On This Day in Japanese History

[Muhler]

Thank you, Yukari.

A most intriguing person about whom I could write a very looong post!

Suffice to say that among the keys to his success was his willingness to totally disregard tradition and traditional thinking. Not to mention that he so very often thought outside the box, like enlisting foreigners as allies - a entity that was a true joker in Japanese political affairs.

Nobunaga did indeed wear European armor. Ieyasu also possessed a full set of European armor, it's exhibited today.

Alas, being pressed for time, I can't write more right now.

[yukari]

Originally Posted by Muhler

Thank you, Yukari.

A most intriguing person about whom I could write a very looong post!

Suffice to say that among the keys to his success was his willingness to totally disregard tradition and traditional thinking. Not to mention that he so very often thought outside the box, like enlisting foreigners as allies - a entity that was a true joker in Japanese political affairs.

Nobunaga did indeed wear European armor. Ieyasu also possessed a full set of European armor, it's exhibited today.

Alas, being pressed for time, I can't write more right now.

I admit I was also struggle to decide what to post about him (mainly how to cramp it in one post).

Indeed, he's a such intriguing figure, I honestly don't know what to feel about him. When I was 10, I saw him as hero, at 17 as ruthless and maybe even cruel (honestly I can't think any reason to justify massacre at Mt Hiei), and later on as revolutionist. He's a person who was said to scold Hideyoshi when he neglected his wife, but also a person who made Ieyasu kill his wife and eldest son. But then again, it's Sengoku. I suppose I should not use todays norm to measure it.

[Muhler]

Well, he sure was a man of his time - and acted as such.
Nobunaga is interesting in the sense that we can't even measure him by standard of the time he lived in, because he was so unorthodox.

I don't know how much you have read about the monks at the Hiei monastery?
When I read about them, I thought why didn't someone march in and whack them on the heads?!? - Well, eventually someone did...! Nobunaga.
These monks were anything but peaceful. They were usually former ronins who had lost everything and every chance of regaining their status, so they went all the way in regards to what we today would call anti-social behavior.
They constituted entire small armies - behaving pretty much like robber barons. Except that the monks were a community.
They were perhaps more correctly organized marauders who lived in a monastery and observed some religious functions.

Indeed, when they believed they weren't funded enough they voiced their opinion in a very threatening manner.

But also their religious processions were... remarkable...
In 1146 they paraded a shrine through the streets of Kyoto.

To explain it in a way that makes sense today, try imagine a couple of hundred armed bikers surrounding car with a shrine yelling at everybody in sight to get down on their bellies and worship the shrine - or else!!

But out of respect of the sacred person of the Emperor, the monks didn't wear armor...

In short: The monks were out of control and behaved as such.

However in 1528 the monks from Mount Hiei joined forced with samurai units and ordinary towns people in the successful defense of Kyoto from Ikko-Ikki.

- Anyway, Nobunaga eventually dealt with them, in a spectacular, brutal and ruthless manner, sending a clear signal to other monasteries.

In that way Nobunaga was no different from say Vlad Tepes (the historical inspiration for Dracula.) He eradicated poverty in his capital in a very direct manner:
All beggars, lepers and other outcasts in the capital - and for a long distance around the city - were invited to a lavish dinner. Very charitable, eh?
And the poor did indeed come in their hundreds and were wined and dined in a large wooden building. Then the doors were closed and the building set alight.
There were no beggars to be seen in the streets of Vlad Tepes capital for a very long time afterwards...

I prefer to think that Nobunaga would have tried to implement social reforms first, but if the sight of beggars and cripples in the streets of major Japanese cities became too dominant, I believe Nobunaga, Hideyoshi and Ieayasu might very well have chosen a solution similar to their European "cousin".
They were ruthless and brutal men and sometimes they wanted to be seen being cruel as well.

[yukari]

Oh yes, monks had always been trouble since Heian, especially Enryaku-ji's. They had a significant political power to the point of influencing imperial succession. Several emperors ascended the throne after seeking support from them. It's not unusual for them to march to Kyoto, carrying mikoshi, creating ruckus along the way, not as ritual pilgrimage of sort but to demand money from the palace/court. They might not wear armors, but the mikoshi made them untouchable. And with the rise of bushi class, the clash between them often happened.
(Edit: mikoshi is a portable shrine. Still exists/uses today during festival)

Gion-toran-jiken (the Gion Brawling Incident) in 1147 for example, where Kiyomori or his vassal hit the mikoshi with arrow (either accidental or intentional because he fed up with them). Gion-sha Shrine was a branch of Enryaku-ji and for that, they demanded Kiyomori's and his father's heads! (Cloistered emperor) protected the Tairas, but they had to pay a heavy fine. Some years later, Go-Shirakawa rose to power using the backing of Enryaku-ji, but the some time later ordered Kiyomori to attack them.

The famous Benkei was a monk. He was said to have slayed 99 samurais he met, took their swords/weapons as his collections, and Yoshitsune would be his 100th when they met. But he defeated and impressed him that he became his most loyal vassal (the famous Benkei's dead standing was when he protected him).

Think of Vatican, but in their case, the Swiss Guards were real army who could fight.

It's understandable that Nobunaga wanted to rid them, but it's the killing of women and children that a problem. Sure, there's a case like when Hideyoshi ordered his nephew's death along with his entire family (concubines and children). But in Nobunaga's case, he basically acted like bandits when he burnt the whole mountain. Like Osaka Seige, but the Tokugawa not only burnt the castle but the whole city complete with its citizen. It's just not honourable for a samurai, it's what bandits did. In every story I've read/watched about him, Mt Hiei is always a sore spot that writers bent over backwards to concoct anything to justify the killing.

[Muhler]

Originally Posted by yukari

Oh yes, monks had always been trouble since Heian, especially Enryaku-ji's. They had a significant political power to the point of influencing imperial succession. Several emperors ascended the throne after seeking support from them. It's not unusual for them to march to Kyoto, carrying mikoshi, creating ruckus along the way, not as ritual pilgrimage of sort but to demand money from the palace/court. They might not wear armors, but the mikoshi made them untouchable. And with the rise of bushi class, the clash between them often happened.
(Edit: mikoshi is a portable shrine. Still exists/uses today during festival)

Gion-toran-jiken (the Gion Brawling Incident) in 1147 for example, where Kiyomori or his vassal hit the mikoshi with arrow (either accidental or intentional because he fed up with them). Gion-sha Shrine was a branch of Enryaku-ji and for that, they demanded Kiyomori's and his father's heads! (Cloistered emperor) protected the Tairas, but they had to pay a heavy fine. Some years later, Go-Shirakawa rose to power using the backing of Enryaku-ji, but the some time later ordered Kiyomori to attack them.

The famous Benkei was a monk. He was said to have slayed 99 samurais he met, took their swords/weapons as his collections, and Yoshitsune would be his 100th when they met. But he defeated and impressed him that he became his most loyal vassal (the famous Benkei's dead standing was when he protected him).

Think of Vatican, but in their case, the Swiss Guards were real army who could fight.

It's understandable that Nobunaga wanted to rid them, but it's the killing of women and children that a problem. Sure, there's a case like when Hideyoshi ordered his nephew's death along with his entire family (concubines and children). But in Nobunaga's case, he basically acted like bandits when he burnt the whole mountain. Like Osaka Seige, but the Tokugawa not only burnt the castle but the whole city complete with its citizen. It's just not honourable for a samurai, it's what bandits did. In every story I've read/watched about him, Mt Hiei is always a sore spot that writers bent over backwards to concoct anything to justify the killing.

Oh, it was no doubt an atrocity back then as well.
And from my impression and knowledge of Ieyasu a cold, premeditated, deliberate act.
Nothing like an occasional atrocity to send a political message...
That fact that it horrifies you 400 years later is a testament to that. Imagine the impact it had back then.

