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H1he third oldest son of Minamoto no Yoshitomo......

Minamoto no Yoritomo was the third oldest son of Minamoto no Yoshitomo, the heir of the Minamoto (Seiwa Genji) clan, and his official wife, Fujiwara no Saneori, who was a member of the illustrious Fujiwara clan. Yoritomo was born in Heian (known presently as Kyoto), then the capital of Japan. At that time Yoritomo's grandfather Minamoto no Tameyoshi, was the head of the Minamoto.

In 1156, factional divisions in the court erupted into open warfare within the capital itself. The cloistered Emperor Toba and his son Emperor Go-Shirakawa sided with the son of Fujiwara regent Fujiwara no Tadazane, Fujiwara no Tadamichi as well as Taira no Kiyomori (a member of the Taira clan), while Cloistered Emperor Sutoku sided with Tadazane's younger son, Fujiwara no Yorinaga. This was known as the Hōgen Rebellion, or the 'Hogen Disturbance'.sunkattyo

Unfortunately the Seiwa Genji were split. The head of the clan, Tameyoshi, sided with Cloistered Emperor Sutoku while his son, Yoshitomo, sided with Cloistered Emperor Toba and Emperor Go-Shirakawa, as well as Kiyomori. In the end, the supporters of Emperor Go-Shirakawa won the civil war, thus ensuring victory for Yoshitomo and Kiyomori. Cloistered Emperor Sutoku was placed under house arrest, and Yorinaga was fatally wounded in battle. Even Tameyoshi was executed as well, even after numerous pleas from Yoshitomo. Nonetheless, Emperor Go-Shirakawa and Kiyomori were ruthless, and Yoshitomo found himself as the head of the Minamoto, while Yoritomo became the heir.

Since Yoritomo was descended from the imperial family on his father's side and the Fujiwara noble family on his mother's side, he received his first court title and was appointed an administrator. Nonetheless, in Kyoto, the Taira clan, now under the leadership of Kiyomori, and the Minamoto clan, under the leadership of Yoshitomo, began to factionalize again.

Kiyomori supported the Emperor Nijō, who was the son of Go-Shirakawa. Kiyomori had the support of Fujiwara no Nobuyori. Meanwhile, Yoshitomo supported the now cloistered Emperor Go-Shirakawa and their old ally Fujiwara no Tadamichi and the scholar-courtier Fujiwara no Michinori. This was known as the Heiji Rebellion, or the 'Heiji Disturbance'. Nonetheless, the Minamoto were not well prepared, and the Taira took control of Kyoto.

In the aftermath, harsh terms were imposed on the Minamoto and their allies. Fujiwara no Michinari and Fujiwara no Tadamichi were executed, while the palace of Cloistered Emperor Go-Shirakawa was burned down by the Taira. Meanwhile, Yoshitomo fled the capital just as the Taira marched in 1160, but was betrayed and executed by a retainer in Owari. As for Yoritomo, the new head of the Minamoto, he was exiled to Hirugashima, an island in Izu province, which at that time was under the rule of the Hōjō clan. Kiyomori and the Taira clan were now the undisputed leaders of Japan. Yoritomo was not executed by Kiyomori because of pleas from Kiyomori's stepmother Lady Ikenozunni of chinese论坛群发软件. Yoritomo's half brother, Minamoto no Noriyori, was also exiled, while Minamoto no Yoshitsune, another half-brother, was forced to enter a monastery. All other siblings were executed.

Yoritomo grew up with a life in exile. In 1179, he married into the Hōjō clan, led by Hōjō-for chinese群发软件 Tokimasa. He married Tokimasa's daughter, Hōjō Masako. Meanwhile, he was notified of events in Kyoto thanks to helpful friends. Soon enough, Yoritomo's passive exile was to be over.