was the 82nd

emperor of Japan The Emperor of Japan is the monarch and the head of the Imperial Family of Japan. Under the Constitution of Japan, he is defined as the symbol of the Japanese state and the unity of the Japanese people, and his position is derived from "the ...

, according to the traditional order of succession. His reign spanned the years from 1183 through 1198. This 12th-century sovereign was named after Emperor Toba, and ''go-'' (後), translates literally as "later"; and thus, he is sometimes called the "Later Emperor Toba". The Japanese word ''go'' has also been translated to mean the "second one"; and in some older sources, this emperor may be identified as "Toba the Second" or as "Toba II".

Genealogy

Before his ascension to the Chrysanthemum Throne, his personal name (his ''imina'') was . He was also known as Takanari''-shinnō'' He was the fourth son of Emperor Takakura, and thus grandson of Emperor Go-Shirakawa. His mother was Bōmon ''Shokushi'' (坊門殖子) (Empress Dowager Shichijō-in, 七条院), daughter of Bōmon Nobutaka (坊門信隆) of the

Fujiwara clan was a powerful family of imperial regents in Japan, descending from the Nakatomi clan and, as legend held, through them their ancestral god Ame-no-Koyane. The Fujiwara prospered since the ancient times and dominated the imperial court until th ...

Consorts and children

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

(''chūgū''): ''

Fujiwara no Ninshi Fujiwara (, written: 藤原 lit. "''Wisteria'' field") is a Japanese surname. (In English conversation it is likely to be rendered as .) Notable people with the surname include: ; Families * The Fujiwara clan and its members ** Fujiwara no Kamata ...

''/Takako (藤原任子) later Gishūmon-in (宜秋門院), Kujō Kanezane‘s daughter ** First Daughter: Imperial Princess '' Shōshi'' (昇子内親王) later Shunkamon-in (春華門院, 1195–1211) – unmarried Empress as adopted mother of Emperor Juntoku *Consort: Minamoto no ''Zaishi''/Ariko (源在子) later Shomeimon-in (承明門院; 1171–1257), Minamoto no Michichika‘s adopted daughter and priest Nōen‘s daughter ** First Son: Imperial Prince Tamehito (為仁親王) later Emperor Tsuchimikado *Consort: Fujiwara no Shigeko (藤原重子) later Shumeimon-in (修明門院; 1182–1264), Takakura Norisue‘s daughter ** Third Son: Imperial Prince Morinari (守成親王) later Emperor Juntoku ** Imperial

Prince Masanari Prince Masanari (雅成親王, ''Masanari shinnō''; 1200–1255) was a ''waka'' poet and Japanese nobleman active in the early Kamakura period. He was a son of Emperor Go-Toba was the 82nd emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of ...

(雅成親王) (exiled after Jōkyū War) ** Imperial Prince Priest Sonkai (尊快法親王, 1204–1246) – Head Priest of Enryaku-ji Temple (''Tendai Zasu'', 天台座主) *Court lady: ''Bōmon no Tsubone'' (坊門局), Bōmon Nobukiyo‘s daughter ** Imperial Prince Nagahito (長仁親王, 1196–1249) later Imperial Prince Priest Dōjo (道助法親王), become 8th Head priest of Ninna-ji Temple ** Third Daughter: Imperial Princess Reishi (礼子内親王; 1200–1273) later Kayōmon-in (嘉陽門院) ** Imperial Prince Yorihito (頼仁親王, 1201–1264) (exiled after Jōkyū Incident) *Court lady: ''Hyōe-no-kami no Tsubone'' (兵衛督局), Minamoto no Nobuyasu‘s daughter ** Second Daughter: Imperial Princess ''Shukushi'' (粛子内親王; b.1196) (''Takatsuji Saigū'', 高辻斎宮) –

Saiō A , was an unmarried female member of the Japanese Imperial Family, sent to Ise to serve at Ise Grand Shrine from the late 7th century until the 14th century. The Saiō's residence, , was about 10 km north-west of the shrine. The remains of ...

