源頼朝(みなもとのよりとも)

みなもとのよりとも
noun (proper)
Minamoto no Yoritomo (1147-1199), founder of the Kamakura shogunate
proper-nounperson-namehistory
1. Minamoto no Yoritomo, first Kamakura shogun
Leader of the Minamoto (源氏(げんじ)) clan who defeated the Taira (平家(へいけ)) in the Genpei War and set up Japan's first warrior government, the 鎌倉幕府(かまくらばくふ), becoming shogun in 1192. His rule began nearly 700 years of government by the samurai class.
源頼朝(みなもとのよりとも)は鎌倉(かまくら)に幕府(ばくふ)を開(ひら)いた。
Minamoto no Yoritomo established a shogunate in Kamakura.
頼朝(よりとも)は弟(おとうと)の義経(よしつね)と対立(たいりつ)した。
Yoritomo came into conflict with his younger brother Yoshitsune.
「いい国(くに)つくろう鎌倉幕府(かまくらばくふ)」と覚(おぼ)えて、頼朝(よりとも)が将軍(しょうぐん)になった年(とし)を暗記(あんき)した。
I memorized the year Yoritomo became shogun with the phrase "ii kuni tsukurō Kamakura bakufu."

源頼朝(みなもとのよりとも) is a fixture of every Japanese history lesson and of historical drama, where he usually appears as a cold, calculating politician.

Cultural note

  • 源義経(みなもとのよしつね): his younger brother, the brilliant general who won the war but was hunted down by Yoritomo. Popular sympathy for the doomed Yoshitsune gave rise to the word 判官(ほうがん)びいき (siding with the underdog).
  • いい国(くに)(1192)つくろう鎌倉幕府(かまくらばくふ): the classic mnemonic for the date; many textbooks now date the shogunate from 1185 instead.
  • 北条政子(ほうじょうまさこ): his wife, who held power after his death.
general
Added 2026.9.26 10:22 · Revised 2026.9.26 10:24
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