Parent house Kudō clan Cadet branches Okada Itō | Dissolution still extant | |
Home province Izu
Hyuga
Kawachi
Bitchu Ruled until 1868 (Abolition of the han system) | ||
The Itō clan (伊東氏, Itō-shi) are a Japanese clan that claimed descent from Fujiwara Korekimi (727–789) and Kudō Ietsugu.
Itō Suketoki (the son of Kudō Suketsune), was famous for his involvement in the incident involving the Soga brothers. The family became a moderate power both in influence and ability by the latter Sengoku Period of Feudal Japan.
After the death of Sukeie in 1181, Sukechika inherited Kawazu Domain in Izu Province. When his uncle Suketsugu neared death, he made Sukechika the guardian of his son Suketsune, who became the head of the Itō Domain in Izu.
In the Muromachi Period and the Sengoku period,
The Itō family's most serious rivals in this period were the Shimazu. The Shimazu clan, which had unified Satsuma Province and Ōsumi Province under their control, began to clash with the Itō in 1570. The Itō were finally defeated by the Shimazu in 1578. Yoshisuke, the family head, went to Kyoto by way of Iyo Province, and sought help from Toyotomi Hideyoshi. The family's old lands were restored in 1587, following Toyotomi Hideyoshi's invasion of Kyushu and defeat of the Shimazu clan. By the Edo period, the Itō retained their holdings, which came to be known as the Obi Domain.
Count Itō Sukeyuki, the Meiji era admiral, was a descendant of this family.