The Swiss Guard are fully trained Swiss soldiers, before being admitted into the Swiss Guard.
The Papal Guard was massacred almost to a man in a battle during the 1500's IIRC.

[yukari]

30 June 1496 (Meiō 5, 20th day of 5th month 明応5年5月20日) – Death of Hino Tomiko 日野 富子, the official wife of Ashikaga Yoshimasa (the 8th shōgun of the Ashikaga shogunate) and the mother of Ashikaga Yoshihisa (the 9th shōgun). Her efforts in succession dispute are seen as one of the causes of the Ōnin War and the beginning of the Sengoku period, leading to the end of Ashikaga shogunate.

The Hino clan was a kuge (court noble clan) and part of the Fujiwara North Line of the Fujiwara clan. At the end of the Kamakura period, Hino Suketomo and Hino Toshimoto supported Emperor Go-Daigo’s plan of conspiracy to overthrow the Kamakura shogunate (leading to Kenmu Restoration). In the Muromachi period, the Hino clan was related to the Ashikaga shogunate by marriage (almost all Ashikaga shōgun’s wives were a Hino, started from the 3rd shōgun).

At first Tomiko was betrothed to Ashikaga Yoshikatsu the 7th shōgun but Yoshikatsu died at age of 10, so she then became the lawful wife of Yoshimasa (his birth mother, Hino Shigeko, was Tomiko's grandaunt).

Yoshimasa showed no interest in politics as he’d been brought up to be a monk (to prevent conflict between brothers over the role as shōgun, the non-heir sons were sent to monastery). Because of his young age when he became shōgun, Yoshimasa was basically controlled by everyone, including his mother and wet nurse (who were in conflict with each other over Yoshimasa).

In 1455 (four years after marriage), Tomiko gave birth to a son who died in the same day. She blamed her baby's death on the Yoshimasa's wet nurse, Imamairi no Tsubone. She was banished her and killed herself on the way (said to be suicide, but there’s also theory that it was ordered by either Shigeko or Tomiko). In addition, Tomiko also purged Yoshimasa's four concubines.

Since the almost 30-year-old shōgun Yoshimasa had no heir by 1464 (and also not interested in politics), Yoshimasa convinced his younger brother, Ashikaga Yoshimi, to leave monastery and became his successor. To show her support, Tomiko ordered her younger sister, Hino Yoshiko, to marry him. However, in 1465 Tomiko gave birth to a son, Yoshihisa, and she changed her mind.

Tomiko sought political and military support to rule as regent until the birth of her son, the future shōgun Ashikaga Yoshihisa, she secured the support of Yamana Sōzen and other leaders of powerful samurai clans. In contrast to Tomiko and Yamana, Yoshimi had the support of the Hosokawa clan, a powerful clan that had a great influence on the shogunate court. This dispute for succession, coupled with the conflict between the Hatakeyama clan and the Shiba clan, started the Ōnin War and led to the beginning of the Sengoku period.

In the middle of hostilities, Yoshimasa retired in 1473, relinquishing the position of shōgun to Yoshihisa, with Tomiko acted as regent. Tomiko engaged in moneymaking activities, such as collecting tolls by setting up seven barriers in Kyoto (Nanakuchi-no-Seki), investing in the rice market, and taking bribes from loan sharks, and it was her financial power that enabled the Muromachi shogunate to function. Her legacy is said to have reached 70 thousand kan (currently, about 7 billion yen). However, these activities were not praised by the general public, and it was rumored that she was a bad wife so absorbed in moneymaking (her bad reputation may have been influenced by the tendency of later generations to have come to look down on women and merchant activities. Although to be fair, as she amassed wealth, ordinary people living in Kyoto lost their houses because the war went on for so long and almost all their houses got burnt down).

(There is evidence that pre-10th century that after entering marriage, women had enough independence to maintain managing control over business, like in the Nihon Ryōiki where there are accounts of women of powerful provincial families engaging in money-lending, production and sale of sake. Women had inheritance rights and in marriage, men and women enjoyed relative equality, along with property rights and membership in the village communal organisation. In cases in which a man and a woman who each owned property married, either might assume the role of administering the property separately. But by late 14th century, women completely lost the right not only to inherit but also to amass property).

Yoshihisa died in 1489 on a battlefield without heir. Tomiko nominated his nephew, Ashikaga Yoshiki (also known as Yoshitane), Yoshiko and Yoshimi’s son, as the next shōgun, but Yoshimasa decided to resume administration as shogun, only to die one year later and Yoshiki became shōgun.

Meanwhile, Yoshimi rebelled against Tomiko's decision (he wanted shogun for himself). He demolished Tomiko's residence and seized her territory, but he died not long after. After Yoshimi's death, Yoshiki also rebelled against Tomiko. In 1493, however, Tomiko carried out a coup with the help of Hoskawa Masamoto, dethroning Yoshiki and instead installing her adopted son, Ashikaga Yoshizumi, who was Yoshimasa's nephew and the son of Ashikaga Masatomo, as shōgun. Yoshizumi was 12 years old, so again, Tomiko took control of the shogunate in his place.

Tomiko died in 1496 at the age of 57.

Afterward, Yoshimizu was stripped of the title in 1508 by Yoshiki, who became shōgun for a second period of time. Two of Yoshizumi's sons would themselves become shōguns – Ashikaga Yoshiharu as the 12th shōgun and Ashikaga Yoshihide as the 14th shōgun – for a short time as puppet shōgun, since for all practical purposes, the Hosokawa clan was in charge and the Ashikaga shōguns became their puppets, until 1558 when they were betrayed by a vassal family, the Miyoshi. The upheaval finally dissolved when Ashikaga Yoshiaki, the 15th shōgun, was overthrown by Oda Nobunaga in 1573.

Kyoto was devastated by the war, not really recovering until the mid-16th century. The city has not seen such widespread destruction since, being spared the strategic bombing of Japanese cities during World War II. In Kyoto, "pre-war" refers to the Ōnin War, rather than WWII.

Sources and further reading:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hino_Tomiko
https://www.metro-classic-japanese.n...1-hino-tomiko/
It is an interesting podcast (there’s the script if you prefer to read). I laugh so hard at the part about “But the harsh truth for Japanese men on this matter, is that since forever, Japanese men were often the breadwinner but not the bread keeper”. That’s so spot on !
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C5%8Cnin_War

[Tatiana Maria]

Thank you for your active posting in this thread, for sharing your sources, and for the engaging way in which you write on historical subjects. It is much appreciated. Thank you to Muhler as well for further adding to the fascinating conversations.

[Muhler]

Indeed, most interesting Yukari.

Hino Tomiko by the accounts of several sources was instrumental in keeping the Five Regents at bay.
It is most interesting to speculate what would have happened, had she lived ten years more. Had Sekigahara even taken place with a Hino Tomiko pulling strings behind the scenes?
Had the Tokugawa shogunate ever been established?
Would Hino Tomiko have been the de facto Shogun by 1603?

My money is still on the Tokugawas, but not with Ieyasu as their first Shogun.

Also interesting is the parallels to women's rights in Europe at the same time.
We are talking about two totally separate cultures developing almost simultaneously along pretty much the same lines. I.e. local chieftains/princes/kings/ daimyos - towards feudalism and a dedicated military caste, the knights/samurais with the other segments of the population being divided into rigid classes: peasants, burgers/merchants and priesthood/monks.
Women's rights in Europe was very much curbed by the Christian church.
Originating in a Semitic society where women had very few rights, developing and spreading within a Roman society where women had very few rights and making its way through Celtic, Germanic and Slavic cultures where women had considerable rights.
And it was only when the Christian Church had cemented it's position in these cultures that the right of women really began to nosedive, reaching IMO rock bottom during the 1800's.
In Europe than began in earnest during the 1300's at the same time when feudalism also became established.
Looking at Japanese history we are talking about decades between the same things happening there.
Women also gradually lost basically all rights during the 1600's.

