Born in 1164 in Obusuma District, Musashi Province (present-day Fukaya, Saitama), as the son of Hatakeyama Shigeyoshi, he built his residence at Sugaya in Obusuma District (present-day Ranzan, Hiki District, Saitama), a strategic point on the Kamakura Kaido road. He became a gokenin under Minamoto no Yoritomo and is famous for the legend of leading his horse down the steep Hiyodorigoe slope at the 1184 Battle of Ichinotani. Renowned for his integrity, he was praised as the "model of Bando warriors" and deeply trusted by Yoritomo. In June 1205, after Lady Maki, second wife of Hojo Tokimasa, slandered his son Shigeyasu, who was then killed at Yuigahama, Shigetada departed Sugaya-yakata for Kamakura to clear his name. On June 22 he was surrounded at Futamatagawa in Musashi Province (present-day Asahi Ward, Yokohama) by a large force under Hojo Yoshitoki, and fell fighting with barely 136 mounted retainers, at age 42 (the Hatakeyama Shigetada Rebellion). The charges were later proven false; Lady Maki was exiled and Tokimasa forced from power.

Renowned not only for martial prowess but for integrity and compassion, earning him the epithet "model of Bando warriors." His lifelong loyalty to Yoritomo, and his choice to ride to Kamakura to clear his name even knowing he was vastly outnumbered, embody a samurai's sense of honor.

The Sugaya-yakata ruins, designated a National Historic Site and one of Japan's Continued 100 Fine Castles, remain his residence site and draw many visitors today. His tragic death on false charges has been retold for centuries, becoming a model of the ideal Kamakura warrior in Noh and Kabuki.