The term bakufu originally meant the dwelling and household of a shogun, but in time it came to be generally used for the system of government of a feudal military dictatorship, exercised by the shogun, and this is the meaning that has been adopted into English through the term "shogunate."

The bakufu system was originally established under the Kamakura shogunate by Minamoto no Yoritomo. Although theoretically the state, and therefore the Emperor, held ownership of all land of Japan, the system had some feudal elements, with lesser territorial lords pledging their allegiance to greater ones. Samurai were rewarded for their loyalty with land, which was in turn, on the liege lord's permission, handed down and divided among their sons. The hierarchy that held this system of government together was reinforced by close ties of loyalty between samurai and their subordinates.

The Heian period

Originally, the title of Seii Taishogun was given to military commanders during the early Heian Period for the duration of military campaigns against the Emishi who resisted the governance of the Imperial court based in Kyoto. The most famous of these shogun was Sakanoue no Tamuramaro who conquered the Emishi in the name of Emperor Kammu. Eventually, the title was abandoned in the later Heian period after the Ainu had been either subjugated or driven to Hokkaido.

The Kamakura shogunate

In the early 11th century, feudal estates headed by daimyo and protected by samurai came to dominate internal Japanese politics.[3] Two of the most powerful families, the Taira and Minamoto, fought for control over the declining imperial court. The Taira family seized control from 1160 to 1185, but was defeated by the Minamoto in a naval battle in the Inland Sea.[3] The Minamoto, claiming to serve and protect the emperor, set up headquarters in Kamakura and established the Kamakura shogunate in 1192 after Minamoto no Yoritomo was granted the title of shogun by the emperor.[3]

Kemmu restoration

The end of the Kamakura shogunate came when Kamakura fell in 1334 and the Hojo Regency was destroyed. Bakufu had ruled up through the 12th century. After this two families, Go-Saga the senior line, and Go-Daigo the junior line, had a claim to the throne. The problem was solved with the intercession of the the Kamakura Bakufu, who had the two lines alternate. This lasted until 1331 when the Go-Diago line refused to alternate with the Go-Saga line. As a result the Go-Diago was exiled. Around 1334-1336 Ashikaga Takauji helped the Go-Diago line regain the throne.[5]

The Ashikaga shogunate

In 1338 Ashikaga Takauji, like Yoritomo a descendant of the Minamoto princes, was awarded the title of sei-i taishogun and established Ashikaga Shogunate, which lasted until 1573.

The Oda Nobunaga and the Toyotomi

The two notably powerful sengoku daimyos, namely Oda Nobunaga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi were never titled shoguns (sei-i taishogun), in the strict meaning of the word. Although these two military adventurers did not succeed in establishing new dynasties of shoguns, they stood at a crucial moment in Japanese history. Their successes paved the way for the relative tranquility of the Tokugawa era. Even though westerners mistook them as shoguns, they were

The Tokugawa shogunate

Subsequently, Tokugawa Ieyasu seized power and established a government at Edo (now known as Tokyo) in 1600. He received the title sei-i taishogun in 1603. The Tokugawa shogunate lasted until 1868, after Tokugawa Yoshinobu resigned as shogun and abdicated his authority to Emperor Meiji in 1867.[1]