The Kamakura Shogunate

Minamoto Yoritomo rocked. In the late 12th century, he vanquished his rivals and earned the title “Seii Shogun”, (supreme generalissimo conqueror of the Barbarians). Nothing new so far– every top general got this title, and retired to Kyoto to drink sake and write poems.

Not Yoritomo– he recieved the title from the Emperor, and proceeded to tell the Emperor to stuff it a week later. Yoritomo took his crew and moved North East to a well-defended valley in Kamakura, and there he set up his new “bakufu” (tent government). This set the pattern that would last through Tokugawa setting his government in Edo (now Tokyo), and continue through 1872, when power was finally restored to the Emperor.

So, what is left? A nice temple grounds, some graves, and a nice day out for Yumiko and me.

There are some really nice shots of the temple grounds, and I was able to get the leaves changing– a rare treat in Japan. We saw surfers catching evening swells, and it seemed just like L.A., except for the lack of hypodermic needles in the sand and no baywatch. As always, these photos are full sized– so feel free to order prints if you wish.