Fujiwara no Michinaga dies

1029

The Heian regent who had joked that the moon was his died in his sumptuous Hojoji temple, surrounded by his family and nine Buddhist priests chanting nembutsu. His influence had shaped the brilliant court culture of Murasaki Shikibu's Genji. Fujiwara power would slowly decay after his passing, as provincial warrior families began accumulating the military strength that the elegant capital aristocracy had long disdained.