Japanese+Feudalism

=__**Japanese Feudalism**__=

__Class System:__
The shogun “king” ruled over Japan by using the daimyo “nobles”, who lead legions of powerful samurai. The Peas ants tended the crops, and provided food for the samurai in exchange for protection. The peasants could not rise in status, with the exception of Toyotomi Hideyoshu who went from the class rank of peasant to a great king. In the class system the religion Buddhism played a major role, it was the main religion in Japan. Farmers in Japanese were superior to merchants and artisans because they made food which was much more useful to the society. Also a very interesting fact is that the farmers weren’t allowed to eat any of the rice that they grew. Another social rank in Japan, the Samurai were similar to the knights of Europe.(Europe also had a version of Feudalism, Check it out) Sometimes huge or small battles were fought between clans for land. The battles were usually between daimyo that were hired by the shogun. For soldiers they used peasants and Samurai.



__Samurai:__
Most Samurai rode on hoarse back and use bows in battle. Rarely did they ever use their sword, for them it was a symbol of power. Most of the time the Samurai warriors were paid in rice, but sometimes were paid with portions of land. The Samurai followed a strict code of ethics known as Bushido, very similar to the European system of chivalry. If they disgrace the ancestors they go to a ritual called belly splitting and that is self explanatory. The Samurai wore light, quick leather armor finely decorated with silk art. Their sword was hand crafted by blacksmiths of great skill. The sword symbolized the ancestors of the warrior and power of that warrior. All of the Samurai were experts in horseback riding and archery. Could even accurately shoot while riding very fast. Becoming a Samurai took many years of training.

__Role of women:__
A very cool thing is that not all Samurai were men some were women. Some women Samurai joined with men Samurai in the battle. However they were expected to maintain their house hold duties, which included overseeing the harvest, and keeping the house in order. One time a empress (female ruler) led her Samurai into a battle. Also the upper-class women of Japan were the first began to Buddhism.

__Merchants and artisans:__
Merchants and artisans were consisted of traders and shop keepers. They were the lowest on the social class. They did gain massive economic power despite how low they were in society. Their wealth that they earned allowed some restrictions against them to ease. Artisans made great art work and many essential items such as cloths, utensils. Yet they were considered less important than farmers.

media type="youtube" key="aZ4k4dtRgPw" height="315" width="420"

Work Cited: "Japanese Feudalism." //For Students//. Boise State. Web. 17 Jan. 2012. "edtech2.boisestate.edu/lockwoodm/Feudalism/japanese_feudalism.htm"

Szczepanski, Kallie. "Japanese Feudalism and European Feudalism." //Asian History - History of Asia//. About.com. Web. 17 Jan. 2012. "asianhistory.about.com/od/japan/a/Feudalism-In-Japan-And-Europe.htm"

"Samurai Sisters: Early Feudal Japan - Sample Activity (Women in World History Curriculum)." //Women In World History Curriculum//. Womeninworldhistory.com. Web. 17 Jan. 2012. "www.womeninworldhistory.com/sample-08.html"

"HowStuffWorks "How Samurai Work"" //HowStuffWorks "People"// Web. 20 Jan. 2012. "people.howstuffworks.com/samurai2.htm"

"Feudal Japan." //Maproom.org//. Web. 20 Jan. 2012. "maproom.org/00/05/sub1/5.html"

"Samurai." //ShibuiSwords.com Homepage//. Web. 20 Jan. 2012. "shibuiswords.com/samurai.htm"