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[Abstract not available for the category]
:For other uses of the word Taira see Taira (disambiguation)
The was a major Japanese clan in historical Japan.
In reference to Japanese history, along with Minamoto, Taira was a hereditary clan name bestowed by the emperors of the Heian Period to certain ex-members of the imperial family when they became subjects. The Taira clan is often referred to as Heishi (平氏, literally "Taira clan") or Heike (平家, literally House of Taira ), using the character's Chinese reading hei.
Offshoots of the imperial dynasty, some grandsons of Emperor Kammu were first given the name Taira in 825 or later. Afterwards, descendants of Emperor Nimmyō, Emperor Montoku, and Emperor Kōkō were also given the surname. The specific hereditary lines from these emperors are referred to by the emperor's posthumous name followed by Heishi. i.e. Kammu Heishi.
The Taira were one of the four important clans that dominated Japanese politics during the Heian period (794-1185) - the others were the Fujiwara, the Tachibana and the Minamoto.
The Kammu Heishi line, founded in 889 by Taira no Takamochi (a great-grandson of the 50th Kammu tenno, reigned 781-806), proved to be the most strong and dominant line during the late Heian period with Taira no Kiyomori eventually forming the first samurai dominated government in the history of Japan. A great-grandson of Heishi Takamochi, Taira no Korihira, moved to Ise Province (now part of Mie Prefecture) and established a major daimyo dynasty. Masamori, his grandson; and Tadamori, great-grandson, became loyal supporters of the cloistered tennos Shirakawa and Toba, respectively. Taira no Kiyomori, son and heir of Tadamori, rose to the position of daijō daijin (great minister of state) following his victories in the Hōgen Disturbance (1156) and the Heiji Disturbance (1160). Kiyomori managed to enthrone his infant grandson as Emperor Antoku in 1180, an act which led to the Genpei War (1180-85), the Taira-Minamoto War. Kiyomori's sons, the last of the head family of the Kanmu Heishi line was eventually destroyed by the armies of Minamoto no Yoritomo at the Battle of Dan-no-ura, the last battle of the Genpei War. This story is told in the Heike Monogatari.
This Kammu Heishi had many branch families including the Hōjō, Chiba, Miura and Hatakeyama.
Another Kammu Heishi: Takamune-ō (804-867), the eldest son of Kazurahara-Shinnō (786-853) and a grandson of Emperor Kammu, received the kabane of Taira no Ason in 825. Thus there were two Kammu Heishi families, one descended from Takamune and the other from his nephew, Takamochi (son of Prince Takami).
The Oda clan in the time of Oda Nobunaga (1534-1582) claimed descent from the Taira, by Taira no Chikazane, a grandson of Taira no Shigemori (1138-1179).
[Abstract not available for the category]
was a general of the late Heian period of Japan. He established the first samurai-dominated administrative government in the history of Japan.
After the death of his father Taira no Tadamori in 1153, Kiyomori assumed control of the Taira clan and ambitiously entered the political realm in which he had previously only held a minor post. In 1156, he and Minamoto no Yoshitomo, head of the Minamoto clan, suppressed the Hōgen Rebellion. This established the Taira and Minamoto samurai clans as the top warrior clans in Kyoto. However, their new strength in effect caused the allies to become bitter rivals which culminated three years later during the Heiji Rebellion in 1159. Kiyomori, emerging victorious with Yoshitomo and his two eldest killed, was now the head of the single most powerful warrior family/clan in Kyoto. However, his clan's power and influence in the provinces at this time is a matter of debate. Kiyomori showed mercy and exiled a few of Yoshitomo's sons, including Yoritomo, Noriyori, and Yoshitsune – a benevolence that would turn out to be the Taira clan's downfall later on.
Due to his status as the head of the sole remaining courtier/warrior clan, Kiyomori was in a unique position to manipulate the court rivalry between the retired sovereign Go-Shirakawa and his son, Nijo tenno (tenno - sovereign). Via this manipulation, Kiyomori was able to climb the ranks of government, though the majority of his promotions as well as the success of his family in gaining ranks and titles at court was due to the patronage of the retired sovereign Go-Shirakawa. This culminated in 1167, when Kiyomori became the first courtier of a warrior family to be appointed Daijō Daijin, chief minister of the government, and the de facto administrator of the imperial government. As was the norm, he soon relinquished the position and leadership of the Taira clan, with the goal of maintaining the social and political prestige of having attained the highest office in the land, but being free of the attendant duties. This had been a common practice for many years in the highest levels of Japanese government and in doing so Kiyomori was asserting what he felt was his strong position in the Kyoto government. However, many of the courtiers from traditional (non-warrior noble families) were less than pleased with both Kiyomori's attainment of the rank of Daijō-daijin and how he comported himself with regard to other high ranking courtiers.
