A warrior of the late Kamakura and Northern and Southern Courts period, head of the Nitta clan based in Nitta-shō, Kōzuke Province (present-day Ōta, Gunma). In 1333, he raised an army on imperial order from Emperor Go-Daigo to overthrow the shogunate. He is celebrated for the legendary episode at Inamuragasaki—throwing his sword into the sea and, as the tide ebbed, leading his forces into Kamakura along the exposed shoreline. He captured Kamakura, destroyed Hōjō Takatoki and his clan, and ended the Kamakura Shogunate. Under Emperor Go-Daigo's Kenmu Restoration, he was trusted as a close imperial supporter, but conflict with Ashikaga Takauji intensified. He continued to fight as a central commander for the Southern Court across many provinces, until he was struck by a stray arrow and killed in battle at Fujishima in Echizen Province (present-day Fukui Prefecture) in 1338, aged 38. Together with Kusunoki Masashige, he was celebrated in the Meiji era as one of Japan's great loyalist heroes.

A warrior of headlong valor and deep loyalty. He favored frontal assaults over stratagems, and maintained his allegiance to Emperor Go-Daigo until the very end. Though he fell short of Ashikaga Takauji as a strategist, his ferocious courage was celebrated by later generations.

The figure most credited with overthrowing the Kamakura Shogunate. The legend of Inamuragasaki is still retold by Kamakura residents, and his memory is honored at sites including Yūgyōji (Fujisawa). Venerated by the Meiji government as a loyal subject, he became a symbol of Southern Court legitimacy.