at Prince Naka himself had to lead them to
the attack. Iruka, severely wounded, struggled to the throne and
implored for succour and justice; but when her Majesty in terror
asked what was meant, Prince Naka charged Iruka with attempting to
usurp the sovereignty. The Empress, seeing that her own son led the
assassins, withdrew at once, and the work of slaughtering Iruka was
completed, his corpse being thrown into the court-yard, where it lay
covered with straw matting.

Prince Naka and Karaatari had not been so incautious as to take a
wide circle of persons into their confidence. But they were
immediately joined by practically all the nobility and high
officials, and the o-omi's troops having dispersed without striking a
blow, Emishi and his people were all executed. The Empress Kogyoku at
once abdicated in favour of her brother, Prince Kara, her son, Prince
Naka, being nominated Prince Imperial. Her Majesty had worn the
purple for only three years. All this was in accord with Kamatari's
carefully devised plans. They were epoch making.

RELATIONS WITH KOREA DURING THE SEVEN REIGNS FROM KIMMEI TO KOGYOKU
(A.D. 540-645)

The story of Japan's relations with Korea throughout the period of
over a century, from the accession of Kimmei (540) to the abdication
of Kogyoku (645), is a series of monotonously similar chapters, the
result for Japan being that she finally lost her position at Mimana.
There was almost perpetual fighting between the petty kingdoms which
struggled for mastery in the peninsula, and Kudara, always nominally
friendly to Japan, never hesitated to seek the latter's assistance
against Shiragi and Koma. To these appeals the Yamato Court lent a
not-unready ear, partly because they pleased the nation's vanity, but
mainly because Kudara craftily suggested danger to Mimana unless
Japan asserted herself with arms. But when it came to actually
rendering material aid, Japan did nothing commensurate with her
gracious demeanour. She seems to have been getting weary of expensive
interference, and possibly it may also have occurred to her that no
very profound sympathy was merited by a sovereign who, like the King
of Kudara, preferred to rely on armed aid from abroad rather than
risk the loss of his principality to his own countrymen.

At all events, in answer to often iterated entreaties from Kudara,
the Yamato Court did not make any practical response until the year
551, when it sent five thousand koku of barley-se