Fujiwara no Takafuji (藤原高藤)

FUJIWARA no Takafuji (838 to April 18, 900) was a court noble during the early Heian period. He was FUJIWARA no Fuyutsugu's grandson and FUJIWARA no Yoshikado's son. He was appointed as Naidaijin (Minister of the Interior), Shosanmi (Senior Third Rank), and called himself Koichijo Naidaijin or Kajuji Naidaijin.

Career

In 868, Takafuji was awarded the rank of Jugoinoge (Junior Fifth Rank, Lower Grade) and remained in this rank for a long time, but in 894 he was awarded the rank of Jusanmi (Junior Third Rank), three ranks higher than his previous rank, following the investiture of his daughter FUJIWARA no Taneko's son (the later Emperor Daigo) as the Crown Prince in 893. In 895, he was appointed as Sangi (Royal Advisor) and was eventually promoted to Dainagon (chief councilor of state), but fell seriously ill in 900. Since he was the maternal grandfather of Emperor Daigo, the imperial court considered promoting him to a ministerial position, but all available positions were already occupied at the time, with FUJIWARA no Tokihira serving as Sadaijin (Minister of the Left) and SUGAWARA no Michizane as Udaijin (Minister of the Right) and neither of them fulfilling the requirements to be promoted to Daijo Daijin (Grand Minister of State), making it difficult to leave these ministerial positions vacant. Therefore, the court restored the position of Naidaijin (Minister of the Interior), which had been vacant for more than a century since FUJIWARA no Uona, in order to appoint Takafuji as the minister. However, he died soon after the appointment.

Takafuji was posthumously awarded the rank of Shoichii (Senior First Rank) Daijo Daijin as the maternal grandfather of the emperor. Details about his appointment are found in stories such as "Takafuji no Naidaijin no Katari" (Story of Takafuji, the Minister of the Interior) in the Konjaku Monogatari (Tales of Times Now Past).

[Original Japanese]