This site is a web media that delivers all kinds of trivia, from sightseeing and gourmet spots in the six Tohoku prefectures to local, customs, and history.
[Series ⑤: The role of the previous nine years and the role of the second three years] 20 years after the role of the previous nine years, signs of war once again spreading to Ou
[Series ⑤: The role of the previous nine years and the role of the second three years] 20 years after the role of the previous nine years, signs of war once again spreading to Ou
After the Battle of Zenkunen, Minamoto no Yoriyoshi returned to Kyoto, and the six inner districts of Mutsu (inland Iwate Prefecture), which had been under the control of the Abe clan, came under the rule of the Kiyohara clan
By simply taking part in the final battle of the long war, the Kiyohara clan gained a vast territory that included the three counties of Dewa (Akita Prefecture) that they had previously held
At that time, the Tohoku region was a fertile land where many gold deposits, including gold dust, had been discovered, and it was also a place where high-quality horses were produced, so the Kiyohara clan gradually gained great power, but they maintained good relations with the Imperial Court, paying their taxes regularly
The headship of the Kiyohara clan passed from Mitsuyori to his younger brother, Takenori, who was the commander-in-chief of the Battle of Zenkunen, and his son, Takesada, became the head of the family
Then, during the reign of Sanehira, who succeeded Taketsune after his death, a turmoil arose within the Kiyohara clan, leading to the Gosannen War
What are the roles of the previous nine years and the latter three years (Zenkunen no Eki and Gosannen no Eki)?
Minamoto no Yoshiie "Ekotoba of the Battle of Gosannen" Painting by Hida no Kami Korehisa Source: Wikipedia
It was fought in Tohoku (Iwate Prefecture and Akita Prefecture) from 1051 (Eisho 6) to 1062 (Kohei 5) and from 1083 (Eiho 3) to 1087 (Kanji 1) at the end of the Heian period. There are two campaigns.
The Battle of Zenkunen was a battle in which the Minamoto clan, who were sent by the Imperial Court, put down a rebellion by the Abe clan, who were expanding their power in Mutsu (Iwate Prefecture), with the help of the Kiyohara clan
After that, an internal conflict arose in the Kiyohara clan, which had strengthened its control from Mutsu to Dewa (Akita prefecture), and the dispute over the family headship developed into a battle during the War of the Third Year, and the Minamoto clan was also here. is deeply involved.
These two campaigns led to the establishment of the Oshu Fujiwara clan in Hiraizumi, Iwate Prefecture, and the bond between the Minamoto clan and the samurai of eastern Japan deepened, leading to the establishment of the Kamakura shogunate under Minamoto no Yoritomo.
What reward was given to Minamoto no Yoriyoshi and his men for their part in the Battle of Zenkunen?
Upon returning to the capital, Yoriyoshi was given the official rank of "Shoshii-ge Iyo no Kami."
