Fujiwara no Kamatari

Fujiwara no Kamatari
Fujiwara no Kamatari
藤原鎌足
	An illustration of Fujiwara no Kamatari by Kikuchi Yōsai
Born	Nakatomi no Kamatari; 614
Died	November 14, 669
Known for	Founder of the Fujiwara clan, launched the Taika Reform of 645 with Naka no Ōe (later Emperor Tenji)
Notable work	Poems in the Man'yōshū and Kakyō Hyōshiki
Spouse(s)
Children	, Fujiwara no Fuhito, , ,
Parent(s)	,

Fujiwara no Kamatari (藤原鎌足, 614 – November 14, 669) was a Japanese statesman, courtier and politician during the Asuka period (538–710).^[1] He is the founder of the Fujiwara clan, the most powerful aristocratic family in Japan during Nara and Heian periods.^[2] He, along with the Mononobe clan, was a supporter of Shinto and fought the introduction of Buddhism to Japan. The Soga clan, defenders of Buddhism in the Asuka period, defeated Kamatari and the Mononobe clan and Buddhism became the dominant religion of the imperial court. Kamatari, along with Prince Naka no Ōe, later Emperor Tenji (626–672), launched the Taika Reform of 645, which centralized and strengthened the central government. Just before his death he received the surname Fujiwara and the rank from Emperor Tenji, thus establishing the Fujiwara clan.^[3]^[4]

Biography[]

Kamatari was born to the Nakatomi clan, an aristocratic kin group^[5] descending from Ame-no-Koyane.^[6] He was the son of , and named Nakatomi no Kamatari (中臣鎌足) at birth.^[3] His early life and exploits are described in the 8th century clan history Tōshi Kaden (藤氏家伝).^[7]

He was a friend and supporter of the Prince Naka no Ōe, later Emperor Tenji. Kamatari was the head of the Jingi no Haku, or Shinto ritualists; as such, he was one of the chief opponents of the increasing power and prevalence of Buddhism in the court, and in the nation. As a result, in 645, Prince Naka no Ōe and Kamatari made a coup d'état in the court. They slew Soga no Iruka who had a strong influence over Empress Kōgyoku; thereafter, Iruka's father, Soga no Emishi, committed suicide.

Empress Kōgyoku was forced to abdicate in favor of her younger brother, who became Emperor Kōtoku; Kōtoku then appointed Kamatari naidaijin (内大臣, Inner Minister).

Kamatari was a leader in the development of what became known as the Taika Reforms, a major set of reforms based on Chinese models and aimed at strengthening Imperial power.^[3] He acted as one of the principal editors responsible for the development of the Japanese legal code known as , sometimes referred to as the Rules and Regulations of the Three Generations.^[8]

During his life Kamatari continued to support Prince Naka no Ōe, who became Emperor Tenji in 661. Tenji granted him the highest rank (or Daishokukan) (大織冠) and a new clan name, Fujiwara (藤原), as honors.^[3]

Legacy[]

Kamatari's son was Fujiwara no Fuhito. Kamatari's nephew, became head of Ise Shrine, and passed down the Nakatomi name.

In the 13th century, the main line of the Fujiwara family split into five houses: Konoe, Takatsukasa, Kujō, Nijō and Ichijō. These five families in turn provided regents for the Emperors, and were thus known as the Five Regent Houses. The Tachibana clan (samurai) also claimed descent from the Fujiwara. Emperor Montoku of the Taira clan was descended through his mother to the Fujiwara.

Until the marriage of the Crown Prince Hirohito (posthumously Emperor Shōwa) to Princess Kuni Nagako (posthumously Empress Kōjun) in January 1924, the principal consorts of emperors and crown princes had always been recruited from one of the Sekke Fujiwara. Imperial princesses were often married to Fujiwara lords - throughout a millennium at least. As recently as Emperor Shōwa's third daughter, the late former Princess Takanomiya (Kazoku), and Prince Mikasa's elder daughter, the former Princess Yasuko, married into Takatsukasa and Konoe families, respectively. Empress Shōken was a descendant of the Fujiwara clan and through Hosokawa Gracia of the Minamoto clan. Likewise a daughter of the last Tokugawa Shōgun married a second cousin of Emperor Shōwa.

Fujiwara no Kamatari with his sons Joē and Fujiwara no Fuhito, who is wearing court robes. (Nara National Museum)

Among Kamatari's descendants are Fumimaro Konoe^{[citation needed]} the 34th/38th/39th Prime Minister of Japan and Konoe's grandson Morihiro Hosokawa^{[citation needed]} the 79th Prime Minister of Japan (who is also a descendant of the Hosokawa clan via the Ashikaga clan of the Minamoto clan).