at Ise Shrine 1199–1210 *Court lady: Owari no Tsubone (尾張局, d.1204), priest Kensei‘s daughter ** Imperial Prince Dōkaku (道覚法親王; 1204–1250) – Head Priest of Enryaku-ji Temple (''Tendai Zasu'', 天台座主) *Court lady: ''Ōmiya no Tsubone'' (大宮局), Fujiwara no Sadayoshi‘s daughter ** Imperial Prince Son'en (尊円法親王; 1207–1231) – Head Priest of Miidera Temple ** Gyōetsu (行超) – priest in Emryakuji Temple *Court lady: ''Shonagon no Suke'' (少納言典侍) ** Dōshu (道守) – priest *Court lady: Kamegiku (亀菊), a dancer (Shirabyōshi) *Court lady: Taki (滝; d.1265), a dancer (Shirabyōshi) ** Imperial Prince Kakunin (覚仁法親王) (1198–1266) – Head priest of Onjō-ji Temple *Court lady: ''Tamba no Tsubone'' (丹波局), Ishi (石), a dancer (Shirabyōshi) ** Imperial Princess Hiroko (煕子内親王, b.1205) –

served at Ise Shrine during the reigns of Emperor Juntoku and Emperor Chūkyō 1215–1221 *Court lady: Himehōshi (姫法師), a dancer (Shirabyōshi) ** Kakuyo (覚誉) – priest ** Dōi (道伊) – priest in Onjō-ji Temple ** Dōen (道縁) – priest in Ninna-ji Temple *Mother Unknown: ** Son: Prince Ichijo (一条宮、1201-1213） ** princess（1202-1207）

Events of Go-Toba's life

Go-Toba took the throne at the age of three. * September 8, 1183 ('' Juei 2, 20th day of the 8th month''): In the 3rd year of Antoku''-tennō''s reign (安徳天皇三年), the emperor fled the capital rather than give in to pressures for his abdication. In Antoku's absence, the cloistered former-Emperor Go-Shirakawa then elevated his young brother by decree; and the young child was given the acceptance of abdication (''juzen'') rites.Varley, p. 216. The anti-Taira faction intended that the succession ('‘senso'’) was received; and shortly thereafter, Emperor Go-Toba is said to have acceded to the throne ('‘sokui'’). Although these formal rites and ceremonies were taking place in Heian-kyō, the imperial regalia were still held by Antoku. Thus, the ''senso'' and ''sokui'' of Go-Toba became the first in history to omit the ritual transmission of the sacred treasures from a sovereign to his successor. In 1192 Go-Shirakawa died and the first

shogunate , 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 ...

was established by Minamoto no Yoritomo, and the emperor became a figurehead. In 1198, Go-Toba abdicated in favor of his son, Emperor Tsuchimikado. Go-Toba reigned as cloistered Emperor from 1198 till 1221 during reigns of three emperors, but his power was more limited than former cloistered Emperors in 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 Japan ...

. It was during this time that Go-Toba decreed that the followers of the

Pure Land A pure land is the celestial realm of a buddha or bodhisattva in Mahayana Buddhism. The term "pure land" is particular to East Asian Buddhism () and related traditions; in Sanskrit the equivalent concept is called a buddha-field (Sanskrit ). The ...

sect in Kyōto, led by

Hōnen was the religious reformer and founder of the first independent branch of Japanese Pure Land Buddhism called . He is also considered the Seventh Jōdo Shinshū Patriarch. Hōnen became a Tendai initiate at an early age, but grew disaffected and ...

, be banished or in some cases executed. Originally this was prompted by complaints of clergy in Kyoto who were concerned about the rise in popularity of the new sect, but Go-Toba personally ordered the decree after two of his ladies in waiting converted to the sect without his knowledge. In 1221, the shōgun installed Go-Toba's three-year-old grandson, Emperor Chūkyō, as emperor, but Go-Toba chose to stage a rebellion in an attempt to reclaim the throne and overthrow the

Kamakura shogunate The was the feudal military government of Japan during the Kamakura period from 1185 to 1333. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Kamakura-jidai''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia'', p. 459. The Kamakura shogunate was established by Minamoto no ...

. This is known as the Jōkyū War after the era in which it occurred.

