Samurai

Samurai ´SAM u ryª, were members of the hereditary warrior class in Japan. The early samurai defended the aristocrats' estates in the provinces. The samurai wore a protective helmet and armor. They used two curved swords, one long and one short. During the 1000's and 1100's, the samurai began to develop a tradition of values and personal conduct. They valued horsemanship, skill with the bow, strong self-discipline, and bravery. Above all, they prized total obedience and loyalty to their lords, and personal honor. If the samurai were dishonored, they would consider it a duty to commit ritual suicide. The samurai became powerful after Yoritomo, the Minamoto clan leader, established the first shogunate (warrior government) in the late 1100's. Their military strength and administrative organization provided a foundation for a long period of relative peace. In the 1300's to 1500's, under the weak Ashikaga shogunate, the samurai became leaders of Japanese society but battled among themselves. The greatest of the warriors, called daimyo, controlled vast territories. After a period of control by local warlords, Japan was reunited in the late 1500's. In 1603, the powerful Tokugawa shogunate was established. The samurai then influenced every part of life until the mid-1800's, when the Japanese emperor regained full control.

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While aristocratic life flourished in Kyoto, new forces were emerging in more distant regions of Japan. To maintain law and order and to protect their rice fields, a new class of mounted warriors arose. They were called samurai, which means "those who serve." The samurai fought with bows and arrows and with swords. They were very much like the European knights of the Middle Ages. At first these warriors held only local power in the countryside, where they co-operated with governors sent out from the imperial court. But eventually the samurai became more powerful, and from the 12th to the 19th century, they were the rulers of Japan.

Kamakura Rulers: The First Shoguns.

The first military government was established in Kamakura in eastern Honshu in 1185. Its founder took the title of "Barbarian-Conquering-General"--whose shortened form in Japanese is shogun. He claimed to be merely the military ruler, while the emperor ruled over the civil government in Kyoto. But, in fact, he gradually gathered all power into his own hands and those of his samurai followers, leaving the emperor more powerless than ever.

The "Divine Wind."

During the 13th century, the Mongol emperor of China, Kublai Khan, sent emissaries to Japan with the demand that it submit to his rule. The shogun in Kamakura ignored the demand and beheaded the emissaries. Kublai Khan was so angered that he sent thousands of ships to invade Japan. The first attack was inconclusive, but during the second, a great storm appeared that destroyed many of the enemy ships. The rest of the ships were forced to retreat. The Japanese called this storm kamikaze, or "divine wind," in the belief that it had saved them from foreign invasion.

Kyoto Shogunate: The Ashikaga

The second period of military rule began in the early 14th century. The samurai had become so numerous and so overly ambitious that the rulers in Kamakura could no longer control them. After rebellions broke out, a new military government took power, headed by the Ashikaga clan. The new shogun settled in Kyoto, where he built himself a magnificent palace. Although the emperor still resided in Kyoto, a separate civil government no longer existed, except on paper.

The Ashikaga shoguns built great temples and gardens, which still can be seen today. Several, like the Silver Pavilion, are national treasures. It was the great age of Zen Buddhism. The Ashikaga were patrons of monasteries and of painters, poets, and writers.

The Dark Age

As Ashikaga rule began to decline in the middle of the 15th century, Japan was plunged into a dark age of constant warfare, which was to last for nearly a century. Feudal lords, called daimyo, each with his fortified castle and army of samurai, arose in every part of Japan. Hundreds of such daimyo competed for power, drafting foot soldiers from among the peasants to enlarge their armies.

The First Europeans

Just at this time the first Europeans arrived in Japan. In 1543 three Portuguese traders who had been sailing along the China coast were blown out to sea and eventually landed on an island south of Kyushu. They were treated hospitably. Their firearms, in particular, aroused much excitement among the samurai, who quickly copied them and used them to advantage in their wars. News of the coming of the foreigners and of their unusual possessions spread throughout the country. The Portuguese themselves, on hearing of the discovery of Japan, at once fitted out expeditions to trade in this new market. Within a few years the traders were followed by missionaries. Other foreign expeditions also made their way to the Japanese islands. During the short but successful mission of the Spanish Jesuit Saint Francis Xavier, the first Christian church was built in Japan, and hundreds of Japanese were converted to the Roman Catholic religion.

