Kamakura shogunate
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Kamakura shogunate
Kamakura Shogunate
鎌倉幕府
Kamakura Bakufu
←
1192–1333
→
Mon
Capital
Kamakura
Language(s)
Late Middle Japanese
Religion
Shinbutsu shūgō
Government
Feudal military dictatorship
Emperor
- 1183-1198
Go-Toba
- 1318-1339
Go-Daigo
Shogun
- 1192-1199
Minamoto no Yoritomo
- 1308-1333
Morikuni
Shikken
- 1199-1205
Hōjō Tokimasa
- 1326-1333
Hōjō Moritoki
History
- Minamoto no Yoritomo appointed shogun July 12, 1192
- Battle of Dan-no-ura
April 25, 1185
- Hōjō regency established
February 9, 1199
- Siege of Kamakura
May 18, 1333
Currency
Ryō
Kamakura shogunate
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The Kamakura shogunate (Japanese: 鎌倉幕府, Kamakura bakufu)
was a military dictatorship in Japan headed by the shoguns from 1185
(or 1192, when it was formally recognized) to 1333. It was based in
Kamakura. The Kamakura period draws its name from the capital of
the shogunate.[1] From 1203 onwards, the family of the first Shogun
Yoritomo's wife, the Hōjō clan, effectively had total control over the
nation with the title Shikken (Regent), setting up a Hojo family court
that discussed and made most of the significant decisions.
History
Establishment
Before the establishment of the Kamakura shogunate, civil power in
Japan was primarily held by the ruling emperors and their regents,
typically appointed from the ranks of the imperial court and the
aristocratic clans that vied there. Military affairs were handled under
the auspices of the civil government. However, after defeating the
Taira clan in the Genpei War, Minamoto no Yoritomo seized certain
powers from the aristocracy in 1185 and was given the title of shogun
in 1192. The system of government he established became formalized
as the shogunate.
The Hōjō Regency
This wooden Kongorikishi statue was created
during the Kamakura shogunate during 14th
century Japan. It originally guarded the gate to
Ebara-dera, a temple in Sakai, Osaka.
After Yoritomo's death, Hōjō Tokimasa, the clan chief of Yoritomo's
widow, Hōjō Masako, and former guardian of Yoritomo, claimed the title of regent (Shikken) to Yoritomo's son
Minamoto no Yoriie, eventually making that claim hereditary to the Hōjō clan. The Minamoto remained the titular
shoguns, with the Hōjō holding the real power.
With the Regency, what was already an unusual situation became even more anomalous when the Hōjō usurped
power from those who had usurped it from the Emperor in the first place. The new regime nonetheless proved to be
stable enough to last a total of 135 years, 9 shoguns and 16 regents.[2]
With Sanetomo's death in 1219, his mother Hōjō Masako became the Shogunate's real center of power.[2] As long as
she was alive, regents and shoguns would come and go, while she stayed at the helm. Since the Hōjō family didn't
have the rank to nominate a shogun from among its members, Masako had to find a convenient puppet.[3] The
problem was solved choosing Kujo Yoritsune, a distant relation of the Minamoto, who would be the fourth shogun
and figurehead, while Hōjō Yoshitoki would take care of day-to-day business.[3] However powerless, future shoguns
would always be chosen from either Fujiwara or imperial lineage to keep the bloodline pure[3] and give legitimacy to
the rule. This succession proceeded for more than a century.[3]
In 1221 Emperor Go-Toba tried to regain power in what would be called the Jōkyū War (承久の乱 Jōkyū no Ran),
but the attempt failed.[4] The power of the Hōjō remained unchallenged until 1324, when Emperor Go-Daigo
orchestrated a plot to overthrow them, but the plot was discovered almost immediately and foiled.[2]
Kamakura shogunate
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Mongol invasions and decline
The Mongols under Kublai Khan attempted sea-borne invasions in 1274 and 1281 (see Mongol invasions of Japan).
The Kamakura shogunate met the invaders with vast armies of defenders. With the aid of typhoons, which came to
be called "kamikaze", the Mongols were repelled. Many times the Mongols were defeated by violent storms, which
smashed their ships, and even though some Mongol troops made it to shore they were soon defeated. However, the
strain on the military and the financial expenditures weakened the regime considerably. Additionally, the defensive
war left no gains to distribute to the warriors who had fought it, leading to discontent. Construction of defensive
walls added further expenses to the strained regime.
