Taira no Tomomori (平 知盛) (1152–1185) was the son of Taira no Kiyomori, and one of the Taira Clan’s chief commanders in the Genpei War at the end of the Heian period of Japanese history. He was victorious at the Battle of Uji in 1180. He also became successful in the Battle of Yahagigawa in 1181. Tomomori was again victorious in the naval Battle of Mizushima two years later. At the Battle of Dan-no-ura, when the Taira were decisively beaten by their rivals, Tomomori joined many of his fellow clan members in committing suicide. He tied an anchor to his feet and leapt into the sea. Tomomori has become a popular subject for kabuki plays.
First Appearance Historical figure (b. 1152 – d. 1185)
First Publisher ○
Appearance List Tale of the Heike (Heike monogatari, 1190–1221); Benkei in the Boat (Funa Benkei) in Transactions of the Asiatic Society of Japan (1911) by G. B. Sansom; The Heike Monogatari (1918–1921) by A. L. Sadler (trans.) — serialized complete translation in Transactions of the Asiatic Society of Japan; Yoshitsune: A Fifteenth-Century Japanese Chronicle (Stanford University Press, 1966) by Helen Craig McCullough (trans.); The Tale of the Heike (University of Tokyo Press, 1975) by Hiroshi Kitagawa & Bruce T. Tsuchida (trans.). Film: Shin Heike Monogatari (New Tales of the Taira Clan, 1955) by Kenji Mizoguchi (dir.).
Sample Read Benkei in the Boat (Funa Benkei) in Transactions of the Asiatic Society of Japan (1911) by G. B. Sansom [Internet Archive]
Description Taira no Tomomori (平 知盛) (1152–1185) was the son of Taira no Kiyomori, and one of the Taira Clan’s chief commanders in the Genpei War at the end of the Heian period of Japanese history. He was victorious at the Battle of Uji in 1180. He also became successful in the Battle of Yahagigawa in 1181. Tomomori was again victorious in the naval Battle of Mizushima two years later. At the Battle of Dan-no-ura, when the Taira were decisively beaten by their rivals, Tomomori joined many of his fellow clan members in committing suicide. He tied an anchor to his feet and leapt into the sea. Tomomori has become a popular subject for kabuki plays.
