The Rebellion of Fujiwara no Sumitomo

Japanese: 藤原純友の乱 - ふじわらのすみとものらん

A rebellion that took place mainly in the Western Sea in the 10th century. The Seto Inland Sea was a major artery for transporting goods linking Sanyo, Kyushu, Shikoku, and Kyoto, and pirates had been appearing since the mid-9th century. Their activity calmed down for a time, but suddenly in the Shohei era (931-938), activity intensified, with over 1,000 pirate ships floating on the seas and stealing government property and killing people, causing maritime traffic to come to a halt. In response, the Imperial Court appointed Ki no Yoshihito as Iyo no Kami and Nankaido no Shigeshi (envoy for pursuit and capture), and had Fujiwara no Sumitomo and others suppress the pirates. Yoshihito's flexible and tolerant approach to piracy was effective, and over 1,000 pirates surrendered, bringing the pirates' activities to a temporary halt.

Source: Heibonsha World Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition Information

Japanese:

10世紀に西海を中心に起こった反乱事件。山陽･九州･四国と京を結ぶ物資輸送の大動脈である瀬戸内海には，9世紀中葉以降海賊が出没した。一時その活動は鎮まるが，承平年間(931‐938)になると急に活動が活発化し，賊船1000余艘が海上に浮かんで官物奪取･殺害を続けたため，海上交通も途絶状態となった。朝廷はその対策として936年紀淑人を伊予守兼追捕南海道使に任じ，藤原純友らに海賊制圧のことを行わせた。淑人の柔軟で寛仁な海賊対策は効を奏し，1000人を超える海賊が帰順，その動きはいったん収まった。

出典　株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典第２版について　情報

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