Though he was defeated in the confrontation with his uncle Yoshimitsu (Hitachi kassen) and ceded Hitachi Province to Satake clan who was the lineage of Yoshimitsu, he had steadily extended power over Shimotsuke Province through the establishment of Ashikagasho district and the like.
叔父義光との対立（常陸合戦）には敗れ、常陸国は義光流の佐竹氏に譲ることになったが、足利庄を成立させるなど、下野国に着実に勢力を築いていった。