The accession of the Empress Suiko was due to exceptional circumstances, and did not mark a recognized departure from the old rule. Subsequently, however, not a few instances occurred of the scepter falling into the hands of an uncle or niece of a deceased emperor, and on these occasions more or less disquiet accompanied the event. But no disturbance connected with such a cause attained anything like the dimensions of the trouble that followed Tenchi's death.[1] On the occasion of the emperor's visit to Tsukushi to make arrangements for the invasion of Korea, he entrusted the administration of affairs during his absence to his younger brother, Prince Ōama, and caused the heir apparent, Prince Ōtomo, to accompany him to Tsukushi. Ōtomo, though young in years, had already given evidence of great capacity and was exceptionally learned. The sovereign entertained a strong affection for him, and after returning from Tsukushi raised him to the position of prime minister. On the other hand, the relations between the emperor and his brother, Prince Ōama, were for some unknown reason inharmonious. When the emperor, perceiving the dangerous character of his malady, would fain have entrusted the administration of affairs after his death to Ōama, the latter pretending ill health declined the responsibility. The prince imperial was consequently proclaimed successor to the throne, and Ōama took the priestly order and retired to Mount Yoshino, partly for the purpose of praying for the soul of the deceased emperor, but partly also to dispel the suspicion with which the public regarded his acts. None the less, it was the common talk of the time that Ōama's retirement to Yoshino was as "the letting loose of a tiger on a moor." Twice did the ministers of state take the oath of allegiance to Prince Ōtomo, but rivalry and evil feeling continued to grow between the partisans of the new sovereign and those of Prince Ōama. In the end a state of open hostilities resulted. Prince Ōama, rapidly withdrawing to the eastern provinces, obtained possession of all the strategical positions, and was followed by large numbers of adherents. The emperor dispatched an army against the insurgents, and engagements took place in Mino, Ōmi, and Yamato, but on every occasion the imperial forces were routed, and the eastern army gradually pushed on to Ōtsu in Shiga. A final and desperate stand was made by the emperor's troops in the Seta district, but the battle ended in their total defeat, and the sovereign himself, escaping from the field, perished by his own hand at the age of twenty-five, after a reign of only eight months. This emperor is known in history as Kōbun. Prince Ōama succeeded to the throne under the name of Temmu. He had obtained the scepter under questionable circumstances, but as a ruler he showed high qualities, carrying on the administration with zeal and ability. He dispatched inspectors to all districts throughout the