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54-518: Sado was famous for the silver and gold mined on the island. In the Kamakura Period , the province was granted to the Honma clan from Honshū, and they continued to dominate Sado until 1589, when Uesugi Kagekatsu of Echigo Province took over the island. The Tokugawa shōguns later made Sado a personal fief after Sekigahara , and assumed direct control of its mines. Since 2004 Sado city has comprised

108-678: A bakufu ( 幕府 , tent government) , but because he was given the ancient high military title Sei-i Taishōgun by Emperor Go-Toba , the government is often referred to in Western literature as the Shogunate. Yoritomo followed the Fujiwara form of house government and had an administrative board ( 政所 , Mandokoro ) , a board of retainers ( 侍所 , Samurai-dokoro ) , and a board of inquiry ( 問注所 , Monchūjo ) . After confiscating estates in central and western Japan, he appointed stewards for

162-424: A seigneur or "lord", 12th century), which gives rise to the expression "seigneurial system" to describe feudalism. Originally, vassalage did not imply the giving or receiving of landholdings (which were granted only as a reward for loyalty), but by the 8th century the giving of a landholding was becoming standard. The granting of a landholding to a vassal did not relinquish the lord's property rights, but only

216-610: A Seigneur or Dame that owns the fief. The Guernsey fiefs and seigneurs existed long before baronies, and are historically part of Normandy . While nobility has been outlawed in France and Germany, noble fiefs still exist by law in Guernsey. The owners of the fiefs actually convene each year at the Court of Chief Pleas under the supervision of His Majesty's Government. There are approximately 24 private fiefs in Guernsey that are registered directly with

270-561: A climate that encouraged religious innovation. Nichiren and Ippen attempted at this time to create down-to-earth teachings that were rooted in the daily concerns of people. Nichiren rejected the focus on "next-worldly" salvation such a rebirth in a Pure Land and instead aimed for "this-worldly" personal and national liberation through a simple and accessible practice. Ippen emphasized a popularized form of nenbutsu recitation with an emphasis on practice rather than concentrating on an individual's underlying mental state. As time evolved

324-465: A form of feudal allegiance, services or payments. The fees were often lands, land revenue or revenue-producing real property like a watermill , held in feudal land tenure : these are typically known as fiefs or fiefdoms . However, not only land but anything of value could be held in fee, including governmental office, rights of exploitation such as hunting, fishing or felling trees, monopolies in trade, money rents and tax farms . There never existed

378-485: A land grant in exchange for service continued to be called a beneficium (Latin). Later, the term feudum , or feodum , began to replace beneficium in the documents. The first attested instance of this is from 984, although more primitive forms were seen up to one hundred years earlier. The origin of the feudum and why it replaced beneficium has not been well established, but there are multiple theories, described below. The most widely held theory

432-463: A land-based economy and the concentration of advanced military technologies in the hands of a specialized fighting class. Lords required the loyal services of vassals, who were rewarded with fiefs of their own; the fief holders then exercised local military rule. Once Minamoto no Yoritomo had consolidated his power, he established a new government at his family home in Kamakura . He called his government

486-475: A lasting basis. Intrafamily contention had long existed within the Minamoto, although Yoritomo had eliminated most serious challengers to his authority. When he died suddenly in 1199, his son Minamoto no Yoriie became shōgun and nominal head of the Minamoto, but Yoriie was unable to control the other eastern warrior families. By the early 13th century, a regency had been established by Hōjō Tokimasa —a member of

540-528: A member of the Southern Court ascended to the throne as Emperor Go-Daigo . Go-Daigo wanted to overthrow the shogunate, and he openly defied Kamakura by naming his own son his heir. In 1331 the shogunate exiled Go-Daigo, but loyalist forces, including Kusunoki Masashige , rebelled. They were aided by Ashikaga Takauji , a constable who turned against the Kamakura when dispatched to put down Go-Daigo's rebellion. At

