Great Fire of Angen

The Great Fire of Angen was a fire that swept through Heian-kyō (now Kyoto) in 1177, destroying around a third of the then capital city. It was recorded by Fujiwara no Kanezane.

Great Fire of Angen

Native name	安元の大火
Date	1177
Time	Beginning of the hour of the wild boar (10:00pm) (Traditional Japanese time)
Location	Heian palace, Heian-kyō
Coordinates	Near 35°0′49″N 135°44′32″E
Outcome	Destruction of a third of the capital, including the Great Imperial Audience Hall, courtier mansions, and the front gate of the palace.

Outbreak

The fire broke out at the beginning of the hour of the wild boar (which is about 10:00pm).^[1][2][3] At the beginning of the hour of the dog (about 8:00pm)^[1][3][4], Fujiwara no Kanezane finished a ritual of mourning, recording that a "princess also ended her mourning in this evening." (The text does not specify which princess).^[1]

He noted the clear weather and wrote "Around 8 p.m. I performed the ritual to end the mourning on the riverbed. The princess also ended her mourning in this evening. Chamberlain to the princess [Kanezane's son Yoshimichi] ended the mourning in front of her residence." He continued to write, finally noting the fire by saying, "Around 10 p.m., a fire broke out in the northern direction. I heard that the fire started at Higuchi-Tominokoji." At the time, Kanezane was ill and remained at home. Due to this, he had to have a servant assess the situation.^[1]

As the fire worsened, the Emperor and Empress were moved to Fujiwara no Kunitsuna's home.^[1]

As the fire swept through Heian-kyō, it reached the palace were it burnt the enthronement hall.^[5] The great hall was never rebuilt and every Muromachi period emperor was not enthroned in Heian-kyō.^[6][7][8]

Damage

The damaged buildings were:^{[1][9][10][11]}

The Imperial Court

• Daigokuden [ja]
• Department of Divinities
• Shingon-in Temple
• Chodoin [ja]
• Ministry of Popular Affairs
• Ministry of Water Affairs [ja]
• Kikyo-mon Gate
• Accounting Dormitory [ja]
• Office of food preparation for the imperial family [ja]
• Yingtian Gate (There is both one in China, and one in Heian-kyō, modern day Kyoto)
• Tax-collection office [ja]
• Suzakumon
• Shikibu-shō

Other facilities

• Daigaku-ryō
• Kan'gakuin [ja]

Residence's of the nobility and princes

• Residence of Matsudono Motofusa
• Residence of Taira no Shigemori
• Residence of Tokudaiji Sanesada
• Residence of Shigenoi Sanekuni [ja]
• Residence of Fujiwara no Takaki [ja]
• Residence of Fujiwara no Kunitsuna [ja]
• Residence of Sanjo Sanefusa [ja]
• Residence of Minamoto no Sadafusa [ja]
• Residence of Fujiwara no Sukenaga [ja]
• Residence of Nakayama Tadachika
• Residence of Fujiwara no Sanetsuna [ja]
• Residence of Fujiwara no Yoritada
• Residence of Fujiwara no Toshitsune [ja]
• Residence of Fujiwara no Toshimori [ja]

Fujiwara no Kanezane noted all of these, while noting the constellations, believing that they were a bad omen.^[1][9][10]