Naosuke purged many patriots and Kugyo (court nobles), including the imperial prince Nakagawa no Miya Asahiko, since the start of Ansei no Taigoku (suppression of extremists by the Shogunate), which earned him resentment from the Sonjo faction.
こうして開始した安政の大獄において多数の志士（活動家）や公卿（中川宮朝彦親王）らを粛清したが、尊攘派の怨嗟をうけた。