is the 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 era The was an Japanese era name, era of History of Japan, 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 feu ...

s. The term generally referred to the and court officials and denoted a court rank between First Rank and Third Rank under the '' Ritsuryō'' system, as opposed to the lower court nobility, thus being the collective term for the upper court nobility. However, later on some holders of the Fourth Rank were also included. In 1869, following the

Meiji Restoration The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored Imperial House of Japan, imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Althoug ...

, the court nobility and daimyo were merged into a new

peerage A peerage is a legal system historically comprising various hereditary titles (and sometimes Life peer, non-hereditary titles) in a number of countries, and composed of assorted Imperial, royal and noble ranks, noble ranks. Peerages include: A ...

, the '' kazoku''.

Overview

The ''kugyō'' generally refers to two groups of court officials: * the ''Kō'' (公), comprising the Chancellor of the Realm, the Minister of the Left, and the Minister of the Right; and * the ''Kei'' (卿), comprising the Major Counsellor, the Middle Counsellor, and the Associate Counselors, who held the court rank of Third Rank or higher.

History

The ''kugyō'' originated from the Three Lords and Nine Ministers (三公九卿) of the ancient Chinese

Qin dynasty The Qin dynasty ( ) was the first Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China. It is named for its progenitor state of Qin, a fief of the confederal Zhou dynasty (256 BC). Beginning in 230 BC, the Qin under King Ying Zheng enga ...

(221 BC – 206 BC). In Japan, the ''kugyō'' was similarly divided into two groups of court officials the three ''Kō'' and the nine ''Kei''. The ''Kō'' comprised the Chancellor of the Realm (''Taishi'' or ''Daijō-daijin''), the Minister of the Left (''Taifu'' or ''Sadaijin''), and the Minister of the Right (''Taiho'' or ''Udaijin''); and the ''Kei'' comprised the Associate Counselors (''Shōshi'', ''Shōfu'', ''Shōho'', ''Chōsai'', ''Shito'', ''Sōhaku'', ''Shiba'', ''Shikō'', and ''Shikū'', or collectively the ''Sangi''), who held the court rank of Third Rank or higher. Under the '' Ritsuryō'' system, the ''kugyō'' included the three Ministers (''Daijin''), the Chancellor of the Realm, the Minister of the Left, and the Minister of the Right, and the Major Counsellor (''Gyoshitaifu'' or ''Dainagon''), who held the court rank of Third Rank or higher. However, later on government offices not specified in the administrative code of the ''ritsuryō'', the

Regent In a monarchy, a regent () is a person appointed to govern a state because the actual monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge their powers and duties, or the throne is vacant and a new monarch has not yet been dete ...

(''Sesshō'' and ''Kampaku''), the Inner Minister (''Naidaijin''), the Middle Counsellor (''Chūnagon''), and Associate Counselors holding the Fourth Rank were also included in the ''kugyō''. The ''kugyō'' was also divided into the incumbent courtiers (''Gennin'') and courtiers without a post (''Sani''). Additionally, among the courtiers without a post, the courtiers who had at least once held a position of Associate Counselor or higher were referred to as e.g. former Major Counsellor (''saki no Dainagon''), but courtiers holding a court rank of Third Rank or higher who had never been Associate Counselor were referred to as non-Associate Counselor (''Hisangi''). In 758, the Chancellor of the Realm was renamed ''Taishi'' from ''Daijō-daijin'', the Minister of the Left was renamed ''Taifu'' from ''Sadaijin'', the Minister of the Right was renamed ''Taiho'' from ''Udaijin'', and the Major Counsellor was renamed ''Gyoshitaifu'' from ''Dainagon''. However, after the death of Fujiwara no Nakamaro in 764, the old names were restored. As part of the Meiji reforms, a single aristocratic class, the '' kazoku'', was created in 1869 by merging the ''

kuge The was a Japanese Aristocracy (class), aristocratic Social class, class that dominated the Japanese Imperial Court in Kyoto. The ''kuge'' were important from the establishment of Kyoto as the capital during the Heian period in the late 8th ce ...

'' (the court nobility in Kyoto, of which the ''kugyō'' was a part) and 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 no ...

s'' (the feudal land holders and warriors). In the 1870s, the organizational structure of the court itself was also modernized. In the period after the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the ''kazoku'' was abolished, as a part of post-war Japanese reforms. The remaining political powers of the Emperor were transferred to the constitutional government of Japan, and the responsibility for state matters concerning the Emperor and the

Imperial family A royal family is the immediate family of monarch, monarchs and sometimes their extended family. The term imperial family appropriately describes the family of an emperor or emperor, empress, and the term papal family describes the family of ...

was consolidated entirely into the

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 ...

Terminology

The ''kugyō'' was also known as ''kandachime'' (上達部), ''keishō'' (卿相), ''gekkei'' (月卿), and ''kyokuro'' or ''odoronomichi'' (棘路). While ''kugyō'' was the collective term for the holders of a court rank between First Rank and Third Rank, the term for the holders of Fourth Rank and Fifth Rank was '' Taifu''.

References

Daijirin is a comprehensive single-volume Japanese dictionary edited by , and first published by in 1988. This title is based upon two early Sanseidō dictionaries edited by Shōzaburō Kanazawa (金沢庄三郎, 1872–1967), ''Jirin'' (辞林 "Fores ...

, 2nd edition * Daijisen, 1st edition * Kōjien, 6th edition {{DEFAULTSORT:Kugyo Japanese historical terms Royal and noble courts Japanese courtiers

Overview

History

Terminology

See also

References