Page:Brinkley - Japan - Volume 6.djvu/293

RV 263 reformers, he resigned from the government and retired to Satsuma, where he began to plan the rebellion that broke out in 1877, and ended with his overthrow and death. (See the Index.) The rebel has now been forgotten and only the brilliant services in behalf of the Imperial power remembered. In 1890 the ban of degradation was removed and all his honours restored posthumously, after the Japanese custom. More recently a monument has been erected to his memory.

Sanjo, Prince (1836—1891), was one of the radical anti-foreign leaders at the Imperial Court, but became converted, while in exile at Chōshiu, to the necessity of terminating the period of isolation. His position at Court made him a valuable ally to the clan reformers and an important factor in the Revolution and the new government. From 1871 to 1886 he was at the head of the ministry. In the new order of nobility he held the highest rank.

Shinran Shōnin (1173—1262) founded a sect known as the Protestants of Buddhism. He preached salvation by faith alone, denied the efficacy of celibacy, disapproved of monasteries, and had the Scriptures written in the vernacular. The sect is variously known as Shin, Ikkō, and Monto. It became very militant, and its great temple, Hongwan-ji, was destroyed by Nobunaga. In the present epoch Shinran has been given the posthumous name of Kenshin Daishi.

Shotoku (572—621), son of the Emperor Yomei and Regent during the reign of his aunt Suikō, is known not only for his championship of Buddhism, but also for his reforms in the government. He is credited with having written a history of his country and with having introduced the Chinese calendar. (For his constitution and other details, see the Index.)

Takauji (died in 1358), the first of the Ashikaga Shōguns, was of Minamoto descent, and received his title from the Emperor of the Northern or usurping Dynasty, which he had set up. (See the Index.)

Takeda Shingen (1521—1573) was one of the Tōkaidō chieftains who obtained prominence during the period of anarchy that closed the rule of the Ashikaga Shōguns. He waged war upon all of his neighbours, but especially upon Uyesugi Kenshin, and as a warrior was considered a peer of Nobunaga. They did not, however, come into conflict. His conquests aided in restoring order to the land, for what he gained he kept, and to his bravery he joined the power of administration, which Nobunaga did not possess. Takenouchi no Sukune was a legendary Prime Minister who served six