4.1 Muromachi Period 1333-1600: Ashikaga Shogunate
Time Line
- 1200s Louis IX (St. Louis) France, Magna Carta, Genghis Khan Mongol Empire
- 1300s Battle of Poitiers, 1356 Brunelleschi, Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368), Ming Dynasty (1368-1644); Madhava of Sangamagrama (c. 1340 – c. 1425) Indian mathematician and astronomer
- 1400s Construction of Forbidden City began in 1406; Hundred Years War, Guttenberg Bible, Columbus’ voyage 1492; Battle of Agincourt 1415; 1453 Mehmed II (the Conqueror) captures Constantinople.
- 1500s Ponce de Leon in Florida (1513); Portuguese establish permanent settlement at Macau (1557); Spanish Armada defeated (1588); (1598) Edict of Nantes ending France’s religious wars; Shakespeare (1564-1616); Hapsburg Spain (1516-1700).
- 1600s: Cardinal Richelieu (1585-1617); Thirty Years War; Peking Gazette moveable type (1638); Glorious Revolution (England, 1688)
Kenmu Restoration
Emperor Go-Daigo’s initiatives to restore power to the monarchy, which was backed by disaffected samurai such as Ashikaga Takauji and Nitta Yoshisada, resulted in the Genkō War. The Kamakura regime ended with the burning of Kamakura and the mass suicide of the Hōjō and their entourage. In 1333, in the Kenmu (or Kemmu) Restoration, Go-Daigo attempted to bring back imperial power and civilian government. However, he made some serious mistakes that ultimately proved fatal to his restoration attempts.
Go-Daigo failed to reform the shōen system, which had continued to expand and was now seriously impoverishing the court.
Go-Daigo made serious mistakes in dealing with the samurai. After confiscating the Hōjō property, Go-Daigo first gave generously to religious institutions, then to leading samurai like Nitta Yoshisada and Ashikaga Takauji. He set up tribunals to handle the many samurai claims, but the tribunals were inefficient, inexperienced, and corrupt. Therefore, many of the lesser samurai did not receive rewards they felt entitled to. To make matters worse, he levied taxes on the samurai to build his castle. After just a couple of years, Go-Daigo had lost most of the samurai support.
Finally, Ashikaga Takauji became disillusioned. When the Hōjō started an uprising he asked Go-Daigo to make him seii tai shogun to quell the Hōjō uprising but Go-Daigo refused. Taking matters into his own hands, Takauji raised an army and defeated the Hōjō. Because Ashikaga Takauji had acted without obtaining an imperial edict authorizing his actions, Go-Daigo enlisted Nitta and other loyal samurai to attack Ashikaga. However, Ashikaga defeated Nitta Yoshisada then took his army to Kyoto and defeated the imperial forces.
Ashikaga Takauji entered Kyoto and Go-Daigo fled to Mt Hiei. Go-Daigo attempted reconciliation by sending the imperial regalia to Ashikaga. However, Takauji installed Emperor Kōmyō to replace Go-Daigo.
Go-Daigo escaped from the capital in January 1337, with the imperial regalia. It turned out that the regalia that he had handed over to Ashikaga were fake. He went to the mountains of Yoshino and set up the Southern Court. This began the Period of Northern and Southern Courts, called Nanboku-chō, in which the Northern Court in Kyōto and the Southern Court in Yoshino fought for almost 60 more years.
Nanboku-chō
This was a period of war, steadfast loyalty, and shifting alliances. Some were loyal to one court or another, but others chose their allegiance to a court only as a means of attacking or backing the Ashikaga shogun.
The divided loyalties took place at the highest levels. Ashikaga Takauji as shogun enlisted Kō no Moroyasu to do battle with the Southern Court. Takauji’s brother, Tadayoshi was very active in the civilian side of government. This created tensions, which boiled over when Takauji appointed Kō no Moronae as his deputy. Moronae was the brother of Moroyasu. Tadayoshi opposed Moronae and tried many schemes to get rid of Moronae including assassination, but all failed. Tadayoshi was forced to leave. In 1350, Tadayoshi joined his former enemies the Southern Court. The Southern Court’s Emperor Go-Marakami appointed Tadayoshi as commander of his army.
Tadayoshi began the Kannō Disturbance. He had early success. In 1351, his forces defeated those of Takauji and occupied Kyoto. He also managed to capture and execute the Kō brothers, Moronae and Moroyasu. Takauji returned with a strong army and defeated Tadayoshi. After a brief reconciliation of Takauji and Tadayoshi, Tadayoshi died rather suddenly in 1352. The Taiheiki, a historical account of the era, suggests by poisoning.
Over many years the Southern Court found fewer and fewer supporters. In 1392, Yoshimitsu convinced Go-Kameyama of the Southern Court to hand over the imperial regalia to Emperor Go-Komatsu of the Northern Court on the promise of alternating emperors. The promise was not kept and the line of Go-Daigo never ascended the throne again.