Japanese History Digest
The Kamakura Period
The Establishment of the Kamakura Shogunate
In 1180, Prince Mochihito, son of Emperor Goshirakawa, dissatisfied with the Taira clan's autocracy, raised an army to overthrow the Taira clan (by Emperor Mochihito's order) together with Minamoto no Yorimasa, a warrior based in the Kinai region. The uprising was discovered midway and ended in failure, but Minamoto no Yoritomo in Izu and Kiso no Yoshinaka in Shinano raised armies, ushering in the era of the Genpei War.
Subsequently, Minamoto no Yoritomo rallied samurai from the eastern provinces, who were deeply dissatisfied with the central government, and consolidated the foundation of the shogunate, based in Kamakura. With the death of Taira no Kiyomori in 1181, the Taira clan's power declined, eventually being destroyed in the Battle of Dannoura in 1185. Furthermore, in 1189, Yoritomo annihilated the Oshu Fujiwara clan, who had been hiding Yoshitsune, with whom he had been on bad terms, and gained military control over the entire country. Upon the death of Emperor Goshirakawa in 1192, Yoritomo was appointed Shogun, marking the establishment of the Kamakura Shogunate in both name and reality. However, it is generally believed that the shogunate's actual establishment occurred in 1185, when it gained the right to appoint shugo and jito.
Politics of the Kamakura Shogunate
The Kamakura Shogunate's governance was based on the master-servant relationship between the shogun and its vassals. The shogun provided "on" (favor) by appointing shogun to shugo and jito positions and recognizing and guaranteeing the shogun's rights over their territories. The shogun repaid this favor with "hōkō" (services) in the military during wartime and by providing security for the capital and the shogunate, such as serving as Kyoto Daibanyaku and Kamakura Banyaku.
To support these systems, the shogunate established various institutions. In 1180, the Samurai-dokoro was established to control the shogunate and punish criminals. In 1184, the Monju-sho was established to handle trials and lawsuits involving manors and imperial lands. In the same year, the Komon-sho (later the Mandokoro) was established to handle government affairs and finances.
The Rule of the Shikken (Regent Government)
After Minamoto no Yoritomo's death in 1199, the shogun's authority was transferred to a council of influential shoguns, and government came to be governed by a council of influential shoguns. Hojo Tokimasa, father of Yoritomo's wife, Hojo Masako, emerged as a central figure among the influential shogunate. He deposed the second shogun, Yoriie, and supported the third shogun, Sanetomo, and himself became regent as the head of the Mandokoro, seizing real power.
In 1219, the third shogun, Sanetomo, was assassinated by his nephew, Kugyo, at Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine. This prompted Emperor Go-Toba to plot an overthrow of the shogunate, and in 1221 he raised an army (the Jokyu War). However, the eastern vassals held firm, and the retired emperor's side was defeated. Emperors Gotoba, Tsuchimikado, and Juntoku were all exiled. Following this rebellion, the shogunate established the Rokuhara Tandai in Kyoto to monitor the Imperial Court, confiscated approximately 3,000 of the retired emperor's territories, and expanded from an eastern government to a nationwide one.
The Mongol Invasions and the Shogunate
The Mongol Empire was founded by Genghis Khan in the early 13th century. Later, under his grandson, Kublai Khan, he subjugated Goryeo on the Korean Peninsula. Kublai changed the country's name to Yuan and demanded tribute from Japan, but the shogunate refused.
In 1274, the Yuan army landed in Hakata Bay (the Bun'ei War). While the shogunate's forces prioritized single combat, the Yuan army's attacks, using gunpowder and group tactics, were fierce. However, due to the effects of a heavy rainstorm, the Yuan army retreated.
Then, in 1281, the Mongols again led a large army into battle (the Koan War). Again, storms and resistance from Goryeo soldiers forced the Mongol forces to retreat. The two Mongol invasions left the shogunate without any spoils to reward, and the samurai who fought were not given sufficient rewards. As a result, the samurai's lives gradually became more impoverished.
The Fall of the Kamakura Shogunate
After the Mongol invasions, many gokenin were left impoverished. Meanwhile, from the mid-13th century, the Hōjō clan’s central authority grew stronger, especially the tokusō line (the head family), which began ruling autocratically. The miuchibito, retainers of the tokusō, gained influence and began to clash with the gokenin.
After the Mongol invasions, the number of impoverished samurai increased, and the power of the Tokuso family, the head branch of the Hojo clan, grew, leading to the development of Tokuso autocracy. The influence of the Tokuso's retainers, the Gonain, grew, and they came into conflict with ordinary samurai.
