On the 28th day of the 12th month of Jishō 4 (1180), Taira forces under Taira no Shigehira, sent by Taira no Kiyomori, attacked Nara, and most of the main halls of Tōdai-ji and Kōfuku-ji were destroyed by fire. The article covers the background, the advance headquartered at Hannya-ji, the damage to the Great Buddha Hall, the differing casualty figures, and the reconstruction led by Chōgen.

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17th day of the 10th month, Bunji 1 (1185)

The Horikawa Night Attack — The Failed Assassination of Yoshitsune and the Irrevocable Break with Yoritomo

In the 10th month of Bunji 1 (1185), Tosabō Shōshun, acting on Minamoto no Yoritomo's orders, launched a night raid on Minamoto no Yoshitsune's residence at Horikawa in Kyoto, but Yoshitsune personally fought back and repelled the attack. The incident made the rift between the half-brothers irrevocable; Yoshitsune obtained an imperial edict to subjugate Yoritomo but failed to raise an army, fled to Ōshū, and met his tragic end at Koromogawa in 1189.

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30th day of the intercalary 4th month, Bunji 5 (1189)

Battle of Koromogawa and the Death of Yoshitsune

On the intercalary 30th day of the 4th month of Bunji 5 (1189), Minamoto no Yoshitsune, cornered by the pursuit forces of his elder brother Minamoto no Yoritomo, killed his wife and children at Koromogawa no Tachi in Hiraizumi, Ōshū, then took his own life. He was thirty-one years old. The tragic end of the hero who destroyed the Heike at Dannoura gave birth to the cultural concept of hōgan-biiki (sympathy for the underdog), and together with the legends of famous swords said to be associated with Yoshitsune, continues to be passed down to the present day.