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Masakari is a specialised axe & term scholagladiatoria Masakari =a hefty bladed battle axe with a sharpened tip on the other end of the shaft from the head akin to a pole axe but not exactly the same. in honorific/old Japanese axe is wono shortened to ono in common present day Japanese. Habiro = abroad axe which can refer to military axes, broad tool axes & makakari to confuse matters. Yoki= a sort of hatchet axe machete akin to a billhook. Axes are more a weapon of the yamabushi=mountain warriors/mountain hermits sort of then samurai. Wono is a very large topic but that's the gist of it. Note: Souhei/warrior monks invented & predominantly used naginata though ashigaru & samurai di later adopt & use them. A more similar weapon to a glaive & Chinese yanyuedao is the Japanese Bisentou that was developed from the mentioned Chinese pole arm that in time was developed into the nibbler Naginata by Souhei/warrior monks previously mentioned. Kind regards Matt
10:45 - The Yari with the one sided protrusions at that timestamp resembles ancient Chinese halberd-like polearms (Han Dynasty era Ji and Dagger axe). I wonder if these Yari could be used in similar fashions where the projection is used as an armor penetrating spike that is swung at an enemy?
As far as flails go, there is a farming tool that is used to thresh grains that is essentially a two-handed flail. It would have seen some use in the more repressed areas. I can't think if I've seen it spiked up for war use, but in Okinawa there were martial arts developed for oars and all kinds of random stuff.
i recognize the triangular shaped yari blade, short version, as commonly used in tooling. they usually were wicked sharp - these types of blades were used in heavy duty cutting with precision, ex leather or woodworks. having a bit of experiance in using japanese and european woodworking tools, i acknowledge they are obsessed with very hardened and wicked sharp edges.
True, but I think two reasons spears & polearms don't get the love are 1) they are more difficult to store, transport & ship 2) movies don't show them doing cool things nearly as much as swords
Yumi is very handsome but quite mediocre bow in terms of power, range and accuracy if compared to continental and english "primary ranged weapon"-role analogs. (though it's incredibly good for a bow made from young bamboo and silk).
@@doombringer3498 I would like to know your sources for your statement, that the yumi has less accuracy, range and power? when if come to accuracy the archers paradox is reduced due to the construction, i.e., the arrow is push in straight line when being release, this is due to the yumi being arc not only front to back, but also to the side.
The idea that the Samurai faired very poorly against the Mongols and were only saved by the Kamikaze is actually a bit of a myth - one pushed by the Japanese themselves to emphasize their status as "divinely protected." Samurai got paid for rendering good service in battle, and there was an actual court established by the Minamoto that adjudicated rewards, and individual Samurai actual recorded their deeds on scrolls complete with artistic depictions and witness signatures. Not to add to your presumably extensive reading list, Matt, but when you get a chance please check out the extraordinary "In Little Need of Divine Intervention: Takezaki Suenaga's Scrolls of the Mongol Invasions of Japan (Cornell East Asia Series) (Cornell East Asia Series, 113) by Thomas D. Conlan which argues that the Samurai actually were largely able to repel the Mongol landings prior to the typhoons that sunk the invasion fleets.
Also worth keeping in mind is that the Mongol invasion force was largely Korean conscripts , not the hardened horsemen who conquered China under Genghis.
To top it all off, the Mongolian brutality caused a lot of Japanese peasants to take up arms in defence, alongside the warriors. The Japanese actually fended off the Mongols quite well without the storms, all things considered. Also, obvs Jin's ghost stance and Sarugami helped lmao
It is true that official Mongolian history books record that the Mongolian army was completely defeated by the Japanese army. However, in Japan, powerful samurai clans who had repelled the Mongol army one after another demanded "rewards" from the Kamakura shogunate, but the shogunate was unable to meet their demands, and a political problem arose. According to one Japanese hypothesis, the "kamikaze myth" began when the Kamakura shogunate widely publicized the fact that "Japan was able to repel the Mongol invasion because the shogunate prayed to the gods." In other words, and it is a ridiculous story, it was the Kamakura shogunate itself, which was in a financial crisis, that covered up the military achievements of the samurai.
Jumonji not jumanji. Ju mon (十) is the Kanji (character) fot the number ten, and as you see, it's shaped as a cross. The cross shaped spear got it's name because of that. Naginata.
I think this is a large part of why most samurai movies are about the edo period and especially the end of it, like shinsengumi police. Later periods had more small scale unarmored sword fighting which makes for a different type of spectacle than samurai formations clashing with spears, bows and matchlocks.
During the Sengoku period civil-war, most of the battle were fought with Match-lock Muskets imported from the Dutch and Portuguese. The Japanese were one the first to use guns in battle on a large scale, earlier than some European countries, with close formation firing line. Seeing how easily commoners can easily kill well trained Samurai, the threat of a popular uprising is one of the reason that Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Tokugawa Ieyasu banned Firearms from everyone (except the Shogun's men) and anything Western, since they can encourage insurrection.
@@inisipisTV Most of the battles in the sengoku jidai were not fought with matchlocks, matchlocks were introduced almost 80 years into the sengoku period. I'm also not sure if firearms were completely banned as I have heard that commoners did have them, but they mostly used them on the countryside for hunting and scaring off animals.
@@KartarNighthawk Yes, end of the Edo period is great for sword fights, the shinsengumi and various fights between pro-imperial and pro-shogunate samurai before the boshin war broke out. Even the boshin war is pretty good for sword fights as the war was on a pretty small scale and many people still fought with swords.
Lots to chew on here, but a few things: 1) Most recent scholarship looked at primary sources from the mongol invasions and the Japanese actually held their own pretty well, at least on Kyushu when they had the men. The Typhoon (there was only one) was helpful, but that was during the second invasion where the Japanese built a massive wall along the coast and the Mongols were having trouble making landfall. The shifts in warfare in the 14th century have more to do with changes in scale and type of warfare in Japan. 2) Warrior monks didn't use different equipment from regular warriors. Later on, the Naginata bearing warrior monk becomes a trope, but if you look at the in period (or shortly later) sources, monks, like samurai will use bows, swords, Naginata, whatever.
