Emperor Antoku


Emperor Antoku was the 81st emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. His reign spanned the years from 1180 through 1185. His death marked the end of the Heian period and the beginning of the Kamakura period.
During this time, the Imperial House of Japan was involved in a bitter struggle between warring clans. Minamoto no Yoritomo with his cousin Minamoto no Yoshinaka, led a force from the Minamoto clan against the Taira, who controlled the emperor. During the climactic sea Battle of Dan-no-ura in April 1185, Antoku's grandmother Taira no Tokiko took him and plunged with him into the water in the Shimonoseki Straits, drowning the child emperor rather than allowing him to be captured by the opposing forces.
This clash of clans led to numerous legends and tales. The story of Emperor Antoku and his mother's family became the subject of the Kamakura period epic poem The Tale of the Heike. Antoku's tomb is said to be located in a number of places around western Japan, including the island of Iōjima, a result of the spreading of legends about the emperor and the battle.

Genealogy

Before his ascension to the Chrysanthemum Throne, his personal name was Tokihito-shinnō. He was also known as Kotohito-shinnō.
His father was Emperor Takakura, and thus a grandson of retired Emperor Go-Shirakawa. His mother, Taira no Tokuko, second daughter of Taira no Kiyomori, was later referred to as Empress Dowager Kenrei.

Events of Antoku's life

Antoku was named crown prince at around one month of age. He ascended the throne at the age of two. Naturally, he held no actual power, but rather his grandfather Taira no Kiyomori ruled in his name, though not officially, as sesshō.
  • 18 May 1180 : In the 12th year of Takakura-tennōs reign, the emperor was forced to abdicate; and the succession was received by his infant son, the grandson of Taira Kiyomori. Shortly thereafter, Emperor Antoku is said to have acceded to the throne.
In the year of his enthronement, the capital was moved to modern-day Kōbe, Hyōgo, but it was soon moved back to Heian-kyō.
  • 8 September 1183 : Go-Toba is proclaimed emperor by the Minamoto; and consequently, there were two proclaimed emperors, one living in Heian-kyō and another in flight towards the south.
In 1183, when Minamoto no Yoshinaka entered the capital, the Taira clan fled with the young emperor and the sacred treasures to Yashima. Being defeated in ensuing battle, they fled westward.
  • 25 April 1185 : The Taira and the Minamoto clashed in the Battle of Dan-no-ura.
The Taira were defeated. Antoku's grandmother, Taira no Tokiko, Kiyomori's widow, drowned herself along with the young emperor. His mother also drowned herself, but apparently, according to The Tale of the Heike, she was pulled out with a rake by her long hair.
According to Yoshitsune's dispatch, the sacred seal was found, but the sacred sword was lost. The sword was one of the three sacred treasures.

''Kugyō''

Kugyō is a collective term for the very few most powerful men attached to the court of the Emperor of Japan in pre-Meiji eras.
In general, this elite group included only three to four men at a time. These were hereditary courtiers whose experience and background would have brought them to the pinnacle of a life's career. During Antoku's reign, this apex of the Daijō-kan included:
  • Sesshō, Konoe Motomichi, 1160–1233.
  • Udaijin
  • Nadaijin, Taira Munemori, 1147–1185.
  • ''Dainagon''

    Memorial site

After his drowning, in order to mourn the body and placate any restless spirits, the Amidaji Goeidō was built. Later, Antoku was enshrined at the Kurume-Suitengū in Kurume, Fukuoka, and he came to be worshipped as Mizu-no-kami, the god of easy delivery at Suitengū everywhere.
With the establishment of Shintō as the state religion of Japan, the Amidaji Temple was abandoned and the Akama Shrine was established in Shimonoseki in Yamaguchi Prefecture to celebrate Antoku.
The Imperial Household Agency designates Amida-ji no misasagi near Akama Shrine in Shimonoseki as Antoku's tomb.

Eras of Antoku's reign

The years of Antoku's reign are more specifically identified by more than one era name or nengō.
  • Jishō
  • Yōwa
  • Juei
  • Genryaku
  • ''Bunji''

    Ancestry

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