Early Life
He was the fourth or fifth son of Fujiwara no Kaneie by his wife Tokihime, daughter of Fujiwara no Nakamasa. There were two regents and two imperial consorts among his brothers and sisters by the same mother.
As the youngest son of his father, he was not remarkable in the court until his two brothers died. He started his career in the court when he was 15 years old.
- 986 (Kanna 2): Sakyō no Daibu (左京大夫)
- 986 (Eien 2, 29th day of the 1st month) : Gon-no-Chūnagon (権中納言)
- 991 (Shōryaku 2, 7th day of the 9th month): Gon-no-Dainagon (権大納言)
In 995 during the reign of Emperor Ichijō, his two elder brothers Michitaka and Michikane died of disease. He struggled with Fujiwara no Korechika, the elder son of Michitaka, for political power. With support of Senshi, his sister and mother of Ichijō, Michinaga succeeded in gaining power as well the support of majority of the court. He was appointed Nairan, the secretary of the emperor and the reviewer of all the documents sent to the emperor before the emperor himself read them.
- 995 (Chōtoku 1, 11th day of the 5th month): Nairan (内覧)
Read more about this topic: Fujiwara No Michinaga
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