Fascinating, isn't it!
It does make you wonder whether a particular system, in this case the feudal, is bound to follow the same lines, regardless of culture?

The main difference between Japan and Europe was religion. Europe was heavily influenced by a monotheistic religious system that had a very strong, even decisive influence in European culture and politics in particular. While it in Japan was more an underlining cultural current.
It is interesting to speculate what would have happened, had Japan turned monotheistic by say 1200? A "prophet Yoshiro" born in 1233? No divine emperor, no kamis, no ancestor worship, but instead a strong religious order?
After all in only 60-70 years Christianity in Japan - a totally alien religion, culture and concept - managed to grow strong enough to almost succeed in becoming dominant by 1630.

[yukari]

Originally Posted by Muhler

Indeed, most interesting Yukari.

Hino Tomiko by the accounts of several sources was instrumental in keeping the Five Regents at bay.
It is most interesting to speculate what would have happened, had she lived ten years more. Had Sekigahara even taken place with a Hino Tomiko pulling strings behind the scenes?
Had the Tokugawa shogunate ever been established?
Would Hino Tomiko have been the de facto Shogun by 1603?

My money is still on the Tokugawas, but not with Ieyasu as their first Shogun.

It’s hard to tell since they lived in different time. Even if Tomiko would have lived for another decade, by that time Ieyasu had not even been born yet, neither were Nobunaga nor Hideyoshi.

But she did maintain the control over the Five Regent Houses. Since earlier days, the bakufu knew that it’s important to have the support of the Imperial Palace through the kugyō, which from 13th century was monopolised by 5 cadet braches of Fujiwara clan; Konoe, Takatsukasa, Kujō, Nijō and Ichijō, known as go-seike or go-sekke 五摂家 (not to be confused with go-tairō 五大老 which is a council of 5 elders appointed by Hideyoshi to act as regent for his son, Hideyori). Tomiko herself was from a noble class (though Hino clan did not hold prominent position within the Imperial Court), so she must have known the importance of maintaining the rein over the court nobility.

Also interesting is the parallels to women's rights in Europe at the same time.
We are talking about two totally separate cultures developing almost simultaneously along pretty much the same lines. I.e. local chieftains/princes/kings/ daimyos - towards feudalism and a dedicated military caste, the knights/samurais with the other segments of the population being divided into rigid classes: peasants, burgers/merchants and priesthood/monks.
Women's rights in Europe was very much curbed by the Christian church.
Originating in a Semitic society where women had very few rights, developing and spreading within a Roman society where women had very few rights and making its way through Celtic, Germanic and Slavic cultures where women had considerable rights.
And it was only when the Christian Church had cemented it's position in these cultures that the right of women really began to nosedive, reaching IMO rock bottom during the 1800's.
In Europe than began in earnest during the 1300's at the same time when feudalism also became established.
Looking at Japanese history we are talking about decades between the same things happening there.
Women also gradually lost basically all rights during the 1600's.

Fascinating, isn't it!
It does make you wonder whether a particular system, in this case the feudal, is bound to follow the same lines, regardless of culture?

The main difference between Japan and Europe was religion. Europe was heavily influenced by a monotheistic religious system that had a very strong, even decisive influence in European culture and politics in particular. While it in Japan was more an underlining cultural current.
It is interesting to speculate what would have happened, had Japan turned monotheistic by say 1200? A "prophet Yoshiro" born in 1233? No divine emperor, no kamis, no ancestor worship, but instead a strong religious order?
After all in only 60-70 years Christianity in Japan - a totally alien religion, culture and concept - managed to grow strong enough to almost succeed in becoming dominant by 1630.

AFAIK, in Japan, it's more to do with land system and family structure.

Most historians place the establishment of the patriarchal family in Japan started gradually from 7th century, with the adoption of the ritsuryō system of centralised bureaucratic rule. A ritsuryō law requiring the patrilineal transmission of property and authority in which the house registry system required families to register in the name of the male household head. Under this system, since women, except for the imperial consort, were shut out of government, they were deprived of the right to hold political office (hence, they didn’t have the ability to amass property offered by an official post), even though they could become property holders by inheritance. Although there were few cases where women attendants near the emperor, the retired emperor, and the empress often had lands commended to them. Up to this point, the concept of passing a single family property down a line of descendants did not exist. The property (mainly land) was allocated separately to individual children through a practice of divided inheritance.

The practice of single inheritance, in which the eldest son alone is given the majority of his deceased parent's property, became increasingly common among samurai clans after the late 13th century. This change was essentially intended to prevent further division of a clan's territory into smaller sections.

However, even as late as the 14th century, property inheritance by women was still common. The system of devided inheritance allowed the sōryō or family head to receive larget portion of the central landholdings, while other family members, male and female, were allotted equal portions of the estate. Even a family’s residence, the very core of its holdings, could be passed on to women (though sometimes with stipulation that they eventually be passed on to the male hear who would carry on the main line of the house). When a family had no male offspring, women could be designated jitō and the bakufu would bestow a gechijō confirming her landholdings and enlisting her services as regular bakufu vassal. One example is Ii Naotora, who became a female daimyō as the head of Ii clan and retainer of the Imagawa clan but later switched sides to the Matsudaira clan (Ieyasu’s clan before he changed it into Tokugawa).

Towards the end of the 16th century, the holding of commercial property passes into the hands of men, particularly after the establishment of a unified polity by Nobunaga, Hideyoshi, and continued by Ieyasu. Trade zones became larger and more interconnected with the political authorities who designated special merchants to handle commerce in such zones. In the process, women lost their commercial rights as it’s subsumed within the patriarchal framework, and female labour was completely subordinated within this system.

By the early Edo period, patriarchal authority and control of village household was firmly established, as the daimyo forces the ie sytem of the social organisation on the peasantry as control mechanism for tax collection propose and to keep order. By 17th century, single inheritance by the eldest son started to become a norm among peasant families, leading to complete loss of inheritance rights by women. This applied to cultivation rights, which eventually evolved into real landholding claims (Although in this case, peasant women held more power compare to women of samurai class, since peasant didn’t own land but only cultivation rights and the husband would need help from the women in his family).

A bit about ie system:
https://yab.yomiuri.co.jp/adv/chuo/d.../20130128.html

[yukari]

7 July 1053 (Tengi 1, 19th day of 6th months 天喜元年6月19日) – Birth of Sadahito, future Shirakawa-tennō 白河天皇, 72nd emperor of Japan. He was the first emperor to ostensibly retire to a monastery and established insei (cloistered rule).

His father, Go-Sanjō-tennō, was not a son of a Fujiwara so the Kampaku, Fujiwara no Yorimichi didn’t consider him. As his older brother, Go-Reizei-tennō had no children of his own, upon his death, he became emperor. His lack of connection with the sekkan (the Northern House of the Fujiwara clan) meant he owed them no special loyalty - this meant that he could afford to oppose them, thus he was able to seize some of the authority from the sekkan, starting the decline of the clan’s control over the court.

In 1069, Sadahito was named Crown Prince and 3 years later, at the age of 19, he became emperor upon his father’s abdication. Go-Sanjō died few months later due to illness.

Being an adult when he ascended the throne, despite the relation to the sekkan on his mother’s side, Shirakawa conducted direct government in a manner similar to his father.

His ascendancy came at a time when the encroachment of private landed estates (shōen) on the public domain seriously threatened the economic foundations of the imperial government. The warrior monks of the nearby temples threatened the capital city of Kyōto, and the weakening of the Fujiwara family, which had dominated the emperors for two centuries, made for bitter factionalism within the court, a situation that gave the emperor the chance to reassert his authority.

Shirakawa, however, had scant interest in reform. Although at first he sought to reduce private estates, he soon gave up the effort and became instrumental in converting large tracts of public domain into imperial shōen. With these sources of wealth he lavishly patronized Buddhism. He ordered the building of many temples and Buddhist statues including the Hosshō-ji Temple, and he took advantage of getting finance from juryo.

