The Taira was one of the four most important clans that dominated Japanese politics during the Heian, Kamakura and Muromachi Periods of

Japanese history The first human inhabitants of the Japanese archipelago have been traced to prehistoric times around 30,000 BC. The Jōmon period, named after its cord-marked pottery, was followed by the Yayoi period in the first millennium BC when new inventi ...

– the others being the Fujiwara, the Tachibana, and the Minamoto. The clan is divided into four major groups, named after the

emperor An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereignty, sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), ...

they descended from: Kanmu Heishi, Ninmyō Heishi, Montoku Heishi, and Kōkō Heishi. The clan is commonly referred to as or , using the character's On'yomi for ''Taira'', while means " clan", and is used as a suffix for "

extended family An extended family is a family that extends beyond the nuclear family of parents and their children to include aunts, uncles, grandparents, cousins or other relatives, all living nearby or in the same household. Particular forms include the stem ...

History

Taira-Clan-Warriors-Ukiyoe-Utagawa-Yoshitora

Along with the Minamoto, Taira was one of the honorary surnames given by the emperors of the

Heian Period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. It followed the Nara period, beginning when the 50th emperor, Emperor Kanmu, moved the capital of Japan to Heian-kyō (modern Kyoto). means "peace" in Japanese ...

(794–1185 CE) to their children and grandchildren who were not considered eligible for the throne. The clan was founded when the Imperial Court grew too large, and the emperor ordered that the descendants of previous emperors from several generations ago would no longer be princes, but would instead be given noble surnames and ranks. The decision became applicable during the reign of

Emperor Kanmu , or Kammu, was the 50th emperor of Japan, Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'') 桓武天皇 (50) retrieved 2013-8-22. according to the traditional order of succession. Kanmu reigned from 781 to 806, and it was during his reign that the sco ...

(782–805) and thus, together with the Taira clan, the Minamoto clan was born. Some grandchildren of

were the first to bear the name of Taira, after 825. Later, the descendants of Emperor Nimmyo,

Emperor Montoku (August 826 – 7 October 858) was the 55th emperor of Japan,Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'') 文徳天皇 (55)/ref> according to the traditional order of succession. Montoku's reign lasted from 850 to 858. Traditional narrative Before ...

and Emperor Koko also received the surname. The specific hereditary lines of these emperors are referred to by the posthumous name of the emperor followed by Heishi, for example ''Kanmu Heishi''. The Kanmu Heishi line, founded in 889 by

Taira no Takamochi Taira no Takamochi (平高望), born Prince Takamochi (高望王), was a former member of the Imperial Family demoted to nobility of the Heian period. He is the founder of the Taira clan and the Kanmu Heishi lineage of the clan. Life Prince T ...

(great-grandson of the 50th

, who reigned from 781 to 806) proved to be the strongest and most dominant line during the

Heian period The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. It followed the Nara period, beginning when the 50th emperor, Emperor Kanmu, moved the capital of Japan to Heian-kyō (modern Kyoto). means "peace" in Japanese ...

. Later, another member of this lineage,

Taira no Kiyomori was a military leader and ''kugyō'' of the late Heian period of Japan. He established the first samurai-dominated administrative government in the history of Japan. Early life Kiyomori was born in Heian-kyō, Japan, in 1118 as the first so ...

, created what was considered the first

samurai were the hereditary military nobility and officer caste of medieval and early-modern Japan from the late 12th century until their abolition in 1876. They were the well-paid retainers of the '' daimyo'' (the great feudal landholders). They h ...

government in the history of Japan. A great-grandson of Takamochi,

Taira no Korehira The Taira was one of the four most important clans that dominated Japanese politics during the Heian, Kamakura and Muromachi Periods of Japanese history – the others being the Fujiwara, the Tachibana, and the Minamoto. The clan is divided i ...

, moved to Ise Province (currently part of

Mie Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Mie Prefecture has a population of 1,781,948 () and has a geographic area of . Mie Prefecture is bordered by Gifu Prefecture to the north, Shiga Prefecture and Kyoto Prefectur ...