In 1331 Emperor Go-Daigo took arms against Kamakura, but was defeated by Kamakura's Ashikaga Takauji and
exiled to Oki Island, in today's Shimane Prefecture.[4] A warlord then went to the exiled Emperor's rescue and in
response the Hōjō sent forces again commanded by Ashikaga Takauji to attack Kyoto.[4] Once there, however,
Ashikaga decided it was time to switch sides, and support the Emperor.[4] At the same time another warlord loyal to
the Emperor, Nitta Yoshisada, attacked Kamakura and took it.[2] About 870 Hōjō samurai, including the last three
Regents, committed suicide at their family temple, Tōshō-ji, whose ruins were found in today's Ōmachi.[2] Ashikaga
in 1336 assumed the position of shogun himself, establishing the Ashikaga shogunate.
Institutions
... not only was the Heian system of imperial-aristocratic rule still vigorous during the twelfth century, but it also remained the essential
framework within which the bakufu, during its lifetime, was obliged to operate.
“
”
—Jeffrey P. Mass, p. 1, "The Kamakura Bakufu," Chapter 1 of Warrior Rule in Japan, Cambridge University Press 1996
Yoritomo established a chancellery, or mandokoro, as his principal organ of government. Later, under the Hōjō, a
separate institution, the hyōjōshū became the focus of government.
The shogunate appointed new military governors (shugo) over the provinces. These were selected mostly from
powerful families in the different provinces, or the title was bestowed upon a general and his family after a
successful campaign. Although they managed their own affairs, in theory they were still obliged to the central
government through their allegiance to the shogun. The military governors paralleled the existing system of
governors and vice-governors (kokushi) appointed by the civil government in Kyoto.
Kamakura also appointed stewards, or jitō, to positions in the manors (shōen). These stewards received revenues
from the manors in return for their military service. They served along with the holders of similar office, gesu, who
delivered dues from the manor to the proprietor in Kyoto. Thus the dual governmental system reached to the manor
level.
Kamakura shogunate
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List of shoguns
• Minamoto no Yoritomo, r. 1192-1199
• Minamoto no Yoriie, r. 1202-1203
• Minamoto no Sanetomo, r. 1203-1219
Figurehead Shoguns:
• Kujō Yoritsune, r. 1226-1244
• Kujō Yoritsugu, r. 1244-1252
• Prince Munetaka, r. 1252-1266
• Prince Koreyasu, r. 1266-1289
• Prince Hisaaki, r. 1289-1308
• Prince Morikuni, r. 1308-1333
Shikken:
• Hōjō Tokimasa, r. 1203-1205
• Hōjō Yoshitoki, r. 1205-1224
• Hōjō Yasutoki, r. 1224-1242
• Hōjō Tsunetoki, r. 1242-1246
• Hōjō Tokiyori, r. 1246-1256
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
Genealogy of the first five Kamakura shoguns
Hōjō Nagatoki, r. 1256-1264
Hōjō Masamura, r. 1264-1268
Hōjō Tokimune, r. 1268-1284
Hōjō Sadatoki, r. 1284-1301
Hōjō Morotoki, r. 1301-1311
Hōjō Munenobu, r. 1311-1312
Hōjō Hirotoki, r. 1312-1315
Hōjō Mototoki, r. 1315
Hōjō Takatoki, r. 1316-1326
Hōjō Sadaaki, r. 1326
Hōjō Moritoki, r. 1327-1333
References
[1] Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Kamakura-jidai" in Japan Encyclopedia, p. 459 (http:/ / books. google. com/
books?id=p2QnPijAEmEC& pg=PA459) at Google Books.
[2] "A Guide to Kamakura" (http:/ / www. asahi-net. or. jp/ ~qm9t-kndu/ history. htm). History. January 2006. . Retrieved 2008-04-28.
[3] "Encyclopedia Britannica online" (http:/ / www. britannica. com/ eb/ article-23145/ Japan). The Hojo Regency. . Retrieved 2008-04-28.
[4] Kamakura: History & Historic Sites - The Kamakura Period (http:/ / www. kcn-net. org/ e_kama_history/ history/ history2. htm), the
Kamakura Citizen Net, accessed on April 27, 2008
Further reading
• Mass, Jeffrey P. (1976). The Kamakura bakufu : a study in documents. Stanford: Stanford University Press.
• Mass, Jeffrey P. (1974). Warrior government in early medieval Japan : a study of the Kamakura Bakufu, shugo
and jitō. New Haven: Yale University Press.
• Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric and Käthe Roth. (2005). Japan encyclopedia. (http://books.google.com/
books?id=p2QnPijAEmEC&client=firefox-a) Cambridge: Harvard University Press. 10-ISBN 0-674-01753-6;
13-ISBN 978-0-674-01753-5; OCLC 58053128 (http://www.worldcat.org/oclc/58053128?referer=di&
ht=edition)
Kamakura shogunate
• Ōyama Kyōhei. Kamakura bakufu 鎌倉幕府. Tokyo: Shōgakkan 小学館, 1974.
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