Ota clan
Encyclopedia
The was a Japan
ese samurai
clan descended from the Seiwa Genji. The Ota are best known as daimyō
(feudal lords) of territories on Kyūshū
during the Edo period
(1600–1867).
In a special context created by the Tokugawa shogunate
, the Ōta clan were identified as tozama
or outsiders, in contrast with the fudai
or insider daimyō clans which were hereditary vassals or allies of the Tokugawas.
. They claimed descent from Minamoto Yorimasa, and through that branch of the Minamoto they claimed kinship with the Seiwa-Genji.
The feudal progenator of the clan name, Ōta Sukekuni, established himelf at Ōta in Tamba province
, and he adopted this location name as his own. He traced his lineage as a 5th generation descendant of Yorimasa.
In, 1638, Ōta Sukemune
, the grandson of Ōta Yasusuke, was granted Nishio Domain
in Mikawa province
; and then, in 1645, he and his family was transferred to Hamamatsu Domain
(35,000 koku) in Tōtōmi province
. Yasusuke's descendants were moved several times by shogunate decree, residing successively in 1687 at Tanaka Domain
in Suruga province
, in 1703 at Tanakura Domain in Mutsu province
, and in 1728 at Tatebayashi Domain
in Kōzuke province
. Then, in the period spanning the years 1746 through 1868, this branch of the Ōta clan established itself at Kakegawa Domain
(53,000 koku) in Tōtōmi.
The head of this clan line was ennobled as a "Viscount" in the Meiji period.
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese samurai
Samurai
is the term for the military nobility of pre-industrial Japan. According to translator William Scott Wilson: "In Chinese, the character 侍 was originally a verb meaning to wait upon or accompany a person in the upper ranks of society, and this is also true of the original term in Japanese, saburau...
clan descended from the Seiwa Genji. The Ota are best known as daimyō
Daimyo
is a generic term referring to the powerful territorial lords in pre-modern Japan who ruled most of the country from their vast, hereditary land holdings...
(feudal lords) of territories on Kyūshū
Kyushu
is the third largest island of Japan and most southwesterly of its four main islands. Its alternate ancient names include , , and . The historical regional name is referred to Kyushu and its surrounding islands....
during the Edo period
Edo period
The , or , is a division of Japanese history which was ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family, running from 1603 to 1868. The political entity of this period was the Tokugawa shogunate....
(1600–1867).
In a special context created by the Tokugawa shogunate
Tokugawa shogunate
The Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the and the , was a feudal regime of Japan established by Tokugawa Ieyasu and ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family. This period is known as the Edo period and gets its name from the capital city, Edo, which is now called Tokyo, after the name was...
, the Ōta clan were identified as tozama
Tozama
A ' was a daimyo who was considered an outsider by the rulers of Japan. The term came into use in the Kamakura period and continued until the end of the Edo period.-Edo period:...
or outsiders, in contrast with the fudai
Fudai
was a class of daimyo who were hereditary vassals of the Tokugawa in Edo period Japan. It was primarily the fudai who filled the ranks of the Tokugawa administration.-Origins:...
or insider daimyō clans which were hereditary vassals or allies of the Tokugawas.
Ōta clan genealogy
The tozama Ōta clan originated in 15th century Musashi provinceMusashi Province
was a province of Japan, which today comprises Tokyo Prefecture, most of Saitama Prefecture and part of Kanagawa Prefecture. It was sometimes called . The province encompassed Kawasaki and Yokohama...
. They claimed descent from Minamoto Yorimasa, and through that branch of the Minamoto they claimed kinship with the Seiwa-Genji.
The feudal progenator of the clan name, Ōta Sukekuni, established himelf at Ōta in Tamba province
Tamba Province
was an old province of Japan. The ambit of its borders encompassed both the central part of modern Kyoto Prefecture and the east-central part of Hyōgo Prefecture. It was sometimes called , with Tango Province...
, and he adopted this location name as his own. He traced his lineage as a 5th generation descendant of Yorimasa.
In, 1638, Ōta Sukemune
Ōta Sukemune
was a daimyō during early-Edo period Japan. His courtesy title was Bitchu no Kami.-Biography:Ōta Sukemune was the second son of Ōta Shigemasa, a Sengoku period samurai descendent from Ōta Dōkan, who entered into the service of Tokugawa Ieyasu after the fall of the Go-Hōjō clan in 1590...
, the grandson of Ōta Yasusuke, was granted Nishio Domain
Nishio Domain
was a Japanese domain of the Edo period, located in former Mikawa Province, in what is now the modern-day city of Nishio in Aichi Prefecture, Japan. It was centered on Nishio Castle.-History:...
in Mikawa province
Mikawa Province
is an old province in the area that today forms the eastern half of Aichi Prefecture. It was sometimes called . Mikawa bordered on Owari, Mino, Shinano, and Tōtōmi Provinces....
; and then, in 1645, he and his family was transferred to Hamamatsu Domain
Hamamatsu Domain
was a Japanese domain of the Edo period, located in Tōtōmi Province. It was centered on what is now Hamamatsu Castle in what is now the city of Hamamatsu in Shizuoka Prefecture....
(35,000 koku) in Tōtōmi province
Totomi Province
was a province of Japan in the area of Japan that is today western Shizuoka Prefecture. Tōtōmi bordered on Mikawa, Suruga and Shinano Provinces. Its abbreviated form name was .-History:...
