Taira no Masakado - Taira no Masakado

A military commander in the Kanto region in the mid-Heian period. Grandson of Kanmu Taira's Takamochi. His father is said to have been either Yoshimochi or Yoshimasa, the Shogun of the Chinjufu, and some say his mother was the daughter of Harueda Inukai. His actions are detailed in the Shomonki. His base was Toyoda and Sashima in the north of Shimousa (Yuki and Sarushima districts, Ibaraki prefecture), but he went to Kyoto in his youth and served Fujiwara Tadahira. In 931 (Shohei 1), he fought with his uncle, Shimousa no Suke Yoshikane, over a "woman's debate." There are various theories about this "woman's debate," but Yoshikane's daughter lived in Masakado's house as his wife, and it is likely to have been related to this marriage. After 935, he became embroiled in a dispute between Hitachi Daijo Minamoto Mamoru, a powerful clan in the western part of Hitachi (Ibaraki Prefecture), and Taira Naoki, and fought against Mamoru's uncle Kunika, Yoshimasa, and Yoshikane. In October of the following year, he was summoned to Kyoto and imprisoned due to a lawsuit by Minamoto Mamoru. He returned home after receiving an amnesty at the coming-of-age ceremony of Emperor Suzaku, but was attacked by Yoshikane and others, and the family conflict intensified. In 939 (Tenkei 2), he attempted to mediate a dispute between Gonno Kami Okiyono-o and Suke Minamoto Tsunemoto of Musashi Province and Adachi Gunji Hangandai Musashi Takeshiba, but failed, and Tsunemoto accused him of treason. While this issue was still unresolved, in November of the same year, he sent troops to Hitachi Kokufu (Ishioka City, Ibaraki Prefecture) and burned it down, making Masakado's actions a rebellion against the state. Masakado conquered the Kanto region, expelled the Zuryo (provincial governor), and, calling himself the new emperor, appointed his younger brother and allies as provincial governors, demonstrating his stance of Kanto independence. However, in February 940, he was defeated by the forces of Fujiwara Hidesato, a powerful lord in Shimotsuke, and Kunika's son Sadamori at Kitayama on Sarushima Island (also called Shimahiroyama, Bando City, Ibaraki Prefecture).

Masakado was a man of chivalry and a "soldier" who made his living through martial arts, but there are many theories about his character as a feudal lord and the organization of his military forces. The prevailing view is that he was the lord of privately managed fields, and that the "banrui" he led were citizens under the Ritsuryo Code, emphasizing the bonds between lords as "partisans" and "soldiers." However, there is also a view that sees the banrui as serfs or serf lords, emphasizing their feudal nature. There is also a view that sees him as a developer of farms in the floodplains of the Kinu River, but there is also a theory that emphasizes the fact that his bases, Ishii (Bandō City) and Kamawa (Kamaniwa, Shimotsuma City), both had official farms run by the Ministry of War behind them, and that he was the head of the official farm.

The new emperor Masakado ruled the Kanto region for only a few months, but his actions of expelling the central government's vassal drew sympathy, especially from the people of the eastern provinces, and the trend of revering Masakado as a hero grew stronger with the times. At the end of the 10th century, tales of his miraculous powers were formed after his death, and in the 12th century, tales of his descendants were created. The Konjaku Monogatari contains the tale of Zanen and Nyozo-ni, which is linked to the belief in Jizo, and in the Middle Ages, the Chiba clan and their descendants also developed a theory that they were Masakado's successors, which is linked to the belief in Myoken. There are many shrines and temples in the Kanto region that worship Masakado, including Kanda Shrine in Tokyo and Kokuo Shrine in Iwai, Bando City (said to have been founded by Masakado's second daughter, Nyozo-ni).

