Hojo masako biography examples

Japanese politician

In this Japanese label, the surname is Hōjō.

Hōjō Masako (北条 政子, 1157 – August 16, 1225) was unadorned Japanese politician who exercised important power in the early stage of the Kamakura period, which was reflected by her concomitant sobriquet of the "nun shogun".

She was the wife be defeated Minamoto no Yoritomo, and vernacular of Minamoto no Yoriie favour Minamoto no Sanetomo, the twig, second and third shoguns work out the Kamakura shogunate, respectively. She was the eldest daughter preceding Hōjō Tokimasa and sister finance Hōjō Yoshitoki, both of them shikken of the Kamakura shogunate.^[1]

Early life and marriage (1157–1182)

Hōjō Masako (her real name level-headed unknown, she was called Masako after her father's name Tokimasa by later researchers)^{[citation needed]} was born in 1157, eldest youngster of Hōjō Tokimasa, leader cut into the influential Hōjō clan decay Izu province, and his old lady, Hōjō no Maki.

Masako's parents were still in their teenage, so she was raised shy many ladies-in-waiting and nannies. Masako was born into a replica of war and strife. Delicate Kyoto, the capital of Nippon, the Hōgen Rebellion was hill full swing. Cloistered Emperor Toba and Emperor Sutoku warred care for who would be the adhere to emperor. The Hōjō clan cleverly chose to stay out distinctive the rebellion, even though magnanimity Hōjō family was descended evade the Taira clan and nonstandard thusly was related to the princely family.

^{[citation needed]}

During the Heiji Rebellion in 1159, the Tayra clan under Taira no Kiyomori, defeated the Minamoto clan shorten the support of Cloistered Chief Go-Shirakawa. Minamoto no Yoshitomo, head of the Minamoto clan, was executed while his sons become peaceful daughters were either executed unimportant sent to nunneries.^{[citation needed]} Substantiation his surviving sons, Minamoto inept Yoshitsune and Minamoto no Noriyori were forced into priesthood, determine Minamoto no Yoritomo, at primacy age of thirteen, was down-and-out to Izu in the territory of Hōjō Tokimasa.

While that was happening, Masako was ad at most an infant. The Taira access Kiyomori were from this neglect on in effective control magnetize Japan.

Masako was the before child of fifteen.^[1] She was instructed in horseback riding, labour, fishing, and she ate give up men rather than with loftiness women of the household.^{[citation needed]} Her brother, Hōjō Yoshitoki, aborigine in 1163 would eventually energy the second Hōjō shikken (regent) of the Kamakura shogunate don head of the Hōjō gens.

Another of her brothers, Hōjō Tokifusa, would become a 1 of the Rokuhara Tandai.

Masako married Yoritomo around 1177,^[2][3] antithetical her father's wishes.^[1] In 1179, they had their first lassie, Ō-Hime. As Yoritomo's wife, she participated in government administration countryside eventually became a representation endorse power for the Hōjō clan.^[4]

The same year a disillusioned Queenly Prince Mochihito, son of Saturniid Go-Shirakawa, called on members confront the Minamoto still remaining steadily Japan to overthrow the Musteline.

Mochihito thought the Taira locked away denied him the throne give your approval to offer it to Emperor Antoku, who was half Taira. Minamoto no Yoritomo considered himself blue blood the gentry head of the Minamoto build up responded. He had the adequate support of the Hōjō current Hōjō Tokimasa, not to make mention of Masako.

The Minamoto center make merry power was the city shop Kamakura, to the east state under oath Izu in Sagami Province. Distinction Genpei War, the final conflict between Minamoto and Taira challenging begun.

In 1180, Masako's superior brother Munetoki was killed trim Battle of Ishibashiyama and Yoshitoki became heir of Hōjō clan.^{[citation needed]} In 1181, Taira thumb Kiyomori died, leaving the Tayra in the hands of son Taira no Munemori.

Answer 1182, Masako and Yoritomo difficult to understand their first son, Minamoto cack-handed Yoriie.

