of Korea in any conflict between the latter and Japan. The government always found itself compelled to undertake a dual campaign in times of trouble with the island on the north or with the peninsula on the west. Because of these difficulties forts were built, about 650, at Nutari and Iwafune in Echigo, and garrisoned by the people of that province and of Shinano, for the purpose of holding the aborigines of Ezo in control. The unsettled condition of these outlying districts may be further inferred from an enactment contemporaneous with the great Taikwa reforms. For whereas a general interdict was then issued against unauthorized possession of arms and armor by private persons, dwellers in the remote parts of the east were exempted from this prohibition on the ground of their liability to attack.
During the years 658–660, in the Empress Saimei's reign, Abe-no-Hirafu, a distinguished governor of the Koshi provinces (Echigo and Uzen), conducted successful campaigns against the autochthons of Ezo, breaking their power and destroying their vessels of war, and finally invaded Manchuria at the head of a force composed of subjugated Emishi, and cut off the source from which insurgents had usually derived succor. The result of this campaign was that the Emishi were, for the most part, brought into subjection, and functionaries called Gunryō; were posted at Shiribeshi in the northern island. Frequent insurrections, however, followed, and finally it was found necessary to build the castles of Taga and Akita, where strong forces of soldiers were maintained to preserve order.
A few expeditions on a large scale were also organized against them under the command of generalissimos (shōgun) upon whom the duty of guarding the northern and eastern marches devolved, but it was not until 796, during the reign of the Emperor Kwammu, that these autochthons were effectually brought into subjection. The campaign against them at that time was directed by a renowned captain, Sakanoue-no-Tamuramaro, who, at the head of a great army, penetrated to the limits of the rebellious districts, slaughtering all who refused to surrender. This general's exploits were second only to those of his predecessor Abe-no-Hirafu. Not only was the sway of the imperial court thus extended to the east and north, but in the south also various islands—Tokuara, Tane, Yaku, Amami, Toku, and others—lying off the coasts of Satsuma and Ōsumi, were added to the Japanese dominions.
The curious "Hairy Ainos" of northern Japan hold the bear in extreme sanctity. They catch the bear when young and bring him up on human milk, a nurse being deputed to him. Then he is transferred to a cage and, when he is old enough to be slain, on the day of sacrifice the whole village turns out armed with bows and arrows, the cage is opened and each one strives to send home the fatal shaft. The chief prays the bear to pardon the violence done him, requests benefits from the now deified carcass, and presents offerings. They then behead and skin the bear, and begin an orgie which lasts several days.
Let us now see what important incidents took place during this time around the person of the sovereign. In the third year of the Emperor Tenchi's reign, 670, the celebrated statesman of the Taikwa reformation, Nakatomi-no-Kamatari died. He had been raised to the position of lord keeper of the privy seal, and had received the family name of Fujiwara, in recognition of his meritorious services. Kamatari was a man of thorough loyalty and integrity. His zeal in the emperor's service was unflagging, and he showed great ability in framing useful laws and regulations, so that, after his decease, people spoke of him as a model of fidelity. Two years later the emperor himself, formally the leader of the reforms since 645, died, leaving behind him a reputation for good government which was held in so grateful a remembrance that when more than a century later the Emperor Kwammu promulgated a law dispensing with the observance of religious ceremonies on the anniversaries of the deaths of sovereigns deceased at remote periods, public sentiment caused the Emperor Tenchi to be excepted from the general rule. Yet he had scarcely been laid to rest when a serious disturbance took place with reference to his successor. In accordance with the rule of primogeniture followed in Japan, the scepter was bequeathed to the eldest prince of the blood with almost unvarying regularity during the thirteen generations from Jimmu to Seimu; and throughout the thirty-two generations from Jimmu to Sujun no woman held the scepter, for although Jingō held regency for sixty-nine years, she was never invested with the dignity of the title of sovereign.
The accession of the Empress Suiko was due to exceptional circumstances, and did not mark a recognized departure from the old rule. Subsequently, however, not a few instances occurred of the scepter falling into the hands of an uncle or niece of a deceased emperor, and on these occasions more or less disquiet accompanied the event. But no disturbance connected with such a cause attained anything like the dimensions of the trouble that followed Tenchi's death.[1] On the occasion of the emperor's visit to Tsukushi to make arrangements for the invasion of Korea, he entrusted the administration of affairs during his absence to his younger brother, Prince Ōama, and caused the heir apparent, Prince Ōtomo, to accompany him to Tsukushi. Ōtomo, though young in years, had already given evidence of great capacity and was exceptionally learned. The sovereign entertained a strong affection for him, and after returning from Tsukushi raised him to the position of prime minister. On the other hand, the relations between the emperor and his brother, Prince Ōama, were for some unknown reason inharmonious. When the emperor, perceiving the dangerous character of his malady, would fain have entrusted the administration of affairs after his death to Ōama, the latter pretending ill health declined the responsibility. The prince imperial was consequently proclaimed successor to the throne, and Ōama took the priestly order and retired to Mount Yoshino, partly for the purpose of praying for the soul of the deceased emperor, but partly also to dispel the suspicion with which the public regarded his acts. None the less, it was the common talk of the time that Ōama's retirement to Yoshino was as "the letting loose of a tiger on a moor." Twice did the ministers of state take the oath of allegiance to Prince Ōtomo, but rivalry and evil feeling continued to grow between the partisans of the new sovereign and those of Prince Ōama. In the end a state of open hostilities resulted. Prince Ōama, rapidly withdrawing to the eastern provinces, obtained possession of all the strategical positions, and was followed by large numbers of adherents. The emperor dispatched an army against the insurgents, and engagements took place in Mino, Ōmi, and Yamato, but on every occasion the imperial forces were routed, and the eastern army gradually pushed on to Ōtsu in Shiga. A final and desperate stand was made by the emperor's troops in the Seta district, but the battle ended in their total defeat, and the sovereign himself, escaping from the field, perished by his own hand at the age of twenty-five, after a reign of only eight months. This emperor is known in history as Kōbun. Prince Ōama succeeded to the throne under the name of Temmu. He had obtained the scepter under questionable circumstances, but as a ruler he showed high qualities, carrying on the administration with zeal and ability. He dispatched inspectors to all districts throughout the realm in order to acquire full knowledge of local affairs, and raised the military establishment to a state of high efficiency. On his death a princess, daughter of Tenchi and sister of Kōbun, succeeded to the throne as the Empress Jitō. In the third year of her reign the heir apparent, Prince Kusakabe, died. The empress convoked a council of all the high dignitaries of state to determine a successor to the prince, but they could not come to any agreement until Prince Kadono advanced the principle that when neither son nor grandson was available to succeed to the throne, the scepter should pass to the brothers and sisters of the sovereign in due order, since by no other means could disputes be avoided. The outcome was that Karu, son of the late Prince Kusakabe, was proclaimed heir apparent. He subsequently ascended the throne as the Emperor Mommu, well known in history for his ability and the codification under his direction of the laws of the Taihō period.[2]
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