Iyo (Ehime Prefecture) was a warm, fruitful and bountiful country, and was the highest reward available at the time, but Yoriyoshi's retainers received no reward, so he did not go to Iyo for about two years and continued to make requests to the Imperial Court
Kiyohara Takenori was promoted from his previous rank of Junior Fifth Rank to Junior Fifth Rank Upper, appointed as the Commander of the Naval District, and was given the six Oku districts in addition to the territory of Dewa
Rule of the Oku-roku-gun region by the Kiyohara clan
Takenori moved his base from Dewa to Mutsu and married the daughter of Abe Sadato to Takesada
Sadato's daughter was the wife of Fujiwara no Tsunekiyo, a powerful military commander in the Abe clan, and she remarried, bringing Tsunekiyo's son with her.However, this is said to have been a political marriage intended to appease the Abe clan's former retainers
However, this political marriage would indirectly lead to internal conflict within the family
The blood relationship between the three Kiyohara brothers and the feud after Takemasa's death
Taketsune's successor was Shin'ei, but he had two younger brothers with whom he had complicated blood relations
One was Iehira, born to Takesada and his wife, the daughter of Abe Sadato and the wife of Fujiwara no Tsunekiyo, and the other was Kiyohira, the stepchild of that woman and the son of Fujiwara no Tsunekiyo
Mae and Ie were half-brothers from the same father, Ie and Kiyohira were half-brothers from the same mother, and Mae and Kiyohira were not related by blood; in this complex relationship, it is said that Mae's two younger brothers were dissatisfied with Mae, who wielded authority as the head of the Kiyohara family
The origin of the Gosannen War was a trivial intra-family dispute
Mae, who had no children of his own, adopted Narihira, a member of the Taira clan, as his successor, which put him at odds with elders of his clan such as Yoshihiko Hidetake
When Narue is to marry the daughter of Minamoto no Yoriyoshi, his uncle-in-law, Hidetake, comes to Narue's mansion with a gift to celebrate
There is a theory that this daughter of Yoriyoshi was the daughter of his son Yoshiie, but in any case, it is possible that he was trying to raise the status of the Kiyohara family by strengthening the bloodline between the Taira and Minamoto clans
However, Maye was so engrossed in playing Go that Hidetake had to wait, and Hidetake became irritated at being kept waiting, so he spilled the gold dust he had brought as a gift into the garden and returned to his mansion in Dewa
Shin'ei, finding this disrespectful, raised an army to attack Hidetake, but this trivial family dispute eventually developed into the Gosannen War
The main lineage's Mae vs. the two younger brothers from the branch lineage
Perhaps because Mae was trying to turn the Kiyohara clan, which had previously been united among its members, into a group of samurai centered around a leader like the Genpei clan, he was prone to arrogant behavior, which made his two younger brothers and elders such as Hidetake feel bitter about
It is said that Hidetake wanted Iemasa, who was of Takesada's blood, to succeed Maeda rather than his adopted son, and Maeda may have been looking for an opportunity to eliminate Hidetake
The Shin'ei forces raised an army of 8,000, while Hidetake only had 6,000, putting him at a disadvantage. Therefore, Hidetake invited Iemori and Kiyomori, who had always been on bad terms with Shin'ei, to attack Shin'ei's mansion
However, Mae, sensing this, returned his troops from Dewa, and the two men withdrew their troops
Yawata Taro intervenes in the Kiyohara clan's dispute
Yawata Taro Yoshiie "Yoshitoshi the Unrivaled Warrior" by Tsukioka Yoshitoshi Source: Wikipedia
The following year, in 1083, as Shin'ei was preparing to attack Hidetake, Minamoto no Yoshiie arrived as the governor of Mutsu Province. Shin'ei welcomed Yoshiie and requested his assistance before invading Dewa Province
Ie and Kiyoe then attacked Shin'e's mansion again, but Shin'e's troops, who had been fully prepared, fought bravely and Yoshiie came to the castle with the provincial government forces as reinforcements, forcing the Ie and Kiyoe allied forces to retreat once again
Upon receiving this, Mae marched his army to Dewa, but he suddenly died of illness on the way
This brought the internal dispute within the Kiyohara family to a temporary end
summary
After the death of Mae, the head of the Kiyohara clan, the struggle for succession appeared to be settled on the surface with Minamoto no Yoshiie acting as an intermediary, and Yoshiie's influence in Dewa and Mutsu grew even greater
However, because Yoshiie divided the territory equally between the two, Iemori, who was of Kiyohara descent, became increasingly dissatisfied with the fact that he and his adopted son, Kiyomori, were being treated the same, and eventually exploded (continued in "The Battle of Zenkunen" and "The Battle of Gosannen" ⑥)
Serialization: The role of the first nine years, the role of the second three years
I am a former Edo guy who loves Morioka, loves the six prefectures of Tohoku, and loves history, gourmet food, travel, sports, alcohol, and singing. We'll introduce you to some interesting, delicious, and good things about Tohoku!
