- Siege of Shirakawa-den
Infobox Military Conflict
conflict=Siege of Shirakawa-den
partof=theHōgen Rebellion
caption=
date= July 1156
place=Shirakawa Palace,Kyoto ,Japan
casus=Succession dispute following death ofEmperor Toba
territory=
result=Palace burnt to ground
combatant1=Minamoto clan in support ofEmperor Sutoku
combatant2=Taira clan in support ofEmperor Go-Shirakawa
commander1=Minamoto no Tameyoshi ,Taira no Tadamasa
commander2=Taira no Kiyomori ,Minamoto no Yoshitomo
strength1=
strength2=
casualties1=
casualties2=The siege of the Shirakawa-den was the central event of the
Hōgen Rebellion , a succession dispute which broke out after the death of the cloisteredEmperor Toba . The conflict grew to involve the Fujiwara,Minamoto , andTaira clans, all major powers of the period.The palace was attacked by
Taira no Kiyomori andMinamoto no Yoshitomo and defended by Yoshitomo's father,Minamoto no Tameyoshi , along withMinamoto no Tametomo andTaira no Tadamasa . Though a rivalry was beginning to grow between the Minamoto and Taira clans, loyalties were still far more mixed than they would be in theGenpei War of the 1180s, several decades later.The samurai on both sides exchanged arrows in a number of archery duels before the palace was set aflame and the defenders were defeated.
References
*Turnbull, Stephen (1998). 'The Samurai Sourcebook'. London: Cassell & Co.
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