[Toyohiko Fukuda]

"The Taira no Masakado Rebellion" by Toyohiko Fukuda (Iwanami Shinsho)" ▽ "Taira no Masakado" by Shigeo Kitayama (1975, Asahi Shimbun)" ▽ "Historical Facts of Taira no Masakado" by Rikuro Hayashi (1975, Shinjinbutsu Oraisha)" ▽ "The Legend of Masakado" by Masaaki Kajiwara and Kazuo Yashiro (1975, Shindokushosha)" ▽ "Taira no Masakado" by Munenori Akagi (1970, Kadokawa Shoten)"

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

平安中期の関東の武将。桓武(かんむ)平氏高望(たかもち)の孫。父は鎮守府将軍良持(よしもち)または良将(よしまさ)とも伝え、母を犬養春枝(いぬかいのはるえだ)の娘とするものもある。その行動は『将門記(しょうもんき)』に詳しい。下総(しもうさ)北部の豊田(とよだ)・猿島(さしま)（茨城県結城(ゆうき)・猿島郡地方）を地盤としていたが、若いころに上洛(じょうらく)して藤原忠平(ただひら)に仕えた。931年（承平1）、「女論」によって伯父の下総介良兼(しもうさのすけよしかね)と争った。この「女論」には諸説あるが、良兼の娘は将門の妻としてその家に同居しており、この婚姻にかかわるものであろう。935年以後、常陸(ひたち)（茨城県）西部の豪族常陸大掾(だいじょう)源護(まもる)と平直樹との争いに巻き込まれ、護の女婿であった国香(くにか)、良正、良兼らのおじと争う。翌年10月、源護の訴訟により京都に召喚されて禁獄。朱雀(すざく)天皇元服の大赦によって帰郷するが、良兼らに攻められて一族紛争は激化する。939年（天慶2）、武蔵(むさし)国の権守興世王(ごんのかみおきよのおう)・介(すけ)源経基(つねもと)と足立郡司判官代(あだちぐんじはんがんだい)武蔵武芝(たけしば)との紛争の調停に乗り出すが失敗、経基に謀反として訴えられる。この問題が未解決のうちに同年11月、常陸国府（茨城県石岡市）に出兵してこれを焼き払い、将門の行動は国家に対する反乱となる。将門は関東を制圧して受領(ずりょう)を追放、新皇と称して弟や同盟者を国司に任じ、関東自立の姿勢を示す。しかし940年2月、下野(しもつけ)の豪族藤原秀郷(ひでさと)と国香の子貞盛らの軍勢により、猿島の北山（嶋広山ともいう。茨城県坂東(ばんどう)市）で討たれた。

　将門は侠気(きょうき)に富む人物で、武芸によって身をたてる「兵(つわもの)」であったが、その領主としての性格や武力編成には多くの説がある。彼を私営田領主とし、その率いる「伴類(ばんるい)」を律令(りつりょう)公民の線上でとらえ、「同党」「従兵」などの領主間結合を重視する見解が強いが、伴類を農奴または農奴主としてその封建的性格を強調する説もある。また彼を鬼怒(きぬ)川氾濫(はんらん)原の開発農場主とみる見解がある一方、その根拠地の石井(いわい)（坂東市）、鎌輪(かまわ)（下妻(しもつま)市鎌庭(かまにわ)）がともに兵部省の官牧を背後にもっていた事実を重視し、官牧の牧司としてとらえ直そうとする説も提出されている。

　新皇将門の関東支配はわずか数か月にすぎなかったが、中央派遣の受領を放逐したその行動はとくに東国の民衆の共感をよび、将門を英雄として仰ぐ気風は時代とともに強まる。10世紀末には将門の死後霊験譚(れいげんたん)が形成され、12世紀にはその子孫説話もつくられる。『今昔(こんじゃく)物語』には地蔵(じぞう)信仰と絡んだ蔵念・如蔵尼説話がみえ、中世になると千葉氏やその一族では、妙見(みょうけん)信仰と絡んで将門の後継者と自称する説も育てられていく。東京の神田神社、坂東市岩井の国王(こくおう)神社（将門の二女如蔵尼の創建と伝える）をはじめ、将門を祀(まつ)る社寺は関東に多い。

［福田豊彦］

『福田豊彦著『平将門の乱』（岩波新書）』▽『北山茂夫著『平将門』（1975・朝日新聞社）』▽『林陸朗著『史実・平将門』（1975・新人物往来社）』▽『梶原正昭・矢代和夫著『将門伝説』（1975・新読書社）』▽『赤城宗徳著『平将門』（1970・角川書店）』

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