In 1087, Shirakawa abdicated to Taruhito-shinnō (later Horikawa-tennō), who was then eight years old; and as Jokō, he acted as the guardian of the young Emperor and ruled personally from the Shirakawa-in, and this style of government became known as Insei system (cloistered style). Through such system, although the Sessho and Kampaku offices continued, they did not have actual power to rule the government. He also put his eldest daughter, Teishi/Yasuko Naishinnō, as Horikawa's junbo and temporary "empress consort" (later, this practice was implemented for other 10 more other princesses).

In the beginning, Shirakawa did not intend to institute the insei system, but it was established nevertheless. His primary intention was to stabilize the imperial succession (or the exclusive succession by his own blood). Although his younger brothers, Sanehito-shinnō and Sukehito-shinnō, were strong candidates for the imperial succession, he passed the throne to his son Taruhito, so that his younger brothers (and the nobles supporting them) would give up their hopes for the throne.

Although imperial succession by direct descendants was ideal, a male successor to the throne was not always assured, and at all times there was the risk that the line of succession could be severed. On the other hand, when many princes were candidates to the throne, it meant endless disputes regarding the imperial succession. Under the insei system, as the 'chiten-no-kimi' (meaning “a sovereign who ruled the world”, the jokō who proclaimed insei) was able to nominate his immediate and subsequent successors to the throne, a relatively stable Imperial succession was possible; moreover, it was possible to reflect the intention of the 'chiten-no-kimi' in the Imperial succession. This is markedly different from the case of sekkan seiji, where the intention of sekkan-ke was strongly reflected in the imperial succession.

Because insei was based on direct paternal rights, contrary to the Sekkan government, whereby the regents/kampakus conducted political affairs through their ties as cognates of the Emperor, insei facilitated a despotic form of government. The jokōs who conducted Insei established Inchō (院庁) as their own political office and therefore issued written orders (inzen). It has become the prevalent view that the In put pressure on the Imperial Court by using inzen, which had the aspect of a non-official document, and that by placing his aides in positions of general council of state he took virtual control of the government. Such aides of the In succeeded in their careers through their individual relationships as aides serving under the Jokō, and thereby increased their power.

This was the cloister government through which all the subsequent emperors until 1185 exercised power after abdicating. From Shirakawa onward, the jokōs who conducted Insei reigned as if they were chiten-no-kimi, being virtual emperors, while the actual emperors were described as being 'as if they were the crown princes.'

In 1096, on the occasion of his daughter's death, Shirakawa entered a monastery under the name of Yūkan (融観); and thus, he became a hō-ō (法皇), which is the title accorded to a former emperor who has become a monk.

Around this time, Enryaku-ji Temple's military strength had grown so much so that even Shirakawa, who wielded great power from his cloister, said "the water of the Kamogawa River, games of dice, and the mountain monks. These things are beyond my control."
>>>Kamogawa is tributary of the Yodo river (due to its flow and frequent flooding); games of dice is sugoroku (popular way of gambling at that time, with spots on the dice selecting winners/losers); and "the mountain" was, at the time, generally used to refer to Mt. Hiei, and "mountain monks" meant Enryaku-ji Temple's monk warriors. In other words, they were used as an example of something that cannot be controlled, even by a great power.
When something happened that did not agree with Enryaku-ji Temple, the monk warriors would pick up their portable shrine (Buddhism and Shinto were mixed up at the time, so god and Buddha were the same) and go to protest, thereby forcing their position on the powerful figures of the time. In this way Enryaku-ji temple had the military strength to match its influence, and also economic might that came from controlling the flow of goods, and was in a position to ignore the powerful figures of the time almost like an independent country. The monk warriors of Enryaku-ji Temple and those of Kofuku-ji Temple in Nara were together called "Southern City/Northern Mountain," and their might was feared.<<<

Shirakawa continued to have exerted power even after Horikawa turned 20 years old and he strengthened his despotic position by appointing aids from the juryro and samurai class. The samurai soldiers were assigned to such posts as the "Hokumen no bushi" which was newly established to protect the retired Emperor, mainly from the Heike (Taira) clan, thus establishing the Joko's own military organization. This would lead to the rise of the provincial warrior gentry, starting with Taira clan who reached their peak under the leadership of Taira no Kiyomori (there’s rumour that Kiyomori was actually Shirakawa’s son).

After Horikawa died in 1107, Shirakawa continued to rule through insei. By the time of his death in 1129, he had ruled as cloistered Emperor for 42 years and through the reigns of three generations of young emperors who were effectively little more than figureheads; his son Howikawa-tennō, his grandson Toba-tennō (who was 4 years when he ascended the throne) and his great grandson Sutoku-tennō (who was 3 years old when Toba abdicated).

References and further reading:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emperor_Shirakawa
If you have time to check the library:
George Cameron Hurst “Insei Abdicated Sovereigns in the Politics of Late Heian Japan 1086-1185” published by Columbia University Press in 1976. ISBN 0231915888, 9780231915885

[yukari]

29 July 1156 (Hōgen 1, 11th day of the 7th month 保元元年7月11日) – Taira no Kiyomori and Minamoto no Yoshitomo led a night attack on Retired Emperor Sutoku’s residence in the Siege of Shirakawa-den, starting what later known as the Hōgen Disturbance (Hōgen no Ran 保元の乱).

The Hōgen Disturbance was a culmination of a multi-level and inter-related rivalries lead to civil war involving three classes. Each wanted power, not just became someone’s puppet.

Causes
*Conflict among emperors: (Reigning Emperor) Go-Shirakawa vs (Retired Emperor) Sutoko
Sutoku and Go-Shirakawa were sons of Toba-tennō and his first empress, Fujiwara no Tamako.

After the death of Shirakawa, Toba ruled Japan through insei with his eldest son, Sutoku, on the throne. In 1141, he made Sutoku abdicated in favour of Konoe, his son with his third empress, Fujiwara no Nariko.

When Konoe died in 1155, Sutoku hoped to get his son, Shigehito-shinnō, to ascend the throne, but instead Toba made Go-Shirakawa emperor. On 20 July 1156, Toba died. By that point, both parties already recruited support from the nobility and samurai to side with them and clash between the two sides was inevitable.

*Conflict among kuge (court nobility): Fujiwara no Tadamachi vs Fujiwara no Yorinaga
Tadamachi and Yorinaga were half brothers, both were sons of Fujiwara no Tadazane.

The Fujiwara clan drastically lost their influence during the period of Shirakawa’s insei, but gradually gained it back during Toba’s reign through his wives who were Fujiwara and faithful to the clan, particularly Fujiwara no Nariko.

As the eldest son, Tadamachi succeeded Tadazane position as Kampaku (regent) upon the latter’s death. On the other hand, Yorinaga was said to be Tadazane’s favourite son due to his superior intelligence, ascending quickly through the political ranks and becoming Udaijin by the age of 17 and later been appointed as Sadaijin.

To strengthen their position, both tried to make their adopted daughter to be Konoe’s consort. Trying to keep the peace, Toba made Yorinaga’s adopted daughter became the emperor’s Kōgō, while Tadamachi’s became Chūgū. It turned out, he was enamoured to the latter more than the former and this worsening the discord between two brothers.

Upon the death of Konoe, Tadamachi quickly sided with Go-Shirakawa fraction, in which was triumphant with the ascension of Go-Shirakawa. Meanwhile, Yorinaga then asked to tutor the heir apparent, a reasonable request given his academic standing, but was denied. Insulted by Go-Shirakawa's faction, Yorinaga joined with Sutoku in opposition to him.

