Emperor Kanmu
Emperor Kanmu, or Kammu, was the 50th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. Kammu reigned from 781 to 806, and it was during his reign that the scope of the emperor's powers reached its peak. His reign saw the transition from the Nara period to the Heian period.
Traditional narrative
Kammu's personal name was Yamabe. He was the eldest son of Prince Shirakabe, and was born prior to Shirakabe's ascension to the throne. According to the Shoku Nihongi, Yamabe's mother, Yamato no Niigasa, was a 10th generation descendant of Muryeong of Baekje.After his father became emperor at the age of 61, Kammu's half-brother, Prince Osabe was appointed to the rank of crown prince. His mother was Princess Inoe, a daughter of Emperor Shōmu; but instead of Osabe, it was Kammu who was later named to succeed their father. After Inoe and Prince Osabe were confined and then died in 775, Osabe's sister – Kammu's half-sister Princess Sakahito – became Kammu's wife. Later, when he ascended to the throne in 781, Kammu appointed his young brother, Prince Sawara, whose mother was Takano no Niigasa, as crown prince. Hikami no Kawatsugu, a son of Emperor Tenmu's grandson Prince Shioyaki and Shōmu's daughter Fuwa, attempted to carry out a coup d'état in 782, but it failed and Kawatsugu and his mother were sent into exile. In 785 Sawara was expelled and died in exile.
The Nara period saw the appointment of the first shōgun, Ōtomo no Otomaro by Emperor Kammu in 794 CE. The shōgun in this time was not the type of de facto military dictator of Japan as in later history but was appointed to pacify the northern borderlands. The full title "Sei-i Taishōgun" means "Barbarian-subduing Great General". Emperor Kammu granted the second title of shōgun to Sakanoue no Tamuramaro for subduing the Emishi in northern Honshu.
Kammu had 16 empresses and consorts, and 32 imperial sons and daughters. Among them, three sons would eventually ascend to the imperial throne: Emperor Heizei, Emperor Saga and Emperor Junna. Some of his descendants took the Taira hereditary clan title, and in later generations became prominent warriors. Examples include Taira no Masakado, Taira no Kiyomori, and the Hōjō clan. The waka poet Ariwara no Narihira was one of his grandsons.
Kammu is traditionally venerated at his tomb; the Imperial Household Agency designates, in Fushimi-ku, Kyoto, as the location of Kammu's mausoleum.
Events of Kammu's life
Kammu was an active emperor who attempted to consolidate government hierarchies and functions. Kammu appointed Sakanoue no Tamuramaro to lead a military expedition against the Emishi.737: Kammu was born.773: Received the title of crown prince.April 30, 781: In the 11th year of Kōnin's reign, he abdicated; and the succession was received by his son Kammu. Shortly thereafter, Emperor Kammu is said to have ascended to the throne. During his reign, the capital of Japan was moved from Nara to Nagaoka-kyō in 784. Shortly thereafter, the capital would be moved again in 794.July 28, 782 : The sadaijin Fujiwara no Uona was involved in an incident that resulted in his removal from office and exile to Kyushi. Claiming illness, Uona was permitted to return to the capital where he died; posthumously, the order of banishment was burned and his office restored. In the same general time frame, Fujiwara no Tamaro was named Udaijin. During these days in which the offices of sadaijin and udaijin were vacant, the major counselors and the emperor assumed responsibilities and powers which would have been otherwise delegated.783 : The udaijin Tamaro died at the age of 62 years.783 : Fujiwara no Korekimi became the new udaijin to replace the late Fujiwara no Tamaro.793 : Under the leadership of Dengyō, construction began on the Enryaku Temple.794: The capital was relocated again, this time to Heian-kyō, where the palace was named.November 17, 794 : The emperor traveled by carriage from Nara to the new capital of Heian-kyō in a grand procession. This marks the beginning of the Heian period.794 appointed Ōtomo no Otomaro as the first Shōgun "Sei-i Taishōgun—"Barbarian-subduing Great General", together with Sakanoue no Tamuramaro subdues the Emishi in Northern Honshu.806: Kammu died at the age of 70. Kammu's reign lasted for 25 years.Eras of Kammu's reign
The years of Kammu's reign are more specifically identified by more than one era name.Ten'ō- ''Enryaku''
Politics
Domestic relations
Earlier Imperial sponsorship of Buddhism, beginning with Prince Shōtoku, had led to a general politicization of the clergy, along with an increase in intrigue and corruption. In 784 Kammu shifted his capital from Nara to Nagaoka-kyō in a move that was said to be designed to encumber the powerful Nara Buddhist establishments out of state politics—while the capital moved, the major Buddhist temples, and their officials, stayed put. Indeed, there was a steady stream of edicts issued from 771 right through the period of Kūkai's studies which, for instance, sought to limit the number of Buddhist priests, and the building of temples. However, the move was to prove disastrous and was followed by a series of natural disasters including the flooding of half the city. In 785 the principal architect of the new capital, and royal favourite, Fujiwara no Tanetsugu, was assassinated.Meanwhile, Kammu's armies were pushing back the boundaries of his empire. This led to an uprising, and in 789 a substantial defeat for Kammu's troops. Also in 789 there was a severe drought and famine—the streets of the capital were clogged with the sick, and people avoiding being drafted into the military, or into forced labour. Many disguised themselves as Buddhist priests for the same reason. Consequently, in 792 Kammu abolished national conscription, replacing it with a system wherein each province formed a militia from the local gentry, however this system vitiated the authority of the Emperor and led to proliferation of private armies. Then in 794 Kammu suddenly shifted the capital again, this time to Heian-kyō, which is modern day Kyoto. The new capital was started early the previous year, but the change was abrupt and led to even more confusion amongst the populace. Kammu's rule witnessed the frontiers of Japan expanding into Izawa and Shiba, under the command of a preeminent commander, Tamura Maro.
