Higashi Sanjo-dono Residence (東三条殿)
During the Heian period, the Higashi Sanjo-dono Residence was built in an area of 1-cho and 2-cho (placed in the north-south direction) of 3-jo and 3-bo in Sakyo (the left-side area of the capital) (present Nijo-oji Minami Nishino Toin-oji Higashi). It was one of the main residences of the sekkan-ke (the top family in the govermental hierarchy), and was also used as a goin (an emperor's residence other than the one in the palace) or a satodairi (an emperor's residence other than the one in the palace).
It is said that the residence was built by FUJIWARA no Yoshifusa who became the first sessho not belonging to an imperial family (sessho: a person who assumed the power of an emperor when the emperor could not do the necessary work because he or she was too young or had a serious illness). After that, it was owned by FUJIWARA no Mototsune and then by FUJIWARA no Tadahira, and was also used by the Retired Emperor Yozei and by the Retired Emperor Uda as their residence other than the one in the palace. Later, its ownership was transferred to Imperial Prince Shigeakira, the husband of Tadahira's daughter, but after the prince died, it was owned by FUJIWARA no Kaneie, a grandchild of Tadahira, and Kaneie reformed the building in 969 to make it his residence. It is said that, in a residence at that era, the shinden (the central building) was placed at its center, twin honin halls (main halls) were placed beside it, with one of them on its left (on its east side) and the other on its right (on the west side), and a nanin hall (south hall), another residence, was placed on the southern side of the premises.
In 976, FUJIWARA no Choshi, a daughter of Kaneie and the mistress of the Emperor Reizei, gave birth here to Imperial Prince Okisada (later Emperor Sanjo). Then, in 980, FUJIWARA no Senshi a daughter of Kaneie and the mistress of the Emperor Enyu, also gave birth here to Imperial Prince Yasuhito. Senshi and Imperial Prince Yasuhito lived in the nanin, but the nanin caught fire and was destroyed in 984 when the prince became the crown prince. Even after the fire, the mother and the son continued living in the Higashi Sanjo-dono Residence, but when Imperial Prince Yasuhito ascended the throne here as the Emperor Ichijo and Kaneie was assigned as the sessho in 986, Kaneie replaced it with a new building in 987 to be used as a satodairi by the emperor, with the new emperor living in the honin halls and Imperial Prince Okisada, who became the crown prince, in the nanin hall. At this time, Kaneie was accused because he built the west side one of the twin honin halls imitating the seiryoden hall in the imperial residence in the palace. In this year, Senshi and the Emperor Ichijo returned to the dairi (the imperial residence in the palace).
After Kaneie died in 990, the honin halls were inherited by Senshi and the nanin hall by FUJIWARA no Michitaka, his heir, who assumed the kanpaku (main assistant to an emperor) position. Senshi entered the priesthood, becoming the first nyoin (a title given to an empress or near to the empress position) in Japan, and she was called 'Higashi Sanjoin' after this residence. According to "Okagami" (a book on Japanese historical tales), it is said that FUJIWARA no Michinaga, a younger brother of Michitaka and FUJIWARA no Korechika, heir to Michitaka, fought with bows and arrows (weapons) in the nanin hall in the Michitaka era. It caught fire and was destroyed again in 993 and was restored in the next year, but Michitaka died there from illness only a year later.
After Michitaka's death, Higashi Sanjoin owned all of the properties, but when she was going to die, she trasferred them to Michinaga, her brother, whom she helped, as his guardian, to become a powerful man in politics. Michinaga, who lived here during his childhood, reconstructed the buildings and destroyed the west honin hall to use water in the spring on the western side of the premises effectively for the garden. In 1005, Michinaga moved to Higashi Sanjo-dono Residence from Tsuchimikado-dono Residence, but immediately after that, the dairi (the imperial residence in the palace) caught fire, and it became the Emperor Ichijo's satodairi (an emperor's residence other than the one in the palace) who fled from the fire; Because the dairi caught fire again and again, it became the satodairi for the next Emperor Sanjo and the goin (an emperor's residence other than the one in the palace) for the Retired Emperor Reizei, who died there in 1011. Due to this situation, Michinaga lived in Tsuchimikado-dono Residence again. After it caught fire and was destroyed again in 1013, Michinaga transferred its ownership to FUJIWARA no Yorimichi, his heir, but Yorimichi was reluctant to reconstruct the building because he possessed a residence called Kaya-in, and therefore, the reconstruction work took thirty years and was completed at last in 1043, it was destroyed again in a fire in 1031 before its completion. However, Yorimichi did not live there, and it became the Emperor Gosuzaku 's satodairi (an emperor's residence other than the one in the palace), but Yorimichi died in the Higashi Sanjo-dono Residence in 1045.
After that, its ownership was transferred for a while to FUJIWARA no Kanshi (the Empress of the Emperor Goreizei), his daughter, but around 1060, it became customary that important events of imperial families and sekkan-ke (the top family in the govermental hierarchy), such as big banquets by sekkan-ke, the ceremony of assuming the position of Toshi Choja (the chief of the Fujiwara clan), the ceremonies of instituting a crown prince and an empress and coming-of-age ceremonies, were held here, and therefore, it was decided after the era of FUJIWARA no Moromichi that the place would be owned by Toshi Choja (the chief of the sekkan-ke) in each generation. The Emperor Konoe and the Emperor Goshirakawa used this place as their satodairi (an emperor's residence other than the one in the palace).
In 1150, FUJIWARA no Tadazane forcibly entered the Higashi Sanjo-dono Residence, where FUJIWARA no Tadamichi in the kanpaku (main assistant to an emperor) position lived, together with MINAMOTO no Tameyoshi and others, and informed Tadamichi that he would cut the family relationship with Tadamichi and would confiscate the right of becoming Toshi Choja (the chief of the Fujiwara clan) and the Higashi Sanjo-dono Residence. After that, Tadazane gave FUJIWARA no Yorinaga, his second son he so loved, the right to become Toshi Choja, and also gave Yorinaga Higashi Sanjo-dono's Residence as his residence. However, on July 8, 1156, the Emperor Goshirakawa and his military force who followed the dead Cloistered Emperor Toba's last instruction confiscated the Higashi Sanjo-dono Residence (when Yorinaga stayed in Uji), and three days later, lots of government officers and the military force on the emperor's side barricaded themselves there together with FUJIWARA no Tadamichi. Triggered by this incident, Hogen Rebellion broke out between the Emperor Goshirakawa's side and the the Retired Emperor Sutoku side. The emperor who won this disturbance returned Higashi Sanjo-dono Residence to Tadamichi. After that, ownership was trandferred to his daughter, FUJIWARA no Kiyoko (Kokamonin), and then to his heir, Motozane KONOE, but in December, 1166, when Imperial Prince Norihito, the crown prince (and later Emperor Takakura), lived there, Higashi Sanjo-dono Residence caught fire and was destroyed, and had been in ruins thereafter without being reconstructed.