Kinmon incident

The Kinmon incident (禁門の変, Kinmon no Hen, "Forbidden Gate Incident" or "Imperial Palace Gate Incident"), also known as the Hamaguri Gate Rebellion (蛤御門の変, Hamaguri Gomon no Hen, "Hamaguri Imperial Gate Incident"), was a rebellion against the Tokugawa shogunate that took place on August 20 [lunar calendar: 19th day, 7th month], 1864, near the Imperial Palace in Kyoto.

Kinmon incident 禁門の変・蛤御門の変
Part of Bakumatsu conflicts
An 1893 woodblock print by Yūzan Mori, depicting the Hamaguri rebellion.
Date 20 August 1864 Location Kyoto Result Tokugawa shogunate victory
Belligerents
Chōshū Domain Sonnō jōi rōnin force	Tokugawa shogunate Aizu Domain Satsuma Domain Mito Domain Owari Domain Kii Domain Kuwana Domain Ōgaki Domain Echizen Domain Hikone Domain Yodo Domain Asao Domain Shinsengumi Mimawarigumi Yūgekitai
Commanders and leaders
Fukuhara Echigo	Tokugawa Yoshinobu
Strength
3,000 men (1,400 Chōshū army + 1,600 rōnin force)	50,000 men
Casualties and losses
400 killed or wounded	60 killed or wounded, 28,000 houses burnt down
Location within Japan

History

The rebellion reflected the widespread discontent felt among both pro-imperial and anti-foreigner groups, who rebelled under the sonnō jōi slogan. Sonnō jōi had been promulgated by the Emperor Kōmei as an "Order to expel barbarians". Thus, in March 1863, the shishi rebels sought to take control of the Emperor to restore the Imperial household to its position of political supremacy.

During what was a bloody crushing of the rebellion, the leading Chōshū clan was held responsible for its instigation. To counter the rebels' kidnapping attempt, the Aizu and Satsuma domains (the latter led by Saigo Takamori[1]) led the defense of the Imperial palace. However, during the attempt, the rebels put Kyoto on fire, starting with the residence of the Takatsukasa family, and that of a Chōshū official. It is unknown if the rebels set fire to Kyoto as soon as they began to lose, or if their doing so was part of their original strategy, and done as a diversionary tactic. Among the shishi who died in the incident include Kusaka Genzui.

Various courtiers, including Nakayama Tadayasu, the Emperor's Special Consultant for National Affairs, were banished from Court as a result of their involvement in this incident.[2] The shogunate followed the incident with a retaliatory armed expedition, the First Chōshū expedition, in September 1864.

References

1. Nagasawa Takaaki, The Life of Japan’s “Last Samurai”: Saigō Takamori) at Nippon.com, accessed 18 June 2020
2. Takeda Hideaki, Nakayama Tadayasu (1809–88) at kokugakuin.ac, accessed 24 September 2013