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Shogun 将軍 Shogun were hereditary military rulers from 1192 to 1867. Nominally appointed by the emperor, they were the de facto rulers of Japan until the end of the Tokugawa Period. Shōgun (将軍) means "commander of a force", a title that was first used in the year 794 when general Sakanoue no Tamuramaro was appointed shōgun in order to fight back the Emishi (蝦夷), natives of northern Honshū, descendants of those who developed the Jōmon culture and thought to have been related to the Ainu. Although shogun is often translated as "general", the position was actually closer to the Western "generalissimo", a Field-Marshall or five-star general. The full title was in fact seii taishōgun (征夷大将軍), "great general who subdues eastern barbarians". A shogun's office or administration is known in English as a "shogunate". Japan's shogunates were the Kamakura Shogunate (1192-1333), established by Minamoto no Yoritomo, but ruled by the Hojo clan after his death, the Ashikaga Shogunate (1338-1597), based in Kyoto and ruled by the family of the same name, and the Tokugawa Shogunate (1600-1867), based in Edo and ruled by Tokugawa Ieyasu and his descendant. In Japanese "shogunate" was known as bakufu (幕府) which literally means "tent office", and originally meant "house of the general", and later also suggested a private government. Bakufu could also mean "tent government", with the tent symbolizing the field commander but also denoting that such an office was meant to be temporary. In modern times the term shogun is sometimes applied to senior or retired politicians still wielding considerable power and influence (a "shadow shogun", yami shōgun 闇将軍 【やみしょうぐん】, a king-maker or éminence grise). Discussion: Discuss this topic on the Japan Forum!

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