Hōjō Ujinao

Who was Hōjō Ujinao?

Hōjō Ujinao was a Japanese daimyo of the late Sengoku period, and the final head of the Late Hōjō clan. An important figure in the history of Azuchi-Momoyama politics, he lost his entire domain following the siege in 1590. Despite this, he survived, and his family carried on as small daimyo in the Edo period.

Born in Odawara Castle in 1562, Ujinao was the grandson of Hōjō Ujiyasu, and was first named Kuniōmaru. His mother was the daughter of Takeda Shingen. Coming of age in early 1577, he took the formal name Ujinao. Ujinao married Toku Hime, the second daughter of Tokugawa Ieyasu, as a condition for peace between their two clans. In maturity, Ujinao held junior 5th court rank, lower grade and the title Sakyō-dayu. In 1590, Odawara fell to siege at the hands of Toyotomi Hideyoshi; his father and uncle were forced to commit seppuku, but Ujinao was spared because he was Tokugawa Ieyasu's son-in-law. He and his wife were exiled to Mount Kōya, where he died late the following year.

His adoptive son, Hōjō Ujimori, was the first daimyo of Sayama-han.