It is a branch of the Fujiwara clan, with a long poetic tradition.

The present (25th generation) head of the senior line of the family is Reizei Tamehito (born 1944).

For eight centuries, the family secretly preserved, under imperial order, an important collection of documents.

On April 4, 1980, this collection of about 200,000 pieces was made public by Reizei Tametou (1914-1986).

The following year, a library in Tokyo was created specially for their conservation.