Quick Facts
Japanese:
“War of the Year of the Monkey”
English:
Civil War of ad 672
Date:
672
Location:
Japan
Britannica AI Icon
Adding us as a Preferred Source tells Google you trust our content, so our articles show up more often in your Google Search, Discover feed, and AI Overviews.
verifiedCite
While every effort has been made to follow citation style rules, there may be some discrepancies. Please refer to the appropriate style manual or other sources if you have any questions.
Select Citation Style
Feedback
Corrections? Updates? Omissions? Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login).
Thank you for your feedback

Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article.

External Websites

Jinshin-no-ran

Japanese history
Also known as: Civil War of AD 672

Jinshin-no-ran, in Japanese history, war of imperial succession that brought an emperor with a secure military base to the Japanese throne for the first time in history. The war strengthened the power of the imperial family at the expense of powerful associated clans, such as the Nakatomi and Soga.

The conflict erupted following the death of the emperor Tenji in ad 672, when Prince Ōtomo was elevated to the throne as the emperor Kōbun through the efforts of the aristocratic clans that had resisted Tenji’s centralization measures. Prince Ōama, brother of the deceased emperor, gathered together his own military forces and defeated Ōtomo at his capital in Ōmi province (modern Shiga prefecture). Ōama then succeeded to the throne as the emperor Temmu, making his new capital at Asuka in Yamato province (modern Nara prefecture), which was removed from the influence of the Nakatomi and Soga clans.

Discover the fascinating events that shaped the world, straight from our editors.
By clicking “Sign Up”, you consent to the Britannica Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.