Vocabulary Tokugawa Ieyasu Zen Shogun Daimyo Samurai Bushido
Vocabulary • • • Tokugawa Ieyasu Zen Shogun Daimyo Samurai Bushido SS. 2. 3. HS. 2 1
Japan’s Feudal Age SS. 2. 3. HS. 2 2
Japanese Feudalism Emerges • Power struggles erupted in Japan – Warrior aristocracy dominated society • Emperor was head of Japanese feudal society – Powerless – just a figurehead • Shogun – supreme military commander – Shogunate established in 1192 – First of three military dynasties – 700 years SS. 2. 3. HS. 2 3
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The World of Warriors • Shogun distributed land to vassals – Vassals gave military support in times of need • Shogun (daimyo) – Lesser lords known as samurai • Means those who serve – Fighting aristocracy (knights) SS. 2. 3. HS. 2 5
Samurai • Heavily armed and trained in fighting skills • Developed their own code of values (bushido) – Honor – Bravery – Absolute loyalty to one’s lord • If you betrayed bushido, expected to commit ritual suicide rather than live without honor. SS. 2. 3. HS. 2 6
Status of Noblewomen • Early feudal era- women became warriors and managed family estates. • Women’s status declined over time. • Samurai code did not set women on a pedestal – Women were subservient to men SS. 2. 3. HS. 2 7
Peasants, Artisans, and Merchants • All ranked below samurai • Peasants – 75% of population – Cultivated rice and other crops – Some served as foot soldiers • Rare to move up to samurai • Artisans – Provided necessary goods for samurai class • Swords, armor, etc. • Merchants were the lowest class SS. 2. 3. HS. 2 8
Mongol Invasions • Most fighting took place between rival warlords • Mongols conquered China and Korea – Threatened Japan • Two invasion attempts were stopped by typhoons • Japanese credited kamikaze winds (divine winds) – Reinforced Japanese sense they enjoyed special protections from the gods. SS. 2. 3. HS. 2 9
Order and Unity under the Tokugawas • Kamakura shogunate collapsed after Mongol invasion • Japan was united under the daimyo Tokugawa – Becoming master of Japan – Ruled Japan until 1868 Tokugawa Ieyasu SS. 2. 3. HS. 2 10
Centralized Feudalism • Tokugawa shoguns ended feudal warfare • Kept the outward forms of feudalism but imposed a central government control on all Japan. • Great lords were required to live in the capital every other year – Wife and children kept in capital all the time – Created a powerful check on power SS. 2. 3. HS. 2 11
Centralized Feudalism • Women faced grater restrictions under the Tokugawas • Decree “however good looking a wife may be, if she neglects her household duties by drinking tea or sightseeing or rambling the hillside, she must be divorced” • Freedom was strictly regulated. SS. 2. 3. HS. 2 12
Economic Growth • Shoguns tried to hold back social change – Economy boomed in spite of it. • Peace created improved agriculture • Food surpluses increased population – Cities sprang up around castles – New roads linked castle towns SS. 2. 3. HS. 2 13
Merchants • Confucian tradition – merchants were of low social status • Gained influence by lending money to daimyo and samurai • Improved social status by arranging marriage of daughters into samurai class. SS. 2. 3. HS. 2 14
Zen Buddhism and Japanese Culture • Zen – emphasized meditation and devotion to duty • Zen monks – contradictory traditions – Great scholars – Stressed importance of ‘nonknowing’ • Stressed compassion for all – yet samurai fought to kill all SS. 2. 3. HS. 2 15
Questions • What groups or individuals held the most power in feudal Japan? • What values did the bushido emphasize? • Describe three results of the centralized feudalism imposed by the Tokugawas. SS. 2. 3. HS. 2 16
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