Emperor of Japan
The Emperor of Japan is the head of the Imperial Family and the head of state of Japan. Under the 1947 constitution, he is defined as "the symbol of the State and of the unity of the people." He was the highest authority of the Shinto religion. In Japanese, the Emperor is called Tennō "heavenly sovereign". In English, the use of the term Mikado for the Emperor was once common, but is now considered obsolete; the Emperor of Japan is the only head of state in the world with the English title of "Emperor". The Imperial House of Japan is the oldest continuing monarchical house in the world; the historical origins of the Emperors lie in the late Kofun period of the 3rd–7th centuries AD, but according to the traditional account of the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki, Japan was founded in 660 BC by Emperor Jimmu, said to be a direct descendant of the sun-goddess Amaterasu. The current Emperor is Akihito, he acceded to the Chrysanthemum Throne upon the death of his father, Emperor Shōwa, in 1989. The Japanese government announced in December 2017 that Akihito will abdicate on 30 April 2019.
The role of the Emperor of Japan has alternated between a ceremonial symbolic role and that of an actual imperial ruler. Since the establishment of the first shogunate in 1199, the Emperors of Japan have taken on a role as supreme battlefield commander, unlike many Western monarchs. Japanese Emperors have nearly always been controlled by external political forces, to varying degrees. In fact, between 1192 and 1867, the shōguns, or their shikken regents in Kamakura, were the de facto rulers of Japan, although they were nominally appointed by the Emperor. After the Meiji Restoration in 1867, the Emperor was the embodiment of all sovereign power in the realm, as enshrined in the Meiji Constitution of 1889. Since the enactment of the 1947 Constitution, he has been a ceremonial head of state without nominal political powers. Since the mid-nineteenth century, the Imperial Palace has been called Kyūjō Kōkyo, is on the former site of Edo Castle in the heart of Tokyo. Earlier, Emperors resided in Kyoto for nearly eleven centuries.
The Emperor's Birthday is a national holiday. Unlike most constitutional monarchs, the Emperor is not the nominal chief executive. Article 65 explicitly vests executive power in the Cabinet, of which the Prime Minister is the leader; the Emperor is not the commander-in-chief of the Japan Self-Defense Forces. The Japan Self-Defense Forces Act of 1954 explicitly vests this role with the Prime Minister; the Emperor's powers are limited only to important ceremonial functions. Article 4 of the Constitution stipulates that the Emperor "shall perform only such acts in matters of state as are provided for in the Constitution and he shall not have powers related to government." It stipulates that "the advice and approval of the Cabinet shall be required for all acts of the Emperor in matters of state". Article 4 states that these duties can be delegated by the Emperor as provided for by law. While the Emperor formally appoints the Prime Minister to office, Article 6 of the Constitution requires him to appoint the candidate "as designated by the Diet", without giving the Emperor the right to decline appointment.
Article 6 of the Constitution delegates the Emperor the following ceremonial roles: Appointment of the Prime Minister as designated by the Diet. Appointment of the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court as designated by the Cabinet; the Emperor's other duties are laid down in article 7 of the Constitution, where it is stated that "the Emperor, with the advice and approval of the Cabinet, shall perform the following acts in matters of state on behalf of the people." In practice, all of these duties are exercised only in accordance with the binding instructions of the Cabinet: Promulgation of amendments of the constitution, cabinet orders, treaties. Convocation of the Diet. Dissolution of the House of Representatives. Proclamation of general election of members of the Diet. Attestation of the appointment and dismissal of Ministers of State and other officials as provided for by law, of full powers and credentials of Ambassadors and Ministers. Attestation of general and special amnesty, commutation of punishment and restoration of rights.
