Minamoto no Tomonaga (1144–1160) was a Minamoto clan

Minamoto clan

was one of the surnames bestowed by the Emperors of Japan upon members of the imperial family who were demoted into the ranks of the nobility. The practice was most prevalent during the Heian Period , although its last occurrence was during the Sengoku Era. The Taira were another such offshoot of...

 samurai of the late Heian period

Heian period

The is the last division of classical Japanese history, running from 794 to 1185. The period is named after the capital city of Heian-kyō, or modern Kyōto. It is the period in Japanese history when Buddhism, Taoism and other Chinese influences were at their height...

. His father was Minamoto no Yoshitomo

Minamoto no Yoshitomo

was the head of the Minamoto clan and a general of the late Heian period of Japanese history. His son Minamoto no Yoritomo became shogun and founded the Kamakura Shogunate, the first shogunate in the history of Japan.-Hōgen Rebellion:...

.

Tomonaga accompanied his father in fleeing Kyoto following their defeat in the Heiji Rebellion

Heiji Rebellion

The was a short civil war fought in order to resolve a dispute about political power. The Heiji no ran encompassed clashes between rival subjects of the cloistered Emperor Go-Shirakawa of Japan in 1159. It was preceded by the Hōgen Rebellion in 1156...

 of 1159, and was wounded in a battle with sohei

Sohei

were Buddhist warrior monks of feudal Japan. At certain points of history they held considerable power, obliging the imperial and military governments to collaborate....

(warrior monks) of Yokokawa

Sumida, Tokyo

is one of the 23 special wards of Tokyo, Japan. It calls itself Sumida City in English.As of 2008, the ward has an estimated population of 240,296 and a density of 17,480 persons per km²...

 by an arrow.

When the pair arrived in Mino province

Mino Province

, one of the old provinces of Japan, encompassed part of modern-day Gifu Prefecture. It was sometimes called . Mino Province bordered Echizen, Hida, Ise, Mikawa, Ōmi, Owari, and Shinano Provinces....

, Yoshitomo asked his sons, Tomonaga and Yoshihira

Minamoto no Yoshihira

Minamoto no Yoshihira was a Minamoto clan warrior who fought alongside his father, Minamoto no Yoshitomo, in the Heiji Rebellion....

, to travel to the provinces of Kai

Kai Province

, also known as , is an old province in Japan in the area of Yamanashi Prefecture. It lies in central Honshū, west of Tokyo, in a landlocked mountainous region that includes Mount Fuji along its border with Shizuoka Prefecture....

 and Shinano

Shinano Province

or is an old province of Japan that is now present day Nagano Prefecture.Shinano bordered on Echigo, Etchū, Hida, Kai, Kōzuke, Mikawa, Mino, Musashi, Suruga, and Tōtōmi Provinces...

 to levy troops. Yoshihira left, but Tomonaga stayed behind, his arrow wound having become infected and inflamed. Annoyed at the delay, Yoshitomo announced his intention to move on without Tomonaga, but his son asked that he be killed rather than to waste away slowly and painfully from the infection. Yoshitomo obliged his son, and buried him on the spot.

Tomonaga's grave was defiled some time later, by Taira no Munekiyo, who brought his head to Kyoto as a trophy.