was the 98th
emperor of Japan
The emperor of Japan is the hereditary monarch and head of state of Japan. The emperor is defined by the Constitution of Japan as the symbol of the Japanese state and the unity of the Japanese people, his position deriving from "the will of ...
, according to the traditional order of succession. He reigned from
1368 through 1383. His personal name was Yutanari (寛成) and his regal name roughly translates to "Long Celebration".
Genealogy
His father was
Emperor Go-Murakami and his mother may have been
Kaki Mon'in.
*Empress (chūgū): Saionji Kinshige's daughter
** Gyōgo (行悟; 1377–1406)
*Nyōgo: Noriko (father and family unknown)
** First son: Imperial Prince Tokiyasu (世泰親王)
*Unknown
** Kaimonji Kosho (海門承朝; 1374–1443)
** Sonsei (尊聖; 1376–1432),
** son: founder of Tamagawa family (玉川宮)
Biography
On March 29, 1368 (''
Shōhei 23, 11th day of the 3rd month''), following the death of Emperor Murakami II, he was enthroned in the house of the Chief Priest at the
Sumiyoshi Grand Shrine in Sumiyoshi,
Osaka
is a Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan, designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the List of cities in Japan, third-most populous city in J ...
, where the Southern Court had made its capital. However, because the Southern Court's influence was declining, the enthronement remained in some doubt until the
Taishō period. In 1926, the enthronement was officially recognized and inserted into the Imperial Line.
Emperor Chōkei insisted throughout his reign on fighting the
Northern Dynasty, but it was already too late. In 1383 or 1384, he abdicated to
Emperor Go-Kameyama, who supported the peace faction.
After the reunification of the rival courts, he went into retirement and eventually returned to Yoshino where he died on August 27, 1394. The ''
kami
are the Deity, deities, Divinity, divinities, Spirit (supernatural entity), spirits, mythological, spiritual, or natural phenomena that are venerated in the traditional Shinto religion of Japan. ''Kami'' can be elements of the landscape, forc ...
'' of Emperor Chōkei is venerated at
Shishō jinja in
Totsugawa,
Yamato province.
[Ponsonby-Fane, p. 128.]
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 hereditary monarch and head of state of Japan. The emperor is defined by the Constitution of Japan as the symbol of the Japanese state and the unity of the Japanese people, his position deriving from "the will of ...
in pre-
Meiji eras. Even during those years in which the court's actual influence outside the palace walls was minimal, the hierarchic organization persisted.
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 Chōkei'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 Jap ...
'' included:
* ''
Sadaijin''
* ''
Udaijin''
* ''
Nadaijin''
* ''
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 ...
''
Eras of Chōkei's reign
The years of Chōkei's reign are more specifically identified by more than one
era name or ''
nengō''.
:''Nanboku-chō'' southern court
*Eras as reckoned by legitimate Court (as determined by Meiji rescript)
* ''
Shōhei'' (1346–1370)
* ''
Kentoku'' (1370–1372)
* ''
Bunchū'' (1372–1375)
* ''
Tenju'' (1375–1381)
* ''
Kōwa'' (1381–1384)
:''Nanboku-chō'' northern court
*Eras as reckoned by pretender Court (as determined by Meiji rescript)
* ''
Ōan'' (1368–1375)
* ''
Eiwa'' (1375–1379)
* ''
Kōryaku'' (1379–1381)
* ''
Eitoku'' (1381–1384)
Notes
Works cited
*
*
Ponsonby-Fane, Richard Arthur Brabazon. (1959)
''The Imperial House of Japan.''Kyoto: Ponsonby Memorial Society
OCLC 194887*
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.
See also
*
Emperor of Japan
The emperor of Japan is the hereditary monarch and head of state of Japan. The emperor is defined by the Constitution of Japan as the symbol of the Japanese state and the unity of the Japanese people, his position deriving from "the will of ...
*
List of Emperors of Japan
*
Imperial cult
An imperial cult is a form of state religion in which an emperor or a dynasty of emperors (or rulers of another title) are worshipped as demigods or deities. "Cult (religious practice), Cult" here is used to mean "worship", not in the modern pejor ...
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chokei
Emperors of Japan
1343 births
1394 deaths
Emperor Chokei
Emperor Chokei
Emperor Chokei
Emperor Chokei
14th-century Japanese monarchs
Japanese emperors who abdicated
Sons of Japanese emperors