Siege of Kamakura (1333) in the context of Tōshō-ji

The Kenmu Restoration (Japanese: 建武の新政, Hepburn: Kenmu no shinsei) was a three-year period of Imperial rule in Japanese history between the Kamakura period and the Muromachi period from 1333 to 1336. The Kenmu Restoration was an effort made by Emperor Go-Daigo to overthrow the ruling Kamakura Shogunate (de facto ruled by Hōjō clan) and restore the Imperial House to power in Japan, returning to civilian government after 148 years of de facto military government from Kamakura. Go-Daigo launched the Genkō War in 1331 against the Kamakura Shogunate but was defeated and forced to exile to the Oki Islands. Go-Daigo launched a second uprising, and with the assistance of the defected Kamakura general Ashikaga Takauji and rebel leader Nitta Yoshisada, defeated the Kamakura Shogunate at the siege of Kamakura in 1333. The Imperial House was restored to power but Go-Daigo's policies failed to satisfy his major samurai supporters and most Japanese people. The Kenmu Restoration was ultimately overthrown when Takauji became Shōgun and founded the Ashikaga Shogunate in 1336, beginning the "Northern and Southern Courts" period and the Muromachi period.

The Kenmu Restoration was the last time the Emperor of Japan held significant power until the Meiji Restoration in 1868.

Rokuhara Tandai (六波羅探題) was the post of the chiefs of the Kamakura shogunate in imperial capital Kyoto whose agency, the Rokuhara (六波羅), kept responsibility for security in Kinai and judicial affairs on western Japan, and negotiated with the imperial court. Despite keeping security, the Rokuhara were also a sort of secret police and widely feared.

Rokuhara Tandai was set up after the Jōkyū Incident in 1221. The two chiefs were called Kitakata (北方) and Minamikata (南方), respectively. Kitakata was higher-ranking than Minamikata. Like shikken and rensho, both posts were monopolized by the powerful Hōjō clan. The agency was destroyed with the fall of Kamakura shogunate in 1333.