family of the Japanese feudal nobility which seized the shogunate (the day-to-day government under the nominal authority of the Emperor) in 1603 and ruled until 1867, that is until the Meiji Revolution.

Tokugawa Ieyasu united Japan through force, becoming Shogun in 1603. His family ruled in that position until 1867.

Tokugawa Ieyasu and the Tokugawa clan of the Edo period of Japan has appeared in innumerable books, plays, films, television shows, manga, anime, and video games.