Kōei

was a Japanese era name (年号, nengō, lit. year name) of the Northern Court during the Era of Northern and Southern Courts after Ryakuō and before Jōwa. This period spanned the years from April 1342 to October 1345. The emperor in Kyoto was . Go-Kōgon's Southern Court rival in Yoshino during this time-frame was .

Nanboku-chō overview
   
During the Meiji period, an Imperial decree dated March 3, 1911 established that the legitimate reigning monarchs of this period were the direct descendants of Emperor Go-Daigo through Emperor Go-Murakami, whose  had been established in exile in Yoshino, near Nara.

Until the end of the Edo period, the militarily superior pretender-Emperors supported by the Ashikaga shogunate had been mistakenly incorporated in Imperial chronologies despite the undisputed fact that the Imperial Regalia were not in their possession.

This illegitimate  had been established in Kyoto by Ashikaga Takauji.

Change of era
 1342 :  The era name was changed to Kōei to mark an event or a number of events. The previous era ended and a new one commenced in Ryakuō 5.

In this time frame, Kōkoku 1340-1346 was the Southern Court equivalent nengō.

Events of the Kōei era
 1342 (Kōei 1, 1st month): Ichijō Tsunemichi loses his position as kampaku; and he is replaced by Kujō Michinori.
 1342 (Kōei 1, 2nd month):  is removed from his position as daijō daijin.
 1342 (Kōei 1, 11th month): Kujō Michinori is replaced by Takatsukasa Morohira, who was formerly udaijin.
 1342 (Kōei 1, 12th month): Fujiwara no Kiyoko dies. She was the daughter of Usesugi Yorishige and the mother of Ashikaga Takauji.
 1343 (Kōei 2, 4th month): Nijō Yoshimoto, the author of Masukagami, was promoted from the court position of nadaijin to udaijin; and in due course, the udaijin was promoted to sadaijin. The dainagon was promoted to nadaijin.
 1344 (Kōei 3, 1st month): Shōgun Takauji offered prayers at Iwashimizu Hachiman-gū.

Notes

References
 Mehl, Margaret. (1997). History and the State in Nineteenth-Century Japan. New York: St Martin's Press. ; OCLC 419870136
 Nussbaum, Louis Frédéric and Käthe Roth. (2005). Japan Encyclopedia. Cambridge: Harvard University Press. ; OCLC 48943301
 Thomas, Julia Adeney. (2001). Reconfiguring Modernity: Concepts of Nature in Japanese Political Ideology. Berkeley: University of California Press. ; 
 Titsingh, Isaac. (1834). Nihon Odai Ichiran; ou,  Annales des empereurs du Japon.  Paris: Royal Asiatic Society, Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and Ireland. OCLC 5850691

External links
 National Diet Library, "The Japanese Calendar" -- historical overview plus illustrative images from library's collection

Category:Japanese eras
Category:1340s in Japan