Awarding of honors. Attestation of instruments of ratification and other diplomatic documents as provided for by law. Receiving foreign ambassadors and ministers. Performance of ceremonial functions. Regular ceremonies of the Emperor with a constitutional basis are the Imperial Investitures in the Tokyo Imperial Palace and the Speech from the Throne ceremony in the House of Councillors in the National Diet Building; the latter ceremony opens extra sessions of the Diet. Ordinary sessions are opened each January and after new elections to the House of Representatives. Extra sessions convene in the autumn and are opened then. Although the Emperor has been a symbol of continuity with the past, the degree of power exercised by the Emperor has varied throughout Japanese history. In the early 7th century, the Emperor had begun to be called the "Son of Heaven"; the title of Emperor was borrowed from China, being derived from Chinese characters and was retroactively applied to the legendary Japanese rulers who reigned before the 7th–8th centuries AD.
According to the traditional account of the Nihon Shoki, Japan was founded by Emperor Jimmu in 660 BC. Modern historians agree that the Emperors before the possible late 3rd century AD ruler known traditionally as Emperor Ōjin are legendary. Emperor Ank
Imperial House of Japan
The Imperial House of Japan referred to as the Imperial Family or the Yamato Dynasty, comprises those members of the extended family of the reigning Emperor of Japan who undertake official and public duties. Under the present Constitution of Japan, the Emperor is "the symbol of the State and of the unity of the people". Other members of the Imperial Family perform ceremonial and social duties, but have no role in the affairs of government; the duties as an Emperor are passed so on. The Japanese monarchy is claimed to be the oldest continuous hereditary monarchy in the world; the Imperial House recognizes 125 monarchs beginning with the legendary Emperor Jimmu and continuing up to the current emperor, Akihito. Historical evidence for the first 29 Emperors is marginal by modern standards, but there is firm evidence for the hereditary line since Emperor Kinmei ascended the throne 1,500 years ago. Article 5 of the Imperial Household Law defines the Imperial Family as the Empress. In English, shinnō and ō are both translated as "prince" as well as shinnōhi, naishinnō, ōhi and joō as "princess".
After the removal of 11 collateral branches from the Imperial House in October 1947, the official membership of the Imperial Family has been limited to the male line descendants of the Emperor Taishō, excluding females who married outside the Imperial Family and their descendants. There are 18 members of the Imperial Family: The Emperor was born at Tokyo Imperial Palace on 23 December 1933, the elder son and fifth child of the Emperor Shōwa and Empress Kōjun, he was married on 10 April 1959 to Michiko Shōda. Emperor Akihito succeeded his father as emperor on 7 January 1989; the Empress Michiko Shōda, was born in Tokyo on 20 October 1934, the eldest daughter of Hidesaburo Shōda, president and honorary chairman of Nisshin Flour Milling Inc.. The Crown Prince, the eldest son of the Emperor and the Empress, was born in the Hospital of the Imperial Household in Tokyo on 23 February 1960, he became heir apparent upon his father's accession to the throne. Crown Prince Naruhito was married on 9 June 1993 to Masako Owada.
The Crown Princess was born on 9 December 1963, the daughter of Hisashi Owada, a former vice minister of foreign affairs and former permanent representative of Japan to the United Nations. The Crown Prince and Crown Princess have one daughter: The Princess Toshi The Prince Akishino, the Emperor's second son, second on the succession line, was born on 30 November 1965 in the Hospital of the Imperial Household in Tokyo, his childhood title was Prince Aya. He received the title Prince Akishino and permission to start a new branch of the Imperial Family upon his marriage to Kiko Kawashima on 29 June 1990; the Princess Akishino was born on 11 September 1966, the daughter of Tatsuhiko Kawashima, professor of economics at Gakushuin University. Prince and Princess Akishino have two daughters and a son: Princess Mako of Akishino Princess Kako of Akishino Prince Hisahito of Akishino The Prince Hitachi was born on 28 November 1935, the second son and sixth child of the Emperor Shōwa and Empress Kojun.