Family[]

Father: Nakatomi no Mikeko (中臣御食子)
Mother: Ōtomo no Chisen-no-iratsume (大伴智仙娘), daughter of Otomo no Kuiko (大伴囓子). Also known as "Ōtomo-bunin" (大伴夫人).
- Main wife: Kagami no Ōkimi (鏡王女, ?-683)
- Wife: Kurumamochi no Yoshiko-no-iratsume (車持与志古娘), daughter of Kurumamochi no Kuniko (車持国子).
  - 1st son: (定恵, 643–666), buddhist monk who traveled to China.
  - 2nd son: Fujiwara no Fuhito (藤原不比等, 659–720)
- Children with unknown mother:
  - Daughter: Fujiwara no Hikami-no-iratsume (藤原氷上娘, ?–682), Bunin of Emperor Tenmu, mother of Princess Tajima.
  - Daughter: Fujiwara no Ioe-no-iratsume (藤原五百重娘), Bunin of Emperor Tenmu, wife of Fujiwara no Fuhito and mother of Prince Niitabe and Fujiwara no Maro.
  - Daughter: Fujiwara no Mimimotoji (藤原耳面刀自), Bunin of Emperor Kōbun, mother of Princess Ichishi-hime (壱志姫王).
  - Daughter: Fujiwara no Tome/Tone-no-iratsume (藤原斗売娘), wife of Nakatomi no Omimaro (中臣意美麻呂), mother of Nakatomi no Azumahito (中臣東人).

Popular culture[]

Portrayed by Noh Seung-jin in the 2012–2013 KBS1 TV series Dream of the Emperor.

References[]

^ Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Fujiwara no Tadahira" in Japan Encyclopedia, p. 203, p. 203, at Google Books; Brinkley, Frank et al. (1915). A History of the Japanese People from the Earliest Times to the End of the Meiji Era, p. 203., p. 203, at Google Books
^ World Encyclopedia. 24, Fujiwara. Japan: Heibonsha. 2007. ISBN 9784582034004.
^ Jump up to: ^a ^b ^c ^d "Fujiwara no Kamatari". Encyclopedia of Japan. Tokyo: Shogakukan. 2012. OCLC 56431036. Archived from the original on 2007-08-25. Retrieved 2012-10-27.
^ "藤原鎌足" [Fujiwara no Kamatari]. Dijitaru Daijisen (in Japanese). Tokyo: Shogakukan. 2012. OCLC 56431036. Archived from the original on 2007-08-25. Retrieved 2012-10-27.
^ Papinot, Edmond (2003). Dictionnaire d’histoire et de géographie du Japon, "Nakatomi," Nobiliare du Japon. Kelly & Walsh. p. 39. OCLC 465662682.
^ Ōga, Tetsuo (2001). Encyclopedia Nipponica. Shōgakkan. ISBN 4-09-526125-0. OCLC 1072527152.
^ Bauer, Mikael (2020). The History of the Fujiwara House. Kent, UK: Renaissance Books. pp. 39–40. ISBN 1912961180.
^ Brinkley, p. 177., p. 177, at Google Books

Sources[]

Bauer, Mikael. The History of the Fujiwara House. Kent, UK: Renaissance Books, 2020. ISBN 1912961180.
Brinkley, Frank and Dairoku Kikuchi. (1915). A History of the Japanese People from the Earliest Times to the End of the Meiji Era. New York: Encyclopædia Britannica. OCLC 413099
Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric and Käthe Roth. (2005). Japan encyclopedia. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. ISBN 978-0-674-01753-5; OCLC 58053128
Titsingh, Isaac. (1834). Nihon Ōdai Ichiran; ou, Annales des empereurs du Japon. Paris: Royal Asiatic Society, Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and Ireland. OCLC 5850691

External links[]

[nussbaum203-1] Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Fujiwara no Tadahira" in Japan Encyclopedia, p. 203, p. 203, at Google Books; Brinkley, Frank et al. (1915). A History of the Japanese People from the Earliest Times to the End of the Meiji Era, p. 203., p. 203, at Google Books

[2] World Encyclopedia. 24, Fujiwara. Japan: Heibonsha. 2007. ISBN 9784582034004.

[e-3] Jump up to: ^a ^b ^c ^d "Fujiwara no Kamatari". Encyclopedia of Japan. Tokyo: Shogakukan. 2012. OCLC 56431036. Archived from the original on 2007-08-25. Retrieved 2012-10-27.

[d-4] "藤原鎌足" [Fujiwara no Kamatari]. Dijitaru Daijisen (in Japanese). Tokyo: Shogakukan. 2012. OCLC 56431036. Archived from the original on 2007-08-25. Retrieved 2012-10-27.

[5] Papinot, Edmond (2003). Dictionnaire d’histoire et de géographie du Japon, "Nakatomi," Nobiliare du Japon. Kelly & Walsh. p. 39. OCLC 465662682.

[6] Ōga, Tetsuo (2001). Encyclopedia Nipponica. Shōgakkan. ISBN 4-09-526125-0. OCLC 1072527152.