In 1171, Kiyomori arranged a marriage between the Emperor Takakura and his daughter Taira no Tokuko. Their first son, Prince Tokihito was born in 1178. The next year, in 1179, Kiyomori staged a coup d'etat forcing the resignation of his rivals from all government posts and subsequently banishing them. He then filled the open government positions with his allies and relatives, and imprisoned the cloistered Emperor Go-Shirakawa. Finally, in 1180 Kiyomori forced the emperor Takakura to abdicate and give Prince Tokuhito the throne, becoming the Emperor Antoku.
With the exertion of Taira power and wealth and Kiyomori's new monopoly on authority, many of his allies, most of the provincial samurai, and even members of his own clan turned against him. Prince Mochihito, brother of Emperor Takakura, called on Kiyomori's old rivals of the Minamoto clan to rise against the Taira beginning the Genpei War in the middle of 1180. Kiyomori died early in the next year from sickness, leaving his son Munemori to preside over the downfall and destruction of the Taira at the hands of the Minamoto in 1185. Legend has it that at the time of his death, Kiyomori's fever was so high that anyone who attempted to even get near him would be burned by the heat & his corpse had to be left to cool for several hours before it could be removed.
Taira no Kiyomori is also the main character in the Kamakura period epic, the Tale of Heike.
In video games, Kiyomori appears in Warriors Orochi: Rebirth of the Demon Lord fighting for Orochi's army and using prayer beads as weapons.
Kiyomori also features prominently as a sympathetic villain in Osamu Tezuka's Phoenix series in the first half of the ninth volume, Turbulent Times (retitled as Civil War in English), another Genpei War epic. Like most villains in the series he desires the titular bird for its immortality granting blood, due to his desire to continue to lead & protect the Taira clan & lack of confidence in his successors, but winds up being tricked into buying an imported Peacock instead.
[Abstract not available for the category]
The was fought between rival subjects of the cloistered Emperor Go-Shirakawa of Japan in 1159.In the name "Heiji Rebellion," the noun "Heiji" refers to the nengō (Japanese era name) after "Hōgen" and before "Eiryaku." In other words, the Heiji Rebellion occurred during Heiji, which was a time period spanning the years from 1159 through 1160. It was preceded by the Hōgen Rebellion in 1156.In the name "Hōgen Rebellion," the noun "Hōgen" refers to the nengō (Japanese era name) after "Kyūju" and before "Heiji." In other words, the Hōgen Rebellion occurred during Hōgen, which was a time period spanning the years from 1156 through 1159. In many ways, this struggle is seen as a direct outcome of that earlier armed dispute.
Early in 1160 (or late 1159, by the lunar calendar), Taira no Kiyomori, head of the Taira clan and supporter of Emperor Nijō, left Kyoto with his family, on a personal pilgrimage. This left his enemies, Fujiwara no Nobuyori and the Minamoto clan, a perfect opportunity to effect an uprising. In the Siege of Sanjō Palace, Nobuyori and his Minamoto allies abducted the former emperor Emperor Go-Shirakawa and Emperor Nijo and set fire to the Palace.
Minamoto no Yoshitomo and Fujiwara no Nobuyori placed Go-Shirakawa under house arrest and killed his retainer, the scholar Fujiwara no Michinori. Nobuyori had himself declared imperial chancellor, and began to see his plans for political power fall into place.
However, the Minamoto did not plan well enough, militarily, and were unprepared to defend the city against Kiyomori's return. Upon his return, the Minamoto made no decisive moves and hesitated.
Kiyomori, who returned to Kyoto, offered to surrender to Nobuyori. However, this was a plot. While Nobuyori was careless, Kiyomori let the Emperor Nijo and the former emperor Go-shirakawa escape to Kiyomori's side.
Kiyomori received an imperial grant from the Emperor for attacking Yoshitomo and Nobuyori. Taira no Shigemori (the eldest son of Kiyomori) led 3,000 cavalry and attacked the Imperial Palace where Yoshitomo and Nobuyori were holed up. Nobuyori ran away immediately, but Minamoto no Yoshihira (the eldest son of Yoshitomo) fought back and a fierce battle ensued. Yoshihira fought hard and chased Shigemori within the Imperial Palace.
