The military government was an administration under the control of samurai, which continued for about 700 years from the establishment of the Kamakura bakufu (Japanese feudal government headed by a shogun) by MINAMOTO no Yoritomo in the late 12th century to Taisei Hokan (transfer of power back to the Emperor) lead by Yoshinobu TOKUGAWA in 1867; however, a theory, in which the start was the Taira clan government ruled by TAIRA no Kiyomori, is now widely accepted.
一般には、12世紀後半の源頼朝による鎌倉幕府の設立から、慶応3年（1867年）の徳川慶喜による大政奉還まで、約700年間に渡る武家による政権を指すが、現在は平清盛の平氏政権からとする説が有力である。