Minamoto no Yoshihira

A military commander in the late Heian period. He was the eldest son of Yoshitomo and the older brother of Yoritomo. In 1155 (Kyushu 2), he killed his uncle Yoshikata (father of Kiso Yoshinaka) at Okura in Musashi Province (Arashiyama Town, Hiki County, Saitama Prefecture). He is called the Kamakura Akugenta. Yoshitomo, who distinguished himself in the Hogen Rebellion (1156), was dissatisfied with the way the aftermath of the war was handled, including the murder of his father Tameyoshi and others. Meanwhile, Fujiwara Nobuyori, whose path to success was blocked by the powerful Shinzei Nyudo (Fujiwara Michinori), invited Yoshitomo to join him, seeking an opportunity to destroy Shinzei. In December 1859 (Heiji 1), Shinzei took advantage of the absence of the clan of Taira no Kiyomori, Shinzei's military backer, in Kyoto to launch a coup. Yoshihira fought bravely following his father and insisted on fighting the Taira army retreating from Kumano in Abeno, Settsu (Abeno Ward, Osaka City), but Nobuyori opposed the plan. The battle was unfavorable, and Yoshihira was defeated at Rokujo-gawara in Kyoto, and his father was killed in Owari. Yoshihira fled to Mino, and upon hearing of his father's death, he returned to Kyoto and attempted to kill Kiyomori, but was captured by Naniwa Tsunefusa, a Taira retainer, and was beheaded at Rokujo-gawara on January 19, 1281. Legend has it that as he was being slain he said to Tsunefusa, "I will become thunder and kill you," and just as he said so, Tsunefusa was later struck by lightning and killed.

[Tanabe Hisako]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

平安後期の武将。義朝(よしとも)の長子、頼朝(よりとも)の兄。1155年（久寿2）叔父義賢(よしかた)（木曽義仲(きそよしなか)の父）を武蔵(むさし)国大倉（埼玉県比企(ひき)郡嵐山(らんざん)町）で討った。鎌倉悪源太(あくげんた)といわれる。保元(ほうげん)の乱（1156）に戦功のあった義朝は、父為義(ためよし)らを殺されるなど戦後処理に不満をもっていた。一方、当時の実力者信西(しんぜい)入道（藤原通憲(みちのり)）に出世の道を阻止された藤原信頼(のぶより)は、義朝を誘って信西を滅ぼす機会をねらっていた。59年（平治1）12月、信西の武力的後援者平清盛(きよもり)一族の京都留守を機にクーデターを決行した。義平も父に従って勇戦、熊野(くまの)から引き返す平氏軍を摂津阿倍野(あべの)（大阪市阿倍野区）で迎え討とうと主張したが、信頼の反対にあった。戦況は利なく、京都六条(ろくじょう)河原で敗れ、父は尾張(おわり)で殺された。美濃(みの)まで逃れた義平は、父の死を聞いて京に引き返し清盛を討たんとねらったが、平氏の家人(けにん)難波経房(なんばつねふさ)に捕らえられ、永暦(えいりゃく)元年正月19日六条河原で斬(き)られた。斬られるとき経房に、「雷となって汝(なんじ)を殺さん」といい、そのとおり経房はのち雷にうたれて死んだ、という伝説がある。

［田辺久子］

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