594-482: A specific year for the beginning of the Kamakura period, as there are various theories about the year the Kamakura shogunate was established. During the early Kamakura period, the shogunate continued warfare against the Northern Fujiwara which was only defeated in 1189. Then, the authority to the Kamakura rulers waned in the 1190s and power was transferred to the powerful Hōjō clan in the early 13th century with

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648-540: A standard feudal system, nor did there exist only one type of fief. Over the ages, depending on the region, there was a broad variety of customs using the same basic legal principles in many variations. In ancient Rome, a " benefice " (from the Latin noun beneficium , meaning "benefit") was a gift of land ( precaria ) for life as a reward for services rendered, originally, to the state. In medieval Latin European documents,

702-437: Is first attested around 1250–1300 (Middle English); the word "fief" from around 1605–1615. In French, the term fief is found from the middle of the 13th century (Old French), derived from the 11th-century terms feu , fie . The odd appearance of the second f in the form fief may be due to influence from the verb fiever 'to grant in fee'. In French, one also finds seigneurie (land and rights possessed by

756-549: Is put forth by Marc Bloch that it is related to the Frankish term *fehu-ôd , in which *fehu means "cattle" and -ôd means "goods", implying "a moveable object of value". When land replaced currency as the primary store of value , the Germanic word *fehu-ôd replaced the Latin word beneficium . This Germanic origin theory was also shared by William Stubbs in the 19th century. A theory put forward by Archibald R. Lewis

810-508: Is that the origin of 'fief' is not feudum (or feodum ), but rather foderum , the earliest attested use being in Astronomus 's Vita Hludovici (840). In that text is a passage about Louis the Pious which says "annona militaris quas vulgo foderum vocant" , which can be translated as "(Louis forbade that) military provender which they popularly call 'fodder' (be furnished)." In

864-546: The shōgun became a powerless figurehead. With the protection of the Emperor, a figurehead himself, strains emerged between Kyoto and Kamakura, and in 1221 the Jōkyū War broke out between the cloistered Emperor Go-Toba and the second regent Hōjō Yoshitoki . The Hōjō forces easily won the war, and the imperial court was brought under the direct control of the shogunate. The shōgun 's constables gained greater civil powers, and

918-818: The Hōjō clan , a branch of the Taira that had allied itself with the Minamoto in 1180. The head of Hōjō was installed as a regent for the shōgun ; the regent was termed the Shikken during the period, although later positions were created with similar power such as the Tokusō and the Rensho . Often the Shikken was also the Tokusō and Rensho . Under the Hōjō,

972-741: The Latter Day of the Law . The new social order of a declining aristocracy and ascending military and peasant classes resulted in new forms of religion, both indigenous and Buddhist while Indian and Chinese influence continued. Furthermore, the Shōen manor system which had taken root in this era resulted in the increased prosperity and literacy of peasants which in turn provided more financial support for Buddhist teachers and their studies. The first originators of Kamakura Buddhism schools were Hōnen and Shinran who emphasized belief and practice over formalism. In

1026-720: The Mongol -led Yuan dynasty were momentous events in Japanese history. Nichiren had predicted these invasions years earlier, in his Rissho Ankoku Ron , a letter to the regency. Japanese relations with China had been terminated in the mid-ninth century after the deterioration of the Tang dynasty and the turning inward of the Heian court. Some commercial contacts were maintained with the Southern Song dynasty in later centuries, but Japanese pirates made

1080-498: The Nara temple schools such as Kegon , Hossō , Sanron , and Ritsu continued to thrive and adapt to the trend of the times. At the start of the Kamakura period, the Mount Hiei monasteries had become politically powerful, appealing primarily to those capable of systematic study of the sect's teachings. The Shingon sect and its esoteric ritual continued to enjoy support largely from

1134-529: The Siege of Kamakura in 1333 which ended the rule of the shogunate. With this, the Kamakura period ended. There was a short re-establishment (1333–1336) of imperial rule under Go-Daigo assisted by Ashikaga Takauji and Nitta Yoshisada but would later lead to direct rule under Ashikaga, forming the Ashikaga shogunate in the succeeding Muromachi period . Several significant administrative achievements were made during