The Taira force retreated and the Minamoto force left the Imperial Palace in pursuit. This was a plot of Kiyomori. A detached Taira force occupied the Imperial Palace. The Minamoto force was cut off from the way of retreat. The Minamoto force charged at Rokuhara of a base of Kiyomori. It became a fierce battle, but finally the Minamoto force fled in disorderly retreat.
Ultimately, Taira no Kiyomori defeated Yoshitomo, killed his two eldest sons and Nobuyori, and released Go-Shirakawa. Yoshitomo was eventually betrayed and killed by a retainer while escaping from Kyoto in Owari.
Afterwards, Taira no Kiyomori banished Yoshitomo's son Minamoto no Yoritomo, seized Minamoto wealth and land, and eventually formed the first samurai dominated government, led by the Taira, in the history of Japan.
The Kamakura period epic Tale of Heiji is about the exploits of the samurai that participated in the Heiji Rebellion. Together with the Tale of Hōgen and the Tale of Heike, they describe the rise and fall of the Minamoto and Taira samurai clans.
The was one of the branch families descended from the Taira clan. They held large fiefs, and great political influence. They were one of the primary opponents of the Hōjō family of regents, in the mid-13th century, and again at the beginning of the 16th. It remains a common family name in Japan today.
Members of the Miura Clan: *Miura Yasumura - member of Council of State, and signer of Jōei Formulary *Miura Yoshiaki - grandfather to Minamoto no Yoshihira *Miura Yoshizumi - am ally to Minamoto no Yoshitsune at the Battle of Dan-no-ura, 1185 *Miura Yoshimura - a Minamoto ally during the Jōkyū War of 1221 *Miura Dosun Yoshiatsu (d. 1516) *Miura Yoshimoto (d. 1518) - son of Miura Dosun Yoshiatsu
'Miura' was also the family name given to English sailor William Adams, who became shipwrecked in Japan in the year 1600.
The was a Japanese samurai clan. Originally a branch of the Taira clan and descended from Taira no Takamochi, they fell victim of political intrigue in 1205, when Hatakeyama Shigeyasu, first, and his father Shigetada later were killed in battle by Hōjō forces in Kamakura. After 1205 the Hatakeyama came to be descendants of the Ashikaga clan, who were in turn descended from Emperor Seiwa (850-880) and the Seiwa Genji branch of the Minamoto clan.
The was a branch family of the Taira clan descended from Chiba no Suke, son of Taira no Tadatsune. Historically, they controlled the city of Chiba, outside Tokyo, and also an area called Soma which included the Grand Shrine of Ise. In the Genpei Wars of the 12th century, the Chiba clan, along with the other Taira branch families Hōjō, Miura, and Doi, were allies of the Minamoto, opposing the greater 'core' Taira clan. However, while they were valued allies to Minamoto no Yoritomo, he did not always trust them.
Taira no Kagekiyo (平景清)(d. 1185), also known as Kazusa no Shichirō (上総七郎), was a samurai of the Taira clan who took part in the Genpei War of Japan, against the Minamoto clan.
The son by birth of Fujiwara no Tadakiyo. His real name was Fujiwara no Kagekiyo (藤原景清), but he was adopted by the Taira, and served them loyally the rest of his life, people called him Taira name. In 1156, he played a role in confirming Emperor Go-Shirakawa on the throne, and later, during the Genpei War, sought unsuccessfully to have the head of the Minamoto clan, Minamoto no Yoritomo, assassinated. Captured at the battle of Dan-no-ura in 1185, Kagekiyo allowed himself to starve to death.
Kagekiyo is perhaps most famous for his appearance in the eleventh chapter of the fictionalized epic Heike Monogatari (The Tale of Heike), in the section called "The Dropped Bow" (弓流). He grasps the neckguard of Minamoto warrior Mionoya no Jūrō in order to prevent his escape; Mionoya does escape Kagekiyo's grasp, hiding from battle behind a friendly mount. Then, Kagekiyo, leaning on his spear, exclaims "You must have heard of me long ago. See me now with your own eyes! I am the man known to the young city toughs as Akushichibyōe Kagekiyo of Kazusa!"Trans. Helen Craig McCullough (1988). The Tale of the Heike. Stanford University Press. p369. ISBN 0-8047-1803-2. Kagekiyo then retires from battle, and is followed by his fellow Taira warriors, who seek to protect him.