Not really, the first invasion actually went pretty badly for the Japanese, considering the Mongols made initial landing in Imazu and ended the day after capturing Hataka-ko (Hataka port) which was the Japanese army HQ, before embarking on their ships (their ships followed the army advance on land so they didn't need to return to Imazu to embark) during the night. This was an eastward advance of more than 20 km in a single day. Notable accounts of Japanese "holding their own/beating Mongols" such as Battle of Akasaka and Battle of Torikai-Gata all happened between Mongol initial landing and reaching Hataka-ko. They were essentially localized victories that momentarily slowed down the Mongol , but ultimately failed to stop their overall advance.
@@戰國春秋This is debatable. The Mongols did have a lot of successes, but were unable to hold ground in the first invasion and eventually withdrew. In any case, both Mongol and Japanese sources do not demonstrate that the Mongols were so overpowering in the conflict that the Japanese made serious and vast changes to their weapons and tactics. Those changes are more a feature of the long civil wars in the 14th century, in all likelihood.
@@Victoroftheapes The reason Mongols withdrew during the first invasion is still a matter of debate, but what can be certain is that by the time Mongols decided to pack up and leave, Japanese were long gone (they retreated to Mizuki castle some 15 km away to prepare to defend Dazaifu from a Mongol attack that never came), so immediate Japanese threat definitely wasn't a concern. In any case, while I agree that (until that point) a one-off event cannot spur drastic long term changes to Japanese military, I do think being pushed back 20+ km and losing military headquarters within the span of a single day DESPITE defender's advantage can constitute an overall roflstomp, even with certain elements of Japanese force performing better than their peers.
@@戰國春秋 Fair enough, and I had a good laugh at roflstomp. I do still hold that the Mongols likely withdrew because they knew that their position was either already or soon would be untenable, plus the wounding of an important commander, but I agree with you that it isn't clear. It's entirely possible that the whole thing was intended to be a quick raid from the outset. More important for this video, though, because I rechecked my sources, it does seem like both sides of the Mongol invasion preferred not to get too cozy with the enemy and both focused on projectiles, making it even less likely that polearms evolved significantly in the aftermath.
The typhoon myth seems to have been created after WW2, but the 13th-century Mongolian, Chinese, and Korean histories do not mention that the Mongol army was destroyed by a typhoon. In recent years, China has published a 13th-century history book on the Internet. Mongolian army was severely damaged by the fierce battle with the Japanese army, and the army was exhausted and evacuated to the ship. It was Mongolian army held a military congress at the base.Mongolian army marshal Kudung said. "Even if a small number of soldiers fight stubbornly without regard to their abilities, they will end up being prisoners of war in front of a large number of troops.Using exhausted soldiers and facing the ever-increasing enemy forces is not a perfect solution. We should withdraw. "The army will withdraw. As the Mongolian army forced a nighttime withdrawal and encountered a storm at sea, many warships touched the cliffs and sank, causing much damage. 高麗史/卷一百四 諸軍與戰，及暮乃解。方慶謂忽敦、茶丘曰：「兵法，千里縣軍，其鋒不可當。我師雖少，已入敵境，人自爲戰，卽孟明焚船，淮陰背水也，請復戰。」忽敦曰：「兵法，小敵之堅，大敵之擒。策疲乏之兵，敵日滋之衆，非完計也，不若回軍。」 In the war, the Japanese army continued to win, and the Mongolian army continued to lose. The war situation of the Mongolian army was unfavorable and the rout continued.The Mongolian army was hit by a typhoon.However, many Mongolian troops were not damaged by the typhoon.Therefore, the war continued even after the typhoon. 高麗史/卷一百四 六月，方慶、周鼎、球、朴之亮、荊萬戶等，與日本兵合戰，斬三百餘級。日本兵突進，官軍潰，茶丘弃馬走，王萬戶復橫擊之，斬五十餘級，日本兵乃退，茶丘僅免。翼日，復戰敗績，軍中又大疫，死者凡三千餘人。 元史/卷165 十七年，加鎮國上將軍、都元帥。時朝廷議征日本，禧請行，即日拜行中書省平章政事，與右丞范文虎、左丞李庭同率舟師，泛海東征。至日本，禧即捨舟，築壘平湖島，約束戰艦，各相去五十步止泊，以避風濤觸擊。八月，颶風大作，文虎、庭戰艦悉壞，禧所部獨完。文虎等議還，禧曰：「士卒溺死者半，其脫死者，皆壯士也，曷若乘其無回顧心，因糧於敵以進戰。」文虎等不從，曰：「還朝問罪，我輩當之，公不與也。」禧乃分船與之。時平湖島屯兵四千，乏舟，禧曰：「我安忍棄之！」遂悉棄舟中所有馬七十匹，以濟其還。至京師，文虎等皆獲罪，禧獨免。 From the history book Xīn shǐ of Mongolian scholar Zheng Si-xiao (1241-1318)."The Japanese are brutal and not afraid of death. Even if ten Japanese people encounter 100 enemies, they will fight against them. If they don't win, they all fight until they die.If they do not die in the war, they will be killed by the king's hand when they return.Japanese women are also very temperamental and should not be attacked.katana is extremely sharp. " 鄭思肖『心史』中興集 元韃攻日本敗北歌 倭人狠不懼死，十人遇百人亦戰，不勝俱死，不战死，歸亦為倭主所殺。倭婦甚烈，不可犯。幼歲取犀角刈 小珠，种額上善水不溺，倭刀極利，地高險難入，可為戰守计。 Mongolian scholar Wang Yun (1228-1304)"Japanese soldiers are equipped with bows, katana, and armor.There was no spear. The cavalry are united. katana is long and extremely sharp. All the soldiers are brave and do not seem to be afraid of death. " It is written that the samurai were fighting in groups instead of single combat. 秋澗先生大全文集 (四部叢刊本)/卷第四十 而過但弓以木為之矢雖長不能逺人則勇敢視死不畏
Interestingly the Sasumata is still being used in Japan, albeit in a more modern form. It's used by some law enforcement and in places like schools for the same purpose as its Edo-predecessor; to defend against, control and detain an assailant wielding a bladed/melee weapon. Since guns are extremely rare in Japan there's very little risk of mass/school shootings, but a madman can still do a lot of damage with just a knife a knife unless stopped and that's where something like a Sasumata shines. It lets you keep your distance and if you use several you can really pin an assailant down.