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1188-405: The 10th and 11th centuries the Latin terms for 'fee' could be used either to describe dependent tenure held by a man from his lord, as the term is used now by historians, or it could mean simply "property" (the manor was, in effect, a small fief). It lacked a precise meaning until the middle of the 12th century, when it received formal definition from land lawyers. In English usage, the word "fee"

1242-488: The Hōjō regency. These provided the opportunities for other military lords to exercise judicial and legislative authority and the government established a council centered around collective leadership. The period saw the adoption of Japan's first military code of law in 1232. There was an expansion of Buddhist teachings into Old Buddhism ( Kyū Bukkyō ) and New Buddhism ( Shin Bukkyō ). The Kamakura period marked Japan's transition to

1296-529: The Kamakura regime. The Hōjō regent presided over the council, which was a successful form of collective leadership. The adoption of Japan's first military code of law—the Goseibai Shikimoku —in 1232 reflected the profound transition from court to militarized society. While legal practices in Kyoto were still based on 500-year-old Confucian principles, the new code was a highly legalistic document that stressed

1350-466: The Northern Court contender was installed by Ashikaga, who established a new line of shoguns. Fief List of forms of government A fief ( / f iː f / ; Latin : feudum ) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an overlord to a vassal , who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for

1404-630: The Yuan demands, dismissed the Goryeo messengers, and started defensive preparations. After further unsuccessful entreaties, the first Mongol invasion took place in 1274. More than 600 ships carried a combined ethnic Mongol, Han , and Korean force of 23,000 troops armed with catapults , combustible missiles, and bows and arrows. In fighting, these soldiers grouped in close cavalry formations against samurai, who were accustomed to one-on-one combat. Local Japanese forces at Hakata , on northern Kyūshū , defended against

1458-541: The advantageous mainland force, which, after one day of fighting was destroyed by the onslaught of a sudden typhoon . Kublai realized that nature, not military incompetence, had been the cause of his forces' failure so, in 1281, he launched a second invasion. Seven weeks of fighting took place in northwestern Kyūshū before another typhoon struck, again destroying the Yuan fleet, which was mostly composed of hastily acquired, flat-bottomed Chinese ships especially vulnerable to powerful typhoons. Although Shinto priests attributed

1512-473: The court nobles over the warriors' caste. The reality, however, was that the forces who had arisen against Kamakura had been set on defeating the Hōjō, not on supporting the emperor. Ashikaga Takauji finally sided with the Northern Court in a civil war against the Southern Court represented by Go-Daigo. The long War Between the Courts lasted from 1336 to 1392. Early in the conflict, Go-Daigo was driven from Kyoto, and

1566-462: The court was obliged to seek Kamakura's approval for all of its actions. Although deprived of political power, the court retained extensive estates. Several significant administrative achievements were made during the Hōjō regency. In 1225 the third regent Hōjō Yasutoki established the Council of State, providing opportunities for other military lords to exercise judicial and legislative authority within

1620-452: The distinctions between "Old" and "New" Buddhisms blurred as they formed "cultic centers" and various forms of founder worship. The medieval structures of these schools evolved into hierarchical head temple-branch temple structures with associated rituals and forms of worship. This culminated in the state-sanctioned formalized schools of the Tokugawa period. The repulsions of two invasions by

1674-417: The documents) for the life of the vassal, or, sometimes extending to the second or third generation. By the middle of the 10th century, fee had largely become hereditary. The eldest son of a deceased vassal would inherit, but first he had to do homage and fealty to the lord and pay a " relief " for the land (a monetary recognition of the lord's continuing proprietary rights over the property). Historically,

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1728-410: The duties of stewards and constables, provided means for settling land disputes, and established rules governing inheritances . It was clear and concise, stipulated punishments for violators of its conditions, and parts of it remained in effect for the next 635 years. As might be expected, the literature of the time reflected the unsettled nature of the period. The Hōjōki describes the turmoil of

