Ano Zenjō

Ano Zenjō was a Japanese Buddhist monk and political figure of the late Heian period and early Kamakura period. He was the seventh son of Minamoto no Yoshitomo, a younger half-brother of Minamoto no Yoritomo, and an elder full brother of Minamoto no Yoshitsune. Their mother was Tokiwa Gozen. Though often overshadowed in historical narratives by his more famous brothers, Zenjō played a significant role in the founding of the Kamakura shogunate. He was the first of Yoritomo's siblings to join his cause in 1180, and recent scholarship has suggested he served as Yoritomo's representative at Izusan (Sōtōzan), one of the most powerful shrine-temple complexes in eastern Japan. He was executed in 1203 on the orders of the second shogun, Minamoto no Yoriie, amid a power struggle between the Hōjō clan and their rivals. The Ano clan takes its name from Ano-shō in Suruga Province, which was Zenjō's domain.