

During the Sengoku period Kitabatake Tomonori (北畠具教; 1528-1576), son of Harutomo (北畠晴具; 1503-1563), had to face the revolt of many servants against him. Oda Nobunaga ran to his aid by leading an army into the province and captured the castles of Kambe and Kuwana.

As a condition for the intervention and pacification of the province forced Tomonori to adopt his second son Nobuo (1569) who married his daughter to become his heir. In 1576 Tomonori fell ill and was assassinated so Nobuo became the new head of the clan.

Tomonori's son, Nobuoki, was later imprisoned and exiled by Nobuo.

Kitabatake Clan Genealogy

• Kitabatake Chikafusa (北畠 親房; 1293-1354) son of Moroshige, was later Chunagon (1319), Dainagon (1323), then Daijin (1333). He fought vigorously, with his sons Akiie and Akinobu, for the Southern Dynasty. He left several works: the Jinnō Shōtōki (history), the Shokugensho (administration) and others.
• Kitabatake Akiie (北畠 顕家; 1318-1338) eldest son of Chikafusa was appointed, in 1333, Mutsu no kami and retained that province along with that of Dewa under the authority of the Southern Dynasty. Appointed Chinjufu-shōgun (1335), he allied himself with Nitta Yoshisada against Ashikaga Takauji who was defeated at Mii-dera; that victory allowed Go-Daigo to return to Kyoto. Akiie returned to Mutsu with Yoshinaga-shinnō, (Go-Murakami) to increase troops, then returned to besiege Kamakura, which he conquered in 1337. Then, marching on Kyoto, he gained victories at Awa-no-hara, Yawata, and Nara, but was defeated and killed by Kō no Moronao at Sakai-no-ura (Izumi). He was only 21 years old.
• Kitabatake Akinobu (北畠 顕信; died 1380) son of Chikafusa, is known as Kasuga-shōshō. He first fought under his brother Akiie and succeeded him as Mutsu no kami and Chinjufu-shōgun (1338). After several campaigns at Hitachi, Shimōsa, etc., he repaired to Kyūshū with Prince Yasunaga-shinnō, and was killed in a fight against Shōni Yorihisa at Ohara (Chikuzen).
• Kitabatake Akiyoshi (北畠 顕能; died 1383) son of Chikafusa, first fought at Mutsu, then later, was appointed its governor (kokushi). Joining forces with Wada Masatada and Kusunoki Masayoshi, he defeated Ashikaga Yoshiakira and entered Kyoto (1352). Forced to retreat, he remained until his death on the southern side of the Emperor of Yoshino, and received the titles of Udaijin and Sangū.
• Kitabatake Akiyasu (北畠 顕泰) son of Akiyoshi, was governor of Ise, rallied around the Shōgun after the merger of the two dynasties (1392). He helped put down the revolt of Ōuchi Yoshihiro (1399) and received from the Shōgun Ashikaga Yoshimitsu the district of Koga (Ōmi).
• Kitabatake Mitsumasa (北畠 満雅; died 1429) brother of Akiyasu and adopted by him as his heir. In 1392 Go-Komatsu's successor was taken by the Northern Dynasty, and Mitsumasa began to organize a march on Kyoto to raise Prince Ogura, son of Go-Kameyama, to the throne, but failed (1414). A second attempt, at the time of the accession of Go-Hanazono (1429), was unsuccessful: Mitsumasa was defeated by Toki Tokiyori.
• Kitabatake Noritomo (北畠 教具; 1423-1471) son of Mitsumasa, was kokushi of lse, and suppressed in 1402 an attempt by Hatakeyama Yoshinari to rebel against Shōgun Ashikaga Yoshimasa. At the time of the Ōnin War (1467), he gave hospitality to Yoshimi, who was forced to flee Kyoto.
• Kitabatake Masasato (北畠 政郷; 1449 - 1508) son of Noritomo, also a kokushi of lse, had to proceed with severity against one of his officers, Enokura Ujinori, who misbehaved with those going on pilgrimage to Ise (1488).
• Kitabatake Harutomo (北畠 晴具; 1503 - 1563) grandson of Masasato, suppressed the revolt of the samurai of Tamaru (Ise) who had massacred their lord, Tamaru Tomotada.
• Kitabatake Tomonori (北畠 具教; 1528 - 1576) son of Harutomo, had to deal with the rebellion of many of his servants. Nobunaga came with an army to pacify the province, captured the castles of Kambe and Kuwana, and, as a condition for peace, forced Tomonori to adopt his second son Nobuo (1569). In 1576 Tomonori fell ill and was assassinated by his samurai.
• Kitabatake Tomofusa (北畠 具房; 1547 - 1580) Tomonori's eldest son, was also known as Nobuoki. He was forced to cede his succession rights to Nobuo, son of Nobunaga, who had received the province of Ise. Dissension with Nobuo caused him to be exiled to Nagashima. Later, he resided in Kawachi, Owari and died in Kyoto. Two of his descendants, one of whom was the head of the Ryozen-jinja (shrine dedicated to Chikafusa, Akiie, Akinobu) in Iwashiro became barons after the abolition of the han system.