Tokusō was the title held by the head of the mainline 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...

, who monopolized the position of shikken

Shikken

The was the regent for the shogun in the Kamakura shogunate in Japan. The post was monopolized by the Hōjō clan, and this system only existed once in Japanese history, between 1203 and 1333...

(regents) of the Kamakura shogunate

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...

 in Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

.

The name tokusō is said to have come from Tokushū (徳崇), the Buddhist name of Hōjō Yoshitoki

Hojo Yoshitoki

was the second Hōjō shikken of the Kamakura shogunate and head of the Hōjō clan. He was the eldest son of Hōjō Tokimasa and his wife Hōjō no Maki...

, but 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 :...

 is usually regarded as the first tokusō. There were eight tokusō:

1. 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 :...
   
   
2. Hōjō Yoshitoki
   Hojo Yoshitoki
   was the second Hōjō shikken of the Kamakura shogunate and head of the Hōjō clan. He was the eldest son of Hōjō Tokimasa and his wife Hōjō no Maki...
   
   
3. Hōjō Yasutoki
   Hojo Yasutoki
   Hōjō Yasutoki was the third shikken of the Kamakura shogunate in Japan. He strengthened the political system of the Hōjō regency.He was the eldest son of second shikken Yoshitoki...
   
   
4. Hōjō Tsunetoki
   Hojo Tsunetoki
   Hōjō Tsunetoki was the fourth Shikken of the Kamakura shogunate. He was son of Hōjō Tokiuji and of a former wife of Adachi Kagemori, elder brother of Hōjō Tokiyori and grandson of Hōjō Yasutoki. He ruled from 1242 to 1246 and founded Kōmyō-ji in Zaimokuza. He is buried within the temple.-...
   
   
5. Hōjō Tokiyori
   Hojo Tokiyori
   Hōjō Tokiyori was the fifth shikken of the Kamakura shogunate in Japan. He was born to Hōjō Tokiuji and a daughter of Adachi Kagemori....
   
   
6. Hōjō Tokimune
   Hojo Tokimune
   of the Hōjō clan was the eighth shikken of the Kamakura shogunate , known for leading the Japanese forces against the invasion of the Mongols and for spreading Zen Buddhism and by extension Bushido among the warrior class.- Life :Born as the eldest son of the regent and Tokuso Tokiyori of the...
   
   
7. Hōjō Sadatoki
   Hojo Sadatoki
   was the ninth shikken of the Kamakura shogunate , and Tokuso from his appointment as regent until his death....
   
   
8. Hōjō Takatoki
   Hojo Takatoki
   Hōjō Takatoki was the last Tokuso and ruling Shikken of Japan's Kamakura shogunate; the latter ones were his puppets, a member of the Hōjō clan, he was the son of Hōjō Sadatoki, and was preceded as shikken by Hōjō Morotoki.Takatoki became regent at the age of eight, and thus actual power was...
   
   

The political structure of the tokusō dictatorship was set up by Yasutoki and was consolidated by his grandson Tokiyori. The tokusō line held overwhelming power over the gokenin

Gokenin

A was initially a vassal of the shogunate of the Kamakura and the Muromachi periods. In exchange for protection and the right to become shugo or jitō , in times of peace a gokenin had the duty to protect the imperial court and Kamakura, in case of war had to fight with his forces under the...

and the cadet lines of the Hōjō clan. Tokiyori often worked out policies at private meetings (寄合 yoriai) at his residence instead of discussing them at the Hyōjō (評定), the council of the shogunate. This made the tokusō's private retainers (御内人 miuchibito) stronger. In 1256 Tokiyori separated the positions of shikken and tokusō for the first time. Because of an illness, he installed his infant son Tokimune as the tokusō while Nagatoki

Hojo Nagatoki

Hōjō Nagatoki 北条 長時 was the sixth Shikken of the Kamakura Bakufu and the 4th Chief of the Rokuhara Tandai North Branch Kitakata....

, a collateral relative, was appointed shikken to assist Tokimune.