So, the really big Japanese combat axes are probably used to break into wooden fortifications, analogous to the European boarding axe. There's another weapon that you'll see in depictions that's basically a great big mallet (the japanese name is O-mallet, i.e. big mallet, great mallet) which is also definitely for beating down doors, pavices, fences, etc. Basically a portable battering ram. Note that Japanese artists tended to exaggerate the size of impact weapons, axes, kanabos and mallets, so depictions of the O-mallet are very big indeed, but real ones (which I've never found unfortunately) were probably much handier in size.
In fact Japanese carpenters also use very large mallets (by today's standards) for timber frame construction, the extra size is also linked to the species of wood used, meaning for the weight you want you end up with a large head. Not to say that the artist's didn't inflate the size for extra effect.
I was so disappointed when Ghost of Tsushima limited you to katana and bow. I really hope they make a follow-up game that will let players use a more varied arsenal like yari, naginata, or maybe even tetsubo.
As Chinese martial artists (which I believe you have mentioned studying) and Japanese martial artist, I would like to point out that the traditional practice weapon for naginata was not the naginata-do shinai-naginata, but a single piece, solid wood naginata, essentially like the boken in construction. Additionally, in reference to the bo or staff usage in Chinese and Japanese martial arts, one of the other main reasons was due to training how to used the shaft of a yari, naginata or other polearm if the weapon end broke.
Love me some Yari Ashigaru in Shogun Total War, I think they sparked my love for the common rank-and-file footsoldiers over the decadent eiltes such as knights and samurai. Nice to see the Yari get some love, it is a pretty spear design.
1st Congratulations on your partnership with Royal Rmories and Windlass Steelcraft! 2nd 22:00 I am mad that you didn't go deeper into the Nagamaki, but you're absolutely right. It's a sword first and a polearm later.
Could it be that this tanged way of fixing spearheads was started on simpler bamboo poles and then retained as tradition? Because it looks like a no-brainer to do on a bamboo stick.
It's not really possible to use tanged spearheads with bamboo poles because the hollow compartment is too wide. You can't have an inch-thick tang. It's different for arrowheads where the appropriate shaft size leads to bamboo and reeds having suitable hollow dimensions
@@MarcRitzMD Could be a problem, yes. A bamboo thin enough for this probably would be too weak/flexible. On the other hand earliest known bronze spearheads around the world often are tanged, so maybe this tradition is simply very old and was kept locally.
@@graveyard1979 no. The earliest spearheads you find in Japan are socketed. They are called hoko-yari. It's still unknown why they switched to tang spearheads.
@@graveyard1979 interestingly, i heard that japanese long spears or pikes were often made of bamboo as those were common materials and did indeed make the shafts bendy and particularly so for Oda's army whose spears were said to go up to 6 meters. the bendiness of the bamboo shaft made thrusting and slashing difficult and its said they were often used as smashing implements. the foot soldiers would raise the spearhead all the way up to vertical, and swing it downwards like a whip and smash the opponents. apparently this made it easier to aim the weapon so even common minimally trained peasant soldiers could reliably hit their enemies. or so i heard
It'd be great to see a video about Japanese bows too, there's a lot of misconceptions and mysteries about them. Why are they shaped that way? (kneeling vs horseback riding) What would the draw weight have been historically? Are they like longbows or were they like recurve bows?
@@lesliemitchell4984There's also this gem, which features some 110lbs Yumi, and an Edo period Yumi weighing in at 196lbs of draw. m.ua-cam.com/video/rP8d81jzQJc/v-deo.html
1. No idea, but even older Japanese bows made entirely of wood also followed an asymmetrical design. Bamboo wasn't really a factor, since people claim that "bamboo was weaker at the top" when old Yumi were just wooden bows with a bamboo backing, and that you can get around that issue by tillering. 2. I think my comment with the video says it all, but if you were a Samurai from the 1000s, and wanted to bypass your enemy's armor, which was really heavy in terms of protection, you'd use a high poundage bow with a heavy arrow while attempting to hit them at close range. 3. Both. (Though idk when the recurve came around)
Thanks Matt! I would love to see a Japanese bows video too. For those wondering about the "cute heart shaped" holes in the axe (for example), in Japan at that time it was not a "heart" shape but a "boar eye" shape and was a symbol of aggressiveness, a quality highly regarded when going to war. ^^
I'm seriously lol-ing at the incongruity there. How times and symbols change eh? What was a sign of fierce aggressiveness intended to inspire fear now makes us go "Aww, how cute".
I believe the various Japanese war fans, like tessen, would be an interesting dive. They show up in various media and mythology, but there isn't much that much discussion of them.
I was super excited to see this in my notifications! There is a Japanese term for halberd proper: fusou (斧槍). I too hate the usage of "halberd" instead of "glaive" for naginata. Fusou are basically the masakari with the yari blade sticking out the top like you showed, but fusou is also a word used for European and Chinese halberds as well. There's also the war mallet, the otsuchi. Hard to find info on those. Really early spears in Japan were called hoko and were socketed, probably based on continental Asian examples. Also, I once saw a truncated antique yari like you mentioned on eBay with hadome. It resembled a European greatsword in silhouette, funnily enough!
I forgot to mention the chigiriki, essentially a form of Japanese flail with a long haft and long chain as well. A bit like a pole-arm version of the kusarigama without the kama.
This was choreographed by my teachers father I believe, and therefore is based on Katori Shintō Ryū. I've just started learning the yari (not yaaaari please!) and even though it's very "simple", like most "simple" things, it's very difficult.
You're actually mixing up different transliteration systems. Most of your denominations are hepburn, while "zyûmonzi yari" (and "tukubô" too) is based on kunrei-shiki system, which isn't used today except for some Japanese administrations, as it is mostly considered off-the-mark and misdirecting. Hepburns are "jûmonji-yari", and "tsukubô" respectivelly -- and actually closer, when written as such in English, to what Japanese people would actually pronounce.
