Taira clan

• Japanese: 平氏 (Heishi) or 平家 (Heike)

The Taira clan was one of the four most prominent families of court aristocracy in the Heian period, along with the Minamoto, Tachibana, and Fujiwara clans; in the 1150s-1180s, under Taira no Kiyomori, they became the most powerful clan in the realm. The Taira were defeated by the Minamoto, however, in the Genpei War of 1180-1185, and all but destroyed. The Taira would never achieve prominence again, but many prominent samurai clans claimed descent from the Taira, whether legitimately, or in order to claim more elite ancestry, and legitimacy as rulers.

The most prominent and powerful lineage or family within the broader clan was the Kammu Heishi, who claimed descent from Emperor Kammu, through four of the eight sons of Takamochi, son of Takami, who in turn was the son of Prince Kazurahara, eldest son of Emperor Kammu. The Kammu Heishi, at that time based chiefly in Ise province, rose to prominence in the 11th century as warriors in the service of certain retired emperors, just at the same time that the Seiwa Genji, the most prominent lineage of the Minamoto clan, similarly rose to prominence defeating enemies of the Court in Tôhoku. The Kammu Heishi, led by Taira no Kiyomori, gained further power in the Hôgen Rebellion of 1156, and the following Heiji Rebellion of 1159, as he led forces in the service of Retired Emperor Go-Shirakawa, alongside some Minamoto leaders, to victory against other Taira and Minamoto forces.

The story of the fall of the Taira is related in the eponymous romantic / fictionalized epic, The Tale of the Heike.

Taira Lineage

• Taira no Masamori
  • Taira no Tadamori - son of Masamori
    • Taira no Kiyomori (1118-1181) - son of Tadamori, clan head, dominates Court politics for much of 1160s-1170s
    • Taira no Tokitada - brother of Kenshunmon-in, brother-in-law of Kiyomori
      • Taira no Tokuko, aka Kenreimon-in - daughter of Kiyomori, consort of Emperor Takakura, mother of Emperor Antoku
      • Taira no Shigemori (d. 1179) - eldest son of Kiyomori
        • Taira no Koremori - eldest son of Shigemori, governor of Suo Province
        • Taira no Sukemori - son of Shigemori
      • Taira no Munemori (1147-1185) - son of Kiyomori, Kiyomori's successor as clan head
      • Taira no Tomomori (d. 1185) - son of Kiyomori
      • Taira no Shigehira - son of Kiyomori

Other Members of the Taira clan

• Taira no Kinmasa - rebuilt the Sensô-ji in 942.
• Taira no Masakado (d. 940) - led a rebellion against the Court in 939-940
  • Taira no Tadatsune - grandson of Masakado; known for attacks against government compounds in Awa province in 1028
• Taira no Yasuyori - conspirator in the 1177 Shishigatani Incident

References

• Helen McCullough trans., The Tale of the Heike, Stanford University Press (1990), 3-4.