The Sagara clan was, during the Edo period, a Tozama clan (non-hereditary feudal lords or daimyos in Japan during the Tokugawa period (1603-1867), whose house had been equal to the Tokugawa house before the establishment of the shogunate ( In spite of their lack of hereditary ties to the shogunate, these houses, by their importance and the state, were allowed to conserve their dominions) that ruled in the county of Hitoyoshi in the province of Higo The domain boasted of have a kokudaka (rent) of 22,000 koku. The Sagara originally descended from the Fujiwara clan, and are believed to have taken their name from the lordship they held in Sagara, in the Haibara district in Tôtômi province during the Kamakura period. In 1198, the year before his death, Minamoto no Yoritomo granted the territory of Hitoyoshi (in Kyushu, in the present prefecture of Kumamoto) to the Sagara. Hitoyoshi is completely surrounded by mountains, making it easily defendable, which allowed the Sagara to survive relatively easily to the attacks of their neighbors during the Sengoku period. Sagara Nagatsune initially fought with the Western Army (against Tokugawa Ieyasu) in the battle of Sekigahara, but secretly sent an emissary to Ieyasu declaring his ally. Then, when Ieyasu's forces maintained the siege of Ogaki's castle of Nagatsune, he allowed the attackers to enter, which was worth to him to relieve the enmity of Tokugawa Ieyasu. Later he also contributed to Ieyasu's efforts during the siege of Osaka, and gained a great reputation for his clan.

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