@@a.bettik8698 *I'm actually using ISO 3602:1989 日本式 **_Nihonsiki,_** a worldwide standard.* Hepburn committed a blunder in a Romanization chart, so Reader cannot tell ʒ from dʒ upon reading _ji_ - _Nihonsiki_ distinguishes じ _zi_ /ʒɪ/ from ぢ _di_ /dʒɪ/.
I'm no expert on Japanese polearms, and I find the rest of this video quite good (especially as an entry point for beginners), but I would argue that the nagamaki is more of a polearm than the kanabo. Nagamakis, as I understand it, were used in a manner similar to short naginatas. Even if it's two-handed (and many kanabo weren't) I'd still consider bludgeons their own class of weapon separate from polearms.
I love Japanese spears, they're really cool. Yari are some of my favourite kinds of spears, such a wide variety of them I love the long bladed ones in particular. These kinds of spears are very sword like, especially in their construction as mentioned, using the hidden tang method of attachment. I clicked on this video specifically, because of how rarely I see them mentioned in media.
Now you got me waiting on a video about the nagamaki. Especially interested in comparing it to similar weapons--the falx/rhomphaia comes to mind first.
I agree. Nagamaki was used as a sword. The position of legs, distance between hands and moves are diffirent from polearm fighting styles. Its very similar to big swords practice. And ist actually evolved from the extremely long odachi of the Nanbokucho period. Some tashi were sharpened only toward the end of the blade, so many warriors began wrapping the lower, blunted part of the nodachi blade to extend the handle. It resulted in the nakamakinodachi, a nodachi wrapped around its middle. Eventually, it became known as nagamaki and reached its peak during the Muromachi period, from 1338 to 1573.
I was so looking forward to hearing you talk about the Nagamaki too, you absolutely called it lol. It seems like such a weird weapon, I want to hear experts' takes on its use and reasons for its existence. Thank you for all your work!
Great Video Matt! Just a quick thing about your very first point. Not only were bows more important until around the period of the first Mongol Invasion (Yuan Dynasty I believe), but Samurai the class though usually in quite a lot of armor were archers by default, mounted or on foot. Yes, they did close with the enemy pretty often at least to make passing attack, the Samurai by archetype were armored horse archers that may or may not have dismounted to fight. A lot like how in certain periods English knights had similar equipment but preferred to dismount to fight much of the time.
Considering most Yari were capped and/or bound for strength that statement really doesn't hold water. you can make very clean looking socketed heads and many taanged Yari do not look "clean" at all due to the reinforcements added onto the haft. What's more likely is that the tanged spreahead was easier to produce (a tang is more easy to forge than a socket) and meant spear and sword/knife construction was very similar (so craftsmen could make spear and sword parts with mostly the same skillset).
Great video! Just one note about the naginata I'd like to add: the naginata was very prominent well before the Mongol invasions, it was used since the Heian period and especially during the Gempei war between the Taira and Minamoto clans. Also, Japanese armour had it's apex actually precisely after the introduction of firearms - newer (and sometimes heavier) variants of armour that could protect the wearer from arquebus bullets were developed. The Tameshi gusoku, Namban gusoku and later, more intricate variants of the Tosei gusoku are the most splendid and magnificent types of samurai armour and they were all developed and used after the introduction of firearms.
Hi Matt, love all of your videos, including this one. A couple of short corrections about the martial art naginata. These are nit-picks, but I thought you might like to know as swords are your area of expertise. 1. The martial art of naginata today is just called 'naginata'. It is not widely referred to as 'naginata-jutsu' or 'naginata-do'. Occasionally, the adjective atarashii (new) is added, but it is fairly rare to do so, and is usually done by koryu to draw a distinction between different martial arts. 2. The martial art naginata is not an offshoot of kendo despite having some similar rules and equipment. Kendo and naginata are distinct from one another. 3. The shaft of a naginata isn't quite the same as a bo-staff. It has more in common with an elongated sword grip, in that it has an oval cross- section which helps with blade alignment. Keep up the great work!
Would love to see you do a video on Chinese polearms. I've been reading Romance of the Three Kingdoms, and the characters use a mix of period-accurate weapons and weapons that are more reflective of the time the book was written. Would love an overview from you.
When it comes to Japanese polearms the Jumonji-Yari and the Naginata have always been my favorites. The Nagamaki is one that is often either confused for a Naginata or just completely forgotten about. While they are interesting, they aren't a favorite of mine, but still interesting. I just think you might as well use a Nodachi (or Odachi if you prefer) at that point.
Great video Matt! I can confidently speak for everyone in saying that we'd love to see more Japanese weapons. Especially earlier stuff. I know that good information on the sort of pre-samurai era can be scarce, but that's one of the aspects that makes it all so interesting. If you can scrounge anything up about pre-samurai era weapons and history of any kind, that would be wonderful.
So glad you decided to make a video about this, Matt. Kudos for covering so much information. It's probably the best presentation I've seen on the subject so far on UA-cam. You even talked about how most Yari have tangs instead of sockets. 👍
Could be wrong but I don't think they made the shafts out of bamboo. I know they make the practice ones out of oak in modern times. Would also be difficult to mount the blade like a katana that way. Also the shaft was oval shape which helped with edge alignment.
Great, detailed video! As much as I love Japanese swordsmanship, it's nice to see different weapons get some time in the light. In the same vein as the bo, the jo is a plain stick of a shorter length than a bo (typically ~128cm). The most famous extant style of jo is Shinto Muso Ryu, which was a policing art that also includes the truncheon and methods for tying people up. The group you showed holding the sandogu actually is a Shinto Muso Ryu group that studies those weapons as well!
Honestly great video. I've been into Japanese weapons for about a decade, and I have to say as I watched this, I knew what you'd say next. You flowed very logically and reasonably through all of this, and covered everything very well. I would like to see something about the pole flails, but totally understand not talking about it without enough sources. I'd also add that the Sasumata has actually been updated, and is still in common use today in Japan by police, security teams, and in some cases even school teachers are taught to use aluminium sasumata as non-lethal security devices. Anyway, awesome video! I didn't know about the axes. I mean, I honestly don't think about axes as weapons too often, since they're generally less common than polearms or swords, and I must admit when I think of Japanese weapons, I never would have thought of axes, but you certainly learn something new every day! I found it interesting how they basically experimented with a halberd-esque idea, as well.
