The traditional view of Go-Daigo was that he failed to hold power because he sought to "turn back the clock" to an earlier era such as the early Heian period when civilian emperors ruled and the military enjoyed little prestige or power.

On the contrary, however, Go-Daigo recognized and accepted that society had become thoroughly militarized. He sought to make the emperor head of both the civilian and military aspects of government. In other words, he sought to create a strong emperorship in the Chinese manner, which would have been unprecedented in Japan.

The conservative force as Ashikaga Takauji, who sought to maintain the world of the Kamakura bakufu. In large part owing to luck, Ashikaga was eventually successful in blocking Go-Daigo's reforms. But he was unsuccessful at restoring a Kamakura-like bakufu with his family in charge. Instead, he set the stage for centuries of relative unrest and frequent civil wars.

For the whole story, see Andrew Goble, Kenmu: Go-Daigo's Revolution.