Shikken

Not to be confused with an Imperial Regent of Japan or Sesshō and Kampaku

The Shikken (執権) was the de facto military dictator of Japan (not including the independent Northern Fujiwara) from 1199 to 1256 during the Kamakura era. The title of Shikken continued to exist after 1256 as 2nd in command to the Tokuso, but by the Muromachi period the position, though not abolished did not even figure into the top ranks. The position was ceased to exist after the Muromachi period.

Etymology

The word shikken derives from kanji characters 執 and 権 literally meaning taking authority.

Shikken as Supreme Ruler (1199-1256)

Though officially a Regent for the Shogun in the Kamakura shogunate in Japan, on paper a Shikken derived power from the shogun, in reality the actual shogun had been reduced to a figurehead in a similar marginalizing manner just as the emperor and imperial court earlier had been reduced to figureheads by the shogun. Both the posts of Shikken and Tokuso were monopolized by the Hōjō clan.