Battle of Mizushima 1183
Recorded location from Wikidata; battle sites are often approximate.
Key facts
| Year | 1183 | Wikidata P585 (point in time) |
|---|---|---|
| Era | Medieval (500–1499) | derived from year |
| Location | Japan | Natural Earth (modern borders) |
| Continent | Asia | Natural Earth |
| War / conflict | Genpei War | Wikidata P361 |
| Participants | Minamoto clan, Taira clan | Wikidata P710 |
| Coordinates | 34.5833, 133.7667 | Wikidata P625 |
About the battle
The naval battle of Mizushima took place on 17 November 1183 during the Genpei War. One of the most important bases of the Taira was Yashima, a small island off the coast of Shikoku. In November 1183, Minamoto no Yoshinaka sent an army to cross the Inland Sea to Yashima, but they were caught by the Taira just offshore of Mizushima (水島), a small island of Bitchu Province, just off Honshū. The Taira tied their ships together and placed planks across them to form a flat fighting surface.
The battle began with Taira archers loosing a rain of arrows upon the Minamoto boats; when the boats were close enough, daggers and swords were drawn, and the two sides engaged in hand-to-hand combat. Finally, the Taira, who had brought fully equipped horses on their ships, swam to the shore with their steeds, and routed the remaining Minamoto warriors.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Battle of Mizushima (revision 1379172600), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section; formatting and citations removed. No text added.
Nearby battles
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- Siege of Takamatsu 1582 · 13 km
- Siege of Fukuryūji 1183 · 15 km
- Battle of Yashima 1185 · 42 km
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Other battles of the Genpei War
- Battle of Kanasa Castle 1180
- Battle of Kinugasa Castle 1180
- Battle of Uji (1180) 1180
- Battle of Sunomata-gawa 1181
- Siege of Nara 1181
- Battle of Kurikara Pass 1183
- Battle of Shinohara 1183
- Siege of Fukuryūji 1183
- Siege of Hiuchi 1183
- Battle of Awazu 1184
All 19 battles of the Genpei War →
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