was a member of the martial Hidesato branch of the Fujiwaras and was the father of Fujiwara no Kiyohira

Fujiwara no Kiyohira

was a samurai of mixed Japanese-Emishi parentage of the late Heian period , who was the founder of the Hiraizumi or Northern Fujiwara dynasty that ruled Northern Japan from about 1100 to 1189....

, founder of the Northern Fujiwara

Northern Fujiwara

The Northern Fujiwara were a Japanese noble family that ruled the Tōhoku region of Japan from the 12th to the 13th centuries as if it were their own realm. They succeeded the semi-independent Emishi families of the 11th century who were gradually brought down by the Minamoto clan loyal to the...

 dynasty in Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

. From the Japanese viewpoint he was considered a notorious traitor.

He is said to have come from the Watari District in what is now southern Miyagi Prefecture

Miyagi Prefecture

is a prefecture of Japan in the Tōhoku Region on Honshu island. The capital is Sendai.- History :Miyagi Prefecture was formerly part of the province of Mutsu. Mutsu Province, on northern Honshu, was one of the last provinces to be formed as land was taken from the indigenous Emishi, and became the...

. He served for a time as a military bureaucrat at Fort Taga

Site of Tagajō

was a fort in Tōhoku established during the campaigns against the Emishi in the eighth century. It served as the administrative centre of Mutsu Province. Bashō tells of his visit to the site in Oku no Hosomichi...

 in modern day Tagajō

Tagajo, Miyagi

is a city located in Miyagi Prefecture, Japan.The city was named after Taga Castle, the capital of Mutsu Province.As of 2010, the city has an estimated population of 63,256 and the population density of 3,220 persons per km². The total area is 19.64 km²....

, Miyagi Prefecture

Miyagi Prefecture

is a prefecture of Japan in the Tōhoku Region on Honshu island. The capital is Sendai.- History :Miyagi Prefecture was formerly part of the province of Mutsu. Mutsu Province, on northern Honshu, was one of the last provinces to be formed as land was taken from the indigenous Emishi, and became the...

.

Tsunekiyo married a daughter of Abe no Yoritoki

Abe no Yoritoki

was the head of the Abe clan of Emishi who were allowed to rule the six Emishi districts in the Kitakami Basin from Morioka to Hiraizumi in what is now Iwate Prefecture. The clan emerged from the Appi River basin in what is now Hachimantai City, Iwate Prefecture, early in the 9th century...

, leader of the Emishi

Emishi

The constituted a group of people who lived in northeastern Honshū in the Tōhoku region. They are referred to as in contemporary sources. Some Emishi tribes resisted the rule of the Japanese Emperors during the late Nara and early Heian periods...

 who ruled the Kitakami basin in what is now Iwate Prefecture

Iwate Prefecture

is the second largest prefecture of Japan after Hokkaido. It is located in the Tōhoku region of Honshū island and contains the island's easternmost point. The capital is Morioka. Iwate has the lowest population density of any prefecture outside Hokkaido...

 and moved to Iwayadō Castle

Iwayado Castle

, also known as Shakuchi Castle, is a located in Ōshū, Iwate Prefecture, Japan. During the eleventh century in the late Heian Period, Fujiwara no Tsunekiyo and his son Fujiwara no Kiyohira were the lords of the castle. Today, most of the castle is in ruins, and Hachiman Shrine, Iwayadō Elementary...

. When the Zenkunen War

Zenkunen War

The Zenkunen War , also known by the English translation Early Nine-Years War, was fought from 1051 to 1063, in Japan's Mutsu province, at the far north of the main island of Honshū...

 (前九年合戦) broke out he fought with the Abes against the Central government forces led by the governor of Mutsu Province

Mutsu Province

was an old province of Japan in the area of Fukushima, Miyagi, Iwate and Aomori prefecture and the municipalities of Kazuno and Kosaka in Akita Prefecture...

, Minamoto no Yoriyoshi

Minamoto no Yoriyoshi

was a head of Japan's Minamoto clan who is perhaps most notable for having led, along with his son Minamoto no Yoshiie, the Imperial forces against rebellious forces in the north...

. For this he was branded a traitor. After the Abe were defeated in 1062, Tsunekiyo was beheaded with a blunt sword by Yoriyoshi personally.