Emperor Seinei: Difference between revisions

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| cor-type    = Japan
| cor-type    = Japan
| predecessor  = [[Emperor Yūryaku|Yūryaku]]
| predecessor  = [[Emperor Yūryaku|Yūryaku]]
| successor    = [[Princess Iitoyo]] (de facto){{efn|It's commonly accepted that Princess Iitoyo acted as some type of [[Josei Tennō|regent]] in the interim. (See: "Narrative" for sourcing) She is excluded on the official list of regents as her legitimacy and validity (concerning her reign) is mostly unknown.}}<br>[[Emperor Kenzō|Kenzō]] (traditional)
| successor    = [[Princess Iitoyo]] (de facto){{efn|It is commonly accepted that Princess Iitoyo acted as some type of [[Josei Tennō|regent]] in the interim. (See: "Narrative" for sourcing) She is excluded on the official list of regents as her legitimacy and validity (concerning her reign) is mostly unknown.}}<br>[[Emperor Kenzō|Kenzō]] (traditional)
| posthumous name = [[Posthumous name#Chinese-style (Han-style) shigō|Chinese-style ''shigō'']]:<br/>Emperor Seinei ({{lang|ja|清寧天皇}})<br/><br/>[[Posthumous name#Japanese-style shigō|Japanese-style ''shigō'']]:<br/>Shiraka-no-takehiro-kunioshiwaka-yamato-neko no Sumeramikoto ({{lang|ja|白髪武広国押稚日本根子天皇}})
| posthumous name = [[Posthumous name#Chinese-style (Han-style) shigō|Chinese-style ''shigō'']]:<br/>Emperor Seinei ({{lang|ja|清寧天皇}})<br/><br/>[[Posthumous name#Japanese-style shigō|Japanese-style ''shigō'']]:<br/>Shiraka-no-takehiro-kunioshiwaka-yamato-neko no Sumeramikoto ({{lang|ja|白髪武広国押稚日本根子天皇}})
| spouse      =  
| spouse      =  
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| royal house  = [[Imperial House of Japan]]
| royal house  = [[Imperial House of Japan]]
| father      = [[Emperor Yūryaku]]<ref name=descent>{{cite web|url=https://reichsarchiv.jp/%E5%AE%B6%E7%B3%BB%E3%83%AA%E3%82%B9%E3%83%88/%E5%A4%A9%E7%9A%87%E5%AE%B6#emp022|title=Genealogy|website=Reichsarchiv|date=30 April 2010 |access-date=March 27, 2024|language=ja}}</ref>
| father      = [[Emperor Yūryaku]]<ref name=descent>{{cite web|url=https://reichsarchiv.jp/%E5%AE%B6%E7%B3%BB%E3%83%AA%E3%82%B9%E3%83%88/%E5%A4%A9%E7%9A%87%E5%AE%B6#emp022|title=Genealogy|website=Reichsarchiv|date=30 April 2010 |access-date=March 27, 2024|language=ja}}</ref>
| mother      = {{ill|Katsuragi no Karahime|ja|葛城韓媛|vertical-align=sup}}<ref name="Fane.M">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VHgtAQAAMAAJ&q=Seinei|chapter=Table of Emperors Mothers|title=The Imperial Family of Japan|author=Ponsonby-Fane, Richard|publisher=Ponsonby Memorial Society|year=1915|page=xiii|author-link=Richard Ponsonby-Fane}}</ref>
| mother      = {{ill|Katsuragi no Karahime|ja|葛城韓媛}}<ref name="Fane.M">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VHgtAQAAMAAJ&q=Seinei|chapter=Table of Emperors Mothers|title=The Imperial Family of Japan|author=Ponsonby-Fane, Richard|publisher=Ponsonby Memorial Society|year=1915|page=xiii|author-link=Richard Ponsonby-Fane}}</ref>
| birth_name  = Shiraka ({{lang|ja|白髪}})
| birth_name  = Shiraka ({{lang|ja|白髪}})
| birth_date  = 444{{efn|There is a consensus among sources for this given year.<ref name=descent/><ref name="Longford">{{cite book|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Y9wDAQAAIAAJ&q=Seinei+444|chapter=List of Emperors: II. The Dawn of History and The great Reformers|author=[[Joseph Henry Longford]]|title=Japan|publisher=Houghton Mifflin|year=1923|page=304}}</ref><ref name="Henshall">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tmYYAgAAQBAJ&q=444-484|title=Historical Dictionary of Japan to 1945|author=Kenneth Henshall|publisher=Scarecrow Press|year=2013|page=488|isbn=9780810878723}}</ref>}}
| birth_date  = 444{{efn|There is a consensus among sources for this given year.<ref name=descent/><ref name="Longford">{{cite book|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Y9wDAQAAIAAJ&q=Seinei+444|chapter=List of Emperors: II. The Dawn of History and The great Reformers|author=[[Joseph Henry Longford]]|title=Japan|publisher=Houghton Mifflin|year=1923|page=304}}</ref><ref name="Henshall">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tmYYAgAAQBAJ&q=444-484|title=Historical Dictionary of Japan to 1945|author=Kenneth Henshall|publisher=Scarecrow Press|year=2013|page=488|isbn=9780810878723}}</ref>}}
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}}
}}


