Chūjō

The Chūjō were a family of the Yokoyama party, part of the Musashi Seven Parties rooted in Musashi Province. Their founder Chūjō Ienaga served Minamoto no Yoshitomo, and the clan joined Minamoto no Yoritomo's rising of 1180. When the Yokoyama main line was destroyed in 1213, the Chūjō endured and long held the Constableship of Owari.

Estates in Mikawa brought them into the Ashikaga orbit, and they fought for the Northern Court. They became shogunal guardsmen until they fell out of favour with Shogun Yoshinori.

The Mikawa branch fared badly in the Sengoku age: in 1493 Chūjō Hideaki was beaten by the Matsudaira at Idano, and repeated attacks eroded their lands. After Oda Nobunaga's victory at Okehazama in 1560 the family abandoned the province without a fight. The clan also gave its name to the Chūjō school of swordsmanship.