Three Leaders of the 16th Century

Three men--Oda Nobunaga, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, and Tokugawa Ieyasu--were destined to play important roles in the history of 16th-century Japan. A well-known story compares the characters of the three.

Nobunaga says: "Nightingale, if you do not sing, I shall kill you."

Hideyoshi says: "Nightingale, if you do not sing, I shall make you."

Ieyasu says: "Nightingale, if you do not sing now, I shall wait until you do."

Oda Nobunaga was the first to gain power. After ousting the weakened Ashikaga shogun from Kyoto, he eliminated all of his rivals, successfully using the new firearms in a decisive battle. But the ruthless Nobunaga was not popular. In 1582, after a brief rule of nine years, he was killed by one of his own men. He was succeeded by Hideyoshi.

Many stories are told about Hideyoshi. Beginning as a common soldier, who could neither read nor write, he became Japan's greatest warrior. He was an ugly man--his nickname as a child had been Kozaru, or "Little Monkey." After several years at a monastery, to which his despairing parents had sent him, he entered the service of a daimyo. He then joined Nobunaga's army, where he quickly rose to become his chief general.

By 1590, Hideyoshi had brought all of Japan under his control. But the arrogant and boastful warrior had an even greater ambition: He dreamed of conquering China. The armies he sent to the mainland, however, suffered severe losses in Korea, and they were withdrawn soon after Hideyoshi's death in 1598. Tokugawa Ieyasu was a clever politician as well as a brilliant general. He was known for his patience and his sense of justice. After defeating all of his opponents in battle in 1600, he established a military government that lasted until the middle of the 19th century. Under the Tokugawa shoguns, Japan enjoyed two and a half centuries of peace.

The Tokugawa Shogunate

Following the example of the first Kamakura shogun, Tokugawa Ieyasu established his shogunate, or military government, in eastern Japan, at Edo (the future Tokyo). Originally a small village, within a century it was to grow into a city of a million inhabitants.

Ieyasu took direct control of one third of Japan, settling his own soldiers in Edo. The rest of the land he distributed to other lords, especially favoring those who had proved their loyalty to him in battle. Those he trusted most were settled, along with their thousands of samurai, on lands bordering his own. Those he least trusted were sent to distant regions in Kyushu or Shikoku. Ieyasu also formed a council of the most trustworthy lords as his advisers. When later shoguns were too young or too weak to rule effectively, the council took over and governed Japan.

Some Important Events Under the Tokugawa.In the 1630's, under the third shogun, Christianity was banned in Japan. Fearing that the Japanese lords who had converted to Christianity would not remain loyal to his government, the shogun ordered all foreigners to leave Japan and all Christian converts to give up their new religion. Anyone who refused to obey the order was sentenced to death. Many Japanese did renounce Christianity, but others died for their faith. Beginning in the mid-17th century, not only were foreigners forbidden to enter Japan, the Japanese themselves were forbidden to travel outside the country. Any who did so were liable to execution on returning. The reason for this harsh law, like the one banning Christianity, was to ensure the security of Japan. The one exception to the order against foreigners was in the port city of Nagasaki on Kyushu, far from the capital at Edo, where a handful of Dutch, Chinese, and Korean merchants were permitted to trade. For two centuries, Nagasaki remained Japan's only outlet to the rest of the world, through which a few books on Western science entered. Commerce grew within Japan as peace and a more stable society brought economic expansion. Art, literature, and drama reached new heights of expression. The Kabuki play--more realistic than the earlier N drama--became popular among the emerging middle classes in the cities. While some literature was serious and dealt with heroes and military virtue, most city people preferred romances and comic sketches of ordinary folk. The function of the samurai changed. After many years of peace, they became a class of hereditary government officials rather than warriors. Although they still wore swords and trained in the military arts, education and learning had now become more important.