{{Nihongo|'''Emperor Seinei'''|清寧天皇|Seinei-tennō}} (444 – 484) was the 22nd (possibly legendary) [[emperor of Japan]], according to the traditional [[List of Emperors of Japan|order of succession]].<ref name="Titsingh">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=18oNAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA28|title=Annales des empereurs du japon|author=Titsingh, Isaac.|publisher=Royal Asiatic Society, Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and Ireland|language=fr|year=1834|pages=28–29|author-link=Isaac Titsingh}}</ref><ref name="kunaicho">{{cite web|url=http://www.kunaicho.go.jp/ryobo/guide/022/|title=雄略天皇 (22)|work=[[Imperial Household Agency]] (Kunaichō)|language=ja|access-date=December 27, 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=Jinnō Shōtōki|author=[[H. Paul Varley|Varley, H. Paul]]|publisher=New York: Columbia University Press|year=1980|pages=115–116}}</ref> He is best known for events that took place before and after his reign with an empty void left in between. These include a rebellion which was quickly put down, and a succession crisis as the Emperor had no children. Because Seinei had such a low profile, historians have questioned his existence and whether he ever ascended to the throne.
{{Nihongo|'''Emperor Seinei'''|清寧天皇|Seinei-tennō}} (444 – 484) was the 22nd (possibly legendary{{efn|There is no consensus that Seinei was a historical figure.<ref name="existence">{{cite book|title=The Mysterious Great King: The Emperor of the Succession|author=Chiaki Mizutani|publisher=Bungei Shunju|year=2001|page=41}}</ref>}}) [[emperor of Japan]], according to the traditional [[List of Emperors of Japan|order of succession]].<ref name="Titsingh">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=18oNAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA28|title=Annales des empereurs du japon|author=Titsingh, Isaac.|publisher=Royal Asiatic Society, Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and Ireland|language=fr|year=1834|pages=28–29|author-link=Isaac Titsingh}}</ref><ref name="kunaicho">{{cite web|url=http://www.kunaicho.go.jp/ryobo/guide/022/|title=雄略天皇 (22)|work=[[Imperial Household Agency]] (Kunaichō)|language=ja|access-date=December 27, 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|title=Jinnō Shōtōki|author=[[H. Paul Varley|Varley, H. Paul]]|publisher=New York: Columbia University Press|year=1980|pages=115–116}}</ref> He is best known for events that took place before and after his reign with a void in between. These include a rebellion which was quickly put down, and a succession crisis as the Emperor had no children. Because Seinei had such a low profile, historians have questioned his existence and whether he ever ascended to the throne.


