|
Japan Civil War
The Hojo reacted to the ensuing chaos by trying to
place more
power among the various great family clans. To further
weaken the
Kyoto court, the bakufu decided to allow two
contending
imperial lines--known as the Southern Court or junior line
and the
Northern Court or senior line--to alternate on the throne.
The
method worked for several successions until a member of
the
Southern Court ascended to the throne as Emperor Go-Daigo
(r. 1318-
39). Go-Daigo wanted to overthrow the bakufu, and
he openly
defied Kamakura by naming his own son his heir. In 1331
the
bakufu exiled Go-Daigo, but loyalist forces
rebelled. They
were aided by Ashikaga Takauji (1305-58), a constable who
turned
against Kamakura when dispatched to put down Go-Daigo's
rebellion.
At the same time, another eastern chieftain rebelled
against the
bakufu, which quickly disintegrated, and the Hojo
were
defeated.
In the swell of victory, Go-Daigo endeavored to restore
imperial authority and tenth-century Confucian practices.
This
period of reform, known as the Kemmu Restoration
(1333-36), aimed
at strengthening the position of the emperor and
reasserting the
primacy of the court nobles over the bushi. The
reality,
however, was that the forces who had arisen against
Kamakura had
been set on defeating the Hojo, not on supporting the
emperor.
Ashikaga Takauji finally sided with the Northern Court in
a civil
war against the Southern Court represented by Go-Daigo.
The long
War Between the Courts lasted from 1336 to 1392. Early in
the
conflict, Go-Daigo was driven from Kyoto, and the Northern
Court
contender was installed by Ashikaga, who became the new
shogun.
Data as of January 1994
|
