“Leaves and Flowers of Paulownia: Aristocratic Legitimacy of the Ashikaga Warrior Leaders” Polina Barducci Abstract This project investigates the intersection of courtly and warrior governance during the rule of the second warrior government, the Ashikaga shogunate (1336–1573) and focuses on the period of its political apex in the first half of the fifteenth century. During this time, the Ashikaga managed to consolidate power not only over warriors, but also established authority in the eyes of religious institutions and civil aristocracy. Every Ashikaga leader of this period pursued his own political course but nevertheless managed to elevate the status of the family and promote the legitimacy of the warrior government as the sole administrative body. This study considers political realities through the lens of ritual, which is understood in its broadest anthropological sense to include not only religious rites and prayers but also imperial court ceremonies, customs of sociability, and diplomatic protocol. Descriptions of these rites and ceremonies which are drawn from courtier diaries, temple records, diplomatic correspondence, and envoy testimonies reveal hidden tools of governance and aspects of non-verbal communication between members of the ruling elite. By giving special attention to ritual interactions between the Ashikaga and the holders of sovereign power, such as the imperial family in Japan and foreign monarchs in East Asia, it refutes the notion of usurpation of the imperial throne being the basis of warrior legitimacy. Instead this work argues that the warrior leaders established their political presence through ritual association with traditional sources of power and contributed to maintaining the legitimacy of the imperial institution. Premeditated ritual association with the sovereign power is particularly evident from the activities of shogunal advisors and immediate circle of supporters who formed the foundations of the aristocratic legitimacy of the Ashikaga family.