Emperor Kinmei

, also written as Kimmei, was the 29th emperor of Japan,Imperial Household Agency (Kunaichō), 欽明天皇 (29); retrieved 2011-10-18. according to the traditional order of succession.McCullough, Helen Craig. (1966).  Yoshitsune: a fifteenth-century Japanese chronicle, p. 322.  His reign started in 540 and ended in 571.Titsingh, Isaac. (1834). Annales des empereurs du Japon, pp. 34-36; Brown, Delmer et al. (1979). Gukanshō, pp. 261-262; Varley, H. Paul. (1980). Jinnō Shōtōki. pp. 123-124; Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric et al. (2002). "Traditional order of Tennō" in Japan encyclopedia,  pp. 962-963. Historians consider details about the life of Emperor Kinmei to be possibly legendary, but probable.Kelly, Charles F. "Kofun Culture," Japanese Archaeology. April 27, 2009; retrieved 2011-10-18. The name Kimmu-tennō was created for him posthumously by later generations. 

The conventionally accepted names and sequence of the early emperors were not to be confirmed as "traditional" until the reign of Emperor Kammu, who was the 50th monarch of the Yamato dynasty.Aston, William George. (1896). Nihongi, pp. 109.

 Traditional history 
Emperor Kinmei's father was Emperor Keitai and his mother was Emperor Ninken's daughter, .Brown, p. 262.  He was the third son; and his older brother was Emperor Senka.

Kinmei had six wives and 25 Imperial children (16 sons and 9 daughters).

 Events of Kinmei's life 
 539: Emperor Senka died from old age in 539, and the succession was received by his younger brother, who would become known as Emperor Kinmei.Varley, p. 121. 

 540: Kinmei accepted his role as monarch (sokui).  This was confirmed in ceremonies.Varley, p. 44. Compare Imperial Household Agency (Kunaichō),  Ceremony of Accession (Sokui-no-Rei); retrieved 2011-12-23.

 572: In the 32nd year of Kinmei's reign, he died; and his second son became his successor.Titsingh, p. 36; Brown, pp. 261-262, Varley, p. 44.

Kinmei established his court at  in Yamato.

Kinmei's reign was marked by the introduction of Buddhism in Japan.  The King of Kudara in Korea sent the emperor gifts of Buddhist scripture and a statue of the Buddha.Martin, Peter. (1997).  The Chrysanthemum Throne: a history of the Emperors of Japan, p. 34. 

In this reign, the emperor's chief ministers were:
 Soga no Iname, also known as  Soga no Iname no Sukune.  The Soga clan were supporters of Buddhism.
 Mononobe no Okoshi, also known as Monotobe Okoshi no Muraji.  The Mononobe clan opposed the introduction of Buddhism.
 Nakatomi no Kanamura, also known as Ōtomo Kanamura Maro.  The Nakatomi clan opposed the introduction of Buddhism.

 After his death 
This emperor's official name after his death (his posthumous name) was regularized many centuries after the lifetime which was ascribed to Kinmei.Aston, William. (1998). Nihongi, pp. 146-147. 

According to the Imperial Household Agency, the emperor's final resting place is in an earthen tumulus (kofun).  Kinmei is venerated at a memorial Shinto shrine (misasagi) which is associated with the burial mound.

Related pages
 Emperor of Japan
 List of emperors of Japan
 Japanese imperial family tree
 Kimmei Seamount

 References 

Category:509 births
Category:571 deaths
Category:Emperors of Japan