Takenaka clan

The Takenaka kamon.

The Takenaka of Mino province claimed descent from Minamoto Yorimitsu and were an off-shoot of the Tôki clan. Several generations were known as the Iwate, with Takenaka Shigeuji adopting the name Takenaka around the beginning of the 16th Century. Shigeuji's son Shigemoto came to serve Saitô Dôsan. Takenaka Shigeharu (better known as Takenaka Hanbei) enjoyed the favor of Toyotomi Hideyoshi and as a result the Takenaka came to hold the status of daimyô at the start of the Edo Period. This was to be lost in 1634 through the shameful behavior of Takenaka Shigekatsu.