Fujiwara no Muchimaro


Fujiwara no Muchimaro was a Japanese courtier and politician of the late Asuka and early Nara period. He founded the Nanke branch of the Fujiwara clan. His court rank is Senior First Rank.

Life

Muchimaro was the eldest son of Fujiwara no Fuhito, and his mother Soga no Shōshi was the daughter of Soga no Murajiko.
He married a granddaughter of Abe no Miushi, with whom he had two sons Fujiwara no Toyonari and Fujiwara no Nakamaro. Among his daughters was a consort of Emperor Shōmu.
Muchimaro became the head of Ministry of Civil Services in 718. When Fuhito, Muchimaro's father, died in 720, Prince Nagaya was at the highest rank in the state government. Prince Nagaya was a grandson of Emperor Tenmu, but not a son of Fujiwara family, therefore was seen as a threat by Muchimaro and his three brothers. After successfully removing Prince Nagaya in 729, Muchimaro rose to Dainagon.
In 734, he was promoted to Udaijin or "Minister of the Right". In 737, he was made Sadaijin or "Minister of the Left", but died of smallpox the following day in the 735–737 Japanese smallpox epidemic.
The History of the Fujiwara House included his biography and states the following: "Muchimaro, the Fujiwara Great Minister of the Left, was a man from the Sakyō district. He was the oldest son of the Head of the Council of State Fuhito, and his mother was a daughter of the Soga Great Minister of the Treasury. He was born in the mansion at Ōhara on the fifteenth day of the fourth month of 680, the ninth year since the enthronement of the sovereign Tenmu. Because he cultivated righteousness, he received this name."

Fujiwara no Muchimaro grave

Fujiwara no Muchimaro's grave is located in the Kojima-chō neighborhood of the city of Gojō, Nara. It is located on the mountain behind Eizan-ji, a Shingon Buddhism temple facing the Yoshino River. Fujiwara no Muchimaro was cremated at Sahoyama, north of Heijō-kyō but his son Nakamaro is said to have reburied him here. The Engishiki states that the grave was placed in Atada, Uchi County, Yamato Province. It was designated a National Historic Site in 1940. The grave is a square with sides of 7 to 8 meters, surrounded by rectangular green schist stones mined in the area, and a gravestone erected in 1693 was erected within it. During the Meiji period, an ossuary was discovered nearby.
  • Father: Fujiwara no Fuhito
  • Mother: Soga no Shōshi, daughter of Soga no Murajiko.
  • *Main Wife: Sada-hime, granddaughter of Abe no Miushi.
  • **1st son: Fujiwara no Toyonari
  • **2nd son: Fujiwara no Nakamaro
  • *Wife: name unknown, daughter of Ki no Maro.
  • **3rd son: Fujiwara no Otomaro
  • *Wife: , daughter of.
  • **4th son: Fujiwara no Kosemaro
  • *Wife: name unknown
  • **Daughter: Minamidono, consort of Emperor Shōmu.