The samurai warrior
of feudal Japan has been a pop culture
staple for decades-- brave, disciplined,
skillful, and above all, honorable samurai, have
appeared as the heroes of beloved films, novels,
television shows, and even comic books. But as is often the
case, the reality is way more complex and way more
interesting than the fiction. Today, we're going
to take a look at what life was really like
as a samurai in feudal Japan. But before we get started,
be sure to subscribe to the Weird History Channel. After that, we would
be much obliged if you would leave a comment
and let us know what topics you would like to hear about. OK, let's head back
to feudal, Japan. [RING] The word samurai is derived
from the Japanese word "subaru" which means to serve. Both the word and
the warrior class that it describes came into
being around the eighth century or what's known as
Japan's Heian period. For comparison, this was
roughly the same time knights were going on
crusades over in Europe. The role evolved over the years. And by the 12th
century, the samurai would begin to resemble the
culture disciplined warrior that is familiar to us today. Prior to the Heian period,
Japan's imperial court built their military by drafting
inexperienced and generally unreliable peasants. At the same time, the
country's nobility were employing highly
trained private soldiers. By the end of the
eighth century, the government
began to integrate these elite warriors
in the nation's military establishment. These men were
the first samurai. The birth of the samurai
order changed everything. The military was
quickly replaced with what were for all
intents and purposes, professional mercenaries. This made enlistment
popular with elites and lower aristocrats
seeking employment and valuable training. These changes also meant
that noble families had increasing influence
over military policy, which, as you might imagine, they
were pretty happy about. In the mid 12th century,
the Minamoto clan defeated the Taira clan
in the Genpei War of 1180. The fallout of this
victory was enormous. The government became
a military dictatorship under the command of Minamoto
Yoritomo, the first shogun. His reign would usher in what
is now known as the Kamakura period of Japanese history. The shogun dispersed
networks of loyal samurai throughout the country. They served as royal
vassals who maintained order in the provinces and ran local
governments on the shogun's behalf. This tightening of
military control would continue into
the 13th century when the invasions of Mongol
Kublai Khan, the grandson of Genghis Khan, forced the
whole country to band together under the shogun. If you were going
to be a samurai, you needed to start young. How young? Well, one famous spiritual
guide from the medieval era recommended encouraging bravery
from the time of infancy. Children who were part
of the Samurai class could start learning the basics
of fencing with wooden swords as early as three years old. Yeah, you heard
that right, three. And while modern
society requires you to be 18 to see
an R rated movie, medieval samurai kids
would be fighting with real lethal blades by
the time they were five. In any case, training was
underway before the age of 10. And boys would often be
sent to special schools where they studied the samurai
philosophies of spirituality, literature, weaponry,
and conflict. [MUSIC PLAYING] Samurai were bound to
maintain loyalty to the shogun and to the Daimyó who were
the feudal warlords that ruled the various regions of Japan. These Daimyó were supposed to
rule their territories with wisdom and benevolence. But as you probably
guessed, things didn't always go that way. In reality, many Daimyó
were corrupt, power hungry, and determined to expand the
regions through any means necessary. This often made life as a
samurai a bit challenging. Being honor bound to carry out
the orders of a malevolent lord could take its toll on
a samurai's good name. Over time, the samurai
class as a whole earned a reputation for
lawless vicious behavior. [MUSIC PLAYING] Samurai were powerful
and respected. But technically, they
were not nobility. Under medieval Japan's
rigid caste system, the samurai were part of a
special military class that was treated more like merchants. This meant they faced many of
the same financial challenges as merchants. And steady employment
could be hard to come by. Complicating life
for a samurai was that different shoguns
would enact different rules governing their status. For example, one
shogun defined samurai as an elite body which sounds
pretty cool until you realize it was just a way to extend the
limits of his power over them. This kind of
proclamation could make it more difficult
to earn a living without putting a single extra
cent into a samurai's pocket. While Zen Buddhism didn't
arrive until the 12th century, Japan had known of
Buddhism, in general, since the sixth century. With heavy restrictions
on the cultivation of birds and animals
for food, the religion led the country
to embrace a diet heavy in fruits, vegetables,
and grains, especially rice. As noted previously, samurai
often struggled economically. This in addition to
the strict moral code made them frugal eaters. While the aristocracy
and the military elite dined at banquets that served
the finest food and drinks, the samurai, like the
peasant, relied on husked rice as a staple. This rice was supposed
to be provided as rations by the respective lords. If expecting to go
into battle, a samurai might supplement their diet with
abalone, chestnuts, and kelp. When it came to
beverages, samurai were allowed to partake
in Japan's most widely consumed alcoholic beverage,
the rice wine known as saki. Hey, if you were to lay
down your life for your boss without hesitation, you
might want a stiff drink too. Samurai were expected
to be up at 4:00 AM for the rigid and
