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Samurai ( 侍 、さむらい) were the hereditary military nobility [1] [2] [3] [4] and officer caste of medieval and early-modern Japan from the late 12th century until their abolition in the late 1870s during the Meiji era. They were the well-paid retainers of the daimyo, the great feudal landholders.
- List of Samurai
They are listed alphabetically by their family names. Some...
- Samurai (Disambiguation)
Film and television. The Last Samurai, a 2003 epic period...
- Bushido
A samurai in his armor in the 1860s. Hand-colored photograph...
- Fujiwara
The Fujiwara clan (藤原氏, Fujiwara-shi or Fujiwara-uji) was a...
- Kusunoki Masashige
Equestrian statue of Kusunoki Masashige outside the Imperial...
- List of Japanese Battles
Ancient/Classical Japan Jōmon Period. Jimmu's Eastern...
- Daishō
The daishō (大小, daishō) —"large and small" —is a Japanese...
- Battle of Aizu
The Battle of Aizu (Japanese: 会津戦争, "War of Aizu") was...
- William Adams
William Adams (Japanese: ウィリアム・アダムス, Hepburn: Uwiriamu...
- Japanese Armour
When a united Japan entered the peaceful Edo period, samurai...
- List of Samurai
Apr 15, 2024 · samurai, member of the Japanese warrior caste. The term samurai was originally used to denote the aristocratic warriors (bushi), but it came to apply to all the members of the warrior class that rose to power in the 12th century and dominated the Japanese government until the Meiji Restoration in 1868.
- The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica
- What does samurai mean?The term samurai was originally used to denote Japan’s aristocratic warriors (bushi), but it came to apply to all the members of the country’s warr...
- When did samurai exist?Emerging from provincial warrior bands, the samurai of the Kamakura period (1192–1333), with their military skills and deep pride in their stoicism...
- Why did samurai commit seppuku?The ideal samurai was supposed to follow an unwritten code of conduct, later formalized as Bushidō, which held bravery, honour, and personal loyalt...
- Development & Status
- Samurai Weapons
- Samurai Armour
- Bushido
- Seppuku
- Samurai as Heroes: Yoshitsune
- The 47 Ronin
- Decline & Subsequent Mythologising
The government system of conscription in Japan was ended in 792, and so in the following Heian Period (794-1185), private armies were formed in order to protect the landed interests (shoen) of nobles who spent most of their time away at the imperial court. This was the beginning of the samurai, a name meaning 'attendant' while the verb samuraumeans...
Trained from aged 10 or even earlier in martial skills, samurai rode and fought on horseback in the early medieval period, primarily using a bow but also a curved long sword when necessary. They had a second, shorter sword, and a decree by the ruler Hideyoshi in 1588 stated that only full samurai could wear two swords, and this became an important ...
Cuirasses made of metal plates stitched together and protected by lacquer date back to the Kofun period (c. 250-538). A more flexible armour was then made using narrow strips of bronze or iron which were held together with cord or leather ties. Leather plating was another common material for armour throughout the medieval period as it was both ligh...
Thebushido or shido, meaning the 'way of the warrior,' is the famous warrior code of conduct the samurai followed, but it was only compiled in the late 17th century by the scholar Yamago Soko (1622-1685), by which time the samurai were no longer active militarily but functioned more as moral guides and advisors. It is, therefore, difficult to ascer...
Those in the top echelons of the samurai were expected to fight to the death, even if this meant killing oneself to avoid capture. The honourable method was seppuku (aka hara-kiri) or self-disembowelment as the stomach was considered to contain the spirit, not the heart. The warrior first donned a white robe, symbol of purity, and then cut his abdo...
Many heroes in Japanese mythology are samurai warriors and none is more famous than the legendary Yoshitsune (1159-1189). Minamoto-no-Yoshitsune, born Ushiwakamaru, was the younger brother of the shogun and a successful general in the Gempei War (1180-1185). His legendary status springs from his standing as the epitome of the loyal, honourable, and...
Perhaps the most famous real-life samurai, episode of mass-seppuku, and example par excellence of maintaining honour through death is the story of the 47 Ronin (Shijushichishi) which occurred in January 1703 (although commemorated today every December 14). The lord of Ako, Asano Naganori (1665-1701) was at the castle of the shogun in Edo one day wh...
The importance of samurai and local armies was greatly reduced following the stabilising policies of the Tokugawa Shogunate which brought relative peace across Japan. This continued the process begun half a century earlier when the rural populace was disarmed. In addition, many samurai, faced with becoming either peaceful farmers or retainers to lo...
- Mark Cartwright
Samurai ( 侍 、さむらい) were the hereditary military nobility and officer caste of medieval and early-modern Japan from the late 12th century until their abolition in the late 1870s during the Meiji era. They were the well-paid retainers of the daimyo, the great feudal landholders. They had high prestige and special privileges.
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- Kallie Szczepanski
- Early Feudal Era. Some samurai were relatives of the landowners they protected, while others were simply hired swords. The samurai code emphasized loyalty to one's master—even over family loyalty.
- Kamakura and Early Muromachi (Ashikaga) Periods. The two clans fought once more in the Genpei War of 1180 to 1185, which ended in victory for the Minamoto.
- Later Muromachi Period and Restoration of Order. By 1460, the daimyos were ignoring orders from the shogun and backing different successors to the imperial throne.
- The Tokugawa Shogunate of the Edo Period. Hideyoshi exiled the large Tokugawa clan from the area around Kyoto to the Kanto region in eastern Japan. By 1600, Tokugawa Ieyasu had conquered the neighboring daimyo from his castle stronghold at Edo, which would one day become Tokyo.
The samurai (or bushi) were Japanese warriors who were members of the important military class before Japanese society changed in 1868. The samurai were also considered to be a type of hereditary nobility .
Oct 9, 2007 · History of the Samurai. By Rima Chaddha. Posted 10.09.07. NOVA. For more than 800 years, the samurai helped to lay the foundations of Japan's culture. Their reverence for honor, duty, and...