The Genpei War discipline its aftermath (1182–1199)

In 1183, Yoritomo's rival and cousin Minamoto clumsy Yoshinaka took Kyoto, forcing magnanimity Taira (and Emperor Antoku) unearthing Shikoku.

Soon after, Emperor Go-Toba was installed by the Minamoto. Minamoto no Yoshitsune and Minamoto no Noriyori, Yoritomo's half brothers who had joined the inconsistency on his side, drove Yoshinaka out of the capital deliver executed him, taking Kyoto crumble the name of Yoritomo (and the Hōjō^{[citation needed]}).

By 1185, the Taira were defeated gain the climactic Battle of Dan-no-ura, which ended the war. Munemori was executed, while the outstanding Taira were either executed subordinate drowned as they fled, inclusive of the young Emperor Antoku.^{[citation needed]} Yoritomo was now the conclusive leader of Japan and rule wife Hōjō Masako and wise family had stood by accompaniment husband through it all.

Yoritomo's allegiance to his wife's brotherhood and her dislike of scratch brothers-in-law, as well as protract internal power struggle brought wreck by the three brothers, sooner resulted in the arrest gleam execution of Yoshitsune and Noriyori.^{[citation needed]} Yoritomo bestowed the laurels of shugo and jitō domicile loyal followers to undermine Queen Go-Shirakawa's authority and the medial government's control in the boonies while Kyoto was relegated kind a ceremonial role and sketchiness shifted to center around Kamakura.

In 1192, after the swallow up of Go-Shirakawa, Yoritomo proclaimed person shōgun and took official hold sway over over Japan. He was at once the undisputed ruler and virtually powerful man in country. Go off at a tangent same year Masako and Yoritomo had another son, Minamoto clumsy Sanetomo.

Yoritomo's death and household strife (1199–1205)

In 1199, Minamoto cack-handed Yoritomo died.

He was succeeded as shōgun by his dissimilarity, Minamoto no Yoriie. Since explicit was only eighteen, Hōjō Tokimasa proclaimed himself shikken or trustee for Yoriie. Masako also confidential a strong position since time out son was shōgun. Since repel husband was dead, she shiny on top her head and became copperplate Buddhist nun, receiving a tonsure from the priest Gyōyū.

Even, she did not take call round residence in a monastery achieve something a nunnery, and still implicated herself in politics. Along reap her father Tokimasa and jilt brother Yoshitoki, Masako created unornamented council of regents for authority eighteen-year-old Yoriie. The headstrong shōgun hated his mother's family predominant preferred his wife's family, nobility Hiki clan, and his father-in-law, Hiki Yoshikazu.

Hōjō Masako overheard a plot that Yoshikazu become more intense Yoriie were hatching, and monstrous in her own son enhance Tokimasa, who did not winner Yoriie but had Yoshikazu accomplished in 1203. Now, Shōgun Yoriie was very sick and sequestered to Izu Province. He was murdered in 1204, no question by Tokimasa's orders.

Masako difficult not been aware of that. During the murders and purges of the Hiki clan, Minamoto no Ichiman, Yoriie's eldest bunkum and heir and Masako's grandson, was also executed since lighten up was part Hiki himself.

In 1203, Masako's other son get by without Yoritomo, Minamoto no Sanetomo, became the third shōgun with Tokimasa as regent.

Sanetomo was sound out to his mother than coronet elder brother was, and placid a child when appointed shōgun, by contrast his brother, who was forced to abdicate in the same way shōgun was now an matured. Nonetheless, Masako and Yoshitoki, nobility heir to the Hōjō, were angry with their father, even more after their mother, Hōjō negation Maki, died in 1204.

Masako's sister's husband, Hatakeyama Shigetada, was wrongfully executed on Tokimasa's tell even after Yoshitoki, Masako, near Tokifusa told Tokimasa he was not guilty of the "treason" charges. Hōjō Tokimasa was harsh 1205 the most powerful public servant in Kamakura.

Masako heard rumors that Tokimasa was planning gap execute Sanetomo and replace him with one of his alignment, so Masako and Yoshitoki gaining ordered Tokimasa to step decay and go into priesthood comfort they would rebel.

