Stories of the Japanese 01387 [Muromachi/Yoshinori Period] The Kakitsu Incident: Stalled Punitive Expedition
From this point on, Hatakeyama Mochikuni, who had been disliked by Yoshinori, suddenly makes a comeback and begins to exert his presence.
Kanrei Hosokawa Mochiyuki, who prioritized amnesty over revenge, established a policy in early July of the first year of Kakitsu (1441) to "pardon those who had been punished by Yoshinori," and he named the recently dismissed Hatakeyama Mochikuni at the top of that list. As mentioned earlier, Hatakeyama Mochikuni had been framed by his retainers, Yusa Kunimasa and Saito Sukesada, and had been forced to hand over the headship of the family to his younger brother, Mochinaga.
Upon learning of the amnesty, Mochikuni immediately began preparations to travel to the capital. Around this time in Kyoto, rumors circulated that Hatakeyama Mochikuni had told an envoy of Hosokawa Mochiyuki, "I hold no grudge against my brother Mochinaga, but I cannot forgive Yusa and Saito." Hearing these rumors, Yusa Kunimasa and Saito Sukesada strengthened their military preparations to prevent Mochikuni from reaching the capital, but Mochinaga, on the other hand, lost his will to fight and fled to Etchu.
One can only speculate as to why the punitive expedition against the Akamatsu was delayed, but it was likely due to the fear that Hatakeyama Mochikuni, who had been opposing the shogunate, might align himself with the Akamatsu. In other words, if they were to rush into attacking the Akamatsu while Hatakeyama Mochikuni was approaching from behind, they would be caught in a pincer attack; therefore, it seems necessary to have cleared that concern in advance by granting Mochikuni amnesty.
Furthermore, there is no doubt that there was also a sense of sympathy among the shogunate officials for Mochikuni, who had been stripped of his family headship due to Yoshinori's unreasonable instructions. The shogunate officials were all relieved by the death of the tyrannical shogun, and in their hearts, they might have even been grateful to Mitsusuke.
On July 17, a rumor spread that "Akamatsu Mitsusuke has abducted the youngest child of the Southern Court's Ogura-no-miya." While the truth of this is unknown, if it were true, it would be a clear act of rebellion against the Imperial Court and the shogunate.
Following this rumor, on July 26, Kanrei Hosokawa Mochiyuki applied to Emperor Go-Hanazono to issue an imperial decree for the subjugation of the Akamatsu. Madenokoji Tokifusa, who acted as an intermediary, refused, stating, "The Akamatsu are not enemies of the court, and is this not just a private feud within the shogunate?" However, Mochiyuki negotiated persistently, and Tokifusa was eventually forced to yield.
Looking at it this way, the claim that "Mitsusuke installed a member of the Southern Court imperial family" might have been a fabrication by Mochiyuki, who wanted an imperial decree for the punitive expedition. In fact, this Southern Court imperial family member never appeared again. One can see the shrewdness in trying to use the Imperial Court, but conversely, it also reveals the desperate situation where, now that the shogun was gone, they could not demonstrate sufficient authority without utilizing the Imperial Court.
The Southern Court imperial family member also appears in the subsequent Onin War. Although, by 'appears,' I mean they only spread as a rumor.