Jinshin War - Jinshin no Ran

Japanese: 壬申の乱 - じんしんのらん

In the sixth month of the Jinshin year of 672 (the 1st year of Emperor Kobun), Prince Oama (later Emperor Tenmu), the younger brother of Emperor Tenchi, started the largest civil war in ancient times against the Omi court, headed by Prince Otomo (Emperor Kobun), the son of Tenchi.

[Naoki Kojiro]

The course of the war

Emperor Tenchi had initially intended to make Prince Oama his successor, but in his later years he came to love Prince Otomo, and in January of 671 (the 10th year of Emperor Tenchi's reign), he appointed Otomo to the newly established highest government position of Daijo Daijin (Grand Minister of State), indicating his intention to make him his successor. He also appointed powerful clans such as Soga and Nakatomi to high-ranking positions such as the Minister of State for the Left and Right, in order to stabilize Otomo's position. This deepened the conflict between Oama and Otomo. In October of that year, Tenchi became seriously ill and felt uneasy, so he invited Oama to his sickbed and told him that he would abdicate the throne. Unable to gauge Tenchi's true intentions, Oama felt his life was in danger, so he became a monk on the spot and went to Mount Yoshino with a few attendants. After that, the two men were wary of each other's movements, but Tenchi died in December of that year, and in June of the following year, 672, Oama finally took action. First, he sent messengers to Mino Province (Gifu Prefecture) to gather troops and seized Fuwanoseki (Sekigahara Town, Fuwa County, Gifu Prefecture), a key transportation point to the eastern provinces. He then headed to Mino himself, establishing a temporary palace in Nogami (Sekigahara Town) as his base. He also sent messengers to the Tokai and Tosan provinces to gather troops. In response to Oama's movements, the Omi Court also sent messengers to various places in the eastern provinces, Tsukushi (Kyushu), Kibi (Okayama Prefecture, eastern Hiroshima Prefecture), and other areas to recruit troops and strengthen its forces, but Oama's side had already seized the eastern provinces, and he was unable to obtain the cooperation of the Dazai in Tsukushi or the kuni no kami in Kibi, so his plans did not progress as planned.

Meanwhile, the Otomo clan, who had left the Omi court earlier and returned to Yamato, sided with Oama, and succeeded in occupying the ancient capital of Asuka, the largest base of the Omi side in Yamato, by winning over the Aya clan and others who had participated in the defense of the ancient capital. In July, Oama's side deployed tens of thousands of troops in both Yamato and Omi, using soldiers gathered from Iga, Ise, Owari, Mino, and various countries east of those, and began their attack. Although the Omi side also had difficulty mobilizing troops at first, they used the power of the central government to gather a number of soldiers equal to Oama's side and fought back, and fierce battles were fought in various places, including Yamato, Omi, and Kawachi. At first, the Omi side temporarily gained the upper hand in the battles in Yamato and Kawachi, but the situation was soon reversed with the arrival of reinforcements from Oama's side. Prince Takechi no Oji, commander in chief, led the main forces of Prince Oama, who advanced through the plains east of Lake Tono, and on July 22nd, he fought and defeated the main forces of the Omi forces near the Seta River, crossing the Seta River. The outcome of the rebellion was decided here, and on the 23rd the following day, Otomo, with no way to retreat, committed suicide in front of the mountains, and his high-ranking officials were captured. Otsu Palace was also destroyed and burned in the fighting. The victorious Oama returned to Asuka in Yamato in August of the same year, and entered the new palace at Kiyomihara.

[Naoki Kojiro]

Causes and Significance of the Rebellion

In the past, some theories focused on the conflict between Emperor Tenchi and Prince Oama over Princess Nukata, but nowadays, the political aspect is emphasized, and it is generally believed that the direct cause was the issue of succession to the throne, and that one of the causes was the many people who were dissatisfied with Tenchi's policies since the Taika Reforms. The forces that supported Oama included the imperial family, imperial relatives, and first-class clans alienated from the Omi court, as well as a considerable number of second-class clans, but the role played by lower-ranking clans in the Kinai region and local clans in the eastern provinces was particularly large. Oama's victory led to him becoming Emperor Tenmu, and under this new royal authority, a powerful centralized state centered on the emperor was formed. The historical significance of this rebellion is great in terms of the establishment of an imperial ritsuryo state as planned in the Taika Reforms.

