The was a cadet branch 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 ...

. It was founded by

Fujiwara no Muchimaro was a Japanese courtier (''kuge'') and politician of the late Asuka and early Nara period. He founded the Nanke ("Southern") branch of the Fujiwara clan.'' MyPedia'' entry for "Fujiwara no Muchimaro His court rank is Senior First Rank. Life ...

. Muchimaro had three brothers: Fusasaki, Maro and Umakai. These four brothers are known for having established the "four houses" of the Fujiwara. The name Nanke ("southern house") comes from the fact that Muchimaro's mansion was located south of the mansion of his younger brother. The Nanke served in the imperial court, but many of

Fujiwara no Tamenori 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 Kamat ...

's descendants later became

samurai were the hereditary military nobility and officer caste of History of Japan#Medieval Japan (1185–1573/1600), medieval and Edo period, early-modern Japan from the late 12th century until their abolition in 1876. They were the well-paid retai ...

families such as Itō,

Nikaidō is the name of one of the administrative units ("towns", chō or machi) of Kamakura, a city located in Kanagawa, Japan, about 50 km south-south-west of Tokyo. Nikaidō lies immediately to the east of Nishi Mikado and Yukinoshita, and used ...

, Sagara and Kudō.

Nara period

The founder of Fujiwara Nanke, Fujiwara no Muchimaro, was the eldest son of

Fujiwara no Fuhito Fujiwara no Fuhito (藤原不比等: 659 – 13 September 720) was a powerful member of the imperial court of Japan during the Asuka and Nara periods. Second son of Fujiwara no Kamatari (or, according to one theory, of Emperor Tenji), he ...

. Shortly after the beginning of

Nara period The of the history of Japan covers the years from CE 710 to 794. Empress Genmei established the capital of Heijō-kyō (present-day Nara, Nara, Nara). Except for a five-year period (740–745), when the capital was briefly moved again, it remai ...

, Muchimaro became the head of Ministry of Civil Services in 718. When Fuhito died in 720,

Prince Nagaya Nagaya ( ') (684 – 20 March 729) was a politician of the Nara period and an imperial prince of Japan, a son of Prince Takechi (grandson of Emperor Tenmu). His father was Prince Takechi and his mother Princess Minabe (a daughter of Emperor T ...

was at the highest rank in the state government. Prince Nagaya was grandson of Emperor Tenmu, but not a son of Fujiwara family, he was therefore seen as a threat by Muchimaro and his three brothers. After successfully removing Prince Nagaya in 729, Muchimaro rose to ''

Dainagon was a counselor of the first rank in the Imperial court of Japan. The role dates from the 7th century. This advisory position remained a part of the Imperial court from the 8th century until the Meiji period in the 19th century.Nussbaum, "Dainag ...

'', "Counselor of the first rank". In 734, he was promoted to ''

Udaijin 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 initial appearance of the ''udaijin'' in the context of a central adminis ...

'' or "Minister of the Right", and in 737, he was made ''

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 i ...

'' or "Minister of the Left". Nanke further prospered in the Nara period as Nakamaro, the second son of Muchimaro, gained the trust of

Empress Kōken , also known as , was the 46th (with the name Empress Kōken) and the 48th monarch of Japan (with the name Empress Shōtoku), Emperor Kōnin, Takano Imperial Mausoleum, Imperial Household Agency according to the traditional order of succession. ...

and was given the name ''Emi no Oshikatsu.''

Tachibana no Naramaro was a Japanese aristocrat (''kuge''), courtier, and statesman of the Nara period. He was the son of ''sadaijin'' Tachibana no Moroe and the second head of the Tachibana clan. He attained the court rank of and the position of '' sangi'', and po ...

, who was unhappy about Nakamaro's monopolization of power, plotted a conspiracy to replace Nakamaro and to overthrow the Empress, but Nakamaro settled the rebellion and established

dictatorship A dictatorship is a form of government which is characterized by a leader, or a group of leaders, which holds governmental powers with few to no limitations on them. The leader of a dictatorship is called a dictator. Politics in a dictatorship a ...

. However, Nakamaro was killed during

Fujiwara no Nakamaro Rebellion The , also known as the Emi Rebellion, was a short-lived and unsuccessful Nara period military confrontation in Japan resulting from a power struggle between former Empress Kōken and the main political figure of the time, Fujiwara no Nakamaro ...

after he attempted to overthrow the

Imperial Family A royal family is the immediate family of kings/queens, emirs/emiras, sultans/ sultanas, or raja/rani and sometimes their extended family. The term imperial family appropriately describes the family of an emperor or empress, and the term papa ...

and become the

emperor 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 ( e ...

, after which Hokke replaced Nanke as the leading house of Fujiwara.

Notable members

Fujiwara no Nakamaro , also known as , Brown, Delmer M. (1979). ''Gukanshō,'' p. 274 was a Japanese aristocrat (''kuge''), courtier, and statesman. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"Fujiwara no Nakamaro"in ''Japan Encyclopedia'', p. 207. He was Chancellor (''Daij� ...

* Fujiwara no Suenori * Fujiwara no Toshiyuki * Ukon * Fujiwara no Michinori

Family tree

Notes

References

* Brinkley, Frank and

Dairoku Kikuchi Baron was a Japanese mathematician, educator, and education administrator during the Meiji era. Biography Early life and family Kikuchi was born in Edo (present-day Tokyo), as the second son of Mitsukuri Shūhei, a professor at Bansho Sh ...

. (1915). ''A History of the Japanese People from the Earliest Times to the End of the Meiji Era.'' New York: Encyclopædia Britannica
OCLC 413099
* Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric and Käthe Roth. (2005). ''Japan Encyclopedia.'' Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
OCLC 58053128
Fujiwara clan Japanese clans Japanese nobility {{Japan-hist-stub

Nara period

Notable members

Family tree

See also

Notes

References