Bunchū (文中) was a Japanese era name (年号, nengō, lit. year name) of the Southern Court during the Era of Northern and Southern Courts after Kentoku and before Tenju. This period spanned the years from October 1372 to May 1375.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Bunchū" in Japan encyclopedia, p. 90; n.b., Louis-Frédéric is pseudonym of Louis-Frédéric Nussbaum, see . The Southern Court emperor in Yoshino during this timeframe was . The Northern court emperor in Kyoto was .Titsingh, Isaac. (1834). Annales des empereurs du japon, pp. 310-312.
Nanboku-chō overview
During the Meiji period, an Imperial decree dated March 3, 1911, established that the legitimate reigning monarchs of this period were the direct descendants of Emperor Go-Daigo through Emperor Go-Murakami, whose had been established in exile in Yoshino, near Nara.Thomas, Julia Adeney. (2001). Reconfiguring modernity: concepts of nature in Japanese political ideology, p. 199 n57, citing Mehl, Margaret. (1997). History and the State in Nineteenth-Century Japan. p. 140-147.
Until the end of the Edo period, the militarily superior pretender-Emperors supported by the Ashikaga shogunate had been mistakenly incorporated in Imperial chronologies, despite the undisputed fact that the Imperial Regalia were not in their possession.
This illegitimate had been established in Kyoto by Ashikaga Takauji.
Change of era 1372, also called : The new era name was created to mark an event or series of events. The previous era ended and the new one commenced in Kentoku 3.Titsingh, p. 310.
In this time frame, Ōan (1368–1375) was the Southern Court equivalent nengō.
Events of the Bunchū Era 1372 (Bunchū 1): Shōgun Ashikaga Yoshimitsu establishes an annual revenue for Iwashimizu Hachiman-gū. 1373-1406 (Bunchū 2 – Ōei 13): Embassies between China and Japan.Ackroyd, Joyce. (1982) Lessons from History: The "Tokushi Yoron", p. 329. 1374 (Bunchū 3): The former Emperor Go-Kōgon died at age 73,Titsingh, p. 311. 1374 (Bunchū 3): Emperor Go-En'yū ascends northern throne.
Notes
References Ackroyd, Joyce. (1982) Lessons from History: The Tokushi Yoron. Brisbane: University of Queensland Press. Mehl, Margaret. (1997). History and the State in Nineteenth-Century Japan. New York: St Martin's Press. ; OCLC 419870136 Nussbaum, Louis Frédéric and Käthe Roth. (2005). Japan Encyclopedia. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. ; OCLC 48943301 Thomas, Julia Adeney. (2001). Reconfiguring Modernity: Concepts of Nature in Japanese Political Ideology. Berkeley: University of California Press. ; Titsingh, Isaac. (1834). Nihon Odai Ichiran; ou, Annales des empereurs du Japon. Paris: Royal Asiatic Society, Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and Ireland. OCLC 5850691