* Image is for illustrative purposes only.Kannō Disturbance and the Sword
観応の擾乱と刀剣
Internal strife within the Ashikaga regime arising from the conflict between Ashikaga Takauji and his younger brother Tadayoshi, and the swordsmiths active in the same period
Description
The Kannō Disturbance (1350–1352) was a power struggle that broke out between Ashikaga Takauji and his younger brother Tadayoshi, and it caused the greatest internal split of the Nanbokuchō period. This disturbance was more than a mere fraternal quarrel. It was a clash between the Kō no Moronao and Moroyasu faction and the Tadayoshi faction within the Ashikaga shogunate, and it laid bare the fragility of the Muromachi system.
From the perspective of sword history, this period falls in the midst of the Nanbokuchō period, when tachi, ōdachi, and nagamaki were the main weapons in battle.
During the disturbance, Moronao and Moroyasu were killed at Settsu in Kannō 2 (1351), and Tadayoshi died suddenly at Kamakura in Shōhei 7 (1352). Tadayoshi's death was officially recorded as death from illness, but the Taiheiki depicts it as poisoning by Takauji.
Smiths active around this time include Kanemitsu and Chōgi of Bizen Osafune, and Rai Kunitsugu of Yamashiro.
Characteristics of This Era
- In the midst of the Nanbokuchō period, when ōdachi and nagamaki were used in battle