The Reign of the “Commander of the Forces”
Shogun is a title that literally meant “a commander of a force”. It is a military and historical title that was granted to the country’s top military commander. Originally, a shogun is equivalent to “a general” as a title. The full title was seii taishōgun which means “great general who subdues eastern barbarians”.
A shogun’s office or administration was termed bakufu in Japanese which literally means “tent office” and in English it was known as “shogunate”. Minamoto Yorimoto established this during the Kamakura shogunate. There was never a stationary shogunate; each was dynamic with power continuously changing with an indefinite authority.
During the 1st millenium, the shoguns held momentary power but in due course, it turned out to be a representation of military control over the county. The end of the 12th century marked the beginning of the 700 year reign of the samurai’s over Japan until the middle of the 19th century which was the Meiji Restoration.
During the Heian period (794-1185) the north-eastern Emishi people defied against the Kyoto-based imperial court governance. Because of this, the shogun title was given to the military commanders. This was the time when they control of the whole government. Sakanoue no Tamuramaro (most famous of these shoguns) triumphed over the Emishi bringing the name of the Emperor Kammu and also conquered over the Ainu. However the title was abandoned in the later Heian period. This gave way to the appointment of Minamoto no Yoshinaka during the Gempei war who was killed soon by his distant cousin, Minamoto no Yoshitsune.
During the 11th century, (kamakura shogunate 1192-1333) daimyos and the samurais came to take over. Two of Japans most influential families (the Taira and Minamoto clan) battled for supremacy of which the Minamoto triumphed and eventually overturned the emperor and became the dictator and instituted a feudal system. Stripping all Emperors of Japan all political powers and granting them to the samurais. Minamoto bestowed the title of Sei-i Taishogun.
With the fall of Kamakura (1933) and the destruction of the Hōjō Regency, two royal families, Go-Saga (senior line) and Go-Daigo (junior line), had both rights to the throne. This predicament was worked out with the mediation of the Kamakura shogunate. It ended with the banishment of the Go-Daigo but during 1334-1336, they were aided by Ashikaga Takauji to redeem the throne. With the dispute of the people with claims to a meager source of land, Ashikaga Takauji turned against the Emperor. In 1336, this paved the way for the new emperor.
Prince Moriyoshi (or also known as Prince Morinaga) was the short-lived shogun who rose after the fall of the Kamakura Shogunate in 1933 (Kemmu Restoration). He was the son of Emperor Go-Daigo but was later seized in his home and was killed by Ashikaga Tadayoshi.
Related posts:
