Genpei War

The Heiji rebellion (1159) and the subsequent rise of the Taira were the main cause of the Genpei War 20 years later.

The Genpei War was the culmination of a decades-long conflict between the two aforementioned clans over dominance of the Imperial court and, by extension, control of Japan. In the Hōgen Rebellion[4] and in the Heiji Rebellion[5] of earlier decades, the Minamoto attempted to regain control from the Taira and failed.[6]^{: 255–259}

In 1180, Taira no Kiyomori put his grandson Antoku (then only 2 years of age) on the throne after the abdication of Emperor Takakura. Emperor Go-Shirakawa's son Mochihito felt that he was being denied his rightful place on the throne and, with the help of Minamoto no Yorimasa, sent out a call to arms to the Minamoto clan and Buddhist monasteries in May. However, this plot ended with the deaths of Yorimasa and Mochihito.[6]

In June 1180, Kiyomori moved the seat of imperial power to Fukuhara-kyō, "his immediate objective seems to have been to get the royal family under his close charge."[6]^: 284

Scene of the Genpei war (1180–1185), Kanō Motonobu (1476–1569), Muromachi period (1336 and 1573).

The Phoenix Hall of the Byōdō-in, where Yorimasa committed seppuku

The actions of Taira no Kiyomori having deepened Minamoto hatred for the Taira clan, a call for arms was sent up by Minamoto no Yorimasa and Prince Mochihito. Not knowing who was behind this rally, Kiyomori called for the arrest of Mochihito, who sought protection at the temple of Mii-dera. The Mii-dera monks were unable to ensure him sufficient protection, so he was forced to move along. He was then chased by Taira forces to the Byōdō-in, just outside Kyoto. The war began thus, with a dramatic encounter on and around the bridge over the River Uji. This battle ended in Yorimasa's ritual suicide inside the Byōdō-in and Mochihito's capture and execution shortly afterwards.[6]^{: 277–281}[7]

It was at this point that Minamoto no Yoritomo took over leadership of the Minamoto clan and began traveling the country seeking to rendezvous with allies. Leaving Izu Province and heading for the Hakone Pass, he was defeated by the Taira in the battle of Ishibashiyama.[6]^: 289 However he successfully made it to the provinces of Kai and Kōzuke, where the Takeda and other friendly families helped repel the Taira army. Meanwhile, Kiyomori, seeking vengeance against the Mii-dera monks and others, besieged Nara and burnt much of the city to the ground.[8]

Fighting continued the following year, 1181. Minamoto no Yukiie was defeated by a force led by Taira no Shigehira at the Battle of Sunomatagawa. However, the "Taira could not follow up their victory."[6]^: 292

Taira no Kiyomori died from illness in the spring of 1181, and around the same time Japan began to suffer from a famine which was to last through the following year. The Taira moved to attack Minamoto no Yoshinaka, a cousin of Yoritomo who had raised forces in the north, but were unsuccessful. For nearly two years, the war ceased, only to resume in the spring of 1183.[6]^{: 287, 293}

Taira no Munemori

In 1183, the Taira loss at the Battle of Kurikara was so severe that they found themselves several months later under siege in Kyoto with Yoshinaka approaching the city from the north and Yukiie from the east. Both Minamoto leaders had seen little or no opposition in marching to the capital and now forced the Taira to flee the city. Taira no Munemori, head of the clan since his father Kiyomori's death, led his army, along with the young Emperor Antoku and the Imperial regalia, to the west. The cloistered emperor Go-Shirakawa defected to Yoshinaka. Go-Shirakawa then issued a mandate for Yoshinaka to "join with Yukiie in destroying Munemori and his army".[6]^{: 293–294}

In 1183, Yoshinaka once again sought to gain control of the Minamoto clan by planning an attack on Yoritomo, while simultaneously pursuing the Taira westward. The Taira set up a temporary Court at Dazaifu in Kyūshū, the southernmost of Japan's main islands. They were forced out soon afterwards by local revolts instigated by Go-Shirakawa, and moved their Court to Yashima. The Taira were successful in beating off an attack by Yoshinaka's pursuing forces at the Battle of Mizushima.[6]^{: 295–296}

Yoshinaka conspired with Yukiie to seize the capital and the Emperor, possibly even establishing a new Court in the north. However, Yukiie revealed these plans to the Emperor, who communicated them to Yoritomo. Betrayed by Yukiie, Yoshinaka took command of Kyoto and, at the beginning of 1184, set fire to the Hōjūjidono, taking the Emperor into custody. Minamoto no Yoshitsune arrived soon afterwards with his brother Noriyori and a considerable force, driving Yoshinaka from the city. After fighting his cousins at the bridge over the Uji, Yoshinaka made his final stand at Awazu, in Ōmi Province. He was defeated by Yoshitsune, and killed while attempting to flee.[6]^{: 296–297}

Duel between Taira no Atsumori (left) and Kumagai Naozane

Battle of Dan-no-ura

As the united Minamoto forces left Kyoto, the Taira began consolidating their position at a number of sites in and around the Inland Sea, which was their ancestral home territory. They received a number of missives from the Emperor offering that if they surrendered by the seventh day of the second month, the Minamoto could be persuaded to agree to a truce. This was a farce, as neither the Minamoto nor the Emperor had any intentions of waiting until the eighth day to attack. Nevertheless, this tactic offered the Emperor a chance to regain the Regalia and to distract the Taira leadership.[6]^: 297

The Minamoto army, led by Yoshitsune and Noriyori, made their first major assault at Ichi-no-Tani, one of the primary Taira camps on Honshū. The camp was attacked from two directions by Yoshitsune and Noriyori, and the Taira not killed or captured retreated to Yashima. However, the Minamoto were not prepared to assault Shikoku; a six-month pause thus ensued during which the Minamoto took the proper steps. Though on the retreat, the Taira enjoyed the distinct advantages of being in friendly, home territories, and of being far more adept at naval combat than their rivals.[6]^{: 297–299}

It was not until nearly a year after the battle of Ichi-no-Tani that the main Taira force at Yashima came under assault. Seeing Yoshitsune's bonfires in their rear, the Taira had not expected a land-based attack and took to their ships. This was a deceptive ploy on the part of the Minamoto, however. The Taira improvised imperial palace fell, and many escaped along with the Imperial regalia and the Emperor Antoku.[6]^{: 301–302}

The Genpei War came to an end one month later, following the battle of Dan-no-ura, one of the most famous and significant battles in Japanese history. The Minamoto engaged the Taira fleet in the Straits of Shimonoseki, a tiny body of water separating the islands of Honshū and Kyūshū. The tides played a powerful role in the development of the battle, granting the advantage first to the Taira, who were more experienced and abler sailors, and later to the Minamoto. The Minamoto advantage was considerably enhanced by the defection of Taguchi, a Shikoku warrior who went over to the Minamoto side in the middle of the action. Many of the Taira nobles perished, along with Emperor Antoku and the widow of Kiyomori.[6]^{: 302–303}[9]

Battle of Yashima folding screen

Battle of Ichi-no-Tani folding screen

The defeat of the Taira armies meant the end of Taira "dominance at the capital". In December 1185, Go-Shirakawa granted to Yoritomo the power to collect taxes, and "appoint stewards and constables in all provinces". Finally, in 1192, after Go-Shirakawa's death, Yoritomo was granted the imperial commission Sei-i Tai Shōgun. This was the beginning of a feudal state in Japan, with real power now in Kamakura. However, Kyoto remained the "seat of national ceremony and ritual" and the de jure capital. [6]^{: 304, 318, 331}

The end of the Genpei War and beginning of the Kamakura shogunate marked the rise to power of the warrior class (samurai) and the gradual suppression of the power of the emperor, who was compelled to govern without effective political or military power, being effectively reduced to a purely symbolical and ceremonial head of state, until the Meiji Restoration over 650 years later, though there was a short-lived attempt to restore imperial rule in the 1330s, the Kenmu Restoration.

