World and Lore / Historical mystery

Minamoto no Yoshitsune

Minamoto no Yoshitsune was a 12th century samurai general and the half-brother of Minamoto no Yoritomo, supreme leader of the Genji clan, which struggled for power against the rival Taira clan in a bloody conflict known to historians of Japan as the Genpei War. Celebrated as a brilliant military strategist, Yoshitsune ensured total victory for the Genji by revolutionizing the art of traditional warfare. At the same time, his blatant disregard for the old rules and codes of warrior conduct has equally made him an object of moral condemnation. Regardless of how he is remembered, all can agree that he played a decisive role in bringing the bloody civil war to its effective end. After the war, Yoshitsune fell out of favor with his wary elder brother, who turned against him and forced him to take his life by ritual suicide, a tragic end that has since served as inspiration for several famous kabuki dramas and other celebrated works of art.