30. The Slippery Samurai Who Became a Shogun
Japanese warrior, general, and statesman Ashikaga Takauji (1305 – 1358) had a life and career full of twists and turns, during which he switched sides multiple times. In the end, he rose at age 33 to become shogun, or military dictator, and founded the Ashikaga Shogunate which dominated Japan for nearly two and a half centuries. His career began in in service to the powerful Hojo clan, which ran Japan’s then-Kamakura Shogunate. In 1333, Takauji was tasked by the Hojos with ending a civil war against Japan’s figurehead emperor, but he came to dislike the Hojos and switched sides, joining the emperor, instead. With Takauji’s help, the Hojos were defeated and compelled to commit suicide, ending the Kamakura Shogunate.
The emperor was restored to power, and established the first imperial government that wielded both military and political power since the 10th century. For his troubles, however, Takauji was rewarded with an accusation of having murdered an imperial prince while campaigning. He responded by switching sides once again, and turning on the emperor whom he had only recently restored to the throne. Takauji defeated the emperor, reduced him once again to a figurehead, and assumed the military dictatorship of Japan. The Ashikaga Shogunate founded by him went on to rule the country from 1338 to 1573. Contemporary Japanese intellectuals credited Takauji’s success to three factors. First, calm courage in battle, during which exhibited no fear of death. Second, mercy towards defeated foes and tolerance, often meant that surrender was a viable option for his opponents. Third, an open-handed generosity to subordinates, which earned and cemented their loyalty.