High Middle Ages · East Asia · Politics
1192
Yoritomo made Shogun
August 21, 1192
Minamoto no Yoritomo, having destroyed the Taira and sidelined the emperor in Kyoto, was formally appointed Sei-i Taishogun by the powerless court. From his capital at Kamakura he established a parallel warrior government that would rule Japan in the emperor's name for nearly seven centuries. The shogunate created a dual-government system unique in world history, with the emperor reigning but the shogun ruling.