Talking about asian polearms,a lot were influenced by China,with the the ge dagger axe being one of the oldest metal weapons found in japan. Great Ming Military has a very good index of polearms. It would be definetly nice to see you continue with this topic,it is very useful to see a different approach.
When you showed the Kanabō , I said to myself ‘oh look a Tetsubō’ likely I just have the name wrong, have confused it with one of the ‘man-pusher ‘variants or perhaps it’s just a slightly different form of Kanabō as oppose to another ‘type’ of polearm.
It kinda depends on who you ask. Some say that the kanabo is reserved for the wooden ones with iron studs while tetsubo is reserved for the ones made completely of iron. Others will say either can be used for both. Either way don’t get caught up in semantics bc most people will know what you are referring to
Love your content. been a subscriber for years. very surprised your channel is so "small" despite quality and quantity of content. Thanks for all you do!
27:51 - Seiyu Oyata was my instructor since the late 80s. The finest martial arts teaher the world will ever see. In many ways, traditional instruction died with him.
I saw that picture and immediately came to the comments to see if anyone else spotted it! He's a big figure in the dojo I trained at throughout high school in NC. I unfortunately never got to meet him before he passed, but I've heard many stories and am super happy to see him get at least some recognition in the wild!
Love your stuff. Excellent review. They really are amazingly-crafted weapons and gear. Glad you mentioned the nagamaki; the leverage on that thing must have been insane for such a relatively-short weapon. IMO also a good way to increase reach without using precious steel. And I've always been partial to the naginata. I wish there was a way to learn/practice it, but alas I am stuck in the midwest of the US, heh. Thanks again Matt!
One thing of note on the topic of Naginata development and not being nearly as varied as the later Yari & something that plays even further into applying Glaive as a more fitting anglicized term as opposed to Halberd, are the examples of Chikushi Naginata - a pretty interesting design that seems to have been pretty rare but shared very similar mounting construction to Bardiches/Voulges. Some surviving examples even have double mounting facing opposite directions which gives a look similar to a pitchfork or somesuch, really neat stuff.
In the Warring States period of Japan, it was said that swords for thrusting and spears for striking. In fact, the spears were considerably long, over four metres, and it bends when swung, so striking with them using the bending as well, it can deliver powerful blow. If it hits the shoulder, the shoulder is broken; if it hits the head, the victim is knocked off through the helmet. Swords cannot pass through armour, so in battles during the Warring States period, opponents were killed by pulling them down to the ground and cutting or stabbing them through gaps in their armour or in the neck with a wakizashi or kogatana(single bladed dagger).
Among all types of Japanese historic melee weapons two types truely evolved to the extremes: a single edged sword and a spear. Kanabo is pretty basic type of mace and naginata, nagamaki and bisento were rather the sword derivatives than pole weapons.
30:50 the idea of having spiked shafts is to stop or catch a sword swing but more importantly to avoid people from grabbing or to try to take control of the weapon or to fight back while being arrested. this make a lot of sense in a law enforcement scenario, it would be a lot easier for an officer to reduce someone if they could use their less than lethal weapons without having someone trying to grab it, specially if that someone carries a lethal weapon like a sword. man!, I imagine someone would have to be very brave back then to try to catch some crazy sword wielding criminal with nothing to loose with a less lethal weapon like that trying not to kill him
1. *sigh* Now we're going to need a video on naginata vs guandao vs glaive. Construction differences and how they were used. 2. It's interesting that the japanese policeforce continues to train with the tsukubo (not to mention that it's been revived in training staff to stop spree killers, given the rarity of guns) but european policeforces have not had any sort of mancatcher revival despite blade violence being not that uncommon. All sorts of push-pole weapons are incredibly effective against someone wielding a knife or shorter sword, as long as you have backup (ie, more people with pushpoles that are nearby).
Great vid Matt! Love a highlight on lesser known weapons. I found it so funny when you said Japan was saved by nature and it's one of my favorite examples of deus ex machina in history. Personally love the highlight on the Japanese law enforcement gear and would love a video all about their weapons, pole weapons and jitte, and, if any information exists, their development and contemporary usage. Always looking forward to your next video and see you next time
For the naginata's origin, I just have the mental image of a blacksmith sitting there, staring at the table in front of him, where he's got a spearhead and a sword blade, who've both got the same exact tang, going "Hmmmmmmmmmm". And then it smash cuts to a samurai swinging a naginata at a screaming peasant.
10:45 - The Yari with the one sided protrusions at that timestamp resembles ancient Chinese halberd-like polearms (Han Dynasty era Ji and Dagger axe). I wonder if these Yari could be used in similar fashions where the projection is used as an armor penetrating spike that is swung at an enemy?
Love that you talk about the Japanese polearms, such important weapons in Japanese (military) history but so often overlooked! To see an awesome yari-fight watch Kurosawa's Hidden Fortress. Just a note on pronunciation: daishō (literally "big little") is pronounced more like "die shaw" (with a long o) than "day shaw". ;)
From what I remember from another video, the projections on the head of a polearm also prevent overpenetration. Because that basically leaves you disarmed in that moment. As always and as expected, very intersting!
Great video as always Matt and thank you for uploading! 👍👍 There is one bit of clarification I'd like to make though and it's on the purpose of the barbs or spikes on the Torimono Sandōgu. While yes the barbs could snag and become entangled in a combatants clothing, that was only a side effect, their main purpose was to prevent a combatant from being able to grab onto the end of the weapon and possibly gain control of it. 👍
Great video! One explanation for Yari using stems instead of sockets is the availability of bamboo, which is very easy to get a stem into, and more durable.