) and established an important Daimyo dynasty. Masamori, his grandson; and Tadamori, his great-grandson, became loyal supporters of

Emperor Shirakawa was the 72nd emperor of Japan,Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'') 白河天皇 (72)/ref> according to the traditional order of succession. Shirakawa's reign lasted from 1073 to 1087. Genealogy Before his ascension to the Chrysanthemum Thr ...

and

Emperor Toba was the 74th Emperor of Japan, Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'') 鳥羽天皇 (74)/ref> according to the traditional order of succession. Toba's reign spanned the years from 1107 through 1123. Genealogy Before his ascension to the C ...

, respectively.

, son and heir of Tadamori, rose to the position of Daijō Daijin (great Minister of State), after his victories in the

Hōgen Rebellion In Japanese, Hōgen may refer to several words. Among them: * Hōgen (era) (保元, 1156–1159), an era in Japan * Hōgen rebellion, a short civil war in 1156 * dialect (方言) — for example: "eigo no hōgen" (English dialect) See also * ...

(1156) and the Heiji Rebellion (1160). Kiyomori succeeded in enthroning his youngest grandson as

Emperor Antoku was the 81st emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. His reign spanned the years from 1180 through 1185. During this time, the Imperial family was involved in a bitter struggle between warring clans. Minamoto no Yo ...

in 1180, an act that led to the Genpei War (Genpei no Sōran, 1180–1185). The last leader of the Kanmu Heishi bloodline, was eventually destroyed by

Minamoto no Yoritomo was the founder and the first shogun of the Kamakura shogunate of Japan, ruling from 1192 until 1199.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Minamoto no Yoriie" in . He was the husband of Hōjō Masako who acted as regent (''shikken'') after his ...

's armies at the Battle of Dan-no-ura, the last battle of the Genpei War. This story is told in the

Heike Monogatari is an epic account compiled prior to 1330 of the struggle between the Taira clan and Minamoto clan for control of Japan at the end of the 12th century in the Genpei War (1180–1185). Heike () refers to the Taira (), ''hei'' being the ''on'yo ...

. This branch of the Kanmu Heishi had many other branches, including Hōjō, Chiba, Miura and

Hatakeyama Hatakeyama (written: 畠山 or 畑山) is a Japanese surname. Notable people with the surname include: *, Japanese rhythmic gymnast *, Japanese electronic musician *, Japanese baseball player *, Japanese rugby union player *, Japanese shogi player ...

. Another member of this family was Takamune-ō (804–867), the eldest son of Prince Imperial Kazurahara and grandson of Emperor Kanmu, who received the title of Taira no

Ason was a prestigious hereditary noble title in Japan, used mainly between Asuka and Heian periods. At first, it was the second highest, below '' Mahito'', which was given to members of the Imperial family, but after Heian period it became the h ...

in the year 825. Thus, there were two groups in Kanmu Heishi, a nucleus that descended from Takamune and another from his nephew, Takamochi (the son of Imperial Prince Takami). The Oda clan at the time of Oda Nobunaga (1534–1582) also claimed Taira descent, they were descendants of Taira no Chikazane, grandson of

Taira no Shigemori was the eldest regent of the Taira clan patriarch, Taira no Kiyomori. He supported his father in the Heiji Rebellion. He died two years before his father. His son, Taira no Koremori, became a monk in 1184, and drowned himself. Oda Nobunaga cl ...

(1138–1179).

Genpei War

During the Heiji Rebellion (1160), the Seiwa Genji leader,

Minamoto no Yoshitomo (1123 – 11 February 1160) was the head of the Minamoto clan and a general of the late Heian period of Japanese history. His son Minamoto no Yoritomo became ''shōgun'' and founded the Kamakura shogunate, the first shogunate in the history of ...

