Meitoku (明徳) was a

Japanese era name The , also known as , is the first of the two elements that identify years in the Japanese era calendar scheme. The second element is a number which indicates the year number within the era (with the first year being ""), followed by the literal ...

(年号 ''nengō'', "year name") of the

Northern Court The , also known as the Ashikaga Pretenders or Northern Pretenders, were a set of six pretenders to the throne of Japan during the Nanboku-chō period from 1336 through 1392. The present Imperial House of Japan is descended from the Northern Cour ...

during the Era of Northern and Southern Courts after ''

Kōō , also romanized as Kō-ō, was a Japanese era name (年号, ''nengō'', lit. year name) of the Northern Court during the Era of Northern and Southern Courts after Kakei and before Meitoku. This period spanned the years from February 1389 to March ...

'' and before ''

Ōei was a after ''Meitoku'' and before ''Shōchō''. This period spanned the years from July 1394 through April 1428. Reigning emperors were and . Change of era * 1394 : The new era name was created because of plague. The previous era ended and a ...

''. This period spanned the years from March 1390 to July 1394. After October 1392, Meitoku replaced the Southern Court's nengō (''

Genchū Genchū (元中) was a Japanese era of the Southern Court during the Era of Northern and Southern Courts lasting from April 1384 to October 1392.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Genchū''" i ''Japan encyclopedia,'' p. 236 n.b., Louis-Fréd� ...

''). The emperor in Kyoto was The

Southern Court The were a set of four emperors (Emperor Go-Daigo and his line) whose claims to sovereignty during the Nanboku-chō period spanning from 1336 through 1392 were usurped by the Northern Court. This period ended with the Southern Court definitively ...

rival in Yoshino until 1392 was .

Nanboku-chō overview

During the

Meiji period The is an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868 to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonization ...

, an Imperial decree dated March 3, 1911, established that the legitimate reigning monarchs of this period were the direct descendants of

Emperor Go-Daigo Emperor Go-Daigo (後醍醐天皇 ''Go-Daigo-tennō'') (26 November 1288 – 19 September 1339) was the 96th emperor of Japan, Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'')後醍醐天皇 (96) retrieved 2013-8-28. according to the traditional order ...

through

Emperor Go-Murakami (1328 – March 29, 1368) was the 97th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession, and a member of the Southern Court during the Nanboku-chō period of rival courts. He reigned from September 18, 1339, until March 29, 13 ...

, whose had been established in exile in

Yoshino Yoshino may refer to: * Yoshino cherry, another name for ''Prunus × yedoensis'', a flowering cherry tree * Japanese cruiser Yoshino, Japanese cruiser ''Yoshino'', a protected cruiser of the Imperial Japanese Navy Places * Yoshino, Nara, a town ...

, near Nara.Thomas, Julia Adeney. (2001)
''Reconfiguring modernity: concepts of nature in Japanese political ideology'', p. 199 n57
citing Mehl, Margaret. (1997). ''History and the State in Nineteenth-Century Japan''. pp. 140–147. Until the end of the

Edo period The or is the period between 1603 and 1867 in the history of Japan, when Japan was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional '' daimyo''. Emerging from the chaos of the Sengoku period, the Edo period was characteriz ...

, the militarily superior pretender-Emperors supported by the

Ashikaga shogunate The , also known as the , was the feudal military government of Japan during the Muromachi period from 1336 to 1573.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Muromachi-jidai''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia'', p. 669. The Ashikaga shogunate was establ ...

had been mistakenly incorporated in Imperial chronologies even though it was known that the

Imperial Regalia The Imperial Regalia, also called Imperial Insignia (in German ''Reichskleinodien'', ''Reichsinsignien'' or ''Reichsschatz''), are regalia of the Holy Roman Emperor. The most important parts are the Crown, the Imperial orb, the Imperial sce ...

were not in their possession. This illegitimate had been established in

Kyoto Kyoto (; 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 metropolitan area along with Osaka and Kobe. , the ci ...

Ashikaga Takauji was the founder and first ''shōgun'' of the Ashikaga shogunate."Ashikaga Takauji" in ''The New Encyclopædia Britannica''. Chicago: Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 15th edn., 1992, Vol. 1, p. 625. His rule began in 1338, beginning the Muromac ...

Change of era

* 1390, also called : The new era name was created to mark an event or series of events. The previous era ended and the new one commenced after ''Kōō 2, 15th day of the 1st month.'' In the initial years of this time frame,

(1384–1392) was the Southern Court equivalent ''nengō.''Titsingh, p. 317. In 1392, the two rival courts were said to be reunited in the era of ''Meitoku.'' ''Genchū'' 9 became ''Meitoku'' 3 when the two courts were reconciled.

Events of ''Meitoku'' era

Ashikaga Yoshimitsu was the third ''shōgun'' of the Ashikaga shogunate, ruling from 1368 to 1394 during the Muromachi period of Japan. Yoshimitsu was Ashikaga Yoshiakira's third son but the oldest son to survive, his childhood name being Haruō (). Yoshimitsu was ...

solidified the

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 Kamakur ...