[Naoki Kojiro]

"The Jinshin Rebellion" by Naoki Kojiro (1961, Hanawa Shobo)" ▽ "The Jinshin Rebellion" by Kitayama Shigeo (Iwanami Shinsho)

The course of the Jinshin War
©Shogakukan ">

The course of the Jinshin War

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

Japanese:

672年（弘文天皇1）壬申の年6月、天智天皇(てんじてんのう)の弟の大海人皇子(おおあまのおうじ)（後の天武天皇）が、天智の子である大友皇子（弘文(こうぶん)天皇）を首長とする近江(おうみ)朝廷に対して起こした古代最大の内乱。

［直木孝次郎］

戦乱の経過

天智天皇は、初め大海人皇子を後継者とする意図をもっていたが、晩年には大友皇子を愛し、671年（天智天皇10）正月、新しく設けた政府の最高の地位である太政大臣(だいじょうだいじん)に大友を任じて、自己の後継者とする意思を示し、また左右大臣などの高官には蘇我(そが)・中臣(なかとみ)などの有力豪族を用いて、大友の地位の安定を計った。このことは大海人と大友との対立を深めた。この年10月、重病にかかって不安を感じた天智は、病床に大海人を招いて皇位を譲る旨を伝えた。天智の真意を計りかねた大海人は、身の危険を感じ、その場で出家して、わずかの従者とともに吉野山へ入った。その後両者は互いに相手の動向を警戒していたが、天智はその年の12月に没し、翌672年6月に至り、大海人はついに行動を開始した。まず、美濃国(みののくに)（岐阜県）に使を送って兵を集め、東国への交通の要所である不破関(ふわのせき)（岐阜県不破郡関ヶ原町）を抑え、続いて自らも美濃に向かい、野上(のがみ)（関ヶ原町）に行宮(あんぐう)を置き、本拠とした。さらに、東海、東山(とうさん)2道に使者を遣わし兵を集めさせた。大海人のこのような動きに対して、近江朝廷側も東国、筑紫(つくし)（九州）、吉備(きび)（岡山県、広島県東部）などの各地に使を遣わして兵を募るなど兵力の強化を図ったが、東国はひと足先に大海人側に抑えられ、筑紫では大宰(おおみこともち)、吉備では国守の協力が得られず、計画どおりにははかどらなかった。

　一方、先に近江朝廷を離れて大和(やまと)に帰っていた大伴(おおとも)氏は大海人側につき、大和における近江側の最大の拠点、飛鳥(あすか)古京の守備に加わっていた東漢(やまとのあや)氏らを味方に引き入れて、古京の占領に成功した。7月に入ると、大海人側は、伊賀、伊勢(いせ)、尾張(おわり)、美濃およびそれ以東の諸国から集めた兵により、大和、近江の2方面に各数万の軍団を配し、進攻を開始した。近江側も初めは兵の動員が順調にゆかなかったとはいえ、中央政府の権力を利用して大海人側に劣らぬ数の兵員を集めて対抗し、戦闘は大和、近江、河内(かわち)など各所で激しく行われた。近江側は初め大和、河内などで一時優勢に戦いを進めたが、やがて大海人側の増援軍の到着により、形勢は逆転した。高市皇子(たけちのおうじ)を総指揮者として湖東の平野を進撃した大海人皇子側の主力軍は、7月22日には瀬田川(せたがわ)付近で近江側の主力軍と戦ってこれを破り、瀬田川を渡った。乱の勝敗はここに決し、翌23日、大友は退路を失い、山前(やまさき)で自殺し、高官たちも捕らえられた。大津宮(おおつのみや)も戦乱によって破壊炎上した。勝利を収めた大海人は同年8月、大和の飛鳥へ帰り、浄御原(きよみはら)の新宮に入った。

［直木孝次郎］

乱の原因と意義

古くは額田王(ぬかたのおおきみ)をめぐる天智天皇と大海人皇子との争いに注目する説もあったが、現在では政治的な面が重視され、皇位継承の問題を直接の原因とし、大化改新以来の天智の政策に不満をもつものが多いことも原因の一つとするのが一般的である。大海人を支持した勢力には皇族、皇親氏族、近江朝廷から疎外された一流豪族や、かなりの数の二流豪族も認められるが、畿内(きない)の下級豪族や東国の地方豪族の果たした役割はとくに大きい。勝利を得た大海人は天武天皇(てんむてんのう)となり、この新王権のもとで、天皇を中心とする強力な中央集権国家が形づくられていった。大化改新で計画された天皇制律令国家(りつりょうこっか)の成立に関し、この乱のもつ歴史的意義は大きい。

［直木孝次郎］

『直木孝次郎著『壬申の乱』（1961・塙書房）』▽『北山茂夫著『壬申の内乱』（岩波新書）』

壬申の乱の経過

出典　小学館　日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)について　情報 | 凡例

<<: Human Trafficking - Bye-bye to human trafficking

>>: Personal freedom - freedom of the person