other · Korea and Japan

Saito clan domain

1542 CE – 1567 CE (approx.) · capital Inabayama

The short-lived domain of the Saito in Mino, founded by the notorious usurper Saito Dosan, the viper of Mino, and taken by Oda Nobunaga in 1567.

Origins

Saito Dosan, whose rise from obscurity later legends ascribed to a former oil merchant though modern scholars credit part of it to his father, served the Toki governors of Mino. Around 1542 he expelled Toki Yorinari and made himself master of the province from Inabayama castle.

Rule and society

Dosan governed by force and intrigue and married his daughter to Oda Nobunaga to secure peace with Owari. His position rested on Mino's rich farmland and its location on routes between eastern Japan and Kyoto.

Decline and legacy

Dosan's son Yoshitatsu rose against him and killed him at the Nagara river in 1556. Yoshitatsu's son Tatsuoki lost Inabayama to Nobunaga in 1567; Nobunaga renamed it Gifu and made it his base.

Connections (1)

  • Saito clan domain was conquered by Oda regime1567 CE

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Cite this page
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Saito clan domain. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/saito-clan-domain
MLA
“Saito clan domain.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/saito-clan-domain. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Saito clan domain.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/saito-clan-domain.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Saito clan domain’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/saito-clan-domain (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