The period whenYari spears were popular on the battlefields of Japan was from the late Sengoku period (around 1540) to the peace after Genna era (1615). Kanabo became less frequently used on the battlefield after the 14th century. Samurai use a martial art called kumiuchi against armored soldiers. In this case the samurai uses the short katana, wakizashi. Kumiuchi changed to jujutsu and judo. The Song dynasty of China imported katana and naginata from Japan in the 11th century. Since katana is practical, China, Korea, and Mongolia imported katana from Japan and had their soldiers use it. Genpei seisui ki by Sanemitsu Tohei in the 13th century "Concerning one-on-one battles, it was common to cut at each other with a katana after battling using bows and arrows, which was followed by kumiuchi (grappling)." Mongolian scholar Zheng Si-xiao (1241-1318)."The Japanese are brutal and not afraid of death. Even if ten Japanese people encounter 100 enemies, they will fight against them. If they don't win, they all fight until they die.If they do not die in the war, they will be killed by the king's hand when they return.Japanese women are also very temperamental and should not be attacked.katana is extremely sharp. " 鄭思肖『心史』中興集 元韃攻日本敗北歌 倭人狠不懼死，十人遇百人亦戰，不勝俱死，不战死，歸亦為倭主所殺。倭婦甚烈，不可犯。幼歲取犀角刈 小珠，种額上善水不溺，倭刀極利，地高險難入，可為戰守 Mongolian scholar Wang Yun (1228-1304)"Japanese soldiers are equipped with bows, katana, and armor. There was no spear. The cavalry are united.katana is long and extremely sharp. All the soldiers are brave and do not seem to be afraid of death. " It is written that the samurai were fighting in groups instead of single combat. 秋澗先生大全文集 (四部叢刊本)/卷第四十 而過但弓以木為之矢雖長不能逺人則勇敢視死不畏 Chinese Ming Dynasty General Qi Jiguang (1528-1588) "It is difficult to approach with my soldier's sword, it is too late with a spear, and if we encounter them, everyone will be cut off and killed. This is because their weapons are sharp and they are free to use powerful and heavy swords that can be swung with both hands. " "For Japanese, a fowling gun from a distance is effective. But the Japanese have absolutely no fear and charge at point blank range where they can attack or stab. Therefore, we should equip ourselves with Japanese-style long swords." 明 戚继光 纪效新书 Jixiao Xinshu 此自倭犯中國始有之。彼以此跳舞、光閃而前、我兵已奪氣矣。倭善躍、一迸足則丈餘、刀長五尺、則丈五尺矣。我兵短器難接、長器不捷、遭之者身多兩斷、縁器利而雙手使、用力重故也。 今如獨用則無衛、惟鳥銃手賊遠發銃、賊至近身再無他器可以攻刺、如兼殺器則銃重藥子又多、勢所不能、惟此刀輕而且長、以備臨身棄銃用此。況有殺手當鋒、故用長刀備之耳。 Chinese Ming Dynasty Martial Artist Cheng Zongyou (1561-1636) "No other sword can match the Japanese sword. In Japanese swordsmanship, the change from side to side is strange and mysterious, and it is not predictable to ordinary people. Therefore, even if we use polearms such as spears, we are always defeated by Japanese swords. " 明 程冲斗 单刀法选 单刀说 器名单刀，以双手用刀也，其技擅自倭奴，锻炼精坚，制度轻利，靶鞘等物，各各如法，非他方之刀可并，且善磨整，光耀射目，令人心寒。其用法 左右跳跃，奇诈诡秘，人莫能测，故长技每每常败于刀 Ming history book两朝平攘录"Japanese are good at foot combat, so he can kill an enemy within a four-meter range. When they swing the katana around, we can only see the white light shining and we can't even see the person who controls the katana. ” 诸葛元声 两朝平攘录 刀长五尺馀，用双刀则及丈馀地。又加手舞六尺，开锋凡一丈八尺。舞动则上下四方尽白，不见其人。 Korean History Veritable Records of the Joseon Dynasty (1413)"Japanese soldiers wielded their long katanas and rushed sharply left and right, their sharp attacks invincible." 朝鮮王朝実録 天兵短劍、騎馬, 無火器, 路險泥深, 不能馳騁, 賊奮長刀, 左右突鬪, 鋒銳無敵。
I've been waiting for this! A few observations: 1) AFAIK, the closest to the Jumonji Yari is the Spetum or Runka. 2) I'm surprised that they didn't have much akin to Poleaxes, Halberds, or warhammers. I would have added at least a short (blunt) spike on a Naginata, similar to what many billhooks and glaives had. 3) their way of fixing things to wood was also used for all sorts of tools including sickles and axes. Especially, axes and naginatas make me wonder why the pins and the cut-out didn't splinter the wood. 4) Their spears are really good for thrusting with their triangular design, but the tips are surprisingly blunt. Tapering doesn't seem to have been practiced near anywhere as much as we did in Europe.
@@twosheds7105 I've heard it before... I think the word for the weapon is Italian though. Similar story with Kant being pronounced just the same way as c##t. The list can certainly be continued...
They actually did. Not mentioned here, but yari is, though translated as spear, better understood as “polearm.” Essentially the yari did have variations that looked like Poleaxe’s like the Ono su yari(more practical variations are called “fusou”) and Halberds(Magari Yari). They did have a warhammer, but it must have been incredibly uncommon.
Absolutely brilliant good sir!! This was very well plotted, it was informative - comprehensively so, to be completely honest. The commentary is considerate and accurate, and very well stated (intellectually). I applaud your virtuosity, sir, expertly done.. I would also love to learn more about the Japanese Bisento, if you might (perchance) know a bit about it.❤
Love your series on all types of hand(s) weapons. Just watched your 4 months old video on Japanese pole arms. Fascinating! One comment I'd like to make is on the "police" arms at the end. I think you missed the main purpose of the Little spikes up and down the iron part running down the shaft covered in little spikes. To me, it's obvious these sharp nubs are to prevent the (sometimes) criminal from grabbing the shaft and twisting it out of the hands of the policeman. That would hurt! More that than twisting it up in the loose clothing as you suggested. Just a thought from a complete novice. Thanks for your brilliant video series, my man!😀
I used to play WoWs for a while. I also loved the chester and other early American ships. The had these massive broadsides that were so much fun to fire.
A point about the cross section of Naginata being emulated on Katana and Wakizashi. Yes! That also happened. But a lot of those WERE naginata. It's called Naginata Naoshi. Becasicallly a reshaped naginata now mounted and used as a Wakizashi. It is believed that more antique Naginata survive as Naoshi than as their original naginata shapes.
