was a samurai

Samurai

is the term for the military nobility of pre-industrial Japan. According to translator William Scott Wilson: "In Chinese, the character 侍 was originally a verb meaning to wait upon or accompany a person in the upper ranks of society, and this is also true of the original term in Japanese, saburau...

 commander and member of the powerful Minamoto clan

Minamoto clan

was one of the surnames bestowed by the Emperors of Japan upon members of the imperial family who were demoted into the ranks of the nobility. The practice was most prevalent during the Heian Period , although its last occurrence was during the Sengoku Era. The Taira were another such offshoot of...

. He was the son of Minamoto no Mitsunaka

Minamoto no Mitsunaka

, son of Minamoto no Tsunemoto, was a samurai and Court official of Japan's Heian period. Mitsunaka belonged to the Seiwa Genji branch of the Minamoto clan, which traced its ancestry to Emperor Seiwa. He loyally served several successive Fujiwara regents beginning with Fujiwara no Morotada...

 (912–997). Along with his brother Yorimitsu

Minamoto no Yorimitsu

, also known as Minamoto no Raikō, served the regents of the Fujiwara clan along with his brother Yorinobu, taking the violent measures the Fujiwara were themselves unable to take...

, Yorinobu served the regents of the Fujiwara clan, taking the violent measures the Fujiwara were themselves unable to take. He held the title, passed down from his father, of Chinjufu-shogun, Commander-in-chief of the Defense of the North. He served as Governor of the Japanese Ise

Ise Province

or was a province of Japan including most of modern Mie Prefecture. Ise bordered Iga, Kii, Mino, Ōmi, Owari, Shima, and Yamato Provinces.The ancient provincial capital was at Suzuka...

 and Kai Province

Kai Province

, also known as , is an old province in Japan in the area of Yamanashi Prefecture. It lies in central Honshū, west of Tokyo, in a landlocked mountainous region that includes Mount Fuji along its border with Shizuoka Prefecture....

s, and was the progenitor of the Kawachi Genji

Kawachi Genji

The Kawachi Genji were members of a family line within that of the Seiwa Genji, which in turn was one of several branches of the Minamoto clan, one the most famous noble clans in Japanese history...

 family line and his son, Minamoto no Yorisue, was ancestor of the Takanashi clan

Takanashi clan

The Takanashi clan of Shinano Province were direct descendants of Minamoto no Yorisue, son of Yorinobu. One of the grandsons of Yorisue soon on took the name Takanashi. Takanashi Tadanao was a noted retainer of the Minamoto clan during the Genpei War...

 of Shinano Province

Shinano Province

or is an old province of Japan that is now present day Nagano Prefecture.Shinano bordered on Echigo, Etchū, Hida, Kai, Kōzuke, Mikawa, Mino, Musashi, Suruga, and Tōtōmi Provinces...

.

Yorinobu is particularly known for being a favorite of the Regent

Sessho and Kampaku

In Japan, was a title given to a regent who was named to assist either a child emperor before his coming of age, or an empress. The was theoretically a sort of chief advisor for the emperor, but was the title of both first secretary and regent who assists an adult emperor. During the Heian era,...

 Fujiwara no Michinaga

Fujiwara no Michinaga

represents the highpoint of the Fujiwara regents' control over the government of Japan.-Early life:He was the fourth or fifth son of Fujiwara no Kaneie by his wife Tokihime, daughter of Fujiwara no Nakamasa...

, and for suppressing a revolt by Taira no Tadatsune

Taira no Tadatsune

was a chieftain of the Taira clan in the early 11th century, and predecessor of the Chiba clan. He was also, for a time, Governor of Shimōsa and Vice-Governor of Kazusa Provinces, and manager of the Grand Shrine of Ise in fact if not in name....

, vice-governor of Kazusa Province

Kazusa Province

was a province of Japan in the area of modern Chiba Prefecture. It lies on in the middle of the Bōsō Peninsula , whose name takes its first kanji from the name of Awa Province and its second from Kazusa and Shimōsa Provinces. Its abbreviated form name was or .Kazusa is classified as one of the...

. He had originally refused, for personal reasons, but eventually assented to taking on the charge of defeating Tadatsune, after being made Governor of Kai. While making preparations to attack, Tadatsune surrendered, offering no resistance in 1031. In putting an end to this rebellion, Yorinobu not only furthered the Court's goals and his own reputation, but he created an opening for Minamoto influence in the eastern portions of the country.