was the 88th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. This reign spanned the years 1242 through 1246.

This 13th-century sovereign was named after the 9th-century Emperor Saga and go- (後), translates literally as "later"; and thus, he is sometimes called the "Later Emperor Saga". The Japanese word go has also been translated to mean the "second one;" and in some older sources, this emperor may be identified as "Saga, the second", or as "Saga II".

Genealogy

Before his ascension to the Chrysanthemum Throne, his personal name (his imina) was .

He was the second son of Emperor Tsuchimikado, and second cousin of his predecessor Emperor Shijō.

  • Empress: Saionji (Fujiwara) no Yoshi-ko (西園寺（藤原）姞子) Later Ōmiya-in (大宮院), Saionji Saneuji’s daughter
  • Fourth son: Imperial Prince Hisahito (久仁親王) later Emperor Go-Fukakusa
  • First daughter: Imperial Princess Osako (綜子内親王; 1247-1269）later Gekkamon-in (月華門院)
  • Seventh son: Imperial Prince Tsunehito (恒仁親王) later Emperor Kameyama
  • Eleventh son: Imperial Prince Masataka (雅尊親王; 1254-1256)
  • Third son: Imperial Prince Munetaka (宗尊親王)
  • Handmaid?: Fujiwara Hiroko (藤原博子), Fujiwara Takatoki's daughter
  • Eighth son: Imperial Prince Priest Kakujo (覚助法親王; 1247-1336) was received by the second son of former Emperor Tsuchimikado.
  • 19 April 1242 (Ninji 3, 18th day of the 3rd month): Emperor Go-Saga is said to have acceded to the throne (sokui).

In 1242, Prince Kunihito became emperor. In 1246 he abdicated to his son, Emperor Go-Fukakusa, beginning his reign as cloistered emperor. In 1259, he compelled Emperor Go-Fukakusa to abdicate to his younger brother, Emperor Kameyama. Imperial Prince Munetaka became shōgun instead of the Hōjō regents. Henceforth, the shōguns of the Kamakura Bakufu came from the imperial house. Still, the Hōjō regents increased their control of the shogunate, setting up the system of rule by regents.

The descendants of his two sons contested the throne between them, forming into two lines, the Jimyōin-tō (Go-Fukakusa's descendants) and the Daikakuji-tō (Kameyama's descendants). Their lines would eventually lead to the split between the Northern and Southern Courts.

thumb|right|Memorial Shinto-Buddhist [[Tenryū-ji|temple and mausoleum honoring Emperor Go-Saga]]

In 1272, Go-Saga died.

Go-Saga's final resting place is designated as an Imperial mausoleum (misasagi) at Saga no minami no Misasagi at Tenryū-ji in Kyoto.

Kugyō

is a collective term for the very few most powerful men attached to the court of the Emperor of Japan in pre-Meiji eras. Even during those years in which the court's actual influence outside the palace walls was minimal, the hierarchic organization persisted.

In general, this elite group included only three to four men at a time. These were hereditary courtiers whose experience and background would have brought them to the pinnacle of a life's career. During Go-Saga's reign, this apex of the Daijō-kan included:

  • Kampaku, Konoe Kanetsune, 1242
  • Kampaku, Nijō Yoshizane, 1242–1246
  • Kampaku, Ichijō Sanetsune, 1246
  • Sadaijin
  • Udaijin
  • Nadaijin
  • Dainagon

Eras of Go-Saga's reign

The years of Go-saga's reign are more specifically identified by more than one era name or nengō.

  • Ninji (1240–1243)
  • Kangen (1243–1247)

Ancestry

See also

  • Emperor of Japan
  • List of Emperors of Japan
  • Imperial cult

Notes

thumb|right|120px|[[Imperial Seal of Japan|Japanese Imperial kamon — a stylized chrysanthemum blossom]]

References

  • Ponsonby-Fane, Richard Arthur Brabazon. (1959). The Imperial House of Japan. Kyoto: Ponsonby Memorial Society. OCLC 194887
  • Titsingh, Isaac, ed. (1834). [Siyun-sai Rin-siyo/Hayashi Gahō, 1652], Nipon o daï itsi ran; ou, Annales des empereurs du Japon. Paris: Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and Ireland.
  • Varley, H. Paul , ed. (1980). [ Kitabatake Chikafusa, 1359], Jinnō Shōtōki (A Chronicle of Gods and Sovereigns: Jinnō Shōtōki. New York: Columbia University Press.