daijō-daijin

The was the head of the during and after the Nara period and briefly under the Meiji Constitution. It was equivalent to the Chinese , or Grand Preceptor.

History

Emperor Tenji's favorite son, Prince Ōtomo, was the first to have been accorded the title of ''Daijō-daijin'' during the reign of his father. The Asuka Kiyomihara Code of 689 marks the initial appearance of the ''Daijō-Daijin'' in the context of a central administrative body composed of the three ministers: the ''Daijō-daijin'' (Chancellor), the , and the . These positions were consolidated under the Code of Taihō in 702.

At a time when the Emperor and the nobility held real power, the ''Daijō-daijin'' was the highest position in the ''Daijō-kan'', the central organ of the state. However, it was stipulated by law that no one could be appointed to this position if there was no suitable candidate, and the highest permanent position in the ''Daijō-kan'' was that of ''Sadaijin''.

In the Nara period (710–794), the title of ''Daijō-daijin'' was basically a posthumous promotion. After the appointment of Fujiwara Yoshifusa in 857 of the Heian period (794–1185), it became an almost permanent position, although not legally permanent, and many members of the Fujiwara clan were appointed to the position. As the Fujiwara clan—which dominated the and —gained influence, the official government offices diminished in power. By the 10th century, ''Daijō-daijin'' had no power to speak of unless they were simultaneously ''Sesshō'' and ''Kampaku'', or otherwise supported by the Fujiwara. Although the position continued in name until 1885, by the beginning of the 12th century, the office was essentially powerless, and was often vacant for lengthy periods.

By the 10th century, the position of ''Daijō-daijin'' had become an honorary position with no real authority, but it continued to be held by members of the high aristocratic class.

In 1167, Taira no Kiyomori established the first de facto samurai government and became ''Daijō-daijin''. He was the first person to become ''Daijō-daijin'' despite being born into the warrior class. During the Kamakura period (1185-1333), high-ranking positions at the ''Daijō-kan'', such as ''Sadaijin'', and ''Udaijin'', also became honorary titles bestowed by the emperor on members of the warrior class.左大臣.
Kotobank At the time of Oda Nobunaga's appointment as ''Udaijin'' during the Azuchi-Momoyama period, the only members of the warrior class who had previously been appointed to imperial court posts higher than ''Udaijin'' were Taira no Kiyomori and Ashikaga Yoshimitsu as ''Daijō-daijin'' and Ashikaga Yoshinori and Ashikaga Yoshimasa as ''Sadaijin''. Nobunaga was posthumously promoted to ''Daijō-daijin'' in 1582. Subsequently, Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Tokugawa Ieyasu were appointed ''Daijō-daijin''.

This prominent office was briefly resurrected under the Meiji Constitution with the appointment of Sanjō Sanetomi in 1871, before being abolished completely in 1885 in favor of the newly created office of Prime Minister.

Functions

The Chancellor presided over the Great Council of State, and controlled the officers of the state, in particular the ''Sadaijin'' and ''Udaijin'', as well as four great councillors and three minor councillors. The ministers in turn controlled other elements of the government.

List of the Chancellors of the Realm

See also

* Kugyō
* Sesshō and Kampaku
* Kōkyū
* Kuge
* Imperial Household Agency

Notes

References

* Asai, T. (1985). ''Nyokan Tūkai''. Tokyo: Kōdansha .
* Dickson, Walter G. (1869). ''Japan: Being a Sketch of the History, Government and Officers of the Empire.'' London: W. Blackwood & Sons.
* .
* .
* Kitabatake Chikafusa (1980) 359 '' Jinnō Shōtōki'' (''A Chronicle of Gods and Sovereigns''). Varley, H. Paul, transl. New York: Columbia University Press. .
* Ozaki, Yukio (2001). ''The Autobiography of Ozaki Yukio: The Struggle for Constitutional Government in Japan.'' ranslated by Fujiko Hara Princeton: Princeton University Press. (cloth).
* .
* .
* Sansom, George (1958). ''A History of Japan to 1334''. Stanford: Stanford University Press.
* Screech, Timon (2006). ''Secret Memoirs of the Shoguns: Isaac Titsingh and Japan, 1779–1822.'' London: Routledge Curzon.
* Titsingh, Isaac, ed. (1834). iyun-sai Rin-siyo/Hayashi Gahō, 1652">Hayashi_Gahō.html" ;"title="iyun-sai Rin-siyo/ iyun-sai Rin-siyo/Hayashi Gahō, 1652 ''Nipon o daï itsi ran">Hayashi Gahō">iyun-sai Rin-siyo/Hayashi Gahō, 1652">Hayashi_Gahō.html" ;"title="iyun-sai Rin-siyo/Hayashi Gahō">iyun-sai Rin-siyo/Hayashi Gahō, 1652 ''Nipon o daï itsi ran; ou
Annales des empereurs du Japon.''
Paris: Royal Asiatic Society ">Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and Ireland .

{{DEFAULTSORT:Daijo Daijin
Government of feudal Japan
Meiji Restoration

Japanese courtiers