Emperor Yōmei

Template:Infobox royalty

Template:Nihongo was the 31st Emperor of Japan,<ref name="kunaicho">Imperial Household Agency (Kunaichō): 用明天皇 (31)</ref> according to the traditional order of succession.<ref>Ponsonby-Fane, Richard. (1959). The Imperial House of Japan, p. 46.</ref>

Yōmei's reign spanned the years from 585 until his death in 587.<ref>Brown, Delmer et al. (1979). Gukanshō, p. 263; Titsingh, Isaac. (1834). Template:Google books</ref>

Traditional narrative

He was called Template:Nihongo in the Kojiki. He was also referred to as Template:Nihongo and Template:Nihongo after the palace in which he lived. He acceded to the throne after the death of his half brother, Emperor Bidatsu.

The influential courtiers from Emperor Bidatsu's reign, Mononobe no Moriya, also known as Mononobe Yuge no Moriya no Muraji or as Ō-muraji Yuge no Moriya, and Soga no Umako no Sukune, both remained in their positions during the reign of Emperor Yōmei. Umako was the son of Soga Iname no Sukune, and therefore, he would have been one of Emperor Yōmei's cousins.

585: In the Template:Nihongo, he died; and the succession was received by his younger brother. Shortly thereafter, Emperor Yōmei is said to have acceded to the throne.<ref>Titsingh, p. 37; Brown, pp. 263; Varley, p. 44; n.b., A distinct act of senso is unrecognized prior to Emperor Tenji; and all sovereigns except Jitō, Yōzei, Go-Toba, and Fushimi have senso and sokui in the same year until the reign of Emperor Go-Murakami.</ref>

Yōmei's contemporary title would not have been tennō, as most historians believe this title was not introduced until the reigns of Emperor Tenmu and Empress Jitō. Rather, it was presumably Template:Nihongo, meaning "the great king who rules all under heaven". Alternatively, Yōmei might have been referred to as Template:Nihongo2 or the "Great King of Yamato".

Emperor Yōmei's reign lasted only two years; and he died at the age of 46 or 47.

587, in the 4th month: Yōmei died and his body was placed in a coffin, but not buried.<ref name="b263"/>
587, in the 5th month: Armed conflict over the succession erupted. Shintoist, anti-Buddhist forces of Yuge no Moriya no Muraji (also known as Ō-muraji Yuge no Moriya) battled unsuccessfully against the pro-Buddhist forces of Prince Shōtoku and Soga Umako no Sukune. The opposition to Buddhism was entirely destroyed.<ref>Brown, pp. 262–263.</ref>
587, in the 7th month: The body of former Emperor Yōmei was buried.<ref name="b263"/>

Because of the brevity of his reign, Emperor Yōmei was not responsible for any radical changes in policy, but his support of Buddhism created tension with supporters of Shinto who opposed its introduction. According to Nihon Shoki, Emperor Yomei believed both in Buddhism and Shinto. Moriya, the most influential supporter of Shinto, conspired with Emperor Yōmei's brother, Prince Anahobe, and after Emperor Yomei's death they made an abortive attempt to seize the throne. Although Emperor Yōmei is reported to have died from illness, this incident and the brevity of his reign have led some to speculate that he was actually assassinated by Moriya and Prince Anahobe.

File:Yomei tenno-ryo3200.jpg

Memorial Shinto shrine and mausoleum honoring Emperor Yōmei.

The actual site of Yōmei's grave is known.<ref name="kunaicho"/> The Emperor is traditionally venerated at a memorial Shinto shrine (misasagi) at Osaka.

The Imperial Household Agency designates this location as Yōmei's mausoleum. It is formally named Kōchi no Shinaga no hara no misasagi.<ref>Ponsonby-Fane, p. 419.</ref>

Genealogy

Emperor Yōmei was the fourth son of Emperor Kinmei and his mother was Soga no Kitashihime, a daughter of Soga no Iname.<ref>Varley, p. 125.</ref>

In 586, Emperor Yōmei took his half-sister Template:Nihongo, whose mother was another of Iname's daughters, Soga no Oane Hime, as his consort. Princess Hashihito no Anahobe bore him four sons.

Empress (Kōgō): Template:Nihongo, Emperor Kinmei's daughter