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This wooden Kongorikishi statue was created during the Kamakura shogunate during 14th century Japan. It originally guarded the gate to Ebara-dera, a temple in Sakai, Osaka.

The Kamakura shogunate (Japanese: 鎌倉幕府, Kamakura bakufu) was a feudal military dictatorship in Japan headed by the shoguns from 1185 (or 1192, when it was formally recognized) to 1333. It was based in Kamakura. The Kamakura period draws its name from the capital of the shogunate. However, from 1203 onwards, the family of the first Shogun Yoritomo's wife, the Hōjō clan, effectively had total control over the nation with the title Shikken (Regent), setting up a Hojo family only court that discussed and made all the real decisions.

Before the establishment of the Kamakura shogunate, civil power in Japan was primarily held by the ruling emperors and their regents, typically appointed from the ranks of the imperial court and the aristocratic clans that vied there. Military affairs were handled under the auspices of the civil government. However, after defeating the Taira clan in the Genpei War, Minamoto no Yoritomo seized certain powers from the aristocracy in 1185 and was given the title of shogun in 1192. The system of government he established became formalized as the shogunate.

After Yoritomo's death, Hōjō Tokimasa, the chief of his widow Hōjō Masako's clan and former guardian of Yoritomo, claimed the title of regent (Shikken) to Yoritomo's son Minamoto no Yoriie, eventually making that claim hereditary to the Hōjō clan. The Minamoto remained the titular shoguns, with the Hōjō holding the real power.

The retired Emperor Go-Toba attempted to reverse the situation in a 1221 rebellion, the Jōkyū War, but failed to wrest power from the shogunate. This solidified the hold of the Hōjō family on the shogunate, even to the point of allowing them to choose successors to the title of shogun. The Minamoto line died out with the assassination of the third shogun, Sanetomo. Following the Jōkyū War, the Hōjō assigned the post of shogun first to members of the noble Kujō family, and later to members of the imperial household until the end of the Kamakura shogunate.

The Mongols under Kublai Khan attempted sea-borne invasions in 1274 and 1281 (see Mongol invasions of Japan). The Kamakura shogunate met the invaders with vast armies of defenders. With the aid of typhoons, which came to be called "kamikaze," the Mongols were repelled. However, the strain on the military and the financial expenditures weakened the regime considerably. Additionally, the defensive war left no gains to distribute to the warriors who had fought it, leading to discontent. Construction of defensive walls added further expenses to the strained regime.

A second attempt to return to power was made by the Imperial court in 1331 under the rule of the Emperor Go-Daigo. It was much more successful, particularly as Kamakura's most powerful general, Ashikaga Takauji, chose to side with the Emperor.

The Kamakura shogunate came to an end in 1333 with the defeat and destruction of the Hōjō clan. Ashikaga Takauji promptly assumed the position of shogun himself, establishing the Ashikaga shogunate.

Yoritomo established a chancellery, or mandokoro, as his principal organ of government. Later, under the Hōjō, a separate institution, the hyōjōshū became the focus of government.

The shogunate appointed new military governors (shugo) over the provinces. These were selected mostly from powerful families in the different provinces, or the title was bestowed upon a general and his family after a successful campaign. Although they managed their own affairs, in theory they were still obliged to the central government through their allegiance to the shogun. The military governors paralleled the existing system of governors and vice-governors (kokushi) appointed by the civil government in Kyoto.

Kamakura also appointed stewards, or jitō, to positions in the manors (shōen). These stewards received revenues from the manors in return for their military service. They served along with the holders of similar office, gesu, who delivered dues from the manor to the proprietor in Kyoto. Thus the dual governmental system reached to the manor level.

• 1. Minamoto no Yoritomo (1147-1199) (r. 1192-1199)
• 2. Minamoto no Yoriie (1182-1204) (r. 1202-1203)
• 3. Minamoto no Sanetomo (1192-1219) (r. 1203-1219)

Figurehead Shogun:

• 4. Kujo Yoritsune (1218-1256) (r. 1226-1244)
• 5. Kujo Yoritsugu (1239-1256) (r. 1244-1252)
• 6. Prince Munetaka (1242-1274) (r. 1252-1266)
• 7. Prince Koreyasu (1264-1326) (r. 1266-1289)
• 8. Prince Hisaaki (1276-1328) (r. 1289-1308)
• 9. Prince Morikuni (1301-1333) (r. 1308-1333)

Shogun Era:

• 1. Minamoto no Yoritomo (1147-1199) (r. 1192-1199)
• 2. Minamoto no Yoriie (1182-1204) (r. 1202-1203)
• 3. Minamoto no Sanetomo (1192-1219) (r. 1203-1219)

Shikken Era:

• 1. Hōjō Tokimasa (1138-1215) (r. 1203-1205)
  
• 2. Hōjō Yoshitoki (1163-1224) (r. 1205-1224)
  
• 3. Hōjō Yasutoki (1183-1242) (r. 1224-1242)
  
• 4. Hōjō Tsunetoki (1224-1246) (r. 1242-1246)
  
• 5. Hōjō Tokiyori (1227-1263) (r. 1246-1256)
  
• 6. Hōjō Nagatoki (1229-1264) (r. 1256-1264)
  
• 7. Hōjō Masamura (1205-1273) (r. 1264-1268)
  
• 8. Hōjō Tokimune (1251-1284) (r. 1268-1284)
  
• 9. Hōjō Sadatoki (1271-1311) (r. 1284-1301)
  
• 10. Hōjō Morotoki (1275-1311) (r. 1301-1311)
  
• 11. Hōjō Munenobu (1259-1312) (r. 1311-1312)
  
• 12. Hōjō Hirotoki (1279-1315) (r. 1312-1315)
  
• 13. Hōjō Mototoki (?-1333) (r. 1315)
  
• 14. Hōjō Takatoki (1303-1333) (r. 1316-1326)
  
• 15. Hōjō Sadaaki (1278-1333) (r. 1326)
  
• 16. Hōjō Moritoki (?-1333) (r. 1327-1333)
  

• Mass, Jeffrey P. The Kamakura bakufu : a study in documents. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1976.
• Mass, Jeffrey P. Warrior government in early medieval Japan : a study of the Kamakura Bakufu, shugo and jitō New Haven: Yale University Press, 1974.
• Ōyama Kyōhei. Kamakura bakufu 鎌倉幕府. Tokyo: Shōgakkan 小学館, 1974.

• Shogun
• Shikken
• Rensho
• Rokuhara Tandai
• History of Japan
• Lists of incumbents
• Azuma Kagami
• Mongol invasions of Japan