Minamoto no Ichiman
Encyclopedia
was the eldest son of second Kamakura shogun
Minamoto no Yoriie
. His mother Wakasa no Tsubone was Hiki Yoshikazu
's daughter, and the child was brought up by the Hiki clan. The child died at six, victim of the struggle for power that ensued after Minamoto no Yoritomo
's sudden death.
When in 1203 Yoriie became seriously ill, the Hōjō clan
supported his brother Senman (future third shogun Minamoto no Sanetomo
) as a future successor, while the Hiki supported son Ichiman. To avoid power falling into the hands of the Hiki, the Hōjō decided to get rid of the Hiki and their protege.
On a pretext, Hōjō Tokimasa
invited Hiki Yoshikazu to his home and assassinated him. A battle between the clans ensued, the Hiki were defeated by a coalition of the Hōjō, Wada, Miura
and Hatakeyama clan
s and exterminated. Six-year-old Ichiman also died during the fight. The Hiki residence was destroyed by fire and in its place in the Hikigayatsu valley now lies the Buddhist temple of Myōhon-ji. In its cemetery still stands Ichiman's grave, next to the Hiki clan's cenotaph
.
Ichiman's younger brother Kugyō
was forced to became a Buddhist priest and in 1219 at age 20 assassinated his uncle Sanetomo. Kugyō was himself immediately executed for his crime, thus bringing the Seiwa Genji
dynasty to a sudden end.
Kamakura shogunate
The Kamakura shogunate was a military dictatorship in Japan headed by the shoguns from 1185 to 1333. It was based in Kamakura. The Kamakura period draws its name from the capital of the shogunate...
Minamoto no Yoriie
Minamoto no Yoriie
was the second shogun of Japan's Kamakura shogunate, and the first son of first shogun Yoritomo.- Life :Born from Tokimasa's daughter Hōjō Masako at Hiki Yoshikazu's residence in Kamakura, Yoriie had as wet nurses the wives of powerful men like Hiki himself and Kajiwara Kagetoki, and Hiki's...
. His mother Wakasa no Tsubone was Hiki Yoshikazu
Hiki Yoshikazu
was a Japanese warrior-noble of the Kamakura period related to the ruling Minamoto clan through his daughter's marriage. He, and much of the Hiki clan, were killed for allegedly conspiring to have one of the Minamoto heirs killed, in order to gain power himself....
's daughter, and the child was brought up by the Hiki clan. The child died at six, victim of the struggle for power that ensued after Minamoto no Yoritomo
Minamoto no Yoritomo
was the founder and the first shogun of the Kamakura Shogunate of Japan. He ruled from 1192 until 1199.-Early life and exile :Yoritomo was the third son of Minamoto no Yoshitomo, heir of the Minamoto clan, and his official wife, a daughter of Fujiwara no Suenori, who was a member of the...
's sudden death.
When in 1203 Yoriie became seriously ill, the Hōjō clan
Hojo clan
See the late Hōjō clan for the Hōjō clan of the Sengoku Period.The in the history of Japan was a family who controlled the hereditary title of shikken of the Kamakura Shogunate. In practice, the family had actual governmental power, many times dictatorial, rather than Kamakura shoguns, or the...
supported his brother Senman (future third shogun Minamoto no Sanetomo
Minamoto no Sanetomo
Minamoto no Sanetomo was the third shogun of the Kamakura shogunate Sanetomo was the second son of the founder of the Kamakura shogunate Minamoto no Yoritomo, his mother was Hōjō Masako, and his older brother was the second Kamakura shogun Minamoto no Yoriie.His childhood name was...
) as a future successor, while the Hiki supported son Ichiman. To avoid power falling into the hands of the Hiki, the Hōjō decided to get rid of the Hiki and their protege.
On a pretext, Hōjō Tokimasa
Hojo Tokimasa
was the first Hōjō shikken of the Kamakura bakufu and head of the Hōjō clan. He was shikken from the death of Minamoto no Yoritomo in 1199 until his abdication in 1205.- Background: The Hōjō Clan :...
invited Hiki Yoshikazu to his home and assassinated him. A battle between the clans ensued, the Hiki were defeated by a coalition of the Hōjō, Wada, Miura
Miura clan
The ' was one of the branch families descended from the Taira clan. They held large fiefs, and great political influence. They were one of the primary opponents of the Hōjō family of regents, in the mid-13th century, and again at the beginning of the 16th...
and Hatakeyama clan
Hatakeyama clan
The ' was a Japanese samurai clan. Originally a branch of the Taira clan and descended from Taira no Takamochi, they fell victim of political intrigue in 1205, when Hatakeyama Shigeyasu, first, and his father Shigetada later were killed in battle by Hōjō forces in Kamakura...
s and exterminated. Six-year-old Ichiman also died during the fight. The Hiki residence was destroyed by fire and in its place in the Hikigayatsu valley now lies the Buddhist temple of Myōhon-ji. In its cemetery still stands Ichiman's grave, next to the Hiki clan's cenotaph
Cenotaph
A cenotaph is an "empty tomb" or a monument erected in honour of a person or group of people whose remains are elsewhere. It can also be the initial tomb for a person who has since been interred elsewhere. The word derives from the Greek κενοτάφιον = kenotaphion...
.
Ichiman's younger brother Kugyō
Kugyo (Minamoto no Yoshinari)
, also known as or , was the second son of the second Kamakura shogun of Japan, Minamoto no Yoriie. At the age of six, after his father was killed in Shuzenji in Izu, he became his uncle Sanetomo's adopted son and, thanks to his grandmother Hōjō Masako's intercession, a disciple of Songyō,...
was forced to became a Buddhist priest and in 1219 at age 20 assassinated his uncle Sanetomo. Kugyō was himself immediately executed for his crime, thus bringing the Seiwa Genji
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 founder of the Kamakura shogunate, were descended...
dynasty to a sudden end.