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Minamoto no Yoshitsune

1159 CE – 1189 CE

Retrace Minamoto no Yoshitsune's life across the map — 7 events in chronological order, from a cinematic flythrough to a full timeline.

Life journey

1. Battle of Ichi-no-Tani1184 CE
   The Battle of Ichi-no-Tani was fought between the attacking Minamoto clan and the defending Taira clan at Suma, to the west of present-day Kobe, Japan, on 20 March 1184. It sat on a very narrow strip of shore, between mountains on the north, and the sea to the south. This made it quite defensible, but also made it difficult to maneuver troops inside the fortress. The Taira suffered a crucial defeat to the forces of Minamoto no Yoshitsune and Minamoto no Noriyori.
2. Battle of Uji1184 CE
   Minamoto no Yoshinaka tried to wrest power from his cousins Yoritomo and Yoshitsune, seeking to take command of the Minamoto clan. To that end, he burned the Hōjūji Palace, and kidnapped Emperor Go-Shirakawa. However, his cousins Noriyori and Yoshitsune caught up with him soon afterwards, following him across the Bridge over the Uji, New Year's Day, 1184, which Yoshinaka had torn up to impair their crossing.
3. Battle of Awazu1184 CE
   Minamoto no Yoshinaka made his final stand at Awazu, after fleeing from his cousins' armies, which confronted him after he attacked Kyoto, burning the Hōjūjiden, and kidnapping Emperor Go-Shirakawa. During the pursuit, he was joined by his foster brother Imai Kanehira and Tomoe Gozen.
4. Battle of Dan-no-ura1185 CE
   The Battle of Dan-no-ura was a major sea battle of the Genpei War, occurring at Dan-no-ura, in the Kanmon Straits off the southern tip of Honshū. On April 25, 1185, the fleet of the Minamoto ('Genji') clan, led by general Minamoto no Yoshitsune, defeated the fleet of the Taira clan (Heike). The morning rip tide was an advantage for the Taira, but turned to their disadvantage in the afternoon. The young Emperor Antoku was one of those who died among the Taira nobles.
5. Battle of Kawajiri1185 CE
   The Battle of Kawajiri was fought at the end of the Heian period, from November 4 to 5 of the first year of the Bunji era, when Minamoto no Yoshitsune, confronting his older brother Yoritomo, left the capital of Kyoto in order to head down to Kyushu, and was pursued by Settsu-Genji and other Kyoto samurai at Kawajiri, Settsu Province (Kanazaki River Estuary in Amagasaki City) on the way to Omotsuura (present-day Amagasaki City, Hyogo Prefecture), and repulsed the battle.
6. Battle of Yashima1185 CE
   Battle of Yashima (屋島の戦い) was one of the battles of the Genpei War on March 22, 1185, in the Heian period. It occurred in Sanuki Province (Shikoku), which is now Takamatsu, Kagawa.
7. Battle of Koromo River1189 CE
   The Battle of Koromo River took place during the opening years of the Kamakura period of Japan.

Event data from Wikipedia/Wikidata (CC-BY-SA). Spotted a mistake? Email [email protected].