The Hōgen rebellion was a short civil war fought in order to resolve a dispute about Japanese Imperial succession. The dispute was also about the degree of control exercised by the Fujiwara clan who had become hereditary Imperial regents during the Heian period. Hōgen no ran produced a series of unanticipated consequences. It created a foundation from which the dominance of the samurai clans would come to be established. It is considered the beginning in a chain of events which would produce the first of three samurai-led governments in the history of Japan.
August 23, 1155 : In the 14th year of Konoe-tennō 's reign, the emperor died; and despite an ensuing dispute over who should follow him as sovereign, contemporary scholars then construed that the succession was received by a younger brother, the 4th son of former-Emperor Toba. Shortly after that, Emperor Go-Shirakawa is said to have acceded to the throne.
When Go-Shirakawa ascended the Chrysanthemum Throne, a new phase of this multi-faceted power struggle began to unfold. A bitter dispute between two of Toba's sons was paralleled by divisions within the several kuge families and others. Toba had forced one of his sons to abdicate in favor of the son of another consort; and after 1142, former Emperor Sutoku harbored the expectation that his son would follow Emperor Konoe on the throne. Sutoku's hopes were frustrated by the elevation of another brother who would become known as Go-Shirakawa.
July 20, 1156 : The former-Emperor Toba died at the age of 54.
After the death of the Toba, forces loyal to reigning Emperor Go-Shirakawa and the forces supporting retired former Emperor Sutoku disputed the accession of Go-Shirakawa and his continued possession of the throne. The opposing groups were also contending over continuation of cloistered government.
July 28, 1156 : Both forces faced each other in Kyōto. On the Sutoku side, Minamoto no Tametomo suggested a night attack on an enemy palace, but Fujiwara no Yorinaga rejected this strategy. Meanwhile, their enemy Minamoto no Yoshitomo suggested the same, and followed through on it.
July 29, 1156 : At night, Kiyomori and Yoshitomo led 600 cavalry and attacked Sutoku in the Siege of Shirakawa-den. Kiyomori attacked the West gate where Tametomo defended it. Tametomo repulsed Kiyomori's force with his outstanding archery units.
Then Yoshitomo attacked Tametomo but he was also repulsed. Sutoku's samurai fought hard, and a fierce battle continued. Yoshitomo suggested that they set the enemy palace on fire. This was done and, fighting both the flames and Go-Shirakawa's forces, Sutoku's samurai fled, leaving Go-Shirakawa's allies victorious on the battlefield.
Outcome
The forces of the reigning Emperor Go-Shirakawa went on to defeat the forces of the former Emperor Sutoku. This made way for Go-Shirakawa to abdicate while still continuing to exercise unfettered Imperial powers. Go-Shirakawa became the new cloistered emperor in 1158, and he would continue to exercise power throughout the reigns of five emperors: Emperor Nijō, Emperor Rokujō, Emperor Takakura, Emperor Antoku, and Emperor Go-Toba. His influence only ceased with his death in 1192. Sutoku was banished to Sanuki Province of Shikoku; Fujiwara no Yorinaga was killed in battle, and Minamoto no Tameyoshi and Taira no Tadamasa were executed. Tametomo survived the battle and was forced to flee. Minamoto no Yoshitomo became head of his clan after the death of his father and together with Taira no Kiyomori, succeeded in establishing the two samurai clans as major new political powers in Kyoto.
Legacy
The outcome of the Hōgen Rebellion and the rivalry established between the Minamoto and Taira clans led to the Heiji Rebellion in 1159. The Kamakura period epic Tale of the Disturbance in Hōgen is about the exploits of the samurai that participated in the Hōgen Rebellion. Together with the Tale of the Disturbance in Heiji and the Tale of Heike, these war stories describe the rise and fall of the Minamoto and Taira samurai clans.