The myths of katana were created by both the pop culture in modern days and the need for the establishment of the nation-state during the Meiji Restoration. The primary weapons for the samurais were bows (later muskets) and polearms. They were more often used by pirates for raidings than actual samurais.
swords were used a lot depending on the contacts a sword would have been the preferred the weapon(not just talking about Japan here), swords have always had a great importance one of japan's national treasures is a sword.
Should have mentioned the yari tanto which is obviously not a polearm, but kinda cool that it looks exactly like a tiny spearhead mounted in the hilt of a knife and had the same role as a rondel dagger for fighting someone in armor close up.
The general Honda Tadakatsu was a famous spear-wielder, his spear was named "Tonbokiri" - Dragonfly Cutter. It got it's name as it was so sharp a dragonfly landed on the blade and cut itself. There is a replica of the Tonbokiri in the Tokyo National Museum.
The crossover to tools always interests me. The Yari or yair kana are woodworking tools, they where used as a plane before wood block planes became prevalent, they are still usd today some specific traditional carpentry. They where triangular with a hollow ground back sharp on both sides witj a subtle curve along the length so you only have a small section cutting and you can "roll" through the cut. Suspect the tool came first then they just put them on a big stick to mess people up with.
What would possibly explain the presence of heart-shaped cut outs in Japanese hand axes AND in European made tomahawks from colonial America? It seems such a specific combination of tool and motif- would love a theory on why. Is there a convergent evolution arguement? Or is there some kind of influence being transmitted across the ocean? Cool video Matt!
I'm also interested in comparitive wood treatment as well. Say bamboo vs ash and other woods alike. Me and my friend got into a little squabble about this topic a couple of time now. My stance always being "even if it is worse by any degree it was useable and survable by history shows that that they were used"
It was awesome to see you talk about this topic! I knew about most of these, but not to the extent that you shared! Long time listener, looking forward to more of your videos!
The protrutions also allow for controlling the opponents poleweapons, which atleast in my experience is one of the best features of something like a halberd
very interesting video I saw in 2018 at the shinjuku samurai museum a very wide and thick short naginata blade (80mm Wide 8mm Thick) we where told that it was cutting horse necks, not sure how true but would have had a chance.
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Masakari is a specialised axe & term scholagladiatoria
Masakari =a hefty bladed battle axe with a sharpened tip on the other end of the shaft from the head akin to a pole axe but not exactly the same.
in honorific/old Japanese axe is wono shortened to ono in common present day Japanese.
Habiro = abroad axe which can refer to military axes, broad tool axes & makakari to confuse matters.
Yoki= a sort of hatchet axe machete akin to a billhook.
Axes are more a weapon of the yamabushi=mountain warriors/mountain hermits sort of then samurai.
Wono is a very large topic but that's the gist of it.
Note:
Souhei/warrior monks invented & predominantly used naginata though ashigaru & samurai di later adopt & use them.
A more similar weapon to a glaive & Chinese yanyuedao is the Japanese Bisentou that was developed from the mentioned Chinese pole arm that in time was developed into the nibbler Naginata by Souhei/warrior monks previously mentioned.
Kind regards Matt
10:45 - The Yari with the one sided protrusions at that timestamp resembles ancient Chinese halberd-like polearms (Han Dynasty era Ji and Dagger axe). I wonder if these Yari could be used in similar fashions where the projection is used as an armor penetrating spike that is swung at an enemy?
As far as flails go, there is a farming tool that is used to thresh grains that is essentially a two-handed flail. It would have seen some use in the more repressed areas. I can't think if I've seen it spiked up for war use, but in Okinawa there were martial arts developed for oars and all kinds of random stuff.
i recognize the triangular shaped yari blade, short version, as commonly used in tooling. they usually were wicked sharp - these types of blades were used in heavy duty cutting with precision, ex leather or woodworks. having a bit of experiance in using japanese and european woodworking tools, i acknowledge they are obsessed with very hardened and wicked sharp edges.
33:25min "Bisento" (which is a absurdly heavy version of the naginata).
Japanese bows and spears are incredible, gorgeous weapons. They deserve at least as much attention as the katana.
I love my Yumi
True, but I think two reasons spears & polearms don't get the love are
1) they are more difficult to store, transport & ship
2) movies don't show them doing cool things nearly as much as swords
Yumi is very handsome but quite mediocre bow in terms of power, range and accuracy if compared to continental and english "primary ranged weapon"-role analogs. (though it's incredibly good for a bow made from young bamboo and silk).
@@doombringer3498 I would like to know your sources for your statement, that the yumi has less accuracy, range and power? when if come to accuracy the archers paradox is reduced due to the construction, i.e., the arrow is push in straight line when being release, this is due to the yumi being arc not only front to back, but also to the side.
The katana is a shit weapon.
The idea that the Samurai faired very poorly against the Mongols and were only saved by the Kamikaze is actually a bit of a myth - one pushed by the Japanese themselves to emphasize their status as "divinely protected." Samurai got paid for rendering good service in battle, and there was an actual court established by the Minamoto that adjudicated rewards, and individual Samurai actual recorded their deeds on scrolls complete with artistic depictions and witness signatures. Not to add to your presumably extensive reading list, Matt, but when you get a chance please check out the extraordinary "In Little Need of Divine Intervention: Takezaki Suenaga's Scrolls of the Mongol Invasions of Japan (Cornell East Asia Series) (Cornell East Asia Series, 113) by Thomas D. Conlan which argues that the Samurai actually were largely able to repel the Mongol landings prior to the typhoons that sunk the invasion fleets.
Also worth keeping in mind is that the Mongol invasion force was largely Korean conscripts , not the hardened horsemen who conquered China under Genghis.
@@SvenElvenTrue, and since their boats were hastily made by a demoralised population they were of inferior quality to the Chinese.
@@SvenElven the typical mongol horse archers would have fared quite poorly in Japan, as the terrain wasn't suited for their tactics.
To top it all off, the Mongolian brutality caused a lot of Japanese peasants to take up arms in defence, alongside the warriors. The Japanese actually fended off the Mongols quite well without the storms, all things considered.