No firm dates can be assigned to this emperor's life or reign, but he is conventionally considered to have reigned from 480 to 484.<ref name="Fane1">{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VHgtAQAAMAAJ&q=Seinei|title=Seinei (480–484)|work=The Imperial Family of Japan|author=Ponsonby-Fane, Richard|publisher=Ponsonby Memorial Society|year=1915|page=14|author-link=Richard Ponsonby-Fane}}</ref> Dates confirmed as "traditional" did not appear until the reign of [[Emperor Kanmu]] (the 50th emperor). Modern historians have come to the conclusion that the title of "Emperor" and the name "Seinei" were used by later generations to describe him.
No firm dates can be assigned to this emperor's life or reign, but he is conventionally considered to have reigned from 480 to 484.<ref name="Fane1">{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VHgtAQAAMAAJ&q=Seinei|title=Seinei (480–484)|work=The Imperial Family of Japan|author=Ponsonby-Fane, Richard|publisher=Ponsonby Memorial Society|year=1915|page=14|author-link=Richard Ponsonby-Fane}}</ref> Dates confirmed as "traditional" did not appear until the reign of [[Emperor Kanmu]] (the 50th emperor). Modern historians have come to the conclusion that the title of "Emperor" and the name "Seinei" were used by later generations to describe him.
Line 30: Line 30:
The Japanese have traditionally accepted this sovereign's historical existence, and a mausoleum (misasagi) for Seinei is currently maintained. The following information available is taken from the [[Pseudohistory|pseudo-historical]] ''[[Kojiki]]'' and ''[[Nihon Shoki]]'', which are collectively known as {{Nihongo|''Kiki''|記紀}} or ''Japanese chronicles''. These chronicles include legends and myths, as well as potential historical facts that have since been [[Tall tale|exaggerated and/or distorted]] over time. It is recorded in the ''Nihon Shoki''{{efn|The Kojiki only records information related to searching for a successor to Emperor Seinei.}} that Seinei was born to {{Nihongo|''Katsuragi no Karahime''|葛城韓媛}} sometime in 444 AD, and was given the name {{Nihongo||白髪皇子|Shiraka}}.<ref name="Longford"/> Prince Shiraka was the third and favorite son of [[Emperor Yūryaku]], and was made heir apparent a year before his father's death.<ref name="Aston1">{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lJ5OAQAAIAAJ&q=Seinei|title=Book XV: Seinei Tenno|author=[[William George Aston]]|work=Nihongi: Chronicles of Japan from the Earliest Times to A.D. 697. (Volume 1)|publisher=London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Trubner|year=1896|pages=338 & 373–377}}</ref> Yūryaku had taken notice at how Shiraka was born with white hair as meaning something significant.<ref name="Brown"/>
The Japanese have traditionally accepted this sovereign's historical existence, and a mausoleum (misasagi) for Seinei is currently maintained. The following information available is taken from the [[Pseudohistory|pseudo-historical]] ''[[Kojiki]]'' and ''[[Nihon Shoki]]'', which are collectively known as {{Nihongo|''Kiki''|記紀}} or ''Japanese chronicles''. These chronicles include legends and myths, as well as potential historical facts that have since been [[Tall tale|exaggerated and/or distorted]] over time. It is recorded in the ''Nihon Shoki''{{efn|The Kojiki only records information related to searching for a successor to Emperor Seinei.}} that Seinei was born to {{Nihongo|''Katsuragi no Karahime''|葛城韓媛}} sometime in 444 AD, and was given the name {{Nihongo||白髪皇子|Shiraka}}.<ref name="Longford"/> Prince Shiraka was the third and favorite son of [[Emperor Yūryaku]], and was made heir apparent a year before his father's death.<ref name="Aston1">{{cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lJ5OAQAAIAAJ&q=Seinei|title=Book XV: Seinei Tenno|author=[[William George Aston]]|work=Nihongi: Chronicles of Japan from the Earliest Times to A.D. 697. (Volume 1)|publisher=London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Trubner|year=1896|pages=338 & 373–377}}</ref> Yūryaku had taken notice at how Shiraka was born with white hair as meaning something significant.<ref name="Brown"/>


