Minamoto was one of the honorary surnames bestowed by the Emperors of Japan of the Heian Period (794–1185 AD) on those of their sons and grandsons who were not considered eligible for the throne. The Taira were another such offshoot of the imperial dynasty. The Minamoto clan was also called the Genji Clan, using the alternate pronunciation of the Chinese characters for Minamoto gen and uji, or family (ji). The first emperor to start granting the name Minamoto was Emperor Saga. Afterwards Emperor Seiwa, Emperor Murakami, Emperor Uda, and Emperor Daigo, among others, also gave their sons the name Minamoto. These specific hereditary lines coming from different emperors developed into specific clans referred to by the emperor's name followed by Genji, e.g. Seiwa Genji. According to some sources, the first to be given the name Minamoto was Minamoto no Makoto, seventh son of Emperor Saga. The Minamoto were one of the four great clans that dominated Japanese politics during the Heian period — the other three were the Fujiwara, the Taira, and the Tachibana. In 814 Emperor Saga (reigned 809–823) awarded the kabane Minamoto no Ason to his non-heir sons; thereafter, they and their descendants ceased to be members of the Imperial Family. Several subsequent emperors gave the Minamoto surname to their non-heir sons. The most prominent of the several Minamoto families, the Seiwa Genji, descended from Minamoto no Tsunemoto (917–961), a grandson of the 56th Emperor Seiwa. Tsunemoto went to the provinces and became the founder of a major warrior dynasty. Minamoto no Mitsunaka (912–997) formed an alliance with the Fujiwara. Thereafter the Fujiwara frequently called upon the Minamoto to restore order in the capital, Heian-Kyo (or Kyoto). Mitsunaka's eldest son, Minamoto no Yorimitsu (948–1021), became the protégé of Fujiwara no Michinaga; another son, Minamoto no Yorinobu (968–1048) suppressed the rebellion of Taira no Tadatsune in 1032. Yorinobu's son, Minamoto no Yoriyoshi (998–1075), and grandson, Minamoto no Yoshiie (1039–1106), pacified most of northeastern Japan between 1051 and 1087. The Seiwa Genji's fortunes declined in the Hōgen Rebellion (1156), when the Taira executed much of the line. During the Heiji Disturbance (1160), the head of the Seiwa Genji clan, Minamoto no Yoshitomo, died in battle. Taira no Kiyomori seized power in Kyoto by forging an alliance with the retired emperors Shirakawa and Toba and infiltrating the kuge. He sent Minamoto no Yoritomo (1147–1199), the third son of Minamoto no Yoshimoto of the Seiwa Genji, into exile. In 1180 Yoritomo mounted a full-scale rebellion against the Taira rule (Gempei or the Taira-Minamoto War), culminating in the destruction of the Taira and the subjugation of eastern Japan within five years. In 1192 he received the title shogun and set up the first bakufu at Kamakura. Thus the Seiwa Genji line proved to be the most strong and dominant Minamoto line during the late Heian period with Minamoto no Yoritomo eventually forming the Kamakura Shogunate and becoming shogun in 1192. Also, it is from the Seiwa Genji line that the later Ashikaga (founders of the Ashikaga shogunate), Nitta, and Takeda clans come. The protagonist of the classical Japanese novel The Tale of Genji, Hikaru no Genji, was bestowed the name Minamoto for political reasons by his father the emperor, and was delegated to civilian life and a career as an imperial officer. (more)
Genres: politics
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Genpei War:
The Genpei Wars (1180-1185) were a conflict between the Taira and Minamoto clans and in late-Heian period Japan. They resulted in the fall of the Taira clan and establishment of the Kamakura shogunate under Minamoto Yoritomo in 1192. The name "Genpei
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Seiwa Genji:
The were the most successful and powerful of the many branch families of the Japanese Minamoto clan. Many of the most famous Minamoto warriors, including Minamoto Yoshiie, also known as "Hachimantaro or God of War; and Minamoto no Yoritomo, the fou
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Minamoto no Yoshitomo:
Minamoto no Yoshitomo (源 義朝) (1123 - February 11, 1160) was the head of the Minamoto clan and a general of the late Heian period of Japanese history. His son Minamoto no Yoritomo became shogun and founded the Kamakura Shogunate, the first shogunate i
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Minamoto no Yoshiie:
Minamoto no Yoshiie (源義家; 1039-4 August, 1106), also known as Hachimantarō, was a Minamoto clan samurai of the late Heian period, and Chinjufu shogun (Commander-in-chief of the defense of the North). The first son of Minamoto no Yoriyoshi, he proved
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Minamoto no Yoriyoshi:
Minamoto no Yoriyoshi (源頼義)(998-1082?) was a head of Japan's Minamoto clan who is perhaps most notable for having led, along with his son Minamoto no Yoshiie, the Imperial forces against rebellious forces in the north. This campaign would be called t
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Minamoto no Yorinobu:
(968-1048) was a samurai commander and member of the powerful Minamoto clan. He was the son of Minamoto no Mitsunaka (912-997). Along with his brother Yorimitsu, Yorinobu served the regents of the Fujiwara clan, taking the violent measures the Fujiwa
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Minamoto no Tsunemoto:
Minamoto no Tsunemoto (源經基) (894-961) was a samurai and Imperial Prince during Japan's Heian period, the progenitor of the Seiwa Genji branch of the Minamoto clan. He was the son of Sadazumi-shinnō and grandson of Emperor Seiwa. Tsunemoto took part i
