Kiyomori dies; Taira weaken

1181

The Taira clan-head and de facto dictator of Japan, Taira no Kiyomori, died of a sudden fever that contemporaries called so hot it could boil water. His death removed the single force holding the Taira government together and emboldened the Minamoto rebellion in the east. Without Kiyomori's ruthless political instincts, the Taira generals quarreled over strategy while Yoritomo methodically consolidated his hold on the eastern provinces.