During the transition period, Yūryaku's other consort {{nihongo|Kibi no Wakahime|吉備稚媛}} convinced her younger son Prince Hoshikawa to assert his claim to the throne.<ref name="Brinkley">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HOJxAAAAMAAJ&q=Seinei|title=A History of the Japanese People from the Earliest Times to the End of the Meiji Era|chapter=Chapter XIII: The Protohistoric Sovereigns (continued)|author=[[Francis Brinkley]]|publisher=[[Encyclopædia Britannica]]|year=1915|pages=117–119}}</ref> While Hoshikawa was Prince Shiraka's older brother, the eldest sibling in the household ({{Nihongo|Prince Iwaki|磐城皇子}}) advised against it.<ref name="Fane1"/> In the [[Prince Hoshikawa Rebellion|rebellion that followed]] Hoshikawa and his followers sieged the Imperial treasury. They were then surrounded by court troops who burned the building to the ground, roasting to death all but one surviving minor official (who was given mercy).<ref name="Brinkley"/> With the rebellion put down, Prince Shiraka assumed the throne as Emperor Seinei in 480 AD.<ref name="Aston1"/> Although the Emperor appointed a woman named Katsuraki Kara-hime as "Grand Consort", she was never made an Empress.<ref name="Aston1"/>  
During the transition period, Yūryaku's other consort {{nihongo|Kibi no Wakahime|吉備稚媛}} convinced her younger son Prince Hoshikawa to assert his claim to the throne.<ref name="Brinkley">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HOJxAAAAMAAJ&q=Seinei|title=A History of the Japanese People from the Earliest Times to the End of the Meiji Era|chapter=Chapter XIII: The Protohistoric Sovereigns (continued)|author=[[Francis Brinkley]]|publisher=[[Encyclopædia Britannica]]|year=1915|pages=117–119}}</ref> While Hoshikawa was Prince Shiraka's older brother, the eldest sibling in the household ({{Nihongo|Prince Iwaki|磐城皇子}}) advised against it.<ref name="Fane1"/> In the [[Prince Hoshikawa Rebellion|rebellion that followed]] Hoshikawa and his followers sieged the Imperial treasury. They were then surrounded by court troops who burned the building to the ground, roasting to death all but one surviving minor official (who was given mercy).<ref name="Brinkley"/> With the rebellion put down, Prince Shiraka assumed the throne as Emperor Seinei in 480 AD.<ref name="Aston1"/> Although the Emperor appointed a woman named Katsuraki Kara-hime as "Grand Consort", she was never made an Empress.<ref name="Aston1"/>