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 ...

around Kyōto who were against the Shogunate supported him but most of samurai, particularly in Kantō supported the Shogunate with encouragement of Hōjō Masako, the widow of Yoritomo. She persuaded samurai gathering in

Kamakura is a city in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. Kamakura has an estimated population of 172,929 (1 September 2020) and a population density of 4,359 persons per km² over the total area of . Kamakura was designated as a city on 3 November 1939. Kamak ...

that if they would not support the Shōgunate, then the contemporary status and privileges that samurai had attained would be lost, and the

court A court is any person or institution, often as a government institution, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between parties and carry out the administration of justice in civil, criminal, and administrative matters in acco ...

and

kuge The was a Japanese aristocratic class that dominated the Japanese Imperial Court in Kyoto. The ''kuge'' were important from the establishment of Kyoto as the capital during the Heian period in the late 8th century until the rise of the Kamak ...

would regain their power and influence. Go-Toba's rebellion was defeated and Chūkyō was replaced as emperor by Go-Horikawa, a nephew of Go-Toba. After the rebellion Go-Toba was exiled to the

Oki Islands The is an archipelago in the Sea of Japan, the islands of which are administratively part of Oki District, Shimane Prefecture, Japan. The islands have a total area of . Only four of the around 180 islands are permanently inhabited. Much of the ...

. He died and was buried there.

Non-political activities

Despite the limits on his political powers, he developed skills as a calligrapher, painter, musician, poet, critic, and editor, although the majority of his activities took place after his abdication aged 18 (as the abdication freed him from 'the ceremonial prison of the imperial palace'). Besides his enthusiasm for

archery Archery is the sport, practice, or skill of using a bow to shoot arrows.Paterson ''Encyclopaedia of Archery'' p. 17 The word comes from the Latin ''arcus'', meaning bow. Historically, archery has been used for hunting and combat. In ...

equestrianism Equestrianism (from Latin , , , 'horseman', 'horse'), commonly known as horse riding (Commonwealth English) or horseback riding (American English), includes the disciplines of riding, driving, and vaulting. This broad description includes the ...

, and swordsmanship, Go-Toba was a great lover of swords themselves, and over the course of several years summoned the most talented swordsmiths in the land to his court where they were given honorary titles and invited to teach the emperor their craft. He became a respectable swordsmith himself, and it was his patronage and encouragement of this art that gave birth to Japan's 'Golden Age' of bladesmithing. His contribution to the art is still held in such high esteem, that even today a tradition is maintained in sword literature that he is the first swordsmith to be discussed. His greatest contribution to literature is the Shin Kokinshū (The New Anthology of Ancient and Modern Waka), which Japanese has considered one of three major influential waka anthologies along

Man'yōshū The is the oldest extant collection of Japanese (poetry in Classical Japanese), compiled sometime after AD 759 during the Nara period. The anthology is one of the most revered of Japan's poetic compilations. The compiler, or the last in ...

and Kokin Wakashū. He ordered its creation and took part in the

working group A working group, or working party, is a group of experts working together to achieve specified goals. The groups are domain-specific and focus on discussion or activity around a specific subject area. The term can sometimes refer to an interdis ...

as an editor. He revived the Office of Waka (和歌所) and made it the headquarters of this edition. He held many ''utakai'' (waka parties) and

utaawase , poetry contests or ''waka'' matches, are a distinctive feature of the Japanese literary landscape from the Heian period. Significant to the development of Japanese poetics, the origin of group composition such as '' renga'', and a stimulus to ...

(waka competitions). Not only the creator and organizer, he acted as a critic, and wrote the style of waka in general and criticism of his contemporary poets. During his exile, he continued to compose hundreds of waka and to edit both anthologies from his creation in Oki Islands and a private edition of ''Shin Kokinshū'' for 18 years, getting rid of around 400 wakas from the former edition, while its edition had been officially declared to be completed in 1204, and further elaborations finished even in 1216. While he declared his private edition should be authentic, today the 1216 version is considered as the authentic and others as variants. His edition is today called ''Oki-bon Shin Kokinshū'' (Oki edition). It is probable that during his exile, he also wrote his ''Go-Toba no in gokuden'' ("Secret Teachings"), a short work on aesthetic criticism; the "Secret Teachings" are particularly valuable as a major source on Go-Toba's complicated relationships with his former client, the greatest poet of the age – Fujiwara no Teika. One of his 31-syllable poems was chosen by

Fujiwara no Teika , better-known as Fujiwara no Teika"Sadaie" and "Teika" are both possible readings of ; "...there is the further problem, the rendition of the name in romanized form. Teika probably referred to himself as Sadaie, and his father probably called ...

as Number 99 in the popular anthology '' Hyakunin Isshu''.