*Conflict among (and within) samurai clans: Taira clan vs Minamoto clan; Taira no Kiyomoro vs Taira no Tadamasa and Minamoto no Yoshitomo vs Minamoto no Tameyoshi

As the two most prominent samurai clans during that period, there was a constant rivalry between two clans, starting during Taira no Tadamori’s and Minamoto no Tameyoshi’s leadership.

Yoshitomo was Tameyoshi’s eldest son and heir, but due to some dispute Tameyoshi gave the family heirloom sword to his younger son, Yoshikata, (a sign that he was appointed as the heir) and ordered him to build army to rival Yoshitomo’s. Yoshitomo was furious, killed his half-brother and seized the sword. While Tameyoshi supported the old order and loyal to Sutoko, Yoshitomo rebelled by siding with Go-Shirakawa’s fraction.

Meanwhile on the Taira clan, after the death of Tadamori, Kiyomori became the head of Taira clan. Since Kiyomori was Tadamori’s adopted son, Tadamasa (Tadamori’s younger brother) supported Yorimori (Tadamori’s biological son with his lawful wife) to be the clan leader instead. In the imperial succession dispute, because Kiyomori was close to Shinzei (Go-Shirawaka’s right hand man), he sided with the emperor while Tadamasa sided with Sutoku.

The Battle
The two armies faced each other across the Kamo River, with the headquarters of the retired emperor's side in the Shirakawakita-dono Palace and those of the Emperor Go-shirakawa's side in the Takamatsu-dono Palace (Go-shirakawa was in the Takamatsu-dono Palace).

On Sutoku's side, Minamoto no Tametomo (Tameyoshi’s younger son) planned to seize the Emperor in a night raid on the Takamatsu-dono Palace, but Yorinaga rejected the plan on the grounds that a battle over the Imperial Throne should be fought proudly in broad daylight. Meanwhile, in a council of war on the Emperor's side, Yoshitomo proposed a night attack, which was accepted.

Before dawn, the Emperor's army made a surprise attack on Shirakawakita-dono Palace in the three separate forces, but the retired emperor's side fought hard at each gate and fierce battles continued. Yoshitomo submitted the use of fire in the battle for Imperial sanction of Emperor Go-shirakawa, and once the sanction was received the Emperor's army set fire to the Fujiwara no Ienari's residence to the west of Shirakawakita-dono Palace; the fire spread to the palace, causing the retired emperor's soldiers to scramble to escape and the battle was over.

The Emperor’s forces were victorious; Yorinaga, Tameyoshi, and Tadamasa were executed, and Sutoku was exiled. The brutal act of children beheading their parents and nephews beheading their uncles was thus carried out. The death penalty, in the first place, had not been imposed for more than 200 years since the Kusuko Incident (Kusuko-no-Hen), but it was reinstated by Shinzei. No one opposed Shinzei's decision, because he was knowledgeable enough about law to write "Hosso-ruirin" (a collection of legal documents).

Fujiwara leadership had been proven ineffective, however, and the Taira family under the leadership of Kiyomori came into real control of the government. Three years later, Yoshitomo, who became the head of the Minamoto clan attempted a coup d’etat against Taira leadership. In the ensuing Heiji Disturbance (Heiji no ran), Kiyomori emerged victorious, and the Taira consolidated their hold over the country.

Although it lasted only a few hours, this skirmish and the Heiji Disturbance of 1160 had far-reaching sociopolitical consequences, marking the close of the peaceful Heian period (794–1185) and the rise of the samurai class. Hōgen no ran produced a series of unanticipated consequences. It marked the end of the Fujiwara family’s dominance of the monarchy and the start of a prolonged period of feudal warfare and created a foundation from which the dominance of the samurai clans would come to be established. It is considered the beginning in a chain of events which would produce the first of three samurai-led governments in the history of Japan.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H%C5%8Dgen_rebellion

>>>I find Hōgen no Ran to be the most interesting event in Japanese history for its complexity, not the battle itself but the political power play behind it; from the nobility’s dominance, then the imperial family tried to take the rulership back, but ultimately ended with the samurai class came out as the “winner”. If you’re interested of this part of history, I’d recommend to read Hōgen Monogatari (or just read the trilogy: Hōgen Monogatari, Heiji Monogatari, and Heike Monogatari).<<<

[yukari]

16 August 1225 (Karoku 1, 11th day of the 7th month 嘉禄元年7月11日) – Death of Hōjō Masako 北条 政子, wife of Minamoto no Yoritomo, the 1st Kamakura shōgun. After her husband's death, she exercised considerable indirect power and dominated the government until her death, her power being so great that she was called the “ama-shōgun” (nun shōgun).

Masako was the oldest child of Hōjō Tokimasa. She was said to be quite tomboy, was instructed in horseback riding, hunting, fishing, and she ate with men rather than with the women of the household.

Her father was the ruler of Izu Province and was given responsibility for Yoritomo who had been exiled to Izu after being defeated in the Heiji Rebellion. While Tokimasa was away in Kyoto on service guard, Masako and Yoritomo fell in love. The story of their union is mentioned in a section in Soga Monogatari called “Yumekai”.

Tokimasa opposed to their relationship and, fearing the Taira clan reaction, he ordered Masako to marry someone else, but she refused. It is said that she walked over a mountain to escape with Yoritomo and the couple was sheltered at Izusan Gongen (Izusan-jinja Shrine). Masako was 21 years old at the time. The power of the priesthood at Izusan was so strong that even her betrothed could not force his way in. Not long after, Masako gave birth to her first daughter, Ō-hime. Tokimasa finally accepted their marriage and the Hojo family became important supporters of Yoritomo. As Yoritomo's wife, she participated in the government administration and eventually became a representation of power for men of the Hōjō clan.

In 1180, Prince Mochihito, son of Cloistered Emperor Go-Shirakawa, planned to overthrow the Taira regime and called all the Minamoto clans spread throughout the various provinces to join.

Meanwhile at the beginning of 1182, Masako gave birth to a son, Minamoto no Yoriie. During her pregnancy, Yoritomo took a liking on Kame no Mae, moving her closer to him and visiting her often. Hearing about this, Masako was enraged and ordered Maki Munechika to destroy Fushimi Hirotsuna’s residence, where Kame no Mae lived. Yoritomo was enraged and after questioning Munechika, disgraced him by ordering him to cut off his top-knot with his own hands. Angered by Yoritomo's deed, Tokimasa returned to Izu with his warriors. Masako's anger, however, did not subside, and she sentenced Hirotsuna to exile in Totomi Province.

Masako's jealousy was unusual in this age of polygamy. Male aristocrats at the time had many mistresses, moving from one to another, a custom powerful samurai families followed in order to increase the population of the clan. Masako's father, Tokimasa, too, had several mistresses, and Masako had several siblings born to different mothers. Yoritomo had affairs with many women in his lifetime, although out of fear of Masako's jealousy, he did his best to hide them.

In 1183, Yoritomo agreed to make peace with his rival, Minamoto no Yoshinaka, on the condition that Yorinaka's son, Minamoto no Yoshitaka, marry his eldest daughter, Ō-hime. Under this pretext, Yoshitaka was ordered to Kamakura, where he was effectively held as a hostage. However the truce only last for a year and Yoritomo ordered Tonai Mitsuzumi to kill Yoshikata. Devastated by Yoshitaka's death, Ō-hime fell ill. Masako was enraged about the execution, blaming it for causing Ō-hime's illness; and Yoritomo was forced to kill Mitsuzumi, whose head was then displayed in public.

Although Mochihito’s plan had failed (he was later killed), with the support of the Hōjō clan and Masako, Yoritomo raised his army and began the Genpei War, the final war between the Minamoto and Taira clans. While his half brothers, Noriyori and Yoshitsune, were fighting against the Taira clan, Yoritomo continued his rule in Kamakura, and Masako always accompanied during his campaign. In 1185, Yoshitsune overthrew the Taira clan at the Battle of Dan-no-ura.

