Emperor Kammu, the fiftieth emperor of Japan,…

Emperor Kammu, the fiftieth emperor of Japan, had abolished universal conscription in 792, just before the move to the Heiankyō, and local, private militias had soon come into being.

The Fujiwara, Taira, and Minamoto are among the most prominent families supported by the new military class.

As the Soga had taken control of the Japanese throne in the sixth century, the Fujiwara by the ninth century had intermarried with the imperial family, and one of their members had been the first head of the Emperor's Private Office.

By 858, when Fujiwara Yoshifusa has his infant grandson Korehito placed on the throne as Emperor Seiwa and makes himself regent, the Fujiwara family’s monopolization of the Imperial court and administrative offices has made them the virtual masters of Japan.

A skillful politician, Yoshifusa is the first regent in Japanese history who is not himself of imperial rank.