Seinei grew distressed in the second year of his reign as he had no children to succeed him. His father Emperor Yūryaku had done away with all of his male relations in his obsessive conquest for the throne, his older brother Prince Hoshikawa had been burnt to death, and Prince Iwaki died sometime in 481 AD.<ref name="Fane1"/><ref name="Aston1"/> Seinei lucked out when two grandsons ([[Emperor Kenzō|Woke]] and [[Emperor Ninken|Oke]]) of [[Emperor Richū]] were discovered by chance while the governor of [[Harima Province|Harima]] was out for an inspection.<ref name="Fane1"/> The two princes had fled to the countryside after their father, [[Ichinobe no Oshiwa]] was killed by [[Emperor Yūryaku]].<ref name="Brown"/><ref name="Brinkley"/> These events regarding succession were also later recorded in the Kojiki.<ref name="Kojiki1">{{cite web|url=https://sacred-texts.com/shi/kj/kj170.htm|title=Sect. CLXIII - Emperor Seinei (Part I - Search for a successor to him)|author=Basil Hall Chamberlain|work=A translation of the "Kojiki" or Records of ancient matters|publisher=R. Meiklejohn and Co.|year=1882}}</ref><ref name="Kojiki2">{{cite web|url=https://sacred-texts.com/shi/kj/kj171.htm|title=Emperor Seinei (Part II - Princes Ohoke and Woke are Discovered|author=Basil Hall Chamberlain|work=A translation of the "Kojiki" or Records of ancient matters|publisher=R. Meiklejohn and Co.|year=1882}}</ref>
Seinei grew distressed in the second year of his reign as he had no children to succeed him. His father Emperor Yūryaku had done away with all of his male relations in his obsessive conquest for the throne, his older brother Prince Hoshikawa had been burnt to death, and Prince Iwaki died sometime in 481 AD.<ref name="Fane1"/><ref name="Aston1"/> Seinei lucked out when two grandsons ([[Emperor Kenzō|Woke]] and [[Emperor Ninken|Oke]]) of [[Emperor Richū]] were discovered by chance while the governor of [[Harima Province|Harima]] was out for an inspection.<ref name="Fane1"/> The two princes had fled to the countryside after their father, [[Ichinobe no Oshiwa]] was killed by [[Emperor Yūryaku]].<ref name="Brown"/><ref name="Brinkley"/> These events regarding succession were also later recorded in the Kojiki.<ref name="Kojiki1">{{cite web|url=https://sacred-texts.com/shi/kj/kj170.htm|title=Sect. CLXIII - Emperor Seinei (Part I - Search for a successor to him)|author=Basil Hall Chamberlain|work=A translation of the "Kojiki" or Records of ancient matters|publisher=R. Meiklejohn and Co.|year=1882}}</ref><ref name="Kojiki2">{{cite web|url=https://sacred-texts.com/shi/kj/kj171.htm|title=Emperor Seinei (Part II - Princes Ohoke and Woke are Discovered|author=Basil Hall Chamberlain|work=A translation of the "Kojiki" or Records of ancient matters|publisher=R. Meiklejohn and Co.|year=1882}}</ref>
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==Historical assessment==
==Historical assessment==
[[File:Shiragayama Kofun, haisho.jpg|thumb|Emperor Seinei's Mausoleum in [[Habikino]]]]
[[File:Shiragayama Kofun, haisho.jpg|thumb|Emperor Seinei's Mausoleum in [[Habikino]]]]
The actual existence of Emperor Seinei is debated among historians due to a lack of available information.<ref>{{cite book|title=The Mysterious Great King: The Emperor of the Succession|author=Chiaki Mizutani|publisher=Bungei Shunju|year=2001|page=41}}</ref> British academic and author [[Richard Ponsonby-Fane]] notes that the Kojiki gives no details about Seinei and some lists omit his name altogether.<ref name="Fane1"/> Scholar [[Francis Brinkley]] though, still lists Emperor Seinei under "Protohistoric sovereigns".<ref name="Brinkley"/> He mentioned there that Emperor Yūryaku's "evil act" of stealing Tasa's wife (Kibi no Wakahime) led to serious consequences. While Wakahime and her companions conspired to place her own son on the throne, Brinkley stated that they underestimated the power of the Katsuragi family.<ref name="Brinkley"/>{{efn|Emperor Seinei's mother belonged to this family.}} In regard to the Emperor's hair, Dutch historian and Japanologist [[Isaac Titsingh]] mentioned that "there is speculation that this [Seisei's] unusual hair color suggests [[Albinism in humans|albinism]].<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=18oNAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA29|title=Annales des empereurs du japon|author=Titsingh, Isaac.|publisher=Royal Asiatic Society, Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and Ireland|language=fr|year=1834|page=29|author-link=Isaac Titsingh}}</ref>
The actual existence of Emperor Seinei is debated among historians due to a lack of available information.<ref name="existence"/> British academic and author [[Richard Ponsonby-Fane]] notes that the Kojiki gives no details about Seinei and some lists omit his name altogether.<ref name="Fane1"/> Scholar [[Francis Brinkley]] though, still lists Emperor Seinei under "Protohistoric sovereigns".<ref name="Brinkley"/> He mentioned there that Emperor Yūryaku's "evil act" of stealing Tasa's wife (Kibi no Wakahime) led to serious consequences. While Wakahime and her companions conspired to place her own son on the throne, Brinkley stated that they underestimated the power of the Katsuragi family.<ref name="Brinkley"/>{{efn|Emperor Seinei's mother belonged to this family.}} In regard to the Emperor's hair, Dutch historian and Japanologist [[Isaac Titsingh]] mentioned that "there is speculation that this [Seisei's] unusual hair color suggests [[Albinism in humans|albinism]].<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=18oNAAAAIAAJ&pg=PA29|title=Annales des empereurs du japon|author=Titsingh, Isaac.|publisher=Royal Asiatic Society, Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and Ireland|language=fr|year=1834|page=29|author-link=Isaac Titsingh}}</ref>


