was a Japanese

daimyo were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and nominally to ...

family of the

Sengoku The was the period in Japanese history in which civil wars and social upheavals took place almost continuously in the 15th and 16th centuries. The Kyōtoku incident (1454), Ōnin War (1467), or (1493) are generally chosen as the period's start ...

and

Edo period The , also known as the , is the period between 1600 or 1603 and 1868 in the history of Japan, when the country was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and some 300 regional ''daimyo'', or feudal lords. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengok ...

History

Yukinori, the founder of the Watari clan and the Torii clan, was from a family of Kumano Gongen Shinto priests in Kii Province. He was given the family name of Taira from Taira no Kiyomori, and was named Taira no Yukinori. His son Yukitada, moved to Yahagasho in Mikawa Province after the Jokyu War (1221), and changed his name to 'Watari'. During the disturbance of the Northern and Southern Courts, Watari Tadakage fought for Nitta Yoshisada of the Southern Court, and changed his name to 'Torii'. Loyal retainers of the

Tokugawa clan The is a Japanese dynasty which produced the Tokugawa shoguns who ruled Japan from 1603 to 1868 during the Edo period. It was formerly a powerful ''daimyō'' family. They nominally descended from Emperor Seiwa (850–880) and were a branch of ...

since the 16th century, the Torii are perhaps most famous for the bravery and valor of Torii Sune'emon, who was crucified by

Takeda Katsuyori was a Japanese ''daimyō'' (military lord) of the Sengoku period, who was famed as the head of the Takeda clan and the successor to the legendary warlord Takeda Shingen. He was son-in-law of Hojo Ujiyasu, ''daimyō'' of Hojo clan. Early life H ...

at the 1575 siege of Nagashino castle, and for

Torii Mototada was a Japanese samurai and daimyo of the Sengoku-through late-Azuchi–Momoyama periods, who served Tokugawa Ieyasu. Torii died at the siege of Fushimi, where his garrison was greatly outnumbered and destroyed by the army of Ishida Mitsunari. ...

whose Seppuku is one of the most celebrated in the whole thousand years of Samurai history. The family was originally granted the fief of Yahagi in

Shimōsa Province was a province of Japan in the area of modern Chiba Prefecture and Ibaraki Prefecture as well as the bordering parts of Saitama Prefecture and Tokyo (the parts that used to be located east of the lower reaches of the old Tone River prior to the ...

in 1590. It was worth 40,000 ''

koku The is a Chinese-based Japanese unit of volume. One koku is equivalent to 10 or approximately , or about of rice. It converts, in turn, to 100 shō and 1,000 gō. One ''gō'' is the traditional volume of a single serving of rice (before co ...

''. Following the establishment of the

Tokugawa shogunate The Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. The Tokugawa shogunate was established by Tokugawa Ieyasu after victory at the Battle of Sekigahara, ending the civil wars ...

, in 1606 the Torii were given

Iwakidaira Domain was a feudal domain under the Tokugawa shogunate of Edo period Japan.,Jansen, Marius B. (1994)''Sakamoto Ryōma and the Meiji Restoration,'' p. 401 based at Iwakitaira Castle in southern Mutsu Province in what is now part of modern-day Iwaki ...

in Mutsu Province, worth 100,000 ''koku''. Then, in 1622 they moved once more to

Yamagata Domain was a feudal domain in Edo period Japan, located in Dewa Province (modern-day Yamagata Prefecture), Japan. It was centered on Yamagata Castle in what is now the city of Yamagata. Unlike some ''han'' whose control was relatively stable throughou ...

Dewa Province was a province of Japan comprising modern-day Yamagata Prefecture and Akita Prefecture, except for the city of Kazuno and the town of Kosaka. Dewa bordered on Mutsu and Echigō Provinces. Its abbreviated form name was . History Early per ...

, with an annual income of 260,000 ''koku''.

Torii Tadatsune was the son of the ''daimyō'' Torii Tadamasa; his fief reverted to the control of the shogunate , officially , was the title of the military rulers of Japan during most of the period spanning from 1185 to 1868. Nominally appointed by the ...

died without an heir in 1636, and his fief thus reverted to the shogunate; his brother

Torii Tadaharu was a Japanese ''daimyō'' of the early Edo period who ruled the Takatō Domain in Shinano Province (modern-day Nagano Prefecture). History Tadaharu was the 3rd son of Torii Tadamasa, the lord of the Yamagata Domain. As his father died befo ...

was given

Takatō Domain was a domain of the Tokugawa Shogunate of Japan during the Edo period from 1600 to 1871. The Takatō Domain was based at Takatō Castle in Shinano Province, in the modern city of Ina, located in the Chūbu region of the island of Honshu. The ...

Shinano province or is an old province of Japan that is now Nagano Prefecture. Shinano bordered Echigo, Etchū, Hida, Kai, Kōzuke, Mikawa, Mino, Musashi, Suruga, and Tōtōmi Provinces. The ancient capital was located near modern-day Matsumoto, whi ...

(30,000 ''koku'').

Members of note

Torii Tadayoshi was a Japanese samurai of the mid-Sengoku period. Longtime retainer of Matsudaira Hirotada and later, his son Tokugawa Ieyasu. When Ieyasu was sent to Sunpu Castle to be a hostage to the Imagawa clan, Tadayoshi served alongside Matsudaira Shigey ...

(d. 1571) *

Torii Suneemon was an ashigaru (low class footman) who served the Okudaira family, retainer of Tokugawa Ieyasu. He became famous for his bravery and incredible exploit at the battle of Nagashino, siege of Nagashino. He was a retainer of Okudaira Sadamasa an ...

(d. 1575) *

(1539–1600) *

Torii Tadamasa was a Japanese feudal lord of the Azuchi–Momoyama period, Azuchi-Momoyama and Edo period, early Edo periods, who served Tokugawa Ieyasu and played a role in controlling the military in the eastern provinces. History The second son of Ieya ...

(1567–1628) *

Torii Naritsugu was a military commander and ''daimyō'' during the early Edo period. The third son of Torii Mototada, he served Tokugawa Ieyasu from a young age and was honored for his military service during the Battle of Sekigahara. In 1603, he became lord o ...

(d. 1636) *

(1608–1651) *

Torii Yōzō A is a traditional Japanese gate most commonly found at the entrance of or within a Shinto shrine, where it symbolically marks the transition from the mundane to the sacred, and a spot where kami are welcomed and thought to travel through. ...

(1804–1874)

References

*Sansom, George (1963). "A History of Japan: 1615-1867." Stanford, California: Stanford University Press. *Turnbull, Stephen (1998). 'The Samurai Sourcebook'. London: Cassell & Co. Japanese clans {{Japan-clan-stub