The Chronicles of Japan record the history of the formidable power struggles within the Yamato Imperial Court.
Here, let's look at the period before the enthronement of Emperor Yuryaku (reigned AD 456?-479).
Ohatsuse Wakatakeru no Mikoto (later Emperor Yuryaku: the twelfth) was able to kill princes who were rivals to him one after another without any reason.
Ohatsuse Wakatakeru no Mikoto killed many people, including Prince Yatsuri Shirohiko, Prince Sakaai Kurohiko, and Prince Mayowa.
When Emperor Anko (older maternal brother of Ohatsuse Wakatakeru no Mikoto) was assassinated by Prince Mayowa, Prince Yatsuri no Shirohiko and Prince Sakaai Kurohiko were killed because their reactions were slow. It is written in the Chronicles of Japan, but most of them were killed without any hesitation.
It is written that Prince Yatsuri Shirohiko was grabbed by the neck and his eyes popped out when he was buried in Oharita.
It seems that the essence of the matter was that his two older brothers were a hindrance to his accession to the throne.
Prince Yatsuri Shirohiko and Prince Sakaai Kurohiko are also brothers by the same mother of Ohatsuse Wakatakeru no Mikoto, and if power is to be transferred peacefully, these two will be higher in the line of succession to the throne..
Since both of them are older brothers who share the same mother as Ohatsuse Wakakeru no Mikoto, Ohatsuse Wakatakeru no Mikoto caused a horrific incident that transcends common sense.
Even after taking the throne, Emperor Yuryaku had a terrifying impatience when he went out hunting and killed his vassals because they were slow to respond. There is no doubt that the entire archipelago was surrounded by considerable tension during this period.
(The picture is of Hakusan Shrine, which is said to be the site of Emperor Yuryaku's Hatsuse Asakura Palace. Emperor Yuryaku is thought to have had many enemies because he ascended the throne after a series of cruel incidents. It is believed that the shrine was placed in a heavily defended area with mountains behind it.)
Hakusan Shrine: 20-minutes walk east from Yamato-Asakura Station. Taken on August 31, 2022
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