Politically Kammu shored up his rule by changing the syllabus of the university. Confucian ideology still provided the raison d'être for the Imperial government. In 784 Kammu authorised the teaching of a new course based on the Spring and Autumn Annals based on two newly imported commentaries: Kung-yang and Ku-liang. These commentaries used political rhetoric to promote a state in which the Emperor, as "Son of Heaven," should extend his sphere of influence to barbarous lands, thereby gladdening the people. In 798 the two commentaries became required reading at the government university.
Emperor Kanmu was the first person to conceive the Shinsen Shōjiroku, a Japanese genealogical record in 799 to properly track the clans' then ambiguous lineages, but it was not able to be completed before his death in 806. The project was later carried over by his sons and was completed during Emperor Saga's reign in 814.
Foreign relations
China
Kammu also sponsored the travels of the monks Saichō and Kūkai to China, from where they returned to found the Japanese branches of, respectively, Tendai and Shingon Buddhism.Korea
He was specifically interested in Paekche as his mother was of Paekche descent.Kammu's emphasis towards his foreign heritage became prominent as his mother was not of the Imperial line, but was in fact a royal consort to Emperor Kōnin on top of coming from a clan of Korean origin, which could have negatively affected his ascension as emperor and be deemed illegitimate by some. To circumvent this, Kammu focused heavily on the mythological aspects of his mother's ancestor, Muryeong of Baekje and Muryeong's own ancestor, Dongmyeong of Goguryeo, emphasizing Chumong's heritage as a grandchild of the god Habaek and Kammu's own lineage that continued it claiming that he was part of the "heavenly lineage". He mentions this in Shoku Nihongi when honoring his late mother.
In 790, Emperor Kanmu issued a rescript that treated the Kudara no Konikishi clan as "relatives by marriage".
It was related to the fact that the emperor's mother belonged to the Paekche-originated Yamato no Fuhito clan, who then claimed its roots in the Paekche royal family. In addition, according to the Shoku Nihongi, Takano no Niigasa was a 10th-generation descendant of King Muryeong of Baekje through his son Prince Junda, making Emperor Kammu an 11th-generation descendant of Muryeong through maternal lineage. The Kudara no Konikishi clan fell under the influence of the southern branch of the Fujiwara clan after Kudara no Konikishi Myōshin had married Fujiwara no Tsugutada around 754. Emperor Kanmu's rescript of 790 aimed to support Myōshin's appointment as lady-in-waiting, the highest post among court ladies, due to her similar background with Kammu.
A 14th century book called "Jinnō Shōtōki" by Kitabatake Chikafusa states that a record that claimed of Japan's origin with Korea was lost during Kammu's time, which indicates that such intentions were highly regarded during Emperor Kanmu's reign up until the book's disappearance.
It can be deduced that Kammu advocated his Korean ancestry for both political and social reasons at the time, which was later officially recognized by the government coming from the Emperor of Japan.