His childhood title was Prince Yoshi. He received the title Prince Hitachi and permission to set up a new branch of the Imperial Family on 1 October 1964, the day after his wedding; the Princess Hitachi was born on the daughter of former Count Yoshitaka Tsugaru. Prince and Princess Hitachi have no children; the Princess Mikasa is the widow of the Prince Mikasa, the fourth son of Emperor Taishō and Empress Teimei and an uncle of Emperor Akihito. The Princess was born on 4 June 1923, the second daughter of Viscount Masanori Takagi. Princess Mikasa has three sons with the late Prince Mikasa. Princess Tomohito of Mikasa is the widow of Prince Tomohito of Mikasa, the eldest son of the Prince and Princess Mikasa and a first cousin of Emperor Akihito; the Princess was born on 9 April 1955, the daughter of Takakichi Asō, chairman of Asō Cement Co. and his wife, Kazuko, a daughter of former Prime Minister Shigeru Yoshida. She has two daughters with the late Prince Tomohito of Mikasa: Princess Akiko of Mikasa Princess Yōko of Mikasa The Princess Takamado is the widow of the Prince Takamado, the third son of the Prince and Princess Mikasa and a first cousin of Emperor Akihito.
The Princess was born the eldest daughter of Shigejiro Tottori. She married the prince on 6 December 1984. Known as Prince Norihito of Mikasa, he received the title Prince Takamado and permission to start a new branch of the Imperial Family on 1 December 1984. Princess Takamado has three daughters, one of whom remains a member of the Imperial Family: Princess Tsuguko of Takamado The following family tree shows the lineage of the contemporary members of the Imperial Family. Princesses who le
Emperor Ōgimachi
Emperor Ōgimachi was the 106th Emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. He reigned from October 27, 1557, to his abdication on December 17, 1586, corresponding to the transition between the Sengoku period and the Azuchi–Momoyama period, his personal name was Michihito. Ōgimachi was the first son of Emperor Go-Nara Lady-in-waiting: Madenokōji Fusako Seiko-in, Madenokōji Hidefusa’s daughter Second daughter: Princess Eikō Third daughter: Eldest son: Imperial Prince Masahito known as Prince Sanehito and posthumously named Yōkwōin daijō-tennō. Masahito's eldest son was Imperial Prince Kazuhito. Go-Yōzei elevated the rank of his father though his father's untimely death made this impossible in life. In this manner, Go-Yōzei himself could enjoy the polite fiction of being the son of an emperor. Daughter: Lady-in-waiting: Asukai Masatsuna’s daughter daughter:??? Daughter: Princess Eisho Lady-in-waiting: Dai-Naishi, Madenokōji Katafusa’s daughter First Daughter: (1539–1543） Ōgimachi became Emperor upon the death of Emperor Go-Nara.
1560: Ōgimachi was proclaimed emperor. The ceremonies of coronation were made possible because they were paid for by Mōri Motonari and others. 1560: Imagawa Yoshimoto led the armies of the province of Suruga against the Owari. Nobunaga took over the province of Owari. Tokugawa Ieyasu made himself master of Okazaki Castle. 1564: Oda Nobunaga completed the conquest of Mino. 1568: Ashikaga Yoshihide became shōgun. 1568: Shōgun Yoshihide died from a contagious disease. The finances of the emperor and his court were strained; the authority of the Imperial Court began to fall, but this trend reversed after Oda Nobunaga entered Kyoto in a show of allegiance but which indicated that the Emperor had the Oda clan's support. Using the Emperor as a mediator when fighting enemies, Nobunaga worked to unify the disparate elements to Japan. However, by around 1573, Nobunaga began demanding the Emperor's abdication. Before political power was transferred to Toyotomi Hideyoshi, in order to take advantage of Ōgimachi's authority, the power of the Imperial Family was increased.
