Chinzei Rebellion

The Chinzei Rebellion (鎮西反乱, Chinzei Hansan) was a military rebellion carried out by Gōzoku clans led by Kikuchi Takanao and Ogata Koreyoshi against the Taira clan led by Harada Tanenao (before potentially switching sides) and Taira no Sadayoshi in the Higo and Bungo (potentially spreading beyond those) provinces of Kyushu, with most of the fighting happening near the Dazaifu regional government. It started in the middle of September 1180, and was put down by Taira forces in April 1182.

The rebellion was first mentioned in the Gyokuyou, where it states Taira no Kiyomori sent a private army to deal with it, however no other historical documents can verify this happened, potentially leading to the unopposed nature of the rebellion. The rebellion continued to grow until an Imperial Decree was sent out in early January 1181, declaring that all Nine Provinces of Kyushu are to work together to crush the uprising.

On 12 February, Ogata Koreyoshi had joined the rebellion, potentially joining forces with Takanao. The next day, a High Priest sent a messenger to the Taira in Kyoto warning about the start of a rebellion. Taira no Sadayoshi stated that he'll go down to Kyushu himself to check on it, however he only arrived there in August.

On 15 February, it was discovered that sixteen conspirators had joined the rebellion, causing the Imperial Court to dispatch chief commander Taira no Shigehira to the western provinces which was quickly cancelled only eleven days later. Another Imperial Decree was sent on 14 April, communicating orders to hunt down Kikuchi Takanao.

In August, Sadayoshi was appointed as governor of Higo and was ordered to put down the rebellion. The rebellion continued to worsen as Sadayoshi's army starved, causing him to spend his time seizing public and private property in order to supply his army. On 23 March, Sadayoshi forcibly took over the entire provincial government. In April, Sadayoshi gathered a large group of private agents and began raiding the countryside. He treated the local people with cruelty in order to get "war rice", causing Takanao to put down his arms in order to avoid similar treatment.

Despite the Taira success in suppressing the rebellion, the Taira control over Chinzei had weakened. In 1183, when Minamoto no Yoshikama threatened to advance on the capital, Sadayoshi took his forces and marched toward Kyoto. Takanao, now fighting for the Taira, claimed that he was going to clear a path, but instead abandoned them and ignored all orders. Many powerful clans in the west were uncooperative towards the Taira, causing the Taira to be driven out of western provinces.

The Azuma Kagami and the Gyokuyou by Fujiwara no Kanezane share a similar story on the events of what happened, however they tend to contradict with what the Heike Monogatari claims. Despite this, the Heike Monogatari's validity is questionable due to some of its claims being left out in the Imperial Decrees along with the fierce opposition seen between Takanao and Koreyoshi.