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 Kammu's reign, this apex of the Daijō-kan included:Sadaijin, Fujiwara no Uona, 781–82.Sadaijin, Fujiwara no Tamaro, 783.Udaijin, Ōnakatomi no Kiyomaro, 771–81Udaijin, Fujiwara no Tamaro, 782–83.Udaijin, Fujiwara no Korekimi, 783–89.Udaijin, Fujiwara no Tsuginawa, 790–96.Udaijin, Miwa ōkimi or Miwa oh, 798–806Udaijin, Fujiwara no Uchimaro 756–812, 806–12.Dainagon
When the daughter of a chūnagon became the favored consort of the Crown Prince Ate, her father's power and position in court was affected. Kammu disapproved of Fujiwara no Kusuko, daughter of Fujiwara no Tanetsugu; and Kammu had her removed from his son's household.Chūnagon, Fujiwara no Tadanushi
Consorts and children
Emperor Kammu's Imperial family included 36 children.- Empress : Fujiwara no Otomuro, Fujiwara no Yoshitsugu’s daughter
- *First Son: Imperial Prince Ate later Emperor Heizei
- *Fourth Son: Imperial Prince Kamino later Emperor Saga
- *Imperial Princess Koshi, married to Emperor Junna
- Madame ': Fujiwara no Tabiko, Fujiwara no Momokawa’s daughter
- *Fifth Son: Imperial Prince Ōtomo later Emperor Junna
- Consort : Imperial Princess Sakahito, Emperor Kōnin’s daughter
- *First Daughter: Imperial Princess Asahara, 12th Saiō in Ise Grand Shrine, and married to Emperor Heizei
- Madame : Fujiwara no Yoshiko, Fujiwara no Korekimi’s daughter
- *Second Son: Imperial Prince Iyo
- Madame ' : Tajihi no Mamune, Tajihi no Nagano's daughter
- *Sixth Son: Imperial Prince Kazurahara
- *Ninth Son: Imperial Prince Sami
- *Tenth Son: Imperial Prince Kaya
- *Imperial Prince Ōno
- *Imperial Princess Inaba
- *Imperial Princess Anou
- Madame ': Fujiwara no Oguso, Fujiwara no Washitori's daughter
- *Third Son: Imperial Prince Manta
- Court Lady ' : Ki no Otoio, Ki no Kotsuo's daughter
- Court Lady ' : Kudarao no Kyōhō, Kudara no Shuntetsu's daughter
- Court Lady ' : Tachibana no Miiko, daughter of Tachibana no Irii
- *Imperial Princess Sugawara
- *Sixteenth Daughter: Imperial Princess Kara
- Court Lady ' : Fujiwara no Nakako, Fujiwara no Ieyori's daughter
- Court Lady : Tachibana no Tsuneko, Tachibana no Shimadamaro's daughter
- *Ninth Daughter: Imperial Princess Ōyake, married to Emperor Heizei
- Court Lady ': Fujiwara no Shōshi, Fujiwara no Kiyonari's daughter
- Court Lady ': Sakanoue no Matako, Sakanoue no Karitamaro's daughter
- *Twelfth Daughter: Imperial Princess Takatsu, married to Emperor Saga
- Court Lady ': Sakanoue no Haruko, Sakanoue no Tamuramaro's daughter
- *Twelfth Son: Imperial Prince Fujii
- *Imperial Princess Kasuga
- Court Lady ': Fujiwara no Kawako, Fujiwara no Ōtsugu's daughter
- *Thirteenth Son: Imperial Prince Nakano
- *Thirteenth Princess: Imperial Princess Ate
- *Imperial Princess Ōi
- *Imperial Princess Ki
- *Imperial Princess Yoshihara
- Court Lady ': Fujiwara no Azumako, Fujiwara no Tanetsugu's daughter
- *Imperial Princess Kannabi, Married to Emperor Heizei
- Court Lady ': Fujiwara no Heishi/Nanshi, Fujiwara no Takatoshi's daughter
- *Eighth Daughter: Imperial Princess Ito, married to Prince Abo
- Court Lady ': Ki no Wakako, Ki no Funamori's daughter
- *Seventh Son: Imperial Prince Asuka
- Court Lady ': Fujiwara no Kamiko, Fujiwara no Oguromaro's daughter
- *Imperial Princess Shigeno
- Court Lady ': Tachibana no Tamurako, Tachibana no Irii's daughter
- *Imperial Princess Ikenoe
- Court Lady '': Kawakami no Manu, Nishikibe no Haruhito's daughter
- *Imperial Prince Sakamoto
- Court Lady : Kudarao no Kyōnin, Kudara no Bukyō's daughter
- *Imperial Prince Ōta
- Court Lady : Kudarao no Jōkyō, Kudara no Kyōtoku's daughter
- *Imperial Princess Suruga
- Court Lady : Nakatomi no Toyoko, Nakatomi no Ōio's daughter
- *Fifth Daughter: Imperial Princess Fuse, 13th Saiō in Ise Shrine, 797–806
- Court lady : Tajihi no Toyotsugu, Tajihi no Hironari's daughter
- *Nagaoka no Okanari, removed from the Imperial Family by receiving the family name from Emperor in 787
- Court Lady :: Kudara no Yōkei, Asukabe no Natomaro's daughter
- *Yoshimine no Yasuyo, removed from the Imperial Family by receiving the family name from Emperor in 802