Which 1185 naval battle ended the Genpei War between Japan’s Minamoto and Taira clans?

The Battle of Dan-no-ura ended the Genpei War between Japan’s Minamoto and Taira clans in 1185.

Fought on 25 April 1185 in the Shimonoseki Strait, the battle was a decisive naval victory for the Minamoto clan. The Taira had supported Emperor Antoku, a child emperor, while the Minamoto backed the rival imperial claimant Go-Toba. Taira forces were weakened by divided loyalties and the Minamoto fleet’s effective use of the strait’s tides.

The Taira defeat destroyed their political power and enabled Minamoto no Yoritomo to establish warrior rule from Kamakura. According to tradition, the child Emperor Antoku drowned during the battle, and the sacred sword Kusanagi was lost in the sea. Dan-no-ura is sometimes called the final battle of the Genpei War, although the conflict’s political consequences continued as the Minamoto consolidated control. It is not the same event as Sekigahara, the 1600 battle that elevated Tokugawa Ieyasu.