, died in battle.

gained power in

Kyoto Kyoto (; Japanese language, Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin, Keihanshin metropolitan area along wi ...

forging alliances with retired emperors Shirakawa and

Toba Toba may refer to: Languages * Toba Sur language, spoken in South America * Batak Toba, spoken in Indonesia People * Toba people, indigenous peoples of the Gran Chaco in South America * Toba Batak people, a sub-ethnic group of Batak people from N ...

. Kiyomori sent

(1147–1199), the third son of Yoshitomo, into exile. In 1180, Yoritomo organized a large-scale rebellion against the rule of the Taira (the Genpei War or ''Taira-Minamoto''), culminated with the destruction of the Taira by the

Minamoto clan was one of the surnames bestowed by the Emperors of Japan upon members of the imperial family who were excluded from the line of succession and demoted into the ranks of the nobility from 1192 to 1333. The practice was most prevalent during th ...

and the subjugation of eastern Japan in five years. In 1192,

received the title shogun and created the first

bakufu , officially , was the title of the military dictators of Japan during most of the period spanning from 1185 to 1868. Nominally appointed by the Emperor, shoguns were usually the de facto rulers of the country, though during part of the Kamakura ...

based in Kamakura (Kanagawa Prefecture).

Branches

The Taira clan had four main branches:The Samurai Crab
/ref> *Taira Kanmu (Kanmu Heishi, 桓武平氏) – descended from the princes, children of 50th

. *Taira Nimmyō (Nimmyō Heishi, 仁明平氏) – descended from the princes, grandchildren of the 54th Emperor Nimmyō's lineage. *Taira Montoku (Montoku Heishi, 文徳平氏) – descended from princes, children of 55th

. *Taira Kōkō (Kōkō Heishi, 光孝平氏) – descended from the princes, grandchildren of the 58th

Emperor Kōkō was the 58th emperor of Japan,Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'') 光孝天皇 (58)/ref> according to the traditional order of succession. Kōkō reigned from 884 to 887. Traditional narrative Before the emperor's ascension to the Chry ...

's lineage.

Clan members

These were important members of the Taira clan. * Taira no Takakiyo (1173–1199) *

(1118–1181) * Taira no Shigehira (1158–1185) *

Taira no Tomomori (1152–1185) was the son of Taira no Kiyomori, and one of the Taira Clan's chief commanders in the Genpei War at the end of the Heian period of Japanese history. He was victorious at the Battle of Uji in 1180. He also became successful in t ...

(1152–1185) *

Taira no Munemori was heir to Taira no Kiyomori, and one of the Taira clan's chief commanders in the Genpei War. As his father Taira no Kasemori uch a name does not existlay on his deathbed, Kiyomori declared, among his last wishes, that all affairs of the cla ...

(1147–1185) *

(1138–1179) * Taira no Tadanori (1144–1184) *

Taira no Masakado was a Heian period provincial magnate ('' gōzoku'') and samurai based in eastern Japan, notable for leading the first recorded uprising against the central government in Kyōto. Early life Masakado was one of the sons of Taira no Yoshimas ...

(903–940)

Mon of the Taira

The ''mon'' (crest, emblem) of the Taira clan is an Agehanochō (揚羽蝶, Swallowtail butterfly) with raised wings.

Gallery

File:Yoshitsune_aangevallen_door_Taira_geesten-Rijksmuseum_RP-P-1979-177.jpeg, Yoshitsune and

Benkei , popularly known as simply Benkei, was a Japanese warrior monk ('' sōhei'') who lived in the latter years of the Heian Period (794–1185) .html" ;"title="/sup>">/sup>. Benkei led a varied life, first becoming a monk, then a mountain ascetic ...

defending themselves in their boat during a storm created by the ghosts of conquered Taira warriors (by

Utagawa Kuniyoshi Utagawa Kuniyoshi ( ja, 歌川国芳, ; January 1, 1798 – April 14, 1861) was one of the last great masters of the Japanese ukiyo-e style of woodblock prints and painting.Nussbaum, Louis Frédéric ''et al'' (2005). "Kuniyoshi" in He was ...

)

References

{{reflist Japanese clans