15th century Japan was a largely agricultural society, with urban population centres like Kyoto being the exception rather than the norm. The previous capital Kamakura in northern Honshu was another exception, but cities like Sakai, Osaka, and Edo (modern-day Tokyo) did not fully emerge until the end of this period. Although the feudal class system was not made explicit or strictly enforced until the Edo Bakufu took power at the end of the next century, under the Muromachi Bakufu there was still a clear distinction between the kuge (aristocratic nobles who served the Imperial family), the buke (warrior clans who increasingly controlled the affairs of state), and the large mass of commoners including peasant farmers, artisans and craftsmen, and merchants and traders.

The two main competitors for control of the Muromachi Bakufu during the Ōnin War were the Hosokawa clan, led by Hosokawa Katsumoto, and the Yamana clan, led by Yamana Sōzen. The Hosokawa were descended from the Seiwa Genji line of the Imperial family, and along with the Hatakeyama and Shiba clans, held dominant positions in the Muromachi Bakufu. The Yamana clan, by contrast, were relative political outsiders at the time of the Ōnin War, having lost favour after rebelling against the bakufu in 1391, and only recently regained it for their actions against the Akamatsu rebels in 1441. Both clans survived into the Sengoku era and beyond, although they were never again so powerful. The current head of the Hosokawa family, Hosokawa Morihiro, was Prime Minister of Japan from 1993-1994.