Empress Genshō (元正天皇) (680–April 21, 748) was the 44th imperial ruler of Japan. Her given name was Princess Hidaka (氷高皇女). She was an elder sister of Mommu and daughter of Prince Kusakabe and his wife and later Empress Gemmei, therefore a granddauther of Temmu and Jitō by her father and a granddaughter of Tenji by her mother. She reigned from 715 to 724. Events October 10 - Battle of Kerbela November 12 - The Sixth Ecumenical Council opens in Constantinople The Bulgars subjugate the country of current-day Bulgaria Pippin of Herstal becomes Mayor of the Palace Umayyad caliph Muawiyah I succeeded by Yazid I ibn Muawiyah Erwig deposes Wamba to become king of the... April 21 is the 111th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (112th in leap years). ... Events January - An earthquake strikes the Middle East from northern Egypt to northwestern Mesopotamia, destroying many remnants of Byzantine culture. ... Emperor Mommu (文武天皇) (683-707) was the 42nd imperial ruler of Japan. ... Prince Kusakabe (草壁皇子, Kusakabe no miko: 662-689) was a Japanese imperial crown prince from 681 until his death. ... Empress Gemmei (or Gemmyo 元明天皇) (661–722) was the 43rd imperial ruler of Japan and the fourth woman to hold such a position. ... Emperor Temmu (天武天皇) was the 40th imperial ruler of Japan. ... Empress Jito of Japan (From Ogura Hyakunin Isshu) Tomb of Emperor Temmu and Empress Jito Empress Jitō (持統天皇) (645-703) was the 41st imperial ruler of Japan. ... Emperor Tenji of Japan (From Ogura Hyakunin Isshu) Tomb of Emperor Tenji, Kyoto Emperor Tenji (天智天皇) (626-672), also known as Tenchi, was the 38th imperial ruler of Japan. ... Events August 11 - Germanus is translated from the bishopric of Cyzicus to the Patriarch of Constantinople Umayyad caliph al-Walid I ibn Abd al-Malik succeeded by Sulayman ibn Abd al-Malik End of the reign of Empress Gemmei of Japan, she is succeeded by Empress Gensho. ... Events End of the reign of Empress Gensho of Japan Emperor Shomu succeeds to the throne of Japan. ...

Her succession was mainly for the purpose to hold the throne until Prince Obito, the son of her deceased younger brother Mommu, later Emperor Shomu, would be mature enough ascend to the throne. Obito was appointed to the crown prince in 714 by Empress Gemmei. In the next year, 715, Empress Gemmei, then in her fifties, abdicated in favor of her daughter Gensho because of her age and the youth of Obito who was then 14 years old. Obito remained as the crown prince of the new empress. Fujiwara no Fuhito, the most powerful courtier in Gemmei's court, remained so at her court until his death in 720. After his death, Prince Nagaya, a grandson of Emperor Temmu and her cousin, seized the power. This power shift was a background of later conflicts between Prince Nagaya and Fuhito's four sons in the reign of Shōmu. Emperor Shōmu (聖武天皇) (701-756) was the 45th imperial ruler of Japan. ... Events February 28 - An earthquake strikes Syria. ... Fujiwara no Fuhito (藤原不比等: 659–720) was a powerful member of the imperial court of Japan during the Asuka and Nara periods. ... For other uses, see number 720. ... Nagaya (長屋王 Nagaya-no-ōkimi; 684 - 20 March 729) was a politician of the Nara period. ...

Under her reign, the edition of Nihonshoki, the first Japanese history book was finished in 720. Organisation of law system was being continued under the initiatives of Fuhito until his death. Later those law and codes were edited and consumed by Fujiwara no Nakamaro, a grandson of Fuhito, and published as Yoro ritsuryo dated in 718 under the name of Fuhito. Taxation system which had been introduced by Empress Jitō in the late of the 7th century, began to malfunction in those days. For compensation of decrease of tax revenue, under the initiative of Prince Nagaya, "Act of possession in three generations" was edicted in 723. Under this act, people were allowed to possess the field they cultivated newly in three generations in maximum. In the forth generation, the right of possession would disappear and the field belong to the national government. This act was under the purpose to motivate new cultivation, but its effect continued about 20 years. Nihonshoki (日本書紀) is the second oldest history book about the ancient history of Japan. ... For other uses, see number 720. ... Fujiwara no Nakamaro (藤原仲麻呂; 706 - October 21, 64), later renamed Emi no Oshikatsu, was an aristocrat (kuge) and poet of Heian period in Japan. ... Empress Jito of Japan (From Ogura Hyakunin Isshu) Tomb of Emperor Temmu and Empress Jito Empress Jitō (持統天皇) (645-703) was the 41st imperial ruler of Japan. ... Events Saint Boniface fells Thors Oak near Fritzlar, marking the decisive event in the Christianization of the northern Germanic tribes The worlds first mechanical clock is allegedly built in China. ...

In 724 she abdicated in favor of Shōmu.

She did not marry during her life and left no child.

Empress Gemmei (or Gemmyo 元明天皇) (661–722) was the 43rd imperial ruler of Japan and the fourth woman to hold such a position. ... History of Japan Paleolithic Jomon Yayoi Yamato period ---Kofun period ---Asuka period Nara period Heian period Kamakura period Muromachi period Azuchi-Momoyama period ---Nanban contacts Edo period Meiji period Taisho period Showa period ---Japanese expansionism ---Occupied Japan ---Post-Occupation Japan Heisei The following is a traditional list of Emperors of... Emperor Shōmu (聖武天皇) (701-756) was the 45th imperial ruler of Japan. ...