Site of Yamana Sozen’s Mansion
[HIGASHIJIN]
Yamana Mochitoyo (1404–1473), head of the Yamana clan, was a high-ranking daimyo lord who for much of his life wielded great influence within the Ashikaga shogunate, the warrior-led government that ruled Japan from 1336 to 1573. Mochitoyo assumed the name Sozen after becoming a Buddhist priest. His taking of vows, however, did not lessen his interest in politics.
In 1467, Sozen’s feud with his son-in-law Hosokawa Katsumoto (1430–1473), over matters including who would succeed the shogun, sparked a conflict known as the Onin War. This 10-year civil war laid waste to Kyoto and spread throughout the provinces. The fighting greatly weakened the shogunate and ushered in a long period of instability.
Sozen is remembered mainly as the leader of the faction that controlled the western side of Kyoto during the Onin War, the end of which he did not live to see. The area under Sozen’s control later came to be known as Nishijin (“western position”). At the heart of this area was Sozen’s mansion, the former site of which is distinguished today only by a stone marker.