After the fall of the Taira clan, Yoritomo and Yoshitsune became enemies, and Yoshitsune, failing to gather an army, left Kyoto with his vassals, wife and mistresses. In 1186, Yoshitsune's favourite mistress, Shizuka-gozen, was captured and sent to Kamakura. Masako wished to see Shizuka perform the traditional Shirabyōshi dance, and Shizuka reluctantly did so. During the dance, she recited a poem that spoke of her love for Yoshitsune. This angered Yoritomo but Masako, remembering how she felt when she first met Yoritomo, was sympathetic so she calmed Yoritomo's anger and Shizuka’s life was spared.

In 1192, Yoritomo was named shōgun by Go-Shirakawa, who died later that year. That same year, Masako and Yoritomo had another son, Minamoto no Sanetomo. During her pregnancy, Yoritomo’s mistress, Daishin no Tsubone, gave birth to a boy named Jyogyo; however, fearing Masako's anger, no birth ceremony was held. Fearing Masako's jealousy, Daishin no Tsubone hid herself, and the boy was raised in hiding, without a wet nurse. At the age of 7, Jyogyo was sent to Ninna-ji Temple to become a monk, and Yoritomo secretly came to see him off.

In 1193, Yoritomo held a huge Makigari (hunt) at the foot of Mt. Fuji where Yoriie managed to kill a deer. Proud of his son’s achievement, Yoritomo sent a messenger to Masako which she replied back by saying, “No need to make a fuss over a samurai's heir killing a deer.”

In 1195, Masako traveled with Yoritomo to Kyoto to discussed marriage between Ō-hime and Emperor Go-Toba. Yoritomo wanted this marriage for the political advantage it would bring, and Masako thought that marriage ito the Imperial family would make Ō-hime happy, but she became very ill and died two years later. According to "Jokyuki," Masako grieved so deeply that she wanted to kill herself, but Yoritomo stopped her, saying that her death would make Ō-hime's afterlife worse.

Yoritomo died after a fall from a horse in 1199 and his son, Yoriie, succeeded him. Masako became nun but she didn’t take up residency in the monastery and still involved herself in politics. Along with her father Tokimasa and her brother Yoshitoki, Masako created a council of regents for the 18-year-old Yoriie.

There had been number of incidents in which Yoriie had misgoverned, increasing his retainers' discontent. Furthermore, Yoriie appointed his wet nurse's husband, Hiki Yoshikazu, to an important position and when Yoshikazu's daughter gave birth to Yoriie's first son, Minamoto no Ichiman, it placed Yoshikazu in a position of power. The rise of the Hiki clan was a threat to the Hōjō clan.

In 1203, Yoriie fell ill. Masako and Tokimasa decided to divide Japan in two by splitting power between Ichiman and Sanetomo. Unhappy with this decision, Yoshikazu appealed to Yoriie to intervene in this decision and Yoriie ordered the subjugation of the Hōjō clan. Hearing the plan, Masako sent messenger to Tokimasa, who then plotted to kill Yoshikazu. Ichiman died along with the Hiki clan in what became known as the Conspiracy of Hiki Yoshikazu.

Recovering from his illness, Yoriie retaliated but by then, full power was in the hands of the Hojo clan and, on Masako's orders, Yoriie was removed from the position of shōgun, forced to join the priesthood and confined to Shuzen-ji Temple in Izu. Yoriie was later assassinated. To avoid future problems, Masako put Yoriie's other children into the priesthood. One of them, Kugyō, became the head (betto) of Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gu Shrine.

Sanetomo was made shōgun with Tokimasa as his shikken (regent). In 1205, Tokimasa plotted to overthrow Sanetomo and replace him with his son-in-law, Hiraga Tomomasa. Masako and Yoshitoki, her brother and Tokimasa’s heir, foiled the plot. They forced Tokimasa into exile as a priest in Izu. Thereafter, Yoshitoki was placed in power as regent (the Maki incident).

In 1219, Sanetomo was killed by his nephew, Kugyō, when he made a visit to Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gu Shrine. Since Sanetomo died without an heir, Masako sent a messenger to Kyoto to express her wish to have one of the Retired Emperor Go-Toba's son to be sent to Kamakura to become shōgun, but Go-Toba refused. Masako and Yoshitoki abandoned the idea of installing an Imperial shōgun and decided to put Mitora (Fujiwara no Yoritsune), from one of the five Sekkan (regent) families, into power. Since he was only 2 years old, Masako was appointed his guardian and ruled the country in his place until her death in 1225.

Since Yoritomo's death in 1199, quarrels for supremacy started between the Kamakura Bakufu and the Imperial court in Kyoto. Those quarrels ended in the Jōkyū War in 1221 when Kamakura defeated the Imperial army in Kyoto, and the Hōjō regents in Kamakura achieved complete control over Japan. By redistributing the land they’d gained after the war, they were able to achieve loyalty among all the powerful people throughout the country. The emperor and the remaining governmental offices in Kyoto lost practically all effective power.

In 1232 a legal code, the Joei Shikimoku, was promulgated. It stressed Confucian values such as the importance of loyalty to the master, and generally attempted to suppress a decline of morals and discipline. Tight control was maintained by the Hōjō clan, and any signs of rebellions were destroyed immediately. The shōgun stayed in Kamakura without much power while deputies of him were located in Kyoto and Western Japan. Stewards and constables controlled the provinces tightly and loyally. The Hojo regents dominated the Kamakura Shogunate and were able to bring several decades of peace and economic expansion to the country until their downfall in 1333 when an external power began to threaten Japan.

Further reading:
https://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Hojo_Masako
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H%C5%8Dj%C5%8D_Masako
Butler, Kenneth B. "Woman of Power Behind the Kamakura Bakufu," in Great Historical Figures of Japan. Murakami Hyoe and Thomas J. Harper, eds. Tokyo: Japan Cultural Institute, 1978

[yukari]

14 September 1164 (Chōkan 2, 26th day of the 8th month 長寛2年8月26日) – Death of Sutoku-tennō 崇徳天皇 at the age of 46. His name was Akihito (顕仁; different kanji as the previous emperor, Heisei, which is 明仁). He was the eldest son of Toba-tennō and his main consort, Fujiwara no Tamako.

In 1123, at only 3 years old, he succeeded the throne after his father was forced to abdicate by his great-grandfather, Shirakawa-tennō. Just like during the reign of Toba, Shirakawa continued to be the de facto ruler through insei (Toba was 20). It was said that Toba resented Sutoku, possibly for this reason. According to an old book, "Koji Dan," Sutoku was not Toba's real child but the child of Shirakawa since Tamako was under the latter care before marrying the former (the match itself was also pushed by Shirakawa). This, however, is only referred to in Koji Dan; there is no proof that the story is true.

>>>Thus in this period there were 3 generation of living emperors. I’m not sure of the accuracy, but in several films and dramas I’ve watch, Shirakawa was referred to as Hōō-sama (from Daijō Hōō/Cloistered Emperor since he had entered a Buddhist monastic community), Toba was referred to as Jōkō –sama (from Daijō Tennō /Retired Emperor), while Sutoko was referred to as Mikado-sama<<<

In 1335 Shirakawa died and Toba took the reign (by insei). Meanwhile, Tamako was losing her husband favour Fujiwara no Nariko (although they had same surname, they were not sisters). In 1339 Nariko gave birth to a son, Narihito and Toba made him crown prince. Two years later, Toba took tonsure as a monk and subsequently forced Sutoku to abdicate and replaced him with Narihito (later known as Konoe-tennō). In his proclamation, he was recorded as kōtaitei (even though when he was proclaimed as crown prince he’d been adopted by Sutoku’s consort, thus becoming his “son”), which marked him as the younger brother rather than son hence Sutoko could not open his own insei and the power remained with Toba. This was a major source of enmity for Sutoku.