's power by suppressing the power of the ''

daimyō were powerful Japanese magnates, feudal lords who, from the 10th century to the early Meiji era, Meiji period in the middle 19th century, ruled most of Japan from their vast, hereditary land holdings. They were subordinate to the shogun and n ...

s'' and the

shugo , commonly translated as “(military) governor,” “protector,” or “constable,” was a title given to certain officials in feudal Japan. They were each appointed by the ''shōgun'' to oversee one or more of the provinces of Japan. The pos ...

during the Toki Yasuyuki Rebellion, the

Meitoku Rebellion Meitoku (明徳) was a Japanese era name (年号 ''nengō'', "year name") of the Northern Court during the Era of Northern and Southern Courts after ''Kōō'' and before ''Ōei''. This period spanned the years from March 1390 to July 1394. After ...

and the Ōei Rebellion. In Meitoku 3/

9 (1392), the

Northern Dynasty The Northern dynasties (北朝 běi cháo) describe a succession of Chinese empires that coexisted alongside a series of Southern dynasties. The era is generally described as the Northern and Southern dynasties, lasting from 420–589 AD after the ...

confiscated the

Sacred Treasures The are the imperial regalia of Japan and consist of the sword , the mirror , and the jewel . They represent the three primary virtues: Courage, valour (the sword), wisdom (the mirror), and Altruism, benevolence (the jewel).Emperor Go-Kameyama (c. 1347 – May 10, 1424) was the 99th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. He ruled from 1383 to October 21, 1392, becoming the last Emperor of the Southern Court. His personal name was . This 14th century sove ...

, the dynasties, and eras, were consolidated. Hosokawa Yoriyuki, who had reinstated the

after it lost its standing in the

Kōryaku was a Japanese era name (年号, ''nengō'', lit. year name) of the Northern Court during the Era of Northern and Southern Courts after Eiwa and before Eitoku. This period spanned the years from March 1379 through February 1381. The emperor in Ky ...

Coup, died in Meiroku 3 (1392) in the Meiroku Rebellion. His younger brother Hosokawa Yoritomo replaced him as the person in control. In Meitoku 4 (1393), Shiba Yoshimasa became the person in control. * 1390 (''Meitoku 1''): Kusunoki defeated; Yamana Ujikiyo chastises Tokinaga.Ackroyd, Joyce. (1982) ''Lessons from History: The "Tokushi Yoron"'', p. 329. * 1391 (''Meitoku 2''): Yamana Ujikyo attacks Kyoto,Ackroyd, p. 330. an escalation of the

Meitoku War Meitoku (明徳) was a Japanese era name (年号 ''nengō'', "year name") of the Northern Court during the Era of Northern and Southern Courts after ''Kōō'' and before ''Ōei''. This period spanned the years from March 1390 to July 1394. After ...

(1391–1394) in which Yoshimitsu tried to diminish the power of the

Yamana clan The was a Japanese samurai clan which was one of the most powerful of the Muromachi period (1336-1467); at its peak, members of the family held the position of Constable (''shugo'') over eleven provinces. Originally from Kōzuke Province, and late ...

which controlled 11 provincesAckroyd, p. 316. * 1392 (''Meitoku 3''): also known as ''Genchū 9'': Northern and Southern courts reconciled under Go-Komatsu.

Notes

References

* Ackroyd, Joyce. (1982) ''Lessons from History: The

Tokushi Yoron The is an Edo period historical analysis of Japanese history written in 1712 by Arai Hakuseki (1657–1725). Hakuseki's innovative effort to understand and explain the history of Japan differs significantly from previous chronologies which were c ...

''. Brisbane:

University of Queensland Press Established in 1948, University of Queensland Press (UQP) is an Australian publishing house. Founded as a traditional university press, UQP has since branched into publishing books for general readers in the areas of fiction, non-fiction, poetr ...

. * Mehl, Margaret. (1997). ''History and the State in Nineteenth-Century Japan''. New York:

St. Martin's Press St. Martin's Press is a book publisher headquartered in Manhattan, New York City, in the Equitable Building. St. Martin's Press is considered one of the largest English-language publishers, bringing to the public some 700 titles a year under si ...

.
OCLC 419870136
* Nussbaum, Louis Frédéric and Käthe Roth. (2005). ''Japan Encyclopedia''. Cambridge:

Harvard University Press Harvard University Press (HUP) is a publishing house established on January 13, 1913, as a division of Harvard University, and focused on academic publishing. It is a member of the Association of American University Presses. After the retirem ...

.
OCLC 48943301
* Thomas, Julia Adeney. (2001). ''Reconfiguring Modernity: Concepts of Nature in Japanese Political Ideology''. Berkeley:

University of California Press The University of California Press, otherwise known as UC Press, is a publishing house associated with the University of California that engages in academic publishing. It was founded in 1893 to publish scholarly and scientific works by faculty ...

. ; * Titsingh, Isaac. (1834). ''

Nihon Ōdai Ichiran , ', is a 17th-century chronicle of the serial reigns of Japanese emperors with brief notes about some of the noteworthy events or other happenings. According to the 1871 edition of the ''American Cyclopaedia'', the 1834 French translation of ...

''; ou
''Annales des empereurs du Japon''.
Paris: Royal Asiatic Society, Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and Ireland
OCLC 5850691

External links

* National Diet Library, "The Japanese Calendar" �
historical overview plus illustrative images from library's collection
{{Japanese era name Japanese eras 1390s in Japan