. Yasusuke's descendants were moved several times by shogunate decree, residing successively in 1687 at Tanaka Domain
Tanaka Domain
' was a tozama Japanese feudal domain of the Edo period, located in Suruga Province, centered on what is now Fujieda City, Shizuoka Prefecture...
in Suruga province
Suruga Province
was an old province in the area that is today the central part of Shizuoka prefecture. It was sometimes called . Suruga bordered on Izu, Kai, Sagami, Shinano, and Tōtōmi provinces; and had access to the Pacific Ocean through Suruga Bay.-History:...
, in 1703 at Tanakura Domain in Mutsu province
Mutsu Province
was an old province of Japan in the area of Fukushima, Miyagi, Iwate and Aomori prefecture and the municipalities of Kazuno and Kosaka in Akita Prefecture...
, and in 1728 at Tatebayashi Domain
Tatebayashi Domain
The ' was a Japanese domain of the Edo period, located in Kōzuke Province .-List of lords:*Sakakibara clan #Yasumasa#Yasukatsu#Tadatsugu*Matsudaira clan...
in Kōzuke province
Kozuke Province
was an old province located in the Tōsandō of Japan, which today comprises Gunma Prefecture. It is nicknamed as or .The ancient provincial capital was near modern Maebashi. During the Sengoku period, Kōzuke was controlled variously by Takeda Shingen, Uesugi Kenshin, the late Hōjō clan, and...
. Then, in the period spanning the years 1746 through 1868, this branch of the Ōta clan established itself at Kakegawa Domain
Kakegawa Domain
' was a Japanese feudal domain of the Edo period, located in Tōtōmi Province. Kakegawa was primarily a Fudai domain. It was centered at Kakegawa Castle in what is now Kakegawa, Shizuoka.-History:...
(53,000 koku) in Tōtōmi.
The head of this clan line was ennobled as a "Viscount" in the Meiji period.
Notable clan members
-
- Ōta Sukekuni
- Sesshū TōyōSesshu Toyowas the most prominent Japanese master of ink and wash painting from the middle Muromachi period. He was born into the samurai Oda family , then brought up and educated to become a Rinzai Zen Buddhist priest...
, 1420-1506—painter. - Ōta DōkanOta Dokan, also known as Ōta Sukenaga or Ōta Dōkan Sukenaga, was a Japanese samurai warrior-poet, military tactician and Buddhist monk. Ōta Sukenaga took the tonsure as a Buddhist priest in 1478, and he also adopted the Buddhist name, Dōkan, by which is known today...
, 1432-1486—builder of Edo CastleEdo Castle, also known as , is a flatland castle that was built in 1457 by Ōta Dōkan. It is located in Chiyoda in Tokyo, then known as Edo, Toshima District, Musashi Province. Tokugawa Ieyasu established the Tokugawa shogunate here. It was the residence of the shogun and location of the shogunate, and also...
(1457) - Ōta Yasusuke
- Yasusuke's daughter, Okatsu-no-tubone/Eishoin -- founded Eisho-ji in KamakuraKamakura, Kanagawais a city located in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, about south-south-west of Tokyo. It used to be also called .Although Kamakura proper is today rather small, it is often described in history books as a former de facto capital of Japan as the seat of the Shogunate and of the Regency during the...
(1636)
- Yasusuke's daughter, Okatsu-no-tubone/Eishoin -- founded Eisho-ji in Kamakura
- Ōta SukemuneŌta Sukemunewas a daimyō during early-Edo period Japan. His courtesy title was Bitchu no Kami.-Biography:Ōta Sukemune was the second son of Ōta Shigemasa, a Sengoku period samurai descendent from Ōta Dōkan, who entered into the service of Tokugawa Ieyasu after the fall of the Go-Hōjō clan in 1590...
, grandson of Yasusuke -- WakadoshiyoriWakadoshiyoriThe ', or "Junior Elders", were high government officials in 17th century Tokugawa Japan. The position was established around 1631, but appointments were irregular until 1662....
(1833–1838) - Ōta SukeyoshiOta Sukeyoshiwas the 2nd daimyō of Kakegawa Domain in Tōtōmi Province, in mid-Edo period Japan and a high-level office holder within the Tokugawa shogunate. -Biography:...
, 1763-1805 -- Kyoto shoshidaiKyoto ShoshidaiThe was an important administrative and political office in the early modern government of Japan. However, the significance and effectiveness of the office is credited to the third Tokugawa shogun, Iemitsu, who developed these initial creations as bureaucratic elements in a consistent and...
(1789–1792), RōjūRojuThe ', usually translated as Elder, was one of the highest-ranking government posts in Tokugawa Japan. The term refers either to individual Elders, or to the Council as a whole; under the first two shoguns, there were only two Rōjū...
(1793–1801) - Ōta SukemotoOta Sukemotowas the 5th Ōta daimyō of Kakegawa Domain in Tōtōmi Province, in late-Edo period and Bakumatsu period Japan and a high-level office holder within the Tokugawa shogunate. His courtesy title was Dewa-no-kami.-Biography:...
, 1799-1867—Kyoto shoshidai (1831–1834). Rōjū (1837–1841, 1858–1859, 1863) - Ōta Minesaburo -- Chief Secretary of the House of PeersHouse of Peers (Japan)The ' was the upper house of the Imperial Diet as mandated under the Constitution of the Empire of Japan ....
, Imperial nominee (1908).