, also known as Kajō, was a after '' Jōwa'' and before '' Ninju.'' This period spanned the years from June 848 through April 851. The reigning emperors were and .

Change of era

* February 9, 848 : The new era name ''Kashō'' (meaning "good augury") was created because a white

tortoise Tortoises ( ) are reptiles of the family Testudinidae of the order Testudines (Latin for "tortoise"). Like other turtles, tortoises have a shell to protect from predation and other threats. The shell in tortoises is generally hard, and like o ...

was discovered in the

Bungo Province was a province of Japan in the area of eastern Kyūshū, corresponding to most of modern Ōita Prefecture, except what is now the cities of Nakatsu and Usa. Bungo bordered on Hyūga to the south, Higo and Chikugo to the west, and Chikuze ...

, and it was duly presented to the emperor. The previous era ended and the new one commenced in ''Jōwa'' 15, on the 13th day of the 6th month of 848.

Events of the ''Kashō'' era

* February 18, 848 (''Kashō 1, 10th day of the 1st month''): The ''

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 ...

Fujiwara no Yoshifusa , also known as ''Somedono no Daijin'' or ''Shirakawa-dono'', was a Japanese statesman, courtier and politician during the Heian period.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Fujiwara no Nakahira" in ; Brinkley, Frank ''et al.'' (1915). When Yos ...

(904–872) was named ''udaijin.'' He was the son of the former ''

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 ...

'' Fujiwara Fuyutsugu (775–826). Yoshifusa's daughter, Fujiwara no Akira-keiko, became Emperor Montoku's wife and the mother of

Emperor Seiwa was the 56th emperor of Japan,Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'') 清和天皇 (56)/ref> according to the traditional order of succession. Seiwa's reign spanned the years from 858 through 876. Traditional narrative Seiwa was the fourth ...

. * 848 (''Kashō 1, 6th month''): A white tortoise was discovered in

. As this was an extraordinary thing, all the court officials made their appearances before the emperor with comments about the good augury this tortoise represented.Titisngh
p. 111.
/ref> * 849 (''Kashō 2, 4th month''): An ambassador from

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 ...

was received at court. * 849 (''Kashō 2, 5th month''): The ambassador from Baekje was received by the emperor, who entertained him. Emperor Tenmyō charged

Ono no Takamura , also known as , was a Japanese calligrapher and poet of the early Heian period. Life Takamura was a descendant of Ono no Imoko who served as Kenzuishi, and his father was Ono no Minemori. He was the grandfather of Ono no Michikaze, one of t ...

to prepare a letter which was to be presented at the Baekje court. * 849 (''Kashō 2, 10th month''): Nimmyo celebrated his 40th birthday, and many presents were offered to him. * 849 (''Kashō 2, 11th month''): The emperor toured the capital in a grand procession; and when he passed by the prison, he ordered Yoshifusa to give freedom to all the prisoners held there. Ninmyo caused rice and monies to be distributed amongst the poor. * 850 (''Kashō 3, 1st month''): The emperor made an official visit (chōkin) to the residence of his mother as a way of demonstrating filial piety. * May 6, 850 (''Kashō 3, 21st day of the 3rd month''): Emperor Ninmyō died at age 41; and his eldest son received the succession (''senso''). Shortly thereafter, Emperor Montoku formally acceded to the throne (''sokui''). According to his wishes, he was entombed without pomp or ceremony. After this, the emperor was sometimes referred to as "the Emperor of Fukakasa", which was the name given to his mausoleum. Emperor Ninmyo had reigned 17 years—14 years in the Jōwa era, and 3 years in the Kashō era. * 850 (''Kashō 3, 5th month''):

Tachibana no Kachiko , also known as , was a Japanese empress, the chief consort of Emperor SagaPonsonby-Fane, Richard. (1959). ''The Imperial House of Japan,'' pp. 318-319. and the daughter of .Ponsonby-Fane, p. 319. She was de facto ruler of the empire between 833 a ...

died. She was the widow 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 ...

and the mother of Emperor Ninmyō and the grandmother of Emperor Montoku. This very devout Buddhist had founded a temple called on the site of present-day —more formally known as , located in what is now Susukinobaba-chō, Ukyō Ward in

Kyoto Kyoto ( or ; Japanese language, Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan's largest and most populous island of Honshu. , the city had a population of 1.46 million, making it t ...

, Before her death, the former empress had been known by the honorific name and title, ; and she had been honored as if she were a saint.Titsingh
p. 112.
/ref>

Notes

References

* Brown, Delmer M. and Ichirō Ishida, eds. (1979)
''Gukanshō: The Future and the Past''.
Berkeley: University of California Press.
OCLC 251325323
* Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric and Käthe Roth. (2005)
''Japan encyclopedia''.
Cambridge:

Harvard University Press Harvard University Press (HUP) is an academic publishing house established on January 13, 1913, as a division of Harvard University. It is a member of the Association of University Presses. Its director since 2017 is George Andreou. The pres ...

.
OCLC 58053128
* 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
* Varley, H. Paul. (1980). ''A Chronicle of Gods and Sovereigns: Jinnō Shōtōki of Kitabatake Chikafusa''. New York:

Columbia University Press Columbia University Press is a university press based in New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's la ...

.
OCLC 6042764

External links

National Diet Library The is the national library of Japan and among the largest libraries in the world. It was established in 1948 for the purpose of assisting members of the in researching matters of public policy. The library is similar in purpose and scope to ...

, "The Japanese Calendar
-- historical overview plus illustrative images from library's collection
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kasho Japanese eras 840s in Japan 850s in Japan 848 851