''Kugyō''

''Kugyō'' (公卿) is a collective term for the very few most powerful men attached to the court of the

Emperor of Japan The Emperor of Japan is the monarch and the head of the Imperial Family of Japan. Under the Constitution of Japan, he is defined as the symbol of the Japanese state and the unity of the Japanese people, and his position is derived from "the ...

in pre- Meiji eras. In general, this elite group included only three to four men at a time. These were hereditary courtiers whose experience and background would have brought them to the pinnacle of a life's career. During Go-Toba's reign, this apex of the ''

Daijō-kan The , also known as the Great Council of State, was (i) (''Daijō-kan'') the highest organ of Japan's premodern Imperial government under the Ritsuryō legal system during and after the Nara period or (ii) (''Dajō-kan'') the highest organ of J ...

'' included: * '' Sesshō'', Konoe Motomichi, 1160–1233.Brown, p. 335. * '' Sesshō'', Matsu Morie, 1172–1238. * '' Sesshō'', Kujō Kanezane. * '' Daijō-daijin'', Kujō Kanezane. * '' Daijō-daijin'', Kujō Kanefusa, d. 1217. * ''

Sadaijin The ''Kenkyusha's New Japanese-English Dictionary'', Kenkyusha Limited, was a government position in Japan in the late Nara and Heian periods. The position was consolidated in the Taihō Code of 702. The Asuka Kiyomihara Code of 689 marks the in ...

'', Ōimikado Tsunemune, 1119–1189. * ''

'', Todaiji Sanesada, 1139–1191.Brown, p. 336. * ''

'', Sanjō Sanefusa, 1147–1225. * ''

'', Ōimikado Yorizane, 1155–1225. * '' Udaijin'', Tokudaiji Sanesada. * '' Udaijin'', Sanjō Sanefusa. * '' Udaijin'', Ōimikado Yorizane. * '' Nadaijin'', Matsu Morie. * '' Nadaijin'', Tokudaiji Sanesada. * '' Nadaijin'', Konoe Motomichi. * '' Nadaijin'', Kujō Kanefusa. * '' Nadaijin'', Kujō Yoshimichi, 1167–1188. * '' Nadaijin'', Fujiwara Tudachida, d. 1195. * '' Nadaijin'', Kujō Yoshitsine, 1169–1206. * '' Dainagon''

Eras of Go-Toba's reign

The years of Go-Toba's reign are more specifically identified by more than one era name or '' nengō''.Titsingh, pp. 207; Brown, p. 337. * '' Juei'' (1182–1184) * '' Genryaku'' (1184–1185) * '' Bunji'' (1185–1190) * '' Kenkyū'' (1190–1199)

Ancestry

Notes

References

* Brown, Delmer M. and Ichirō Ishida, eds. (1979). ''Gukanshō: The Future and the Past.'' Berkeley: University of California Press.
OCLC 251325323
* Brownlee, John S. (1991). ''Political Thought in Japanese Historical Writing: From Kojiki (712) to Tokushi Yoron (1712).'' Waterloo, Ontario: Wilfrid Laurier University Press. * Brower, Robert H. "Ex-Emperor Go-Toba's Secret Teachings": ''Go-Toba no in Gokuden.'' ''Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies,'' Vol. 32, (1972), pp 5–70. * Ponsonby-Fane, Richard Arthur Brabazon. (1959). ''The Imperial House of Japan.'' Kyoto: Ponsonby Memorial Society
OCLC 194887
* Titsingh, Isaac. (1834). ''

Nihon Odai Ichiran Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

''; ou, ''Annales des empereurs du Japon.'' Paris: Royal Asiatic Society, Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and Ireland
OCLC 5850691
* Varley, H. Paul. (1980). ''Jinnō Shōtōki: A Chronicle of Gods and Sovereigns.'' New York: Columbia University Press.
OCLC 59145842
* Smits, Ivo (1998) "The Poet and the Politician: Teika and the Compilation of the ''Shinchokusenshu''" ''Monumenta Nipponica'' 53(4): pp. 427–472, p. 446 {{DEFAULTSORT:Go-Toba Japanese emperors Japanese rebels 1180 births 1239 deaths 13th-century Japanese poets Emperor Go-Toba People of Kamakura-period Japan 1180s in Japan 1190s in Japan 12th-century Japanese monarchs 13th-century Japanese people Hyakunin Isshu poets Deified Japanese people Kamakura period Buddhist clergy Japanese Buddhist monarchs Japanese retired emperors People from Kyoto