There is no evidence to suggest that the title ''tennō'' (meaning "emperor") was used during the time to which Seinei's reign has been assigned. Instead, his title could have possibly been {{Nihongo|''Sumeramikoto'' or ''Amenoshita Shiroshimesu Ōkimi''|治天下大王}}, meaning "the great king who rules all under heaven", or {{Nihongo2|ヤマト大王/大君}} "Great King of Yamato". The name Seinei''-tennō'' was more than likely assigned to him [[Posthumous name|posthumously]] by later generations.<ref name="name">{{cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/ahistoryjapanes00kikugoog|title=''A History of the Japanese People from the Earliest Times to the end of the Meiji Era''|author=Brinkley, Frank|publisher=Encyclopaedia Britannica Company|year=1915|page=[https://archive.org/details/ahistoryjapanes00kikugoog/page/n33 21]|quote=Posthumous names for the earthly ''Mikados'' were invented in the reign of Emperor Kanmu (782–805), i.e., after the date of the compilation of the ''Records'' and the ''Chronicles.''|author-link=Francis Brinkley}}</ref> His name might have been regularized centuries after the lifetime ascribed to Seinei, possibly during the time in which legends about the origins of the imperial dynasty were compiled as the chronicles known today as the ''[[Kojiki]]''.<ref name="aston109 & 217-223">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_oEfAAAAYAAJ|title=Nihongi: Chronicles of Japan from the Earliest Times to A.D. 697, Volume 2|author=Aston, William George.|publisher=The Japan Society London|year=2008|orig-date=1896|page=109 & 217–223|isbn=9780524053478 |author-link=William George Aston}}</ref>
There is no evidence to suggest that the title ''tennō'' (meaning "emperor") was used during the time to which Seinei's reign has been assigned. Instead, his title could have possibly been {{Nihongo|''Sumeramikoto'' or ''Amenoshita Shiroshimesu Ōkimi''|治天下大王}}, meaning "the great king who rules all under heaven", or {{Nihongo2|ヤマト大王/大君}} "Great King of Yamato". The name Seinei''-tennō'' was more than likely assigned to him [[Posthumous name|posthumously]] by later generations.<ref name="name">{{cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/ahistoryjapanes00kikugoog|title=''A History of the Japanese People from the Earliest Times to the end of the Meiji Era''|author=Brinkley, Frank|publisher=Encyclopaedia Britannica Company|year=1915|page=[https://archive.org/details/ahistoryjapanes00kikugoog/page/n33 21]|quote=Posthumous names for the earthly ''Mikados'' were invented in the reign of Emperor Kanmu (782–805), i.e., after the date of the compilation of the ''Records'' and the ''Chronicles.''|author-link=Francis Brinkley}}</ref> His name might have been regularized centuries after the lifetime ascribed to Seinei, possibly during the time in which legends about the origins of the imperial dynasty were compiled as the chronicles known today as the ''[[Kojiki]]''.<ref name="aston109 & 217-223">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_oEfAAAAYAAJ|title=Nihongi: Chronicles of Japan from the Earliest Times to A.D. 697, Volume 2|author=Aston, William George.|publisher=The Japan Society London|year=2008|orig-date=1896|page=109 & 217–223|isbn=9780524053478 |author-link=William George Aston}}</ref>

Latest revision as of 11:40, 14 December 2025

Template:Infobox royalty

Emperor Seinei (清寧天皇, Seinei-tennō) (444 – 484) was the 22nd (possibly legendary[lower-alpha 1]) emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession.[2][3][4] He is best known for events that took place before and after his reign with a void in between. These include a rebellion which was quickly put down, and a succession crisis as the Emperor had no children. Because Seinei had such a low profile, historians have questioned his existence and whether he ever ascended to the throne.

No firm dates can be assigned to this emperor's life or reign, but he is conventionally considered to have reigned from 480 to 484.[5] Dates confirmed as "traditional" did not appear until the reign of Emperor Kanmu (the 50th emperor). Modern historians have come to the conclusion that the title of "Emperor" and the name "Seinei" were used by later generations to describe him.

