Yoshitane's Heirs and Successors
Shogun Yoshitane adopted the son of a cousin, Yoshizumi; and he designate Yoshitsuna as his heir and as his anticipated successor as shogun. However, when Yoshitane died prematurely, he was not succeeded by who he had chosen; rather, his father's newly designated heir was accepted by the shogunate as Shogun Yoshizumi.
In other words, after the death of his son, Shogun Yoshimasa adopted the son of his brother, Yoshimi. After the death of his adopted son, Yoshimasa adopted the son of another brother, Masatomo. Shogun Yoshimasa was succeeded by Shogun Yoshihisa (Yoshimasa's natural son), then by Shogun Yoshitane (Yoshimasa's first adopted son), and then by Shogun Yoshizumi (Yoshimasa's second adopted son). Yoshizumi's progeny would become shoguns in due course.
Eventually, the great-grandson of Yoshitane would be installed as a puppet shogun for a brief period; but external power struggles would unseat him, and the Ashikaga dynasty of shoguns would end.
Read more about this topic: Ashikaga Yoshitane
Famous quotes containing the word heirs:
“Progress celebrates Pyrrhic victories over nature. Progress makes purses out of human skin. When people were traveling in mail coaches, the world got ahead better than it does now that salesmen fly through the air. What good is speed if the brain has oozed out on the way? How will the heirs of this age be taught the most basic motions that are necessary to activate the most complicated machines? Nature can rely on progress; it will avenge it for the outrage it has perpetrated on it.”
—Karl Kraus (1874–1936)