The ruling of the retired emperors Goshirakawa and Gotoba had been influential over the bakufu before the Jokyu War, and the bakufu then took the position of supporting the interests of the gokenin and opposing the old power; however, after the war the actual function of the ruling of the retired emperors was lost, and the bakufu was established as the authority to mediate the confrontation between the old power of the court nobles, temples, and shrines, and the power of stewards in charge of lords' manors and gokenin, being based on the balance of the two sides.
後白河天皇、後鳥羽天皇院政が強力であった承久の乱以前の幕府は御家人の権益を擁護して旧勢力と対抗する立場あったが、院政の実質的機能が失われた乱以降は、幕府は貴族・寺社等の旧勢力と、地頭・御家人勢力との均衡の上に立って、両者の対立を調停する権力として固定した。