Siege of Kamakura (1333)

Infobox Military Conflict
conflict=Siege of Kamakura
partof=the Genkō War


caption=Statue of Nitta Yoshisada in front of Keiō Line - Bubaigawara Station.
date=May 18, 1333
place=Kamakura, Sagami Province
casus=
territory=
result=Nitta victory; city destroyed.
combatant1=forces loyal to Emperor Go-Daigo
combatant2=Hōjō clan
commander1=Nitta Yoshisada
commander2=Hōjō Mototoki, Hōjō Takatoki, Hōjō Sadaaki, Hōjō Moritoki
strength1=
strength2=
casualties1=
casualties2=

The 1333 siege of Kamakura was a battle of the Genkō War, and marked the end of the power of the Hōjō clan, which had dominated the regency of the Kamakura shogunate for over a century. Forces loyal to the Emperor and led by Nitta Yoshisada entered the city from multiple directions and destroyed it; in the end, the Hōjō leaders retreated to Tōshō-ji, where they committed suicide with the rest of the clan.

The hills surrounding the shogunal capital of Kamakura contained seven passes, (the so-called Seven Entrances or Mouths), each with guarded checkpoints. Nitta Yoshisada attacked from the east and the north through the Gokuraku Pass, the Kewaizaka Pass and the Kamegayatsu Pass, dividing his forces in three. However, after many hours of fighting, little progress had been made towards the city, particularly on the western passes near Gokuraku-ji, which was guarded with rows upon rows of wooden shielding. Nitta realized the Gokuraku-ji could be bypassed by marching around the cape, where the Inamuragasaki promontory juts out into the water. According to the chronicles, he threw his sword into the sea as an offering the sea-god, and the sea parted as if by a miracle.

Thus the rebels were able to enter the city, and began to force back the Hōjō forces. The Hōjō were eventually forced to retreat to a cave behind the Tōshō-ji, where they committed suicide.

References

*Turnbull, Stephen (1998). 'The Samurai Sourcebook'. London: Cassell & Co.