The rise of the warrior class in Japan

 Samurai First: Minamoto Yoritomo

o Shogun; very powerful

 Shogun ruled with help of Daimyo

 15th century: Japn fell into chaos

o Daimyos warred for power/land

 Military training and fighting

o Military training: Kendo

 Kendo was tough: taught to kill, not sport.

o Military training: Martial arts: Judo, Jujitsu

 Battle: Samurai shout out names, ancestors, deeds, and reason for fighting

o Then charge, shoot arrows.

 Samurai duel.

 Sometimes samurai disarmed; do jujitsu.

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From the latter part of the Heian era (794-1185),the warriors of Japan were called

bushi (buu-she), a term that had been introduced from China. In earlier times, court

officials who waited upon the emperor were known as saburo-bitto, from the word

saburo, which means "to serve" or "wait upon." Bushi assigned to guard the emperor

came to be known as saburai. By the thirteenth century, hereditary warriors, as well

as officials serving princes, court ministers, and other persons of high rank, were

called saburai.
 

Saburai originally referred only to higher class warriors and court officials.

Eventually it was changed to samurai just to make it easier to pronounce. Japan's

famous class of samurai warriors was further strengthened by an institution

established in 1185 by Minamoto Yoritomo , a few years before he set up the

country's first shogunate government.

War played a central part in the history of Japan. Warring clans controlled much of

the country. A chief headed each clan; made up of related families. The chiefs were

the decendents of Japan's imperial family. The wars were usually about "land." Only

20% of the land was fit for farming. The struggle for control of that land eventually

gave rise to the Samurai.

The Samurai rose out of these continuing battles for land among three main 

clans: the Minamoto, the Fujiwara and the Taira. The Samurai eventually became a

class unto themselves between the 9th and 12th centuries A.D. They were called by

two names: Samurai (knights-retainers) and Bushi (warriors). Some of them were

related to the ruling class. Others were hired men. They gave complete loyalty to

their Daimyo (feudal landowners) and received land and position in return. Each

Daimyo used his Samurai to protect his land and to expand his power and rights to

more land.

Achieving military success in the country, Yoritomo obtained permission from the
emperor to establish a system of shugo (shuu-go) or "guards". for all of the districts

and provinces as a means of keeping order.

The position of shugo gradually became hereditary and consolidated the

development of an elite class of professional warriors. As the generations passed,

these warrior families became clans and grew to be more powerful than the

hereditary lords they served (most of whom were descendants of noble families

from Kyoto). These shugo gradually came to be known as samurai (which is another

reading for "guards"). They developed a code, based on Confucian and Zen Buddhist

principles, that came to be known as bushido, or the Way of the Warrior. This code

was to dictate virtually every aspect of their lives and influence the total culture of

the country until modern times.

The essence of the samurai code of bushido was total loyalty to the feudal lord; a

willingness to give their lives in the defense of their lord , his honor, and their own; a

strict regimen of martial training; and a sternly refined etiquette that governed their

actions and behavior in all things.

Part of the code of the samurai was to commit suicide rather than be captured in

war or dishonored by failure those who did fail became known as ronin (masterless

samurai) and were shunned by socailty for there failer and dishonour They became

beggars, drunks, and assassins, shunned and feared. Many committed ritual suicide.

Many others threatened to do so at the houses of wealthy lords, embarrassing the

lords into giving them money or food. The code of the samurai applied to the
women, as well as the men, in this elite class.

One special category of samurai were the hatamoto (hah-tah-moe-toe), the higher

ranking warriors who were the shogun's personal guard. During the Tokugawa

Shogunate (1600-1867), the hatamoto were direct vassals of the shogun, and their

annual revenue was fixed at a minimum of 10,000 bushels of rice.

Ancient Yayoi warriors developed weapons, armor and a code during the ensuing

centuries that became the centerpiece for the Japanese Samurai. Early weapons

included bows, arrows and swords. Armor included a helmet that protected head

and neck, a breasplate that protected the chest, arm and shoulder protectors, and a

belly wrap. Later armor included protection for the legs and thighs. Armor changed

as the type of battles changed. A big change occured in the 5th century when horses

were introduced to Japan. Another change occured in the 15th century because of

the constancy of war and the introduction of guns into battle. The code developed

from the Chinese concept of the virtues of warriors doing battle with the Samurai.

The samurai called their code of chivalry Kyuba no michi ("The Way of Horse and

Bow") and Bushido ("The Way of the Warrior").

The Samurai became expert in fighting from horseback and on the ground. They

practiced armed and un-armed combat. The early Samurai emphasized fighting with

the bow and arrow. They used swords for close in fighting and beheading their

enemies. Battles with the Mongols in the late 13th century led to a change in the
Samurai's fighting style. They began to use their sword more and also made more

use of spears and naginata. The Samurai slowly changed from fighting on horseback

to fighting on foot.

In the late 16th century, it became common for the Samurai to wear two swords

(daisho). One was long; the other short. The long sword (daito - katana) was more

than 24 inches. The short sword (shoto - wakizashi) was between 12 and 24 inches.

The Samurai often gave names to their swords and believed it was the "soul" of their

warriorship. The oldest swords were straight and had their early design in Korea

and China. The Samurai's desire for tougher, sharper swords for battle gave rise to

the curved blade we still have today.

The sword had its beginning as iron combined with carbon. The swordsmith used

fire, water, anvil and hammer to shape the world's best swords. After forging the

blade, the sword polisher did his work to prepare the blade for the "furniture" that

surrounded it. Next, the sword tester took the new blade and cut through the bodies

of corpses or condemned criminals. They started by cutting through the small bones

of the body and moved up to the large bones. Test results were often recorded on

the nakago (the metal piece attaching the sword blade to the handle).

Samurai came to have strong influence in the central political offices by the end of

the 11th century, taking the place of the noble class. During the Japanese feudal era,
the military government was headed by the Shogun, the supreme seigneur of

Samurai. The Samurai's highest priority was loyalty to the Daimyos who ruled under

the Shogun.

After the privileged class of samurai was abolished in 1868, the word shizoku, which

is the Chinese pronunciation of the same word, was substituted and extensively

used until 1945, so that formal samurai families were still distinguished from the

common people. Even today, in some rural areas of Japan, the descendants of

samurai feudal lords are treated with special respect reminiscent of the Tokugawa

Shogunate, which officially ended in 1867.

Samurai can NEVER relax. An attack could come when it was least expected, even

when a samurai was playing music or dancing. For this reason samurai had to

develop a “sixth sense” about danger, or else they would be killed. This came from a

long and grueling training. Therefore, many samurai had to endure many hardships,

shut as being beaten by a wooden sword when they least expected it. These painful

blows taught the samurai to always stay alert.