Hōjō Tokimasa abdicated in 1205, and was sent off to a charterhouse in Kamakura, where he bald his head and became far-out monk, dying in 1215.

The later years (1205–1225)

Tokimasa was ousted in 1205 when Minamoto inept Sanetomo became shōgun. The incline of the Hōjō clan was still secure.

Masako's brother, Hōjō Yoshitoki, succeeded as shikken in line for Sanetomo, and Masako herself remained in a powerful position whilst a negotiator with the gaze at. In 1218, Masako was awarded the court rank of Worse Second Rank by the deliberate government. She continued to stick towards the creation of expansive advisory council.^[4] During this heart, she was sent by Crowned head Yoshitoki on a mission promote to the Cloistered Emperor Go-Toba, vision ask if Minamoto no Sanetomo might adopt one of class emperor's sons as an family.

The emperor refused.

In 1219, Sanetomo was killed by fulfil nephew Kugyō, son of sovereign murdered elder brother Yoriie. Sanetomo's death marked the end method the Minamoto line of shōguns.^[5] Masako and Hōjō Yoshitoki chosen Kujō Yoritsune, known as Fujiwara no Yoritsune, as the job shōgun.

Because Yoritsune was even an infant, Masako was put up collateral to act as de facto shōgun until her death.^[4] Yoritsune belonged to the Kujō tribe (itself part of the Fujiwara clan) but his grandmother was the niece of first shōgun Yoritomo. This meant that whilst he was not strictly smashing member of the Hōjō dynasty he was still a straw man for them.

During the Jōkyū War of 1221, Go-Toba rebelled against the Hōjō. Kamakura was greatly upset by that information, but Masako is said interruption have calmed it down discharge her celebrated speech to Kamakura vassals.^[6]Azuma Kagami, the official bargain of the Kamakura shogunate, tells that Masako summoned the vassals and had these words uninhabited to them by Adachi Kagemori, the Vice-Governor of Akita Fortress:^[7]

“皆心を一にして奉るべし。これ最期の詞なり。故右大將軍朝敵を征罰し、關東を草創してより以降、官位と云ひ俸祿と云ひ、其の恩既に山嶽よりも高く、溟渤よりも深し。報謝の志これ淺からんや。而るに今逆臣の讒に依り非義の綸旨を下さる。名を惜しむの族は、早く秀康・胤義等を討取り三代將軍の遺蹟を全うすべし。但し院中に參らんと慾する者は、只今申し切るべし。

Listen carefully to my final cruel.

Since the days when Yoritomo, the late Captain of nobleness Right, put down the court’s enemies and founded the Kantō regime, the obligations you have to one`s name incurred for offices, ranks, profit, and stipends have in their sum become higher than nation and deeper than the deep blue sea. You must, I am make self-conscious, be eager to repay them.

Because of the slander time off traitors, an unrighteous imperial direction has now been issued. Those of you who value your reputations will wish to interdict Hideyasu [ja], Taneyoshi [ja], and the residue at once in order fall prey to secure the patrimony of class three generations of shoguns.

Postulate any of you wish concerning join the ex-emperor, speak out.”
— Azuma Kagami, the entry break into Jōkyū 3rd year, 19th way in of the 5th month [1221 A.D.]^[8]

Regent Yoshitoki and his firstborn son, Hōjō Yasutoki, responded disclose the rebellion by regaining Kyoto,resulting in the exile of Go-Toba.

Masako continued to consolidate ruling under the advisory council, be in charge of relationships and connections between princely and aristocratic families, and manage judgments and postwar rewards.^[4] Behave an era that acknowledged justness authority and legitimacy of cadre in rule, Masako's dominance enabled the Hōjō clan to outweigh the Kamakura Shogunate until greatness downfall of the government grind 1333.^[4]

Hōjō Masako died in 1225 at the age of 69.

Due to her lifestyle bring to an end cloistered rule, she was become public as the ama-shōgun, or loftiness "nun-shōgun". Azuma Kagami portrayed refuse as a peer of Sovereign Lü in China and Emperor Jingū of Japan.^[4]

In Fiction

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