was the 39th

emperor The word ''emperor'' (from , via ) can mean the male ruler of an empire. ''Empress'', the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), mother/grandmother (empress dowager/grand empress dowager), or a woman who rules ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

Imperial Household Agency The (IHA) is an agency of the government of Japan in charge of state matters concerning the Imperial House of Japan, Imperial Family, and the keeping of the Privy Seal of Japan, Privy Seal and State Seal of Japan. From around the 8th century ...

(''Kunaichō'')
弘文天皇 (39)
/ref> according to the traditional

order of succession An order, line or right of succession is the line of individuals necessitated to hold a high office when it becomes vacated, such as head of state or an honour such as a title of nobility.Ponsonby-Fane, Richard. (1959). ''The Imperial House of Japan'', p. 53. Kōbun's reign lasted only a few months in 672.

Traditional narrative

Emperor Kōbun was named the 39th emperor by the Meiji government in 1870; and since the late 19th century, he is known by the posthumous name accorded to him by Meiji scholars. In his lifetime, he was known as Prince Ōtomo (大友皇子, ''Ōtomo no ōji''). He was the favorite son of Emperor Tenji; and he was also the first to have been accorded the title of '' Daijō-daijin.'' Now, Japanese

and minority of contemporary historians place the reign of Emperor Kōbun between the reigns of

Emperor Tenji , known first as and later as until his accession, was the 38th emperor of Japan who reigned from 668 to 671. He was the son of Emperor Jomei and Empress Kōgyoku (Empress Saimei), and his children included Empress Jitō, Empress Genmei, an ...

and

Emperor Tenmu was the 40th Emperor of Japan,Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'') 天武天皇 (40) retrieved 2013-8-22. according to the traditional order of succession. Ponsonby-Fane, Richard. (1959). ''The Imperial House of Japan'', p. 53. He ascended ...

; but the ''Nihongi'', the ''Gukanshō'', the ''Jinnō Shōtōki'' and majority of contemporary historians do not recognize this reign. Prince Ōtomo was only given his posthumous title and name in 1870. :Post-Meiji chronology :* ''In the 10th year of Tenji'', in the 11th month (671): Emperor Tenji, in the 10th year of his reign (天智天皇十年), designated his son as his heir; and modern scholars construe this as meaning that the son would have received the succession (''senso'') after his father's death. Shortly thereafter, Emperor Kōbun is said to have acceded to the throne (''sokui''). If this understanding were valid, then it would follow: ::* ''In the 1st year of Kōbun'' (672): Emperor Kōbun, in the 1st year of his reign (弘文天皇元年), died; and his uncle Ōaomino ōji received the succession (''senso'') after the death of his nephew. Shortly thereafter, Emperor Tenmu could be said to have acceded to the throne (''sokui''). :Pre-Meiji chronology :Prior to the 19th century, Ōtomo was understood to have been a mere interloper, a pretender, an anomaly; and therefore, if that commonly accepted understanding were to have been valid, then it would have followed: :* ''In the 10th year of Tenji'', in the 11th month (671): Emperor Tenji, in the 10th year of his reign (天智天皇十年), died; and despite any military confrontations which ensued, the brother of the dead sovereign would have received the succession (''senso''); and after a time, it would have been understood that Emperor Tenmu rightfully acceded to the throne (''sokui''). :Control of the throne was wrested by Emperor Tenchi's brother, Prince Ōama, during the Jinshin War, after which Emperor Kōbun died by

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Risk factors for suicide include mental disorders, physical disorders, and substance abuse. Some suicides are impulsive acts driven by stress (such as from financial or ac ...

. For centuries, the hapless Prince Ōtomo was not considered to have been a part of the traditional order of succession. The actual site of Kōbun's

grave A grave is a location where a cadaver, dead body (typically that of a human, although sometimes that of an animal) is burial, buried or interred after a funeral. Graves are usually located in special areas set aside for the purpose of buria ...

is known. This emperor is traditionally venerated at a

memorial A memorial is an object or place which serves as a focus for the memory or the commemoration of something, usually an influential, deceased person or a historical, tragic event. Popular forms of memorials include landmark objects such as home ...

Shinto , also called Shintoism, is a religion originating in Japan. Classified as an East Asian religions, East Asian religion by Religious studies, scholars of religion, it is often regarded by its practitioners as Japan's indigenous religion and as ...

shrine A shrine ( "case or chest for books or papers"; Old French: ''escrin'' "box or case") is a sacred space">-4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to talk of the beginnings of French, that is, when it wa ...: ''escri ...

(''misasagi'') at Shiga. The

designates this location as Kōbun's

mausoleum A mausoleum is an external free-standing building constructed as a monument enclosing the burial chamber of a deceased person or people. A mausoleum without the person's remains is called a cenotaph. A mausoleum may be considered a type o ...

. It is formally named ''Nagara no Yamasaki no misasagi''.

Non''-nengō'' period

The years of Kōbun's reign are not linked by scholars to any era or ''nengō''. The Taika era innovation of naming time periods – ''nengō'' – languished until Mommu reasserted an imperial right by proclaiming the commencement of Taihō in 701. * See Japanese era name – ''"Non-nengo periods"'' * See Kōbun (period) (672). In this context, Brown and Ishida's translation of ''Gukanshō'' offers an explanation about the years of Empress Jitō's reign which muddies a sense of easy clarity in the pre-Taiho time-frame: ::"The eras that fell in this reign were: (1) the remaining seven years of Shuchō 686+7=692?) and (2) Taika, which was four years long 95–698 (The first year of this era was ''kinoto-hitsuji'' 95) ... In the third year of the Taka era 97 Empress Jitō yielded the throne to the Crown Prince."Brown, p. 270.

''Kugyo''

The top during Emperor Kōbun's reign included: * ''

Sadaijin The ''Kenkyusha's New Japanese-English Dictionary'', Kenkyusha Limited, was a government position in Japan during the Asuka to Meiji era. The Asuka Kiyomihara Code of 689 marks the initial appearance of the ''Sadaijin'' in the context of a cent ...

'', Soga no Akae (蘇我赤兄) (?–?), 672 (7 months) * ''

Udaijin was a government position in Japan during the Asuka to Meiji era. The position was consolidated in the Taihō Code of 701. The Asuka Kiyomihara Code of 689 marks the initial appearance of the ''Udaijin'' in the context of a central administrat ...

'', Nakatomi no Kane (中臣金) (d. 672), 672 (7 months)

Consorts and children

Consort: Princess Tōchi (十市皇女),

's daughter * First son: Prince Kadono (葛野王, 669–706) Consort: Fujiwara no Mimimotoji (藤原耳面刀自),

Fujiwara no Kamatari , also known as , was a Japanese politician and aristocrat who, together with Prince Naka no Ōe (later Emperor Tenji), carried out the Taika Reform. He was the founder of the Fujiwara clan, the most powerful aristocratic family in Japan durin ...

's daughter * Princess Ichishi-hime (壱志姫王) Emperor Kōbun had another son named Prince Yota (興多王), whose mother is unknown.

Notes

References

* Aston, William George. (1896)
''Nihongi: Chronicles of Japan from the Earliest Times to A.D. 697''.
London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Trubner. * Brown, Delmer M. and Ichirō Ishida, eds. (1979)
''Gukanshō: The Future and the Past''.
Berkeley: University of California Press. ; * Ponsonby-Fane, Richard Arthur Brabazon. (1959)
''The Imperial House of Japan''.
Kyoto: Ponsonby Memorial Society. * 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 ...