, originally known as , was a Japanese noble of the early

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 Kammu, moved the capital of Japan to Heian-kyō (modern Kyoto). means in Japanese. It is a ...

. He reached the court rank of and the position of '' sangi''.

Life

In 778, Mamichi was appointed as an in the

Ministry of the Center The (lit. the department of the inner (or privy) affairs) was a division of the eighth century Japanese government of the Imperial Court in Kyoto, instituted in the Asuka period and formalized during the Heian period. The Ministry was replaced in ...

. In 783, he was conferred the rank of . In this period, he also held various posts in the imperial guard and as a regional administrator. In 785, with the investiture of Prince Ate, the future

Emperor Heizei , also known as ''Heijō-tennō'', was the 51st emperor of Japan, Emperor Heizei, Yamamomo Imperial Mausoleum, Imperial Household Agency according to the traditional order of succession. Heizei's reign lasted from 806 to 809. Traditional nar ...

, as Crown Prince, Mamichi was promoted to and appointed . In 790 Mamichi appealed to have his family's rank increased from ''

muraji (from Old Japanese: ''muraⁿzi'' < *''mura-nusi'' "village master") was an ancient

Japan

ese hereditary title denoting rank a ...

'' to ''

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

'', and was granted the new family name of Sugano no Ason, based on his place of residence. Thanks to the confidence of Emperor Kanmu, Mamichi was able to hold increasingly important positions in the imperial guard and 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 Jap ...

. He was also deeply involved as an assistant director in the construction of the new capital at

Heian-kyō Heian-kyō was one of several former names for the city now known as Kyoto. It was the official capital of Japan for over one thousand years, from 794 to 1868 with an interruption in 1180. Emperor Kanmu established it as the capital in 794, mo ...

. During the same period, his court rank steadily rose, to in 789, in 791, in 794, and in 797. Along with Fujiwara no Tsuginawa and Akishino no Yasuhito, Mamichi worked on the compilation and editing of the

Shoku Nihongi The is an imperially-commissioned Japanese history text. Completed in 797, it is the second of the '' Six National Histories'', coming directly after the and followed by ''Nihon Kōki''. Fujiwara no Tsugutada and Sugano no Mamichi served as t ...

, completing its 40 volumes in 797. In 805, he joined the ranks of the ''

kugyō is the collective term for the very few most powerful men attached to the court of the Emperor of Japan in pre-Meiji eras. The term generally referred to the and court officials and denoted a court rank between First Rank and Third Rank un ...

'' with a promotion to '' sangi''. Later that year, he held , in which Otsugu argued that the planned campaign against the

Emishi The were a group of people who lived in parts of northern Honshū in present-day Japan, especially in the Tōhoku region. The first mention of the Emishi in literature that can be corroborated with outside sources dates to the 5th century AD, ...

in the north and construction of the capital were overburdening the populace and should be stopped. Mamichi was strongly opposed to this, but the Emperor was convinced by Otsugu's argument, and the plans were halted. With the ascension of Emperor Heizei in 806, Mamichi was promoted to . In 807, the police force was established, and Mamichi placed in charge of the

San'indō is a Japanese geographical term. It means both an ancient division of the country and the main road running through it. ''San'in'' translates to "the shaded side of a mountain", while ''dō'', depending on the context, can mean either a road, o ...

region. In 809, he was promoted to and placed in charge of Tōkaidō. In 811, during the reign of

Emperor Saga was the 52nd emperor of Japan, Emperor Saga, Saganoyamanoe Imperial Mausoleum, Imperial Household Agency according to the traditional order of succession. Saga's reign lasted from 809 to 823. Traditional narrative Saga was the second son of ...

, Mamichi reached the age of 70 and retired from his post as ''sangi''. He died on July 23, 814 at the age of 74, with the rank of and as governor of

Hitachi Province was an old provinces of Japan, old province of Japan in the area of Ibaraki Prefecture.Louis Frédéric, Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Hitachi fudoki''" in . It was sometimes called . Hitachi Province bordered on Shimōsa Province, S ...

Genealogy

According to the

Shinsen Shōjiroku is an imperially commissioned Japanese genealogical record. It was first conceived during Emperor Kanmu's reign in 799 to properly track the clans' then ambiguous lineages, but was not completed before his death in 806. The project was later car ...

, Mamichi was descended from the 14th king of

Baekje Baekje or Paekche (; ) was a Korean kingdom located in southwestern Korea from 18 BCE to 660 CE. It was one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea, together with Goguryeo and Silla. While the three kingdoms were in separate existence, Baekje had the h ...

Geungusu of Baekje King Geungusu (died 384, r. 375–384) was the fourteenth king of Baekje, one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea. Background and rise to the throne Geungusu was the eldest son of the 13th king Geunchogo, and father to the 15th king Chimnyu an ...

. *Father: *Mother: Unknown **Son: - Poet, one work in the

Kokin Wakashū The , commonly abbreviated as , is an early anthology of the '' waka'' form of Japanese poetry, dating from the Heian period. An imperial anthology, it was conceived by Emperor Uda () and published by order of his son Emperor Daigo () in abou ...

**Son: **Daughter:

Nihon Sandai Jitsuroku , abbreviated as Sandai Jitsuroku, is an officially commissioned Japanese history text. Completed in 901, it is the sixth and final text in the Six National Histories series. It covers the years 858–887. Background Following the earlier nati ...

Jōgan Year 5, Month 5, Day 19 **Daughter: Wife of

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sugano no, Mamichi 741 births 814 deaths People of the Heian period