To placate him, Nariko later adopted Sutoku’s eldest son, Shigehito. Given the above, in the event Konoe had no chance of succeeding to the imperial throne, there was a possibility for Shigehito to become a successor to the throne and as his biological father, Sutoku could rule by insei. However, she also adopted Morihito, Masahito’s eldest son. Masahito was Sutoku’s full younger brother.

In 1155 Konoe died without heir and it was assumed that Shigehito would become emperor. However, multiple players were opposed to this. Sutoku was disfavoured by Toba, Nariko was worried that an insei by Sutoku would constrain her influence, and so did the palace courtiers. In the end Masahito was put in the position as emperor until Morihito's official enthronement could take place (Masahito was later known as Go-Shirakawa-tennō and Morihito as Nijō-tennō).

When Toba died the following year, the dispute between brothers escalated into a miniature civil war known as the Hōgen Rebellion. The war was decided in a single battle. The forces of Go-Shirakawa were victorious. Sutoku left for Ninna-ji Temple with intent to be a priest but his request was not accepted by Go-Shirakawa; instead, he was sentenced to deportation to Sanuki Province. Sutoku was called 'Sanuki in' after this incident.

He devoted himself copying holy manuscripts to send back to Kyōto. The court feared that the deposed Sutoku would attempt to curse them and refused his manuscript. It was rumored that he had bitten off his own tongue and wrote the manuscripts in his own blood, imbuing them with his hatred for the merciless imperial court. It was even said he grow his hair and nails looking like yasha.

In 1164, Sutoku passed away, defeated, deposed, and humiliated—and most importantly full of rage for the imperial court. When news of his death reached Go-Shirakawa, he ignored it and ordered that nobody should go into mourning, and that no state funeral would be held for him.

Legends say that upon his death, he became onryō (some say into tengu). For the later years, disaster upon disaster struck the capital. Go-Shirakawa’s son, Nijō, died suddenly at age 23. Storms, plagues, fires, droughts, and earthquakes all pounded the capital. Imperial power weakened and the samurai took over. All of this was attributed to Sutoku’s vengeance.

Along with Sugawara no Michizane and Taira no Masakado, he is one of the legendary Nihon San Dai Onryō—the Three Great Vengeful Spirits of Japan.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emperor_Sutoku
https://yokai.com/sutokutennou/

[yukari]

18 October 1127 (Daiji 2, 11th day of the 9th month 大治2年9月11日) – Birth of Masahito-shinnō 雅仁親王, future Go-Shirakawa-tennō 後白河天皇. He was the second youngest son of Fujiwara no Tamako and Toba-tennō.

He was said to be Toba’s favourite son, but as the fourth son in normal situation he’s not supposed to ascend the throne. His de jure reign spanned the years from 1155 through 1158, though arguably he effectively maintained imperial power for almost thirty-seven years by politically outmaneuvering his opponents, attaining greater influence and power than the diminished authority of the emperor's position during this period would otherwise allow.

When Konoe-tennō died in 1155, Fujiwara no Nariko pushed her daughter to the throne but given that Heian society was fundamentally opposed to the idea of a female ruler, Toba’s two oldest sons, the retired emperor Sutoku and Imperial Prince Masahito, were the stronger candidates. Previously, to push her son to the throne, Nariko had adopted their oldest sons with a promise to Sutoku that if Konoe died without heir, his son would become emperor. However, she didn’t fulfil her promise and pushed Morihito (Masahito’s son) as emperor instead. Since Morihito was still young and his father, Prince Masahito was still alive, the enthronement before his father was questioned, and with Toba’s support it’s decided that Masahito would be enthroned temporarily until Morihito was older.

During this period, various artistic performances like dengaku (ritual music and dancing performed in association with rice planting) and sarugaku (form of theater becoming the basis for Noh) were spread among the upper class court nobles, but since young Go-Shirakawa preferred imayo (popular songs) and he studied eagerly. According to "Ryōjin Hishō Kudenshū" (collection of Japanese poetry that has thirty volumes of poetry and ten volumes of orally transmitted tales), it is said he gathered some people to sing his songs to an audience when he was around ten years old.

In 1156 after Toba died, the Hōgen War occurred. During this War, his former tutor turned advisor, Shinzei took the initiative while the Emperor remained in the formal role. In an effort to strengthen the political authority of the Imperial Court, after the War, Shinzei issued the Hogen edict, which imposed the Decree Restricting the Expansion of Private Estates, introduced regulations governing major temples and shrines, and restored the Imperial Palace.

In 1158 Go-Shirakawa passed the throne to Morihito, who took the name of Nijō-tennō. Most of Toba's private land was given to Bifukumon-in (Nariko’s Buddhist name) and Hachijo-in, while Go-Shirakawa took the estate of Fujiwara no Yorinaga (who perished during the Hōgen War) to make it an estate for the retired emperor and to establish an economic base for himself.

Go-Shirakawa was initially an ally of Kiyomori – the latter began trade with China and supported Go-Shirakawa, not just militarily but also financially. After Nijō's enthronement, opposition between the Go-Shirakawa’s supporter and the Nijō’s government began. There’s also growing antagonism between Shinzei and Fujiwara no Nobuyori within the Go-Shirakawa’s side, so, three forces opposed each other inside the Imperial Palace.

This antagonism reached its peak and the Heiji War occurred in 1159. Shinzei was killed and Nobuyori took complete control over politics, however, Taira no Kiyomori, who was allied with Nijō, defeated Nobuyori and others, and as a result, Go-Shirakawa’s forces were destroyed. Go-Shirakawa escaped from confinement during the War and moved to Ninna-ji Temple.

Nijō died in 1165 and his son ascended the throne as Rokujō-tennō. Meanwhile, Go-Shirakawa had favoured Taira no Shigeko, Kiyomori’s sister-in-law, and had a son with her. With a push from Kiyomori, Rokujō was deposed and replaced with Shigeko’s son who succeeded as Takakura-tennō. During this time the relationship between Go-Shirakawa and Kiyomori was favorable, Go-Shirakawa showed his interest in the trading between Japan and Sung, when he granted a person from Sung an audience at Kiyomori's villa in Fukuhara in 1170. Kiyomori's daughter, Taira no Tokuko officially entered the Imperial Palace to become Takakura's wife in 1171.

With the death of Shigeko in 1177, the relationship between Go-Shirakawa and Kiyomori started to get worse especially after Tokuko birthed a son who Kiyomori managed to push to be crown prince. The conflict further escalated after Go-Shirakawa seized Taira no Seishi’s and Taira no Shigemori’s estates upon their deaths (both were Kiyomori’s children). The conflict ended with Kiyomori’s victory and Go-Shirakawa was confined to Toba-in Palace and Tokuko’s son ascended the throne as Antoku-tennō with Kiyomori as the Regent.

Go-Shirakawa planned to regain power through the Taira's old rivals, the Minamoto. They had been steadily recovering their strength in the provinces following their defeat in 1160 especially after Kiyomori’s death in 1181. The final war between Taira clan and Minamoto clan had broken in form of Genpei War, with the latter emerged as the victor. In 1183 the army of Minamoto no Yoshinaka entered the capital, allowing for Go-Shirakawa's re-entry into the city – he had made a pilgrimage to various shrines, accompanied by armed monks, in order to avoid capture by the Taira.
The head of Minamoto clan, Minamoto no Yoritomo later established the first bakufu government in Kamakura.

It can be said that Go-Shirakawa played a big part in the fallout between Minamoto no Yoritomo and Minamoto no Yoshitsune, in which he tried to use the latter to seize the rule from the former. After Yoshitsune’s death, Yoritomo went to Kyoto and reconciled with the Cloistered Emperor.