exhausting training regiments. And then if they weren't
in battle or otherwise seeing action,
they were required to spend their time studying. Being a skilled
warrior in feudal Japan required expert level knowledge
of martial arts and weaponry. Samurai always fought with
blades of various types. But their arsenal still
evolved over time. Early samurai preferred
fighting with spears. Medieval samurai, who mostly
traveled on horseback, were partial to bows and arrows. The famous samurai sword
called a katana became popular during the Kamakura period. Along with the bow,
it would remain the samurai's predominant tool
well into the 15th century. But studying wasn't just
about becoming deadlier. It was believed that the
stability and patience required for successfully
learning the martial arts would improve one's
sense of composure. Whether or not it really worked
is anyone's guess since records show that samurai were
often, shall we say, less than composed when
dealing with the peasantry. Going all the way back
to the Heian period, samurai armor was
extremely flexible. Iron plated with leather
or strips of bronze were finally crafted by
artisans using advanced tools. As technology
continued to develop and new resources
became available, samurai armor evolved with it. Over time, the armor became
increasingly more elaborate, which had the side effect
of increasing its weight. One type of armor called the
yoroi or o-yoroi consisted of a multi-part skirt, a
cuirass, shoulder pads, and a helmet. Altogether, it weighed
over 60 pounds. Those samurai
helmets called Kabuto were made from iron and steel. They covered the
head and head flaps that provided for
protection of the neck. The helmets were carefully
sculpted and highly decorated. A Daimyo warlord, for
example, might wear some sort of animal iconography. Apparently, branding has
always been important. If a samurai start to wed, they
needed the approval of someone who was the same or higher
social rank than the person they wanted to marry. For samurai of higher ranks,
marriages had to be arranged. And those of lower ranks
often had arranged marriages as a formality. Marriages were usually arranged
within the samurai class, although the lowest
ranking members were allowed to marry commoners. While women had vast
freedoms and rights during the early
days of the samurai, the society grew more
patriarchal over time. By the 13th century,
the husbands had control over their
households and their wives. Divorce was permitted and having
a second or even third marriage was not unusual. Tales of medieval samurai
were passed down orally and eventually
transcribed into ethics. Such narratives were
often characterized by long detailed descriptions
of military engagements and the samurai who fought them. Warriors with
concerns about combat or their own military service
often looked to such tales for wisdom and guidance. The samurai also appeared
in Japanese mythology. For example, one
myth often retold by Kabuki and Noh theaters
tells of a famous general called Yoshitsune. His brother, the
shogun, became violently jealous of his reputation,
forcing the general to flee. In the 12th century, Zen
Buddhism arrived in Japan. The religion, which
requires adherence, maintain a strict
regimen and meditation made a perfect complement to the
lives of restraint and control enjoyed by the samurai. Zen Buddhist meditation
also required great physical endurance. This appealed to the
samurai because they love to test the limits
of their own strength. But perhaps most important
was what Zen Buddhism offered the samurai philosophically. The samurai lived lives
of immense danger. As the famous author from
Japan's Tokugawa period observed, a samurai's
chief business is to keep constantly in mind
by day and by night the fact that he has to perish. Zen Buddhism and
its indifference to the circle of
life gave samurai the metaphysical framework
to face the mortality and be effective as warriors. [MUSIC PLAYING] Over time, the samurai
began to develop the famous moral code that would
someday become known as bushido or the way of the warrior. A samurai's loyalty was to
his Daimyo and to the shogun. But the code
governed his actions. Bushido required its adherence
to be brave and honorable in battle but also
in everyday life. This code was standardized under
the Kamakura shogunate in 1232 in a document called the
Formulary of Adjudications. While they were often ignored
in many regions of Japan, there were still
consequences for samurai who acted without honor. The most severe of
these consequences was seppuku, a formalized
way of committing suicide that was seen as a way
to reclaim one's lost honor. Seppuku could be
imposed as a punishment for dishonorable
behavior and in wartime was often considered
an honorable way to escape the shame of capture. Over the course of the Kamakura
period of Japan's history, samurai philosophy grew
to encompass matters beyond those directly
related to battle and honor. Reflecting this expansion,
warrior training came to include practice
and literature and the arts. This aspect of samurai
life was so important. One famous epic eulogized a
particular warrior's death by describing him as preeminent
in the arts of both sword and poetry. The artistic side
of samurai life was captured in the
phrase, [JAPANESE],, which translates to literary
arts, military arts both ways. Or more informally, the pen
and the sword in accord. The samurai were warrior
poets whose lives could vary greatly depending
on what era they lived in. Within any given
period, their existence was shaped by circumstances
like armed conflicts, economics, moral philosophy class,
and geographic location. Do you think you
would have made it as a samurai in feudal Japan? Let us know in the
comments below. And while you're at it, check
out some of these other videos from our Weird History.