Meanwhile, in the Kinai region, a new generation of samurai, known as "akuto," emerged, expanding their influence through tax contracts from manors and financial services. They gained power by forming ties with the Imperial Court, temples, shrines, and Gonain. Within the Imperial Court, a conflict arose between the Jimyoin line, descended from Emperor Gofukakusa, and the Daikakuji line, descended from Emperor Kameyama, over the imperial succession and control of manors. With the mediation of the shogunate, a system of alternating succession between the two lines was established.
Amid this situation, Emperor Go-Daigo of the Daikakuji line repeatedly attempted to overthrow the shogunate, including in 1331 (the Genkō Incident). This prompted a succession of rebels, temple and shrine forces, and vassals opposed to the shogunate in the Kinai region, one after another, to rise up in arms.
Emperor Go-Daigo's son, Prince Morinaga, and Kusunoki Masashige also rose in rebellion, and Ashikaga Takauji (later Ashikaga Takauji), who was sent to suppress the rebellions, betrayed the shogunate and attacked and destroyed the Rokuhara Tandai. In the Kanto region, Nitta Yoshisada attacked Kamakura, bringing about the downfall of the Kamakura shogunate in 1333.
Timeline of the Kamakura period
| 1180 AD |
Prince Mochihito issues a decree calling for the overthrow of the Taira clan. Taira no Kiyomori moves the capital to Fukuhara, later returned to Heian-kyō (Kyoto). Minamoto no Yoritomo raises an army. Minamoto no Yoshinaka (Kiso Yoshinaka) raises an army. |
| 1181 AD | Taira no Shigehira sets fire to the temples in Nara (Nanto burning incident). |
| 1184 AD | Yoritomo sends Noriyori and Yoshitsune to defeat Yoshinaka. |
| 1185 AD | The Taira clan is destroyed at the Battle of Dan-no-ura. |
| 1189 AD | The Ōshū Fujiwara clan is destroyed. |
| 1192 AD | Minamoto no Yoritomo is appointed Sei-i Taishōgun (Barbarian-subduing Generalissimo). |
| 1199 AD | Yoritomo dies; his son Yoriie succeeds him, but real power shifts to a council of powerful retainers (gokenin). |
| 1200 AD | Hiki Yoshikazu is eliminated. |
| 1203 AD | Hōjō Tokimasa destroys Hiki Yoshikazu and imprisons Yoriie. |
| 1219 AD | Kugyō assassinates Minamoto no Sanetomo; the shogunate invites Fujiwara no Yoritsune from the regent family (sekkan-ke) to become shōgun (a puppet shōgun). |
| 1221 AD | Establishment of the Rokuhara Tandai (Kyoto branch of the shogunate). Jōkyū War: Retired Emperor Go-Toba issues a decree to overthrow Hōjō Yoshitoki, but is defeated. |
| 1225 AD | Establishment of the offices of rensho (assistant regent) and hyōjōshū (council of state). |
| 1232 AD | Promulgation of the Jōei Shikimoku (also called Goseibai Shikimoku), a legal code. |
| 1247 AD | Hōjō Tokiyori destroys Miura Yasumura (Miura clan rebellion). |
| 1249 AD | Establishment of the hikitsukeshū (judicial council). |
| 1268 AD | Envoys from Kublai Khan arrive; Hōjō Tokimune refuses their demands. |
| 1274 AD | First Mongol invasion (Bunei Campaign). Takezaki Suenaga commissions the Mōko Shūrai Ekotoba (Illustrated Account of the Mongol Invasions). |
| 1281 AD | Second Mongol invasion (Kōan Campaign). |
| 1285 AD | Shimotsuki Disturbance: conflict between gokenin (hereditary retainers) and miuchibito (inner circle of the Hōjō family). |
| 1297 AD | Einin Tokuseirei (Einin Debt Cancellation Edict) is issued. |
Facilities where you can learn about the Kamakura period
Kotoku-in Temple (Great Buddha of Kamakura)
https://www.kotoku-in.jp/en/
Tsurugaoka Hachimangu Shrine
https://www.hachimangu.or.jp/en/
Kanagawa Prefectural Kanazawa Bunko
https://www.pen-kanagawa.ed.jp/kanazawabunko/index.html
Todai-ji Temple (Head Temple of the Kegon Sect)
https://www.todaiji.or.jp/en/
Engaku-ji Temple (Head Temple of the Rinzai Zen Sect)
https://www.engakuji.or.jp/en/
Kanshin-ji Temple (Mt. Hinokio)
https://www.kanshinji.com/