[7] Bauer, Mikael (2020). The History of the Fujiwara House. Kent, UK: Renaissance Books. pp. 39–40. ISBN 1912961180.

[8] Brinkley, p. 177., p. 177, at Google Books

[Brinkley-9] Jump up to: ^a ^b ^c Brinkley, Frank and Dairoku Kikuchi. (1915). A History of the Japanese People from the Earliest Times to the End of the Meiji Era. New York: Encyclopædia Britannica. OCLC 413099

[top-10] Jump up to: ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e Kanai, Madoka; Nitta, Hideharu; Yamagiwa, Joseph Koshimi (1966). A topical history of Japan. Sub-Committee on Far Eastern Language Instruction of the Committee on Institutional Cooperation. p. 6.

[Cam-11] Jump up to: ^a ^b Brown, Delmer M. (1988). The Cambridge History of Japan: Volume 1. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9780521223522.

[Hanawa-12] Jump up to: ^a ^b 平城宮兵部省跡. 奈良文化財研究所. 2005. p. 168.

[13] Yoshikawa, Toshiko (2006). 仲麻呂政権と藤原永手・八束（真楯）・千尋（御楯）. Hanawa Shobō (塙書房). ISBN 978-4-8273-1201-0.

[14] Tyler, Royall (1993). The Book of the Great Practice: The Life of the Mt. Fuji Ascetic Kakugyō Tōbutsu Kū (PDF). Asian Folklore Studies. p. 324.

[15] Yoneda, Yūsuke (2002). 藤原摂関家の誕生. 吉川弘文館. p. 139.

[16] Nakagawa, Osamu (1991). "藤原良継の変" [The Rise of Fujiwara no Yoshitsugu]. 奈良朝政治史の研究 [Political History of the Nara Period] (in Japanese). Takashina Shoten (高科書店).

[17] Kimoto, Yoshinobu (1998). 藤原式家官人の考察. 高科書店. p. 47. ISBN 978-4-87294-923-0.

[18] Takemitsu, Makoto (2013). 日本史の影の主役藤原氏の正体: 鎌足から続く1400年の歴史. PHP研究所. p. 103. ISBN 978-4569761046.

[19] ttp://www.asahi-net.or.jp/~sg2h-ymst/hamanari.html

[nussbaum-20] Jump up to: ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). In Japan Encyclopedia at Google Books; Brinkley, Frank et al. (1915).

[21] Kimoto, Yoshinobu (2004). "『牛屋大臣』藤原是公について" [On "Ushiya-Daijin" Fujiwara no Korekimi]. 奈良時代の藤原氏と諸氏族 [The Fujiwara Clan and Other Clans of the Nara Period] (in Japanese). Ohfu.

[22] Kurihara, Hiromu. 藤原内麿家族について [The Family of Fujiwara no Uchimaro]. Japanese History (日本歴史) (in Japanese) (511).

[Kurihara-23] Kurihara, Hiromu (2008). "藤原冬嗣家族について" [Fujiwara no Fuyutsugu's Family]. 平安前期の家族と親族 [Family and Relatives During the Early Heian Period] (in Japanese). Azekura Shobo (校倉書房). ISBN 978-4-7517-3940-2.

[Yoshikawa-24] Jump up to: ^a ^b 公卿補任 [Kugyō Bunin] (in Japanese). Yoshikawa Kōbunkan (吉川弘文館). 1982.

[Kitayama-25] Kitayama, Shigeo (1973). 日本の歴史4 平安京 [History of Japan IV: Heian-kyō] (in Japanese). Chūkō Bunko (中公文庫). p. 242.

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[Yamamoto-27] Jump up to: ^a ^b Nobuyoshi, Yamamoto (2003). 摂関政治史論考 (in Japanese). Yoshikawa Kōbunkan (吉川弘文館). ISBN 978-4-642-02394-8.

[Sasayama-28] Haruo, Sasayama (2003). "藤原兼通の政権獲得過程". 日本律令制の展開 (in Japanese). Yoshikawa Kōbunkan (吉川弘文館). ISBN 978-4-642-02393-1.

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[32] Varley, Paul (2000). Japanese Culture. Fourth Edition. Honolulu, HI: University of Hawai'i Press.

[33] Uejima, Susumu (2010). "日本中世社会の形成と王権". 中世庄園制の形成過程―〈立庄〉再考 (in Japanese). The University of Nagoya Press. ISBN 978-4-8158-0635-4.

[Owada-34] Owada, Tetsuo (2003). 日本史諸家系図人名辞典 (in Japanese). Kodansha. ISBN 978-4062115780.

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[Sansom-38] Jump up to: ^a ^b Sansom, George (1958). A history of Japan to 1334. Stanford University Press. ISBN 0804705232.

[39] "The World Turned Upside Down" translated by Kathe Roth, p. 27

[Yamada-40] Yamada, Akiko (2010). 中世前期女性院宮の研究 (in Japanese). ISBN 978-4784214969.

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