Also, obvs Jin's ghost stance and Sarugami helped lmao
It is true that official Mongolian history books record that the Mongolian army was completely defeated by the Japanese army.
However, in Japan, powerful samurai clans who had repelled the Mongol army one after another demanded "rewards" from the Kamakura shogunate, but the shogunate was unable to meet their demands, and a political problem arose.
According to one Japanese hypothesis, the "kamikaze myth" began when the Kamakura shogunate widely publicized the fact that "Japan was able to repel the Mongol invasion because the shogunate prayed to the gods."
In other words, and it is a ridiculous story, it was the Kamakura shogunate itself, which was in a financial crisis, that covered up the military achievements of the samurai.
#2:41 Yari
#4:19 Yari - Variations
#5:51 Su - Yari
#5:55 Omi - Yari
#6:05 Sasaho - Yari
#7:55 Fukuro - Yari
#8:32 Jumanji - Yari
#10:24 Katakama - Yari
#12:14 Hadome
#15:35 Naganata
#20:51 Bo
#22:39 Nagamaki
#23:05 Kanabo
#25:02 Masakari
#27:47 Nunti Bo
#30:03 Tsukubō
#30:34 Sodegarami
#31:35 Sasumata
Thank you good sir
Jumonji not jumanji. Ju mon (十) is the Kanji (character) fot the number ten, and as you see, it's shaped as a cross. The cross shaped spear got it's name because of that.
Naginata.
Champion. Doing the Lord's work.
@@saidtoshimaru1832 I don’t know how I missed that the first time. Jumanji is the movie with Robin Williams lmao
#15:35 Naganata
Naginata. Can be written as 薙刀 (moving down (the enemy) sword) or 長刀 (long sword)
But thanks for the effort.
I think this is a large part of why most samurai movies are about the edo period and especially the end of it, like shinsengumi police. Later periods had more small scale unarmored sword fighting which makes for a different type of spectacle than samurai formations clashing with spears, bows and matchlocks.
Cheaper, too!
It lets the film focus on the master swordsman instead of the blocks of men clashing in situations where no individual stands out.
During the Sengoku period civil-war, most of the battle were fought with Match-lock Muskets imported from the Dutch and Portuguese. The Japanese were one the first to use guns in battle on a large scale, earlier than some European countries, with close formation firing line.
Seeing how easily commoners can easily kill well trained Samurai, the threat of a popular uprising is one of the reason that Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Tokugawa Ieyasu banned Firearms from everyone (except the Shogun's men) and anything Western, since they can encourage insurrection.
@@inisipisTV Most of the battles in the sengoku jidai were not fought with matchlocks, matchlocks were introduced almost 80 years into the sengoku period.
I'm also not sure if firearms were completely banned as I have heard that commoners did have them, but they mostly used them on the countryside for hunting and scaring off animals.
@@KartarNighthawk Yes, end of the Edo period is great for sword fights, the shinsengumi and various fights between pro-imperial and pro-shogunate samurai before the boshin war broke out.
Even the boshin war is pretty good for sword fights as the war was on a pretty small scale and many people still fought with swords.
Lots to chew on here, but a few things:
1) Most recent scholarship looked at primary sources from the mongol invasions and the Japanese actually held their own pretty well, at least on Kyushu when they had the men. The Typhoon (there was only one) was helpful, but that was during the second invasion where the Japanese built a massive wall along the coast and the Mongols were having trouble making landfall. The shifts in warfare in the 14th century have more to do with changes in scale and type of warfare in Japan.
2) Warrior monks didn't use different equipment from regular warriors. Later on, the Naginata bearing warrior monk becomes a trope, but if you look at the in period (or shortly later) sources, monks, like samurai will use bows, swords, Naginata, whatever.
Not really, the first invasion actually went pretty badly for the Japanese, considering the Mongols made initial landing in Imazu and ended the day after capturing Hataka-ko (Hataka port) which was the Japanese army HQ, before embarking on their ships (their ships followed the army advance on land so they didn't need to return to Imazu to embark) during the night. This was an eastward advance of more than 20 km in a single day.
Notable accounts of Japanese "holding their own/beating Mongols" such as Battle of Akasaka and Battle of Torikai-Gata all happened between Mongol initial landing and reaching Hataka-ko. They were essentially localized victories that momentarily slowed down the Mongol , but ultimately failed to stop their overall advance.
@@戰國春秋This is debatable. The Mongols did have a lot of successes, but were unable to hold ground in the first invasion and eventually withdrew. In any case, both Mongol and Japanese sources do not demonstrate that the Mongols were so overpowering in the conflict that the Japanese made serious and vast changes to their weapons and tactics. Those changes are more a feature of the long civil wars in the 14th century, in all likelihood.
@@Victoroftheapes The reason Mongols withdrew during the first invasion is still a matter of debate, but what can be certain is that by the time Mongols decided to pack up and leave, Japanese were long gone (they retreated to Mizuki castle some 15 km away to prepare to defend Dazaifu from a Mongol attack that never came), so immediate Japanese threat definitely wasn't a concern.
In any case, while I agree that (until that point) a one-off event cannot spur drastic long term changes to Japanese military, I do think being pushed back 20+ km and losing military headquarters within the span of a single day DESPITE defender's advantage can constitute an overall roflstomp, even with certain elements of Japanese force performing better than their peers.
@@戰國春秋 Fair enough, and I had a good laugh at roflstomp. I do still hold that the Mongols likely withdrew because they knew that their position was either already or soon would be untenable, plus the wounding of an important commander, but I agree with you that it isn't clear. It's entirely possible that the whole thing was intended to be a quick raid from the outset.
More important for this video, though, because I rechecked my sources, it does seem like both sides of the Mongol invasion preferred not to get too cozy with the enemy and both focused on projectiles, making it even less likely that polearms evolved significantly in the aftermath.
The typhoon myth seems to have been created after WW2, but the 13th-century Mongolian, Chinese, and Korean histories do not mention that the Mongol army was destroyed by a typhoon. In recent years, China has published a 13th-century history book on the Internet.
Mongolian army was severely damaged by the fierce battle with the Japanese army, and the army was exhausted and evacