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Chronicle V of XI

The Kamakura Period

鎌倉 · The First Shogunate

Japan's first shogunate, the Hōjō regents, Zen and the Mongol invasions turned back by the kamikaze.

Span
1185 – 1333 AD
Entries
7
Minamoto no Yoritomo, Japan's first shogun
Frontispiece · Minamoto no Yoritomo, Japan's first shogunVia Wikimedia Commons

  1. The ShogunatePolitical

    Yoritomo, the first shogun

    Minamoto no Yoritomo is named shogun and rules Japan from Kamakura, founding a military government apart from the court.

    Minamoto no Yoritomo, Japan's first shogun
    Minamoto no Yoritomo, Japan's first shogun · Via Wikimedia Commons
    Meanwhile, elsewhere · 3

  2. The Hōjō RegentsPolitical

    The Hōjō take control

    With the Minamoto line extinct, Yoritomo's widow and her Hōjō kin rule as regents behind the shoguns.

    Hōjō Masako, the "nun-shogun" of Kamakura
    Hōjō Masako, the "nun-shogun" of Kamakura · Via Wikimedia Commons
    Meanwhile, elsewhere · 3

  3. The Warrior's LawPolitical

    The Goseibai Shikimoku

    The regent Hōjō Yasutoki issues a warrior law code, plain and practical, to govern the samurai class.

    Meanwhile, elsewhere · 3

  4. New BuddhismReligious

    Zen, Pure Land and Nichiren

    Bold new Buddhist movements — Zen, Pure Land and Nichiren — bring the faith to warriors and common people.

    The reformer-monk Nichiren
    The reformer-monk Nichiren · Via Wikimedia Commons
    Meanwhile, elsewhere · 3

  5. The Mongol InvasionsMilitary

    The first Mongol invasion

    Kublai Khan's fleet lands in Kyushu, but a storm wrecks the invaders and forces their retreat.

    Map of the Mongol invasions of Japan, 1274 and 1281
    Map of the Mongol invasions of Japan, 1274 and 1281 · Via Wikimedia Commons
    Meanwhile, elsewhere · 3

  6. The Mongol InvasionsMilitary

    The divine wind

    A far larger Mongol armada returns, only to be destroyed by a typhoon the Japanese hail as the kamikaze, the "divine wind."

    Samurai facing the Mongol invasion, later saved by the kamikaze
    Samurai facing the Mongol invasion, later saved by the kamikaze · Via Wikimedia Commons
    Meanwhile, elsewhere · 3

  7. The Fall of KamakuraPolitical

    The fall of the shogunate

    Bankrupted by the Mongol wars, the Kamakura government falls as Emperor Go-Daigo raises a revolt.

    Meanwhile, elsewhere · 3