This judicial orientation of the Bakufu dated from the establishment of the regime itself. In the wake of the Gempei War (1180-1185), Minamoto Yoritomo, the Bakufu’s founder, faced several immediate problems: to restore peace and stability throughout the country, to reward (but also control) his followers, and to find a workable accommodation with
Kyoto. His solution to these problems resulted in the two innovations that best characterize the full era. The first was the creation of a bipolar administrative structure in which Kyoto and Kamakura each assumed responsibility for separate spheres of influence. Kyoto would retain supremacy over the the traditional hierarchy of land rights, whereas the Bakufu would restrict itself to matters concerning its own vassals. Kamakura’s chief activity thus became the resolution of suits involving jito -- an activity that served to promote the second major innovation, the development of a vigorous judicial system.
--Jeffrey P. Mass,
The Development of Kamakura Rule 1180-1250: A Study with Documents, (Stanford, 1979) xiii.
BAKUFU LINKS