Mashiko

The Mashiko were a warrior house of Haga in Shimotsuke, seated at Saimyōji Castle. They led the Ki-tō in Utsunomiya service and claimed descent from Takenouchi no Sukune. Under Masashige they joined the Ōshū campaign in 1189, earning a Minamoto white banner from Yoritomo.

In the Nanboku-chō war they followed the Utsunomiya on the Northern Court side; Mashiko Kensuke fell at Tō-ji, and Southern Court troops briefly seized their castles in 1339. In 1546 Mashiko Katsumune seized the headship and later befriended Takeda Shingen, receiving a character of his name for his heir; the clan raided Takeda Katsuyori's camp in 1578.

Revolt against the Utsunomiya in the 1580s ended in Mashiko Iemune's defeat and death. After the 1590 settlement of Shimotsuke the survivors are thought to have taken the surname Kataoka; other Mashiko followed the Satake to Akita in 1602.