In this way and the Imperial Family entered into a mutually beneficial relationship. In January of the year Tenshō 14, the regent had the Golden Tea Room brought to Kyoto Imperial Palace to host the emperor there. In 1586, Emperor Ōgimachi abdicated in favor of his grandson, Imperial Prince Katahito, who became the Emperor Go-Yōzei. Ōgimachi retired to the Sennōda Palace. On February 6, 1593, he died. During Ōgimachi's reign, with the assistance of Oda Nobunaga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the imperial family was able to halt the political and cultural decline it had been in since the Ōnin War, began a time of recovery. Ōgimachi is enshrined with other emperors at the imperial tomb called Fukakusa no kita no misasagi in Fushimi-ku, Kyoto. Kugyō is a collective term for the few most powerful men attached to the court of the Emperor of Japan in pre-Meiji eras. During those years in which the court's actual influence outside the palace walls was minimal, the hierarchic organization persisted. 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 Ōgimachi's reign, this apex of the Daijō-kan included: Daijō-daijin, Konoe Sakihisa, 1536–1612. Sadaijin Udaijin Naidaijin Dainagon The years of Ōgimachi's reign are more identified by more than one era name or nengō. Kōji Eiroku Genki Tenshō Emperor of Japan List of Emperors of Japan Imperial cult
Tokugawa Ieyasu
Tokugawa Ieyasu was the founder and first shōgun of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan, which ruled Japan from the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. Ieyasu seized power in 1600, received appointment as shōgun in 1603, abdicated from office in 1605, but remained in power until his death in 1616, his given name is sometimes spelled Iyeyasu, according to the historical pronunciation of the kana character he. Ieyasu was posthumously enshrined at Nikkō Tōshō-gū with the name Tōshō Daigongen, he was one of the three unifiers of Japan, along with his former lord Nobunaga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi. During the Muromachi period, the Matsudaira clan controlled a portion of Mikawa Province. Ieyasu's father, Matsudaira Hirotada, was a minor local warlord based at Okazaki Castle who controlled a portion of the Tōkaidō highway linking Kyoto with the eastern provinces, his territory was sandwiched between stronger and predatory neighbors, including the Imagawa clan based in Suruga Province to the east and the Oda clan to the west.
Hirotada's main enemy was the father of Oda Nobunaga. Tokugawa Ieyasu was born in Okazaki Castle on the 26th day of the twelfth month of the eleventh year of Tenbun, according to the Japanese calendar. Named Matsudaira Takechiyo, he was the son of Matsudaira Hirotada, the daimyō of Mikawa of the Matsudaira clan, Odai-no-kata, the daughter of a neighbouring samurai lord, Mizuno Tadamasa, his mother and father were step-siblings. They were just 17 and 15 years old when Ieyasu was born. In the year of Ieyasu's birth, the Matsudaira clan was split. In 1543, Hirotada's uncle, Matsudaira Nobutaka defected to the Oda clan; this gave Oda Nobuhide the confidence to attack Okazaki. Soon afterwards, Hirotada's father-in-law died, his son Mizuno Nobumoto revived the clan's traditional enmity against the Matsudaira and declared for Oda Nobuhide as well; as a result, Hirotada sent her back to her family. As both husband and wife remarried and both went on to have further children, Ieyasu had 11 half-brothers and sisters.
As Oda Nobuhide continued to attack Okazaki, in 1548 Hirotada turned to his powerful eastern neighbor, Imagawa Yoshimoto for assistance. Yoshimoto agreed to an alliance under the condition that Hirotada send his young heir to Sunpu Domain as a hostage. Oda Nobuhide, learned of this arrangement and had Ieyasu abducted from his entourage en route to Sunpu. Ieyasu was just five years old at the time. Nobuhide threatened to execute Ieyasu. Despite this refusal, Nobuhide chose not to kill Ieyasu, but instead held him as a hostage for the next three years at the Mansho-ji Temple in Nagoya. In 1549, when Ieyasu was 6, his father Hirotada was murdered by his own vassals, bribed by the Oda clan. At about the same time, Oda Nobuhide died during an epidemic. Nobuhide's death dealt a heavy blow to the Oda clan. An army under the command of Imagawa Sessai laid siege to the castle where Oda Nobuhiro, Nobuhide's eldest son and the new head of the Oda, was living. With the castle about to fall, Sessai offered a deal to Nobuhide's second son.