Narrative

The Japanese have traditionally accepted this sovereign's historical existence, and a mausoleum (misasagi) for Seinei is currently maintained. The following information available is taken from the pseudo-historical Kojiki and Nihon Shoki, which are collectively known as Kiki (記紀) or Japanese chronicles. These chronicles include legends and myths, as well as potential historical facts that have since been exaggerated and/or distorted over time. It is recorded in the Nihon Shoki[lower-alpha 2] that Seinei was born to Katsuragi no Karahime (葛城韓媛) sometime in 444 AD, and was given the name Shiraka (白髪皇子).[6] Prince Shiraka was the third and favorite son of Emperor Yūryaku, and was made heir apparent a year before his father's death.[7] Yūryaku had taken notice at how Shiraka was born with white hair as meaning something significant.[8]

During the transition period, Yūryaku's other consort Kibi no Wakahime (吉備稚媛) convinced her younger son Prince Hoshikawa to assert his claim to the throne.[9] While Hoshikawa was Prince Shiraka's older brother, the eldest sibling in the household (Prince Iwaki (磐城皇子)) advised against it.[5] In the rebellion that followed Hoshikawa and his followers sieged the Imperial treasury. They were then surrounded by court troops who burned the building to the ground, roasting to death all but one surviving minor official (who was given mercy).[9] With the rebellion put down, Prince Shiraka assumed the throne as Emperor Seinei in 480 AD.[7] Although the Emperor appointed a woman named Katsuraki Kara-hime as "Grand Consort", she was never made an Empress.[7]

Seinei grew distressed in the second year of his reign as he had no children to succeed him. His father Emperor Yūryaku had done away with all of his male relations in his obsessive conquest for the throne, his older brother Prince Hoshikawa had been burnt to death, and Prince Iwaki died sometime in 481 AD.[5][7] Seinei lucked out when two grandsons (Woke and Oke) of Emperor Richū were discovered by chance while the governor of Harima was out for an inspection.[5] The two princes had fled to the countryside after their father, Ichinobe no Oshiwa was killed by Emperor Yūryaku.[8][9] These events regarding succession were also later recorded in the Kojiki.[10][11]

When word got to the Emperor about the two Princes, he was delighted and formerly adopted them as his heirs.[7] Sometime in 482 AD, Prince Oke was appointed as Crown Prince.[9] Seinei's death sometime in 484 AD (possibly January) came with a problem as his two adopted sons were very courteous towards each other.[11] Although Prince Oke had been appointed heir, he ceded the throne to his brother Prince Woke, who in turn ceded it back.[9][12] The two debated the issue for about a year while Princess Iitoyo, a daughter of Emperor Richū was allegedly made regent.[5][7][9] Her death in late 484 AD resolved the debate and Prince Woke ascended to the throne as Emperor Kenzō in the following year.[5]

Historical assessment

File:Shiragayama Kofun, haisho.jpg
Emperor Seinei's Mausoleum in Habikino

The actual existence of Emperor Seinei is debated among historians due to a lack of available information.[1] British academic and author Richard Ponsonby-Fane notes that the Kojiki gives no details about Seinei and some lists omit his name altogether.[5] Scholar Francis Brinkley though, still lists Emperor Seinei under "Protohistoric sovereigns".[9] He mentioned there that Emperor Yūryaku's "evil act" of stealing Tasa's wife (Kibi no Wakahime) led to serious consequences. While Wakahime and her companions conspired to place her own son on the throne, Brinkley stated that they underestimated the power of the Katsuragi family.[9][lower-alpha 3] In regard to the Emperor's hair, Dutch historian and Japanologist Isaac Titsingh mentioned that "there is speculation that this [Seisei's] unusual hair color suggests albinism.[13]

There is no evidence to suggest that the title tennō (meaning "emperor") was used during the time to which Seinei's reign has been assigned. Instead, his title could have possibly been Sumeramikoto or Amenoshita Shiroshimesu Ōkimi (治天下大王), meaning "the great king who rules all under heaven", or ヤマト大王/大君 "Great King of Yamato". The name Seinei-tennō was more than likely assigned to him posthumously by later generations.[14] His name might have been regularized centuries after the lifetime ascribed to Seinei, possibly during the time in which legends about the origins of the imperial dynasty were compiled as the chronicles known today as the Kojiki.[15]

Outside of the Kiki, the reign of Emperor Kinmei[lower-alpha 4] (c. 509 – 571 AD) is the first for which contemporary historiography has been able to assign verifiable dates.[17] The conventionally accepted names and dates of the early Emperors were not confirmed as "traditional" though, until the reign of Emperor Kanmu[lower-alpha 5] between 737 and 806 AD.[15]

While the actual site of Seinei's grave is not known, this regent is traditionally venerated at a kofun-type Imperial tomb in Habikino, Osaka.[3] The Imperial Household Agency designates this location as Seinei's mausoleum and is formally named Kawachi no Sakado no hara no misasagi. (河内坂門原陵). Seinei is also enshrined at the Tokyo Imperial Palace in the Three Palace Sanctuaries.

