Conclusion
This article has examined the marriages of zaichi ryōshu (warrior class) and kuge from the Kamakura period to the Sengoku period. In examining the status and role of women on the basis of the discussion above, it has become clear that the marriages of the warrior class were not only hierarchical but also highly political and regional. The survival of the house of zaichi ryōshu depended on their competence, which was different from the post-modern lords who had little opportunity to express their will within the system. In such a society, marriage plays an important role in establishing, maintaining, and sustaining its lordship.[1] This means that daughters’ marriages and their existence were of great importance and the status of women must have been much higher than in early modern warrior society.
What became clear through the examination of the marriages of the Hino was the interdependence of kuge and temples/shrines, as well as the marriages with shogun family for the sake of securing political authority. Clear distinction could be seen between the marriages of warrior family and those of kuge family after the Muromachi period. Since many of the daughters of kuge families became seishitsu, and since the family's survival depended on marriage with the emperor or shogun's family, it is clear that women were valued and seen as a significant figure.
What can be said about the situation common to both warrior family and kuge family is that the patriarchy has been strengthened since the Muromachi period. The fact that almost all the sons of the Hino family, with the exception of its heirs became monks, and the transition to single inheritance in the Kumagai, both clearly indicate the strengthening of patriarchy. However, the strengthening of patriarchy did not immediately lead to a decline in the status of women, and the fact that they continued to play a supporting role in the strengthening of patriarchy through marriage was the reason for maintaining the status of women at a fairly high level.
