The Kamakura period is a period of Japanese history that marks the governance by the Kamakura Shogunate, officially established in 1192 AD in Kamakura, by the first shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo. The Kamakura period ended in 1333 AD, with the destruction of the shogunate and the short reestablishment of imperial rule, under Emperor Go-Daigo by Ashikaga Takauji, Nitta Yoshisada, and Kusunoki Masashige. The Kamakura period marks the transition to land-based economies and a concentration of advanced military technologies in the hands of a specialized fighting class. Lords required the loyal... services of vassals, who were rewarded with fiefs of their own. The fief holders exercised local military rule. Once Minamoto Yoritomo had consolidated his power, he established a new government at his family home in Kamakura. He called his government a bakufu , but because he was given the ancient high military title Seii Tai-shōgun by the Emperor, the government is often referred to in Western literature as the shogunate.
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