Warring States Period in Japan

Warring States Period

• The Sengoku or Warring States period in Japanese history lasted from 1467 to 1568.
• Civil war shattered Japan's old feudal system in 1467.
• Power shifted away from the shogun to territorial lords who controlled hundreds of separate domains.
• Powerful samurai took control of old feudal estates.

Daimyo

• Daimyo were warrior chieftains who rose as lords in a new form of Japanese feudalism.
• Daimyo offered protection to peasants in exchange for loyalty.
• Security in this system came from the daimyo, who were powerful warlords; the term daimyo meant "great name".
• The emperor at Kyoto became a figurehead with a leadership title but no actual power.

Daimyo Warfare

• Daimyo built fortified castles and created small armies of samurai on horses.
• Foot soldiers with muskets (guns) were later added to the ranks of the army.
• The new Japanese feudalism resembled European feudalism.
• Rival daimyo often fought each other for territory, leading to disorder throughout Japan.

Oda Nobunaga

• Ambitious daimyo aimed to gather enough power to take control of the country.
• Oda Nobunaga defeated his rivals and seized the imperial capital Kyoto in 1568.
• Nobunaga followed the motto to "Rule the empire by force” and sought to eliminate enemies.
• In 1582, Nobunaga committed seppuku (ritual suicide of a samurai) after one of his generals turned on him.
• Nobunaga was not able to unify Japan.

Toyotomi Hideyoshi

• Toyotomi Hideyoshi, Nobunaga's best general, continued his leader's mission.
• By 1590, Hideyoshi controlled most of Japan by combining force with shrewd political alliances.
• Hideyoshi invaded Korea in 1592, with the idea of eventually conquering China and began a campaign against the Koreans and their Ming Chinese allies.
• Hideyoshi's troops withdrew from Korea when he died in 1598.

Tokugawa Ieyasu

• Tokugawa Ieyasu, one of Hideyoshi's strongest daimyo allies, completed the unification of Japan.
• Ieyasu defeated his rivals at the Battle of Sekigahara, earning him the loyalty of daimyo throughout Japan.
• Ieyasu became the sole ruler, or shogun, three years later, moving Japan's capital to Edo, a small fishing village that would later become the city of Tokyo.
• Ieyasu required daimyo to spend every other year in the capital, and leave their families behind as hostages in Edo.
• Japan was unified, but the daimyo still governed at the local level.
• This was a major step toward restoring centralized government to Japan; the rule of law overcame the rule of the sword.
• Ieyasu founded the Tokugawa Shogunate, which held power until 1867.
• On his deathbed in 1616, Ieyasu advised his son, Hidetada, to take care of the people, strive to be virtuous, and never neglect to protect the country.
• Most Tokugawa shoguns followed this advice, bringing welcome order to Japan.

Contact with Europe

• Despite the severe disorder in the country, the Japanese welcomed traders and missionaries from Portugal and other European countries.
• Europeans began coming to Japan in the 16th century, during the Warring States period.
• These newcomers introduced fascinating new technologies and ideas.
• The Japanese first encountered Europeans in 1543, when shipwrecked Portuguese sailors washed up on the shores of southern Japan.
• Portuguese merchants followed, hoping to involve themselves in Japan's trade with China and Southeast Asia.
• The Portuguese brought clocks, eyeglasses, tobacco, firearms, and other unfamiliar items from Europe.
• Japanese merchants were happy to receive the newcomers and goods.
• Daimyo welcomed the strangers.

Firearms and Cannons

• The Japanese were particularly interested in the Portuguese muskets and cannons.
• Every daimyo sought an advantage over his rivals.
• The Japanese purchased weapons from the Portuguese and began their own production.
• Firearms changed the time-honored tradition of the Japanese warrior, whose principal weapon had prior been the sword.
• Daimyo recruited and trained corps of peasants to use muskets.
• Samurai, who retained the sword would lose their lives to musket fire in combat.
• Daimyo had to build fortified castles to withstand the destructive force of cannonballs.
• The castles attracted merchants, artisans, and others to surrounding lands.
• Cannons had a huge impact on warfare and life in Japan.
• Lands around castles grew into the towns and cities of modern Japan, including Edo (Tokyo), Osaka, Himeji, and Nagoya.

Christian Missionaries

• The Japanese accepted the missionaries in part due to their association with the muskets and other European goods that they wanted to purchase.
• Christian missionaries began arriving in Japan in 1549, and religious orders of Jesuits, Franciscans, and Dominicans came to convert the Japanese.
• By the year 1600, European missionaries had converted about 300,000 Japanese to Christianity.
• Missionaries scorned traditional Japanese beliefs, involved themselves in local politics, and were actively seeking converts .
• Tokugawa Ieyasu was upset by the success of the missionaries.
• Ieyasu found aspects of the Christian invasion troublesome.
• Ieyasu feared driving off the Portuguese, English, Spanish, and Dutch traders who spurred Japan's economy, and at first took no action.
• By 1612, Ieyasu had come to fear religious uprisings more.
• Ieyasu banned Christianity and focused on ridding his country of all Christians.
• Ieyasu died in 1616, but repression of Christianity continued off and on for the next two decades under his successors.
• In 1637, an uprising in southern Japan of some 30,000 peasants, led by dissatisfied samurai, shook the Tokugawa shogunate.
• The shogun decided that Christianity was at the root of the rebellion.
• All Japanese were forced to demonstrate faithfulness to some branch of Buddhism.
• These policies eventually eliminated Christianity in Japan.
• The shoguns ruthlessly persecuted Christians, European missionaries were killed or driven out of Japan, leading to an exclusion policy.