Go-Shirakawa died on 26 April 1192. Yoritomo became shōgun and formed the first bakufu government in Kamakura, the first of three shogunates who would rule Japan for the next centuries.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emperor_Go-Shirakawa
The Emperor’s Songs: Go-Shirakawa and Ryōjin Hishō Kudenshū (translated and edited by Yung-Hee Kim Kwon) (you have to register to be able to access it)
Edit: this blog has the summary of above essay so you can get the idea of it without the need to register to JSTOR.
https://pentabook.wordpress.com/2020...isho-kudenshu/

[yukari]

3 November 1626 (Kan’ei 3, 15th day of the 9th month 寛永3年9月15日) – Death of Sūgen-in 崇源院 also as Gō 江. mother of Empress (consort) Masako.

She was a woman with a very high political status due to associations, which are:
- Niece of Oba Nobunaga, as her mother Oichi was his younger sister.
- Adopted daughter of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, also his sister-in-law as he took her eldest sister, Yodo, as his concubine.
- Daughter-in-law of Tokugawa Ieyasu, the 1st Tokugawa shōgun, as she married his heir, Tokugawa Hidetada.
- She became Ōmidaidokoro, official wife of shōgun, when Hidetada became the 2nd shōgun.
- Mother of the shōgun, when her eldest son, Tokugawa Iemitsu became the 3rd shōgun.
- Mother-in-law of emperor, when her youngest daughter, Masako, became empress consort of Go-Mizunoo-tennō.
- Maternal grandmother of empress (regnant), Meishō-tennō (ascended to the throne 3 years after Sūgen-in’s death)

Ōoku 大奥 was built during her tenure as Ōmidaidokoro which is quite interesting since its purpose was as the quarter for shōgun’s harem (it’s a women only quarter) whereas her husband, Hidetada, was not known to take any official concubine. Later on, Ōoku developed to be one of focal point of political intrigue for the Tokugawa shogunate, especially during the succession of shōgun. Other notable example, the first Jōrō Otoshiyori, Kasuga no Tsubone, was indirectly responsible in making Meishō being empress regnant.

Paper about Sūgen-in mausoleum (pdf)
https://nichibun.repo.nii.ac.jp/?act...d=18&file_no=1

Ōoku
Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C5%8Coku
Book: Ooku, The Secret World of the Shogun’s Women by Cecilia Segawa Seigle and Linda H. Chance
https://www.cambriapress.com/pub.cfm?bid=588

Sūgen-in (Wikipedia English)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oeyo
Sūgen-in (Wikipedia Japanese)
https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%B4...BA%90%E9%99%A2

Note about English wiki page:
- It lists the date of her death as “September 15, 1626”, I believe it’s a direct translation of the Japanese calendar date, instead of conversion to western calendar.
- I’m confused about the “Notable Descendants” part where it mentions “It is speculated that her son, Iemitsu, was the last direct male descendant of Tokugawa Ieyasu, thus ending the patrilineality of the shogunate for the third generation.”
I’ve never read anything that insinuates Tokugawa Ietsuna (the 4th shōgun) and Tokugawa Tsunayoshi (the 5th shōgun) were not Iemitsu’s biological son. Or maybe it’s the fact that both were sons of concubines instead of official wife. But then again, Iemitsu is the only shōgun who was the son of shōgun’s official wife. Other than Tokugawa Yoshinobu, all Tokugawa shōguns were sons of concubines, incuding Hidetada.
Yes, there’s a speculation that Iemitsu was gay. But let’s just say that Ietsuna and Tsunayoshi somehow were not his biological sons, when Tokugawa Ietsugu died without heir, he was succeeded by Tokugawa Yoshimune who was the grandson of Tokugawa Yorinobu, Hidetada’s (half) brother, so Ieyasu’s patrilineal was still maintained (not the case for Hidetada’s line though)

[yukari]

15 December 1242 (Ninji 3, 22nd day of the 11th month 仁治3年11月22日) – Birth of Munetaka-shinnō 宗尊親王, the sixth shōgun of the Kamakura shogunate. He was the first son of Go-Saga-tennō and one of his concubine, Taira no Muneko.

When Minamoto no Sanetomo died childless, the line of shōguns from the Minamoto clan ended with him. Since the Hōjō family did not have the rank to nominate a shōgun from amongst its members, Sanetomo’s mother, Hōjō Masako had to find a convenient puppet. She sent a messenger to Kyoto to express her wish to have the (retired) Emperor Go-toba's son become the shōgun but he refused, stating that 'such a thing would divide Japan in two.' Instead, he replied that his son would come if the lord of the fief was dismissed which was refused by the Hōjō clan since it would shake the foundation of the bakufu government. The Hōjō clan later abandoned the idea of installing an Imperial shōgun and picked the one from the Go-sekke (the five regent houses) families. Kujō Yoritsune (also known as Fujiwara no Yoritsune, son of the current kampaku, Kujō Michiie. Since he’s still infant, Masako was appointed his guardian and ruled the country in his place while his brother, Hōjō Yoshitoki, as the head of Hōjō clan, would take care of day-to-day business, thus starting the Hōjō clan’s regency as the shogunate's real centre of power and making the Kamakura shogunate rested on a unusual pyramid of regents.

In 1244, Yoritsune gave up his position as shōgun in favour for his 6-year-old son. This created power friction over the control of the shogunate between the Hōjō clan (Hōjō Tokiyori who were acting as shikken/regent of the shōgun) and the Fujiwara clan (Michiie and Yoritsune as the grandfather and father of the shōgun), culminating in an attempt coup plotted by Yoritsune. Tokiyori crushed the plot and in 1252, he deposed Yoritsugu and replaced him with Prince Munetaka.

Despite being the oldest son of Emperor Go-Saga and favoured by his father, Munetake’s mother's low status meant he had little chance of ascending the throne. At this point, the Emperor and Tokiyori shared a mutual interest, leading to the birth of the 'Imperial Shōgun.' Being only 11 years old, the de facto ruler of the shogunate actually was Tokiyori who acted as his regent.

As the puppet ruler, Munetaka threw himself into creating waka (a type of poetry in classical Japanese literature) and holding utakai (poetry reading party). As a result, the kadan (waka poetry world) centring on the samurai families in Kamakura flourished, producing talented gokenin (shogunate vassals) turned waka poets such as Goto Mototsuna and Shimazu Tadakage. The Kamakura kadan influenced the selection of the compilers of the Shokukokin Wakashū (続古今和歌集, "Collection of Ancient and Modern Times Continued", a Japanese imperial anthology of waka), with the Prince himself having the most entries.

Munetaka was also known as a calligrapher. There are many examples of what is considered to be Prince Munetaka's calligraphy including the Arisugawa kire (fragment), the Saibara kire, the Kokinshu kire, and the Kagurauta kire. In fact, many of them are classic examples of the Prince's much-loved Heian Period calligraphy but it is unclear which are Imperial Prince Munetaka's authentic calligraphy. However, his reputation as a great calligrapher is unchallenged.

In 1266 Munetaka was dismissed as shōgun, being suspected (possibly framed) of treason, and sent back to Kyoto. His son, Koreyasu, was installed as the 7th shōgun at the age of two under the Hōjō clan’s regency.

After he returned to Kyoto, Munetaka had a certain amount of power within the Imperial Court and colluded with anti-Hojo aristocrats to concentrate power in him. But pro-Hojo aristocrats reported their activities to the government in Kamakura. In addition, in 1272, after the death of (cloistered) Emperor Go-Saga, he was implicated in the Nigatsu-sodo (二月騒動, February Rebellion) and made to enter the priesthood and banished to Sadogashima Island. His Buddhist name was Kakue (written 覚恵). He also used the name Gyōshō (written 行証 or 行勝).
He died two years later on 2 September 1274 (Bun'ei 11, 1st day of the 8th month 文永11年8月1日) at the age of 31.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prince_Munetaka
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kamakura_shogunate
A paper about Shokukokinshū kyōen waka by MV Toropygina:
On Recording Waka Poems on Kaishi Sheets of Paper