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Minamoto no Makoto:
Minamoto no Makoto (源信) (810-868) was the seventh son of the Japanese Emperor Saga, and was the first courtier to be given the name Minamoto. Initially an honorary name given to a number of unrelated courtiers by a number of different Emperors, the M
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Taira clan:
Taira (平) is a Japanese clan name. In reference to Japanese history, along with Minamoto, Taira was a hereditary clan name bestowed by the emperors of the Heian Period to certain ex-members of the imperial family when they became subjects. The Taira
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Ashikaga clan:
The Ashikaga clan was a prominent Japanese samurai clan which established the Muromachi shogunate and ruled Japan from roughly 1336 to 1573. The Ashikaga were descended from a branch of the Minamoto clan, deriving originally from the town of Ashikaga
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Takeda clan:
The Takeda was a famous clan of daimyō (feudal lords) in Japan's late Heian Period to Sengoku period. The Takeda were descendants of Emperor Seiwa (850-880) and are a branch of the Minamoto clan (Seiwa Genji), by Minamoto no Yoshimitsu (1056-1127), b
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Taira no Kiyomori:
was a general of the late Heian period of Japan. He established the first samurai-dominated administrative government in the history of Japan. After the death of his father Taira no Tadamori in 1153, Kiyomori assumed control of the Taira clan and amb
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Nitta clan:
The Nitta clan was one of several major families descended from the Seiwa Genji, and numbered among the chief enemies of the Ashikaga shogunate, and later the Hōjō clan regents. The common ancestor of the Nitta, Minamoto no Yoshishige, was the elder
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Hōgen Rebellion:
The Hōgen Rebellion (保元の乱) was a Japanese civil war fought in 1156 over Japanese imperial succession and control of the Fujiwara clan of regents. However, it also succeeded in establishing the dominance of the samurai clans and eventually the first s
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Minamoto no Mitsunaka:
Minamoto no Mitsunaka (源満仲) (912-997), son of Minamoto no Tsunemoto, was a samurai and Court official of Japan's Heian period. He held the title, passed down from his father, of Chinjufu-shogun, Commander-in-chief of the Defense of the North. Mitsuna
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History of Japan:
The written history of Japan begins with brief references in the 1st century AD Twenty-Four Histories, a collection of Chinese historical texts. However, archaeological evidence indicates that people were living on the islands of Japan as early as th
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Shogun:
Shōgun is a military rank and historical title in Japan. The Japanese word for "general", it is made up of two kanji words: sho, meaning "commander", "general", or "admiral", and gun meaning troops or warriors. The modern rank is equivalent to a Ge
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Fujiwara clan:
The Fujiwara clan (藤原氏 Fujiwara-shi), descending from the Nakatomi clan, was a powerful family of regents in Japan that monopolized the regent positions, Sesshō and Kampaku. The clan originated when the founder, Nakatomi no Kamatari (614-669), was gi
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Kamakura, Kanagawa:
Kamakura is a city located in Kanagawa, Japan, about 50 km south-south-west of Tokyo. It used to be also called Renpu . Although Kamakura proper is today rather small, it is sometimes considered a former de facto capital of Japan as the seat of the S
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Ashikaga shogunate:
The Ashikaga shogunate was a feudal military dictatorship ruled by the shoguns of the Ashikaga family. This period is also known as the Muromachi period and gets its name from the Muromachi street of Kyoto where the third shogun Yoshimitsu establishe
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Minamoto no Yoritomo:
was the founder and the first shogun of the Kamakura Shogunate of Japan. He ruled from 1192 until 1199.
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Kuge:
The kuge (公家) was a Japanese aristocratic class that dominated the Japanese imperial court in Kyoto until the rise of the Shogunate in the 12th century at which point it was eclipsed by the daimyo. The kuge still provided a weak court around the Empe
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Emperor Shirakawa:
Emperor Shirakawa (白河天皇 Shirakawa-tennō) (July 7, 1053 - July 24, 1129) was the 72nd emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. He reigned from January 18, 1073 to January 5, 1087.
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Emperor Uda:
Emperor Uda was the 59th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. His reign spanned the years from 887 through 897.
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Emperor Saga:
Emperor Saga (嵯峨天皇, Saga-tennō) (786-842) was the 52nd emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. His reign spanned the years from 809 through 823.
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Hikaru Genji:
Hikaru Genji (光源氏, "The brilliant Genji") is the protagonist of The Tale of Genji. In the story, he is described as the most handsome man in the world and he attracts all women. Genji is the second son of Emperor Kiritsubo (桐壺帝), but he is delegated
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