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The Emperor Who Forged His Own Swords — Gotoba and the Mystery of Kikugodsaku

Gotoba was accomplished in poetry, kickball, and music — but uniquely, he also forged swords. He summoned master swordsmiths from across Japan and worked the bellows himself. His 'Kiku-go-saku' (chrysanthemum-signature) blades are prized collector's items today.

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Gotoba summoned master smiths from across Japan, worked the bellows himself, and stamped his chrysanthemum crest on the blades he helped forge — the Kiku-go-saku swords still prized today. He also edited the New Kokinshu and composed some of Japan’s finest waka. Even after 19 years’ exile in Oki, he never stopped writing poems or thinking about blades.

Jokyu War painting — the decisive confrontation Gotoba launched against the shogunate. Defeated, he was exiled to Oki Island

Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain

Heian court documents — Gotoba was a master of both arts and arms: he edited the New Kokinshu and forged his own swords

Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain

Tsurugaoka Hachimangu — spiritual center of the shogunate that confronted Gotoba in the Jokyu War

Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 3.0

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Key Figures

Retired Emperor Go-Toba