The Kō Brothers
Kō no Moronao (also Moronō) (? – died 1351) and Kō no Moroyasu (? – died 1351) were leading busho (military commanders) serving Ashikaga Takauji in the late Kamakura period and the period of the Northern and Southern Courts. They were known for their violence and cruelty, which made them valuable to Takauji.
Family Lineage
Their family lineage can be traced back to the time when Takashina no Koreaki, maybe an illegitimate child (or a nanny’s younger brother) of Minamoto no Yoshiie began serving Minamoto no Yoshikuni, Yoshiie’s third son, in Shimotsuke Province. Afterwards their clan was known as Kō and served the Ashikaga clan as stewards for generations.
Their father was Kō no Moroshige.
The Kō brothers aided Ashikaga Takauji when Takauji was aligned with Emperor Go-Daigo in the Genkō War (Genkō no Ran) (1331–1333) also known as the Genkō Incident (Genkō no Hen), in which the Kamakura shogunate was overthrown and the power of the Hōjō clan ended. After Go-Daigo entered Kyoto and returned to the throne, he began the Kenmu Restoration. In reward for their services, the Kō brothers were assigned to the Kubodokoro (a court of justice) and Zasso-Ketsudansho (an agency of the Kenmu government to file lawsuits) during the Kenmu Restoration.
Later, the Kō brothers helped Ashikaga Takauji overthrow the Kenmu Restoration causing Emperor Go-Daigo to flee Kyoto.
Kō no Moronao
His official rank was the Governor of Musashi Province.
Moronao served as general of Ashikaga forces during the Kenmu Restoration and the early Muromachi Period.
In 1338, Takauji founded the Muromachi bakufu (Japanese feudal government headed by a shogun) when he was bestowed the title of shogun. Moronao enjoyed a great position of authority as a steward for the Ashikaga family.
After the Ashikaga removed Emperor Go-Daigo and set up their shogunate, ushering in the Muromachi Period, Moronao continued his military service in fighting forces loyal to the Southern Court during the wars of the Nanboku-chō period and killed its generals Kitabatake Akiie and Kusunoki Masayuki. He also attacked the Southern Court in Yoshino and made their forces retreat to Ano (1351).
After the Ashikaga had installed their own emperor and began to govern with Takauji as shogun, Takauji and Tadayoshi, his younger brother, shared governing roles. Takauji took over the military and Tadayoshi handled administration and judicial. Often Tadayoshi made decrees in Takauji’s name, leaning on his title of shogun, without permission, which caused friction. Takauji appointed Moronao to be the first to hold the position of Shitsuji (Shogun’s Deputy). His appointment was opposed by Tadayoshi, perhaps because of Moronao’s reputation of violence, greed, and lewdness. For his part, Moronao was bitterly opposed to Tadayoshi and his policies. Tadayoshi tried to keep the peace and balance loyalties between the buke (military authority) and court nobles, temples, and shrines. Moronao put priority on expanding the shogunate government. Tadayoshi tried to get rid of Moronae, even by an assassination attempt. When tensions came to a head, in the Kannō Disturbance, Tadayoshi was ousted from the government. Tadayoshi entered the services of the Southern Court and led an army to march on Kyoto, capturing the Kō brothers.
Moronao was not an admirer of emperors. On the subject, he once said:
What is the use of a King? Why should he live in a Palace? And why should we bow to him? If for some reason a King is needed, let us have one made of wood or metal, and let all the live Kings be banished.
Kō no Moroyasu
His official ranks were Owari no kuni no kami (Governor of Owari Province) and Echigo no kuni no kami (Governor of Echigo Province).
The Kō brothers worked for Ashikaga Takauji. During the Genkō War (Genkō no Ran) (1331–1333) also known as the Genkō Incident (Genkō no Hen), Moroyasu contributed by raising an army against the Kamakura bakufu. His efforts were rewarded with the appointment as bugyo (magistrate, used for a samurai with a profession from Heian to Edo Periods) of Zasso-Ketsudansho (legal department of Kenmu government in charge of lawsuits).
Moroyasu first came to prominence for his role in the battles against the forces of Nitta Yoshisada, who had been employed by Emperor Go-Daigo to destroy Ashikaga Takauji for his unauthorized actions in putting down the Hōjō uprising in 1335 and setting up a ruling body in Kamakura. His forces fought several small battles in league with Takauji’s brother, Tadayoshi. Eventually they had to retreat to the Hakone Mountains, where they awaited reinforcements from Takauji. Eventually, with their forces concentrated, they were able to defeat Nitta Yoshida’s imperial army at the Battle of Hakone and Takenoshita.
After the Kenmu Restoration was thwarted by Takauji, forces loyal to Emperor Go-Daigo re-grouped and forced Takauji to flee Kyoto and go to Kyūshū. Kō no Moroyasu continued the fighting in Chikuzen Provence and other places. Moroyasu was vice-officer to Ashikaga Tadayoshi in the Battle of Minatogawa (Minato River) that dealt a severe blow to Imperial forces.
Moroyasu’s military exploits included destroying key forces loyal to the Southern Court. His victories culminated when he was joined by his brother to force the Southern Court from their base in Yoshino.
With his success as a busho came pride and arrogance. Moroyasu was quickly developing a bad reputation and with good reason. For instance, Moroyasu destroyed the graveyard of the Sugawara clan to build a mountain retreat on it. When Sugawara no Arinori complained, Moroyasu killed him.
Moroyasu’s brother, Moronao, had much different governing ideas than Ashikaga Tadayoshi. Their conflict came to a head in the Kannō Disturbance. Moroyasu joined Moronao in bringing down Tadayoshi, who was forced to retire and enter the Buddhist priesthood.
However, like the phoenix, Tadayoshi submitted to the Southern Court, raised an army, marched on Kyoto, and eventually defeated Moroyasu in Settsu Province.
In a truce brokered by Zen master Musō Soseki, who was close to both brothers, it was agreed that the Kō brothers would retire from politics forever and become monks, to which they agreed. Moronao became a Zen monk and Moroyasu joined an Amidst sect. However, en route to Kyoto, the Kō brothers were captured and executed by Uesugi Yoshinori in revenge for the killing of Yoshinori’s father, Shigeyoshi.
Uesugi Yoshinori had been adopted by Uesugi Shigeyoshi (the Takuma-Uesugi family). While still a young man, Kō no Moronao assassinated Shigeyoshi. Uesugi went into the service of Tadayoshi, serving him well during the aftermath of the Kannō Disturbance. Besides killing the Kō brothers, he also defeated their cousin, Kō no Morofuyu (who committed seppuku). Uesugi Yoshinori was eventually defeated by Ashikaga Takauji, sent into exile, but later permitted to assist the Kamakura kubo (Governor-general of the Kanto region), Ashikaga Ujimitsu, as a Kanto Kanrei (shogunal deputy for the Kanto region). Afterwards the Kanto Kanrei post became the hereditary position of the Uesugi family.