was a Nanboku-chō

Nanboku-cho

The , spanning from 1336 to 1392, was a period that occurred during the formative years of the Muromachi bakufu of Japan's history.During this period, there existed a Northern Imperial Court, established by Ashikaga Takauji in Kyoto, and a Southern Imperial Court, established by Emperor Go-Daigo in...

 period warrior, and the Kamakura-fu

Kamakura-fu

The or was a regional government installed in Kamakura, in today's Kanagawa Prefecture, by the Ashikaga shogunate which lasted from 1349 to 1455. It was headed by a dynasty of Ashikaga rulers called Kamakura Kubō...

's third Kantō Kubō

Kanto kubo

was a title equivalent to shogun assumed by Ashikaga Motouji after his nomination to Kantō kanrei, or deputy shogun for the Kamakura-fu, in 1349. Motouji transferred his original title to the Uesugi family, which had previously held the hereditary title of , and would thereafter provide the Kantō...

, (Shogun Deputy). Being the eldest son, he succeeded his father Ujimitsu

Ashikaga Ujimitsu

was a Nanboku-chō period warrior and the Kamakura-fu's second Kantō Kubō, or Shogun Deputy. Son of first Kantō Kubō Ashikaga Motouji, he succeeded his father in 1367 at the age of nine when this last suddenly died during an epidemic. It was during his reign that the Kanto Kubō title became common...

 in 1398 at the age of 21 when he died during an epidemic.. Like him, Mitsukane aspired more or less openly to the shogunate and, like him and his successors, failed to obtain it. He died suddenly at the age of 32 natural causes.

Biography

In 1399, the year after taking power, Mitsukane dispatched his sons Mitsunao and Mitsusada to Mutsu Province

Mutsu Province

was an old province of Japan in the area of Fukushima, Miyagi, Iwate and Aomori prefecture and the municipalities of Kazuno and Kosaka in Akita Prefecture...

's Sasagawa Gosho and Inamura Gosho to stabilize the situation in the region which, together with Dewa province

Dewa Province

is an old province of Japan, comprising modern-day Yamagata Prefecture and Akita Prefecture, except for the city of Kazuno and the town of Kosaka. It was sometimes called .-Historical record:...

, his father had received in 1392 from shogun Ashikaga Yoshimochi

Ashikaga Yoshimochi

was the 4th shogun of the Ashikaga shogunate who reigned from 1394 to 1423 during the Muromachi period of Japan. Yoshimochi was the son of the third shogun Ashikaga Yoshimitsu....

 as a reward for his support against the Yamana clan

Yamana clan

The ' was a Japanese samurai clan which was one of the most powerful of the Muromachi period ; at its peak, members of the family held the position of Constable over eleven provinces. Originally from Kōzuke province, and later centered in Inaba province, the clan claimed descendance from the Seiwa...

. This because he realized the importance of the area to control the whole Kantō province. In August of the same year he stayed himself in Southern Mutsu, returning to Kamakura only four months later . This increased immensely the support given by the Yūki

Yuki clan

The Yūki family was a Japanese samurai clan composed of two branches: the Shimōsa Yūki and the Shirakawa Yūki. Descended from the famous kuge Fujiwara no Hidesato, the clan became split during the Nanboku-chō wars of the 14th century, in which one branch supported the Southern Imperial Court, and...

 Shirakawa family to his brothers, and therefore to himself.

In the same year, when Ōuchi Yoshihiro

Ouchi Yoshihiro

, also known as Ouchi Sakyo-no-Tayu, was a Muromachi period samurai clan head and military leader.Yoshirio was the second son of Ōuchi Hiroyo, and a member of the Ōuchi family which served under Ashikaga Takauji. The Ōuchi became known as the shugo of Suō and Nagato in 1363 for assisting the...

 rebelled in Izumi in the , allying himself with the Southern Dynasty (see article Nanboku-chō period), he planned to join him in the hope of being able to replace his relative, shogun Ashikaga Yoshimochi

Ashikaga Yoshimochi

was the 4th shogun of the Ashikaga shogunate who reigned from 1394 to 1423 during the Muromachi period of Japan. Yoshimochi was the son of the third shogun Ashikaga Yoshimitsu....

.. The plan however failed because Ōuchi was immediately defeated. Partly because of Uesugi Norisada's advice, Mitsukane then gave up and returned to Kamakura. The fact he hadn't in fact given any help to the Ōuchi clan allowed him to feign innocence with Ashikaga Yoshimitsu

Ashikaga Yoshimitsu

was the 3rd shogun of the Ashikaga shogunate who ruled from 1368 to 1394 during the Muromachi period of Japan. Yoshimitsu was the son of the second shogun Ashikaga Yoshiakira....

 (formally retired, but de facto ruling instead of his son Yoshimochi until his death), preventing an overt clash with Kyoto.

In a left at a Mishima Taisha

Mishima Taisha

The is a Shinto shrine in the city of Mishima in Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan. It is the ichinomiya of former Izu Province. The main festival of the shrine is held annually on August 16, and features yabusame performances.-Enshrined kami:...

 in Izu

Izu

Izu may refer to:*Izu Province, a part of modern-day Shizuoka prefecture in Japan**Izu, a city in Shizuoka prefecture**The Izu Peninsula, near Tokyo***The Izu Islands, located off the Izu Peninsula...

, Mitsukane admits attacking superior forces, thanks Uesugi Norisada for his counsel, and swears to mend his ways and never to revolt again. It seems clear that at this stage he had abandoned all hope of prevailing over Kyoto. In 1400 Mitsukane swore fidelity to Yoshimitsu, and peace between Kamakura and Kyoto lasted until Mitsukane's death.

Date Masamune, ancestor of the more famous Tokugawa

Tokugawa shogunate

The Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the and the , was a feudal regime of Japan established by Tokugawa Ieyasu and ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family. This period is known as the Edo period and gets its name from the capital city, Edo, which is now called Tokyo, after the name was...

 tozama

Tozama

A ' was a daimyo who was considered an outsider by the rulers of Japan. The term came into use in the Kamakura period and continued until the end of the Edo period.-Edo period:...

, together with some allies had rebelled in Southern and Middle Mutsu against Kamakura, so in 1402 Mitsukane sent Uesugi Ujinori (the future Uesugi Zenshū

Uesugi Zenshu

, also known as Uesugi Ujinori, was the chief advisor to Ashikaga Mochiuji, an enemy of the Ashikaga shogunate in feudal Japan. When he was rebuked by Mochiuji in 1415, and forced to resign, Zenshū organized a rebellion....

) to quell the revolt.. By that time, in Kyoto circulated a rumor that Mitsukane was insane. Whether the rumor had any basis is unclear but, in that case, it may well have been a consequence of his lack of success in defeating the shogunate. He died of natural causes at the age of 32. As his predecessors, he was buried at Kamakura's Zuisen-ji

Zuisen-ji

is a Buddhist temple of the Rinzai sect in Nikaidō's near Kamakura, Japan. During the Muromachi period it was the family temple of the Ashikaga rulers of Kamakura : four of the five kubō are buried there in a private cemetery closed to the public and first kubō Ashikaga Motouji's is also known...

.

See also

• Kamakura, Kanagawa - The Muromachi and Edo periods
• The article Nanboku-chō period