Sessai offered to give up the siege. Nobunaga agreed, so Ieyasu was taken as a hostage to Sumpu. At Sumpu, he remained a hostage, but was treated well as a useful future ally of the Imagawa clan until 1556 when he was 15 years old. In 1556 Ieyasu came of age, with Imagawa Yoshimoto presiding over his genpuku ceremony. Following tradition, he changed his name from Matsudaira Takechiyo to Matsudaira Jirōsaburō Motonobu, he was briefly allowed to visit Okazaki to pay his respects to the tomb of his father, receive the homage of his nominal retainers, led by the karō Torii Tadayoshi. One year at the age of 13, he married his first wife, Lady Tsukiyama, a relative of Imagawa Yoshitmoto, changed his name again to Matsudaira Kurandonosuke Motoyasu. Allowed to return to his native Mikawa, the Imagawa ordered him to fight the Oda clan in a series of battles. Motoyasu fought his first battle in 1558 at the Siege of Terabe; the castellan of Terabe in western Mikawa, Suzuki Shigeteru, betrayed the Imagawa by defecting to Oda Nobunaga.
This was nominally within Matsudaira territory, so Imagawa Yoshimoto entrusted the campaign to Ieyasu and his retainers from Okazaki. Ieyasu led the attack in person, but after taking the outer defences, grew fearful of a counterattack to the rear, so he burned the main castle and withdrew; as anticipated, the Oda forces attacked his rear lines, but Motoyasu was prepared and drove off the Oda army. He succeeded in delivering supplies in the 1559 Siege of Odaka. Odaka was the only one of five disputed frontier forts under attack by the Oda which remained in Imagawa hands. Motoyasu launched diversionary attacks against the two neighboring forts, when the garrisons of the other forts went to their assistance, Ieyasu's supply column was able to reach Odaka. By 1560 the leadership of the Oda clan had passed to the brilliant leader Oda Nobunaga. Imagawa Yoshimoto, leading a large army invaded Oda clan territory. Motoyasu was assigned a separate mission to capture the stronghold of Marune; as a result, he and his men were not present at the Battle of Okehazama where Yoshimoto was killed in Nobunaga's surprise assault.
With Yoshimoto dead, the Imagawa clan in a state of confus
Battle of Sekigahara
The Battle of Sekigahara was a decisive battle on October 21, 1600, that preceded the establishment of the Tokugawa shogunate. Tokugawa Ieyasu took three more years to consolidate his position of power over the Toyotomi clan and the various daimyō, but Sekigahara is considered to be the unofficial beginning of the Tokugawa shogunate, the last shogunate to control Japan. Oda Nobunaga had consolidated control over much of Japan and was in control of the Shōgun, Ashikaga Yoshiaki. Yoshiaki tried to escape this predicament in 1573 by attacking Nobunaga, but failed and was exiled, thus ending the Ashikaga shogunate. Nobunaga ruled unopposed until he was betrayed by his own retainer Akechi Mitsuhide and died at the Honnō-ji Incident of 1582. Toyotomi Hideyoshi avenged his master and consolidated control over Japan. Hideyoshi had risen from humble roots – his father was an ashigaru – to become the ruler of Japan, his death created a power vacuum, resolved by the outcome at Sekigahara. Though Toyotomi Hideyoshi unified Japan and consolidated his power following the Siege of Odawara in 1590, his failures in his invasions of Korea weakened the Toyotomi clan's power as well as the support of the loyalists and bureaucrats who continued to serve and support the Toyotomi clan after Hideyoshi's death during the second invasion.
The presence of Hideyoshi and his brother Hidenaga kept the two main factions of the time, which rallied behind Ishida Mitsunari and Tokugawa Ieyasu from anything more than quarrelling, but when both of them died, the conflicts were exacerbated and developed into open hostilities. With no appointed shōgun over the armies, this left a power vacuum in the Japanese government. Most notably, Katō Kiyomasa and Fukushima Masanori were publicly critical of the bureaucrats Ishida Mitsunari and Konishi Yukinaga. Tokugawa Ieyasu took advantage of this situation, recruited them, redirecting the animosity to weaken the Toyotomi clan. Tokugawa Ieyasu was unrivalled in terms of seniority, rank and overall influence within the regency of the Toyotomi clan after the death of regent Maeda Toshiie. Rumours started to spread stating that Ieyasu, at that point the only surviving contemporary ally of Oda Nobunaga, would take over Hideyoshi's legacy just as Nobunaga's was taken; this was evident amongst the loyalist bureaucrats, who suspected Ieyasu of agitating unrest amongst Toyotomi's former vassals.
A supposed conspiracy to assassinate Ieyasu surfaced, many Toyotomi loyalists, including Maeda Toshiie's son, were accused of taking part and forced to submit to Ieyasu's authority. However, Uesugi Kagekatsu, one of Hideyoshi's appointed regents, defied Ieyasu by building up his military; when Ieyasu condemned him and demanded that he come to Kyoto to explain himself, Kagekatsu's chief advisor, Naoe Kanetsugu responded with a counter-condemnation that mocked Ieyasu's abuses and violations of Hideyoshi's rules, Ieyasu was infuriated. Afterwards, Ieyasu summoned the help of various supporters and led them northward to attack the Uesugi clan. Many of them were at that moment besieging Hasedō though. Ishida Mitsunari, grasping the opportunity created by the chaos, rose up in response and created an alliance to challenge Ieyasu's supporters. Ishida, in his home Sawayama Castle, met with Ōtani Yoshitsugu, Mashita Nagamori, Ankokuji Ekei. Here, they forged the alliance, invited Mōri Terumoto to be its head.
Thus formed what came to be referred to as the Western Army. Mōri seized Osaka Castle for their base of operations, since most of Tokugawa’s forces had vacated the area to attack Uesugi. Ishida wanted to reinforce Mōri at the impregnable Osaka Castle; this would let Ishida challenge the Tokugawa. To this end, Ishida’s forces headed for Gifu Castle in order to use it as a staging area to move on Kyoto, since it was controlled by his ally Oda Hidenobu. Back in Edo, Tokugawa Ieyasu received news of the situation in the Kansai region and decided to deploy his forces. Ieyasu himself commanded his subordinates led another 40,000 men; this made up the bulk of what would be called the Eastern Army. He had some former Toyotomi daimyō engage with the Western Army, while he split his troops and marched west on the Tōkaidō towards Osaka. Since the Tokugawa army departed from Edo, it could only take two roads, both of which converged on Gifu Castle. Ieyasu marched on Gifu; this fortress was a halfway point between Osaka and Kyoto and was controlled by the Tokugawa ally Torii Mototada.
Ishida could not risk leaving a force that could attack his rear, so he marched on it. It took him ten days to capture Fushimi, in that time Gifu Castle had fallen; this forced Ishida Mitsunari to retreat southward in the rain. Tired from a day's march and their gunpowder wet from the rain and his forces stopped at Sekigahara. "Ishida deployed his troops in a strong defensive position, flanked by two streams with high ground on the opposite banks." His right flank was reinforced by daimyō Kobayakawa Hideaki on Mount Matsuo. On October 20, 1600, Ieyasu learned that Ishida Mitsunari had deployed his troops at Sekigahara in a defensive position, they had been following the Western Army, benefited from better weather. At dawn of the next day, the Tokugawa advance guard stumbled into Ishida's army. Neither side saw each other due to the dense fog caused by the earlier rain. Both sides panicked and withdrew, but this resulted in both sides being aware of their adversary's presence. Ishida held his current defensi
Emperor Yōzei
Emperor Yōzei was the 57th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. Yōzei's reign spanned the years from 876 through 884. Before his ascension to the Chrysanthemum Throne, his personal name was Sadaakira Shinnō. Yōzei was the oldest son of Emperor Seiwa, his mother was the Empress Fujiwara no Takaiko, known after Seiwa's abdication as the Nijō empress. Yōzei's mother was the sister of Fujiwara no Mototsune, who would figure prominently in the young emperor's life. In ancient Japan, there were the Gempeitōkitsu. One of these clans, the Minamoto clan are known as Genji, of these, the Yōzei Genji are descended from the 57th emperor Yōzei. Yōzei had nine Imperial children, born. Yōzei was made emperor when he was an unformed young boy. 869: Yōzei was born, he is named Seiwa's heir in the following year. 18 December 876: In the 18th year of Emperor Seiwa's reign, he ceded his throne to his son, which meant that the young child received the succession. Shortly thereafter, Emperor Yōzei formally acceded to the throne.
20 January 877: Yōzei was formally enthroned at age 8. However, the new residence being constructed for the emperor had not been completed. 877: Ambassadors from Baekje arrived in the province of Izumo. 877: There was a great drought. It rained. 883: In his early teens, Yōzei spent time alone. In time, these amusements became more dangerous, he himself executed criminals. When he became angry, he sometimes chased. Fujiwara no Mototsune, the Kanpaku, used every possible opportunity to turn Yōzei towards more seemly conduct, but the emperor closed his ears to all remonstrances. 884: The extravagant and dangerous habits of the emperor continued unabated. At one point, Mototsune came to the court and discovered that Yōzei had arranged a bizarre scenario for his diversion: He ordered some men to climb high into trees, he ordered others to use sharp lances to poke at these men in trees until they fell to their deaths; this extraordinary event convinced Motosune. Mototsune reluctantly realized. Shortly thereafter, Mototsune approached Yōzei and remarked that it must be boring to be so alone, Mototsune suggested that the emperor might be amused by a horse race.
Yōzei was attracted to this proposition, he eagerly encouraged Mototsune to set a time and place for the event. It was decided that this special amusement for the emperor would take place on the 4th day of the 2nd month of Gangyō 8. 4 March 884: The pretext of a special horse race enticed the emperor to leave his palace. Yōzei traveled in a carriage, surrounded by a heavy guard; the carriage was redirected to Yo seí in palace at Ni zio, a town situated a short distance to the south-west of Miyako. Mototsune confronted the emperor, explaining that his demented behavior made him incapable of reigning, that he was being dethroned. At this news, Yōzei cried sincerely, which did attract feelings of compassion from those who witnessed his contrition. According to scanty information from the Imperial archives, including sources such as Rikkokushi, Nihon Sandai Jitsuroku, Emperor Yōzei murdered one of his retainers, an action that caused massive scandal in the Heian court. Japanese society during the Heian era was sensitive to issues of "pollution," both spiritual and personal.
Deaths were the worst acts of pollution possible, warranted days of seclusion in order to purify oneself. Since the Emperor was seen as a divine figure and linked to the deities, pollution of such extreme degree committed by the highest source was seen as ruinous. Many of the high court officials construed Emperor Yōzei's actions as exceeding the bounds of acceptable behavior, as justifiable cause for the emperor to be forcibly deposed. In Kitabatake Chikafusa's 14th-century account of Emperor Yōzei's reign, the emperor is described as possessing a "violent disposition" and unfit to be a ruler. In the end, when Fujiwara no Mototsune, Sesshō, Daijō Daijin, decided that Yōzei should be removed from the throne, he discovered that there was general agreement amongst the kuge that this was a correct and necessary decision. Yōzei was succeeded by his father's uncle, Emperor Kōkō. Yōzei would address courtiers he would meet with the greatest rudeness, he became furious. He garroted women with the strings of musical instruments and threw the bodies into a lake.
While riding on horseback, he directed his moun
