[citation needed] Instances of gekokujō date back to the 15th-16th century Sengoku period.
In 1588, Hideyoshi ordered the sword hunt, a nationwide confiscation of weapons, to try to prevent further insurrection.
[3] After the shogunate was established, social mobility and the freedom of soldiers and farmers was restricted to try to prevent further gekokujō.
[6] Inspired by the Kōdōha, the Kwantung Army orchestrated the Mukden Incident in 1931, leading to the Japanese invasion of Manchuria.
[7] Masanobu Tsuji (辻 政信) was a well known supporter of extreme gekokujō during World War II.