Ichijo Yoshinari (一条能成)
Yoshinari ICHIJO (1163 - 1238) was a court noble from the end of Heian period to the early Kamakura period. He was the legitimate son of Naganari ICHIJO. His mother was Tokiwa Gozen. He was a stepbrother to Zenjo ANO, Gien and MINAMOTO no Yoshitsune. His imina (personal name) was also Yoshinari (although his original name and personal name are pronounced the same, the Japanese kanji used for them were different: his original name was written as 能成, while his personal name was written as 良成).
Biography
His mother Tokiwa was MINAMOTO no Yoshitomo's concubine, who gave birth to Zenjo, Gien and Yoshitsune; she also gave birth to Ro no onkata (the Taira family) as TAIRA no Kiyomori's concubine. She later became the wife of Naganari ICHIJO and gave birth to Yoshinari.
In 1167, he was ennobled to Jugoinoge (Junior Fifth Rank, Lower Grade) at age of five. He then spent his life as a middle-rank noble. He approached his stepbrother Yoshitsune, who started to make remarkable progress as a warrior. He acted with Yoshitsune even after he was suspected as a rebel following the defeat of the Taira family's forces. In December 1185, when Yoshitsune attempted to escape to Saikai (provinces on the western seacoast), he is believed to have armed himself and accompanied the run-away. The next month, he was impeached by MINAMOTO no Yoritomo as a pro-Yoshitsune retainer together with TAKASHINA no Yasutsune and TAIRA no Chikamune; as a result, he was dismissed from the Board of Chamberlains.
In December 1208, 19 years after the death of Yoshitsune, he made a political comeback as Shuri Gon no daibu (Provisional Master in the Office of Palace Repairs). In 1218, he was raised to Jusanmi (Junior Third Rank) and was promoted to a court noble, which his father Naganari could not achieve. He became a priest in 1225, when he was a Jusanmi, Hisangi (advisor at large). He died at the age of 75 in 1238 ("Kugyobunin" (directory of court nobles)).