In addition, this war and its aftermath established red and white, the colors of the Taira and Minamoto standards, respectively, as Japan's national colors.[10] Today, these colors can be seen on the flag of Japan, and also in banners and flags in sumo and other traditional activities.[10]

A sphere map on 1183 at Genpei War. However, it was not clearly divided in this way, and there were conflicts among Genjis as well as Tairas.

• 1180 First Battle of Uji – regarded as the first battle in the Genpei Wars, the monks of the Byōdōin fight alongside Minamoto no Yorimasa.
• 1180 Siege of Nara – the Taira set fire to temples and monasteries, to cut supplies to their rivals.
• 1180 Battle of Ishibashiyama – Minamoto no Yoritomo's first battle against the Taira, who are victorious.
• 1180 Battle of Fujikawa – the Taira mistake a flock of waterfowl for a sneak attack by the Minamoto in the night, and retreat before any fighting occurs.
• 1181 Battle of Sunomatagawa – the Taira thwart a sneak attack in the night but retreat.
• 1181 Battle of Yahagigawa – the Minamoto, retreating from Sunomata, attempt to make a stand.
• 1183 Siege of Hiuchi – the Taira attack a Minamoto fortress.
• 1183 Battle of Kurikara – the tide of the war turns, in the Minamoto's favor.
• 1183 Battle of Shinohara – Yoshinaka pursues the Taira force from Kurikara
• 1183 Battle of Mizushima – the Taira intercept a Minamoto force, heading for Yashima.
• 1183 Siege of Fukuryūji – the Minamoto attack a Taira fortress.
• 1183 Battle of Muroyama – Minamoto no Yukiie tries and fails to recoup the loss of the battle of Mizushima.
• 1184 Siege of Hōjūjidono – Yoshinaka sets fire to the Hōjūji-dono and kidnaps Emperor Go-Shirakawa.
• 1184 Second Battle of Uji – Yoshinaka is pursued out of the capital by Yoshitsune and Noriyori.
• 1184 Battle of Awazu – Minamoto no Yoshinaka is defeated and killed by Yoshitsune and Noriyori.
• 1184 Battle of Ichi-no-Tani – Minamoto no Yoshitsune attacks and drives the Taira from one of their primary fortresses.
• 1184 Battle of Kojima – Taira fleeing Ichi-no-Tani are attacked by Minamoto no Noriyori.
• 1185 Battle of Yashima – the Minamoto assault their enemies' fortress, just off Shikoku.
• 1185 Battle of Dan-no-ura – Minamoto no Yoshitsune decisively defeats Taira forces in naval battle ending the war.

Many stories and works of art depict this conflict. The Tale of the Heike (平家物語, Heike Monogatari) is the most famous, although many kabuki and bunraku plays reproduce events of the war as well. Ichinotani Futaba Gunki ('Chronicle of the battle of Ichi-no-Tani') by Namiki Sōsuke may be one of the more famous of these.

The novel Shikeby Robert Shea features a somewhat fictionalized account of the wars, as seen from the perspectives of his two main characters, the Zinja Monk Jebu, and the Noblewoman Lady Shima Taniko. The names of the two rival clans have been changed, "Minamoto" to "Muratomo" and "Taira" to "Takashi".

Another fictionalized account of the conflict forms the central plot of "Civil War" (also known as "Turbulent Times"), the ninth volume of Osamu Tezuka's celebrated Phoenix series of comics.

The Genpei War is the backdrop for much of Katherine Patterson's young adult novel, Of Nightingales That Weep.

• Kuroshima and Taijima, a set of islands off the coast of Wakayama used as a naval base during the war
• Military history of Japan
• Outline of war
• Sanemori (Noh play)
• Sukiyaki Western Django, a film inspired by the events

• Genpei War at Ancient History Encyclopedia
• Genpei War Map at Samurai Archives
• The Genpei War by The Shogunate