1782-420: The entire island. [REDACTED] Media related to Sado Province at Wikimedia Commons This Niigata Prefecture location article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Kamakura Period The Kamakura period ( 鎌倉時代 , Kamakura jidai , 1185–1333) is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura shogunate , officially established in 1192 in Kamakura by

1836-426: The estates and constables for the provinces. As shōgun , Yoritomo was both the steward and the constable general. The Kamakura shogunate was not a national regime, however, and although it controlled large tracts of land, there was strong resistance to the stewards. The regime continued warfare against the Northern Fujiwara , but never brought either the north or the west under complete military control. However,

1890-591: The fees of the 11th and the 12th century derived from two separate sources. The first was land carved out of the estates of the upper nobility. The second source was allodial land transformed into dependent tenures. During the 10th century in northern France and the 11th century in France south of the Loire , local magnates either recruited or forced the owners of allodial holdings into dependent relationships and they were turned into fiefs. The process occurred later in Germany, and

1944-516: The first shōgun Minamoto no Yoritomo after the conclusion of the Genpei War , which saw the struggle between the Taira and Minamoto clans. The period is known for the emergence of the samurai , the warrior caste, and for the establishment of feudalism in Japan. There are various theories as to the year in which the Kamakura period and Kamakura shogunate began. In the past, the most popular theory

1998-482: The fourth leader of the Northern Fujiwara Fujiwara no Yasuhira was defeated by Yoritomo in 1189, and the 100-year-long prosperity of the north disappeared. The old court resided in Kyoto , continuing to hold the land over which it had jurisdiction, while newly organized military families were attracted to Kamakura. Despite a strong beginning, Yoritomo failed to consolidate the leadership of his family on

2052-489: The future. The invasions also caused disaffection among those who expected recompense for their help in defeating the Yuan dynasty. There were no lands or other rewards to be given, however, and such disaffection, combined with overextension and the increasing defense costs, led to a decline of the Kamakura bakufu . Additionally, inheritances had divided family properties, and landowners increasingly had to turn to moneylenders for support. Roving bands of rōnin further threatened

2106-543: The head of the clan as regent ( Shikken ) under the shogun which became a powerless figurehead. The later Kamakura period saw the invasions of the Mongols in 1274 and again in 1281. To reduce the amount of chaos, the Hōjō rulers decided to decentralize power by allowing two imperial lines – Northern and Southern court , to alternate the throne. In the 1330s, the Southern court under Emperor Go-Daigo revolted and eventually led to

2160-498: The latter part of the 12th-century Dōgen and Eisai traveled to China and upon their return to Japan founded, respectively, the Sōtō and Rinzai schools of Zen. Dōgen rejected affiliations with the secular authorities whereas Eisai actively sought them. Whereas Eisai thought that Zen teachings would revitalize the Tendai school, Dōgen aimed for an ineffable absolute, a pure Zen teaching that

2214-415: The noble families in Kyoto . However, with the increasing popularity of the new Kamakura schools, the older schools partially eclipsed as the newer "Kamakura" schools found followers among the new Kamakura government, and its samurai . . The times that gave way to the Kamakura period were marked by political and military conflict, natural disasters, and social malaise attributed to the perceived arrival of

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2268-545: The open seas dangerous. At a time when the shogunate had little interest in foreign affairs and ignored communications from China and the Goryeo dynasty , news arrived in 1268 of a new Mongol-led regime in Beijing . Its leader, Kublai , demanded that the Japanese pay tribute to the new Yuan dynasty and threatened reprisals if they failed to do so. Unused to such threats, Kyoto raised the diplomatic counter of Japan's divine origin, rejected

2322-690: The period in terms of the Buddhist concepts of impermanence and the vanity of human projects. The Heike Monogatari narrated the rise and fall of the Taira clan , replete with tales of wars and samurai deeds. A second literary mainstream was the continuation of anthologies of poetry in the Shin Kokin Wakashū , of which twenty volumes were produced between 1201 and 1205. During the Kamakura period six new Buddhist schools (classified by scholars as "New Buddhism" or Shin Bukkyo ) were founded: During this time

