05/03/2026 16:19

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vere requisitions, Kato Kiyomasa told him that there was noalternative except to retire to his castle and defy Yedo. Thetitle included the Sanke, the Sankyo, the gokemon (governor ofEchizen), the fudai (hereditary vassals), and the tozama. His own safetydictated that step. It wouldseem to have been his deliberate policy to remove every potentialobstacle to the accession of his own sons.

This letter,though not actually an official communication, had the effect ofshelving the matter for a ti ATTITUDE OF THE ASHIKAGA TOWARDS THE THRONEThe policy of the Ashikaga towards the Daikagu-ji line (the SouthernCourt) of the Imperial house was evidently one of completeelimination at the outset. Noriyorireturned to Kamakura to consult Yoritomo, but the latter and hismilitary advisers could not plan anything except the obvious c Simultaneously, a number of Court officials, including all that hadbeen connected with Yoshitsune and Yukiie, lost