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ There is no consensus that Seinei was a historical figure.[1]
  2. ↑ The Kojiki only records information related to searching for a successor to Emperor Seinei.
  3. ↑ Emperor Seinei's mother belonged to this family.
  4. ↑ The 29th Emperor[2][16]
  5. ↑ Kanmu was the 50th sovereign of the imperial dynasty

References

File:Imperial Seal of Japan.svg
Japanese Imperial kamon — a stylized chrysanthemum blossom
  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Chiaki Mizutani (2001). The Mysterious Great King: The Emperor of the Succession. Bungei Shunju. p. 41.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Titsingh, Isaac. (1834). Annales des empereurs du japon (in French). Royal Asiatic Society, Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and Ireland. pp. 28–29.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 "雄略天皇 (22)". Imperial Household Agency (Kunaichō) (in Japanese). Retrieved December 27, 2024.
  4. ↑ Varley, H. Paul (1980). Jinnō Shōtōki. New York: Columbia University Press. pp. 115–116.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6 Ponsonby-Fane, Richard (1915). "Seinei (480–484)". The Imperial Family of Japan. Ponsonby Memorial Society. p. 14.
  6. ↑ Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named Longford
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 William George Aston (1896). "Book XV: Seinei Tenno". Nihongi: Chronicles of Japan from the Earliest Times to A.D. 697. (Volume 1). London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Trubner. pp. 338 & 373–377.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named Brown
  9. ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 9.4 9.5 9.6 9.7 Francis Brinkley (1915). "Chapter XIII: The Protohistoric Sovereigns (continued)". A History of the Japanese People from the Earliest Times to the End of the Meiji Era. Encyclopædia Britannica. pp. 117–119.
  10. ↑ Basil Hall Chamberlain (1882). "Sect. CLXIII - Emperor Seinei (Part I - Search for a successor to him)". A translation of the "Kojiki" or Records of ancient matters. R. Meiklejohn and Co.
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 Basil Hall Chamberlain (1882). "Emperor Seinei (Part II - Princes Ohoke and Woke are Discovered". A translation of the "Kojiki" or Records of ancient matters. R. Meiklejohn and Co.
  12. ↑ Basil Hall Chamberlain (1882). "Emperor Seinei (Part III - The Grandee Shibi". A translation of the "Kojiki" or Records of ancient matters. R. Meiklejohn and Co.
  13. ↑ Titsingh, Isaac. (1834). Annales des empereurs du japon (in French). Royal Asiatic Society, Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and Ireland. p. 29.
  14. ↑ Brinkley, Frank (1915). A History of the Japanese People from the Earliest Times to the end of the Meiji Era. Encyclopaedia Britannica Company. p. 21. Posthumous names for the earthly Mikados were invented in the reign of Emperor Kanmu (782–805), i.e., after the date of the compilation of the Records and the Chronicles.
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 Aston, William George. (2008) [1896]. Nihongi: Chronicles of Japan from the Earliest Times to A.D. 697, Volume 2. The Japan Society London. p. 109 & 217–223. ISBN 9780524053478.
  16. ↑ Brown, Delmer M. and Ichirō Ishida (1979). A Translation and Study of the Gukanshō, an Interpretative History of Japan Written in 1219. University of California Press. pp. 248, 261–262. ISBN 9780520034600.
  17. ↑ Hoye, Timothy. (1999). Japanese Politics: Fixed and Floating Worlds. Prentice Hall. p. 78. ISBN 9780132712897. According to legend, the first Japanese Emperor was Jimmu. Along with the next 13 Emperors, Jimmu is not considered an actual, historical figure. Historically verifiable Emperors of Japan date from the early sixth century with Kimmei.

Further reading

Template:S-reg
Preceded by Emperor of Japan:
Seinei
480 – 484
(traditional dates) 		Succeeded by

Template:Emperors of Japan

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