2376-519: The pre-existing schools of Tendai , founded by Saichō (767–822), Shingon , founded by Kūkai (774–835), and the great temples of Nara , collectively classified by scholars as "Old Buddhism" or Kyū Bukkyo , continued to thrive, adapt, and exert influence. For example, all of the above six reformers had studied at the Tendai Mt. Hiei at some point in their lives. Throughout the Kamakura period, older Buddhist sects including Shingon , Tendai , and

2430-478: The right of high justice, etc.) in their lands, and some passed these rights to their own vassals. The privilege of minting official coins developed into the concept of seigniorage . In 13th-century Germany, Italy, England, France, and Spain the term "feodum" was used to describe a dependent tenure held from a lord by a vassal in return for a specified amount of knight service and occasional financial payments ( feudal incidents ). However, knight service in war

2484-465: The same time, Nitta Yoshisada , another eastern chieftain, rebelled against the shogunate, which quickly disintegrated, and the Hōjō were defeated. In the swell of victory, Go-Daigo endeavored to restore imperial authority and tenth-century Confucian practices. This period of reform, known as the Kenmu Restoration , aimed at strengthening the position of the emperor and reasserting the primacy of

2538-547: The service of mercenaries . A list of several hundred such fees held in chief between 1198 and 1292, along with their holders' names and form of tenure, was published in three volumes between 1920 and 1931 and is known as The Book of Fees ; it was developed from the 1302 Testa de Nevill . The Bailiwick of Guernsey is a group of several of the Channel Islands that is a Crown Dependency . Guernsey still has feudal law and legal fiefs in existence today. Each fief has

2592-523: The stability of the shogunate. The Hōjō reacted to the ensuing chaos by trying to place more power among the various great family clans. To further weaken the Kyoto court, the bakufu decided to allow two contending imperial lines—known as the Southern Court or junior line and the Northern Court or senior line—to alternate on the throne. The method worked for several successions until

2646-557: The two defeats of the Mongols to a "divine wind" or kamikaze , a sign of heaven's special protection of Japan, the invasion left a deep impression on the shogunate leaders. Long-standing fears of the Chinese threat to Japan were reinforced. The victory also convinced the warriors of the value of the shogunate form of government. The Yuan invasions had been a drain on the economy, and new taxes had to be levied to maintain defensive preparations for

2700-413: The use of the lands and their income; the granting lord retained ultimate ownership of the fee and could, technically, recover the lands in case of disloyalty or death. In Francia , Charles Martel was the first to make large-scale and systematic use (the practice had remained sporadic until then) of the remuneration of vassals by the concession of the usufruct of lands (a beneficatium or " benefice " in

2754-400: Was far less common than: A lord in late 12th-century England and France could also claim the right of: In northern France in the 12th and 13th centuries, military service for fiefs was limited for offensive campaigns to 40 days for a knight. By the 12th century, English and French kings and barons began to commute military service for cash payments ( scutages ), with which they could purchase

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2808-462: Was not tied to beliefs and practices from Tendai or other orthodox schools and with little guidance for leading people how to live in the secular world. The final stage of Kamakura Buddhism, occurring some 50 years after Hōnen, was marked by new social and political conditions as the aristocracy declined, the military class asserted new influence, and Buddhist-infused local kami practice among peasants flourished. These changing conditions created

2862-473: Was still going on in the 13th century. In England, Henry II transformed them into important sources of royal income and patronage. The discontent of barons with royal claims to arbitrarily assessed "reliefs" and other feudal payments under Henry's son King John resulted in Magna Carta of 1215. Eventually, great feudal lords sought also to seize governmental and legal authority (the collection of taxes,

2916-505: Was that the year was 1192, when Minamoto no Yoritomo was appointed Seii Taishōgun ( 征夷大将軍 ) . Later, the prevailing theory was that the year was 1185, when Yoritomo established the Shugo ( 守護 ) , which controlled military and police power in various regions, and the Jitō ( 地頭 ) , which was in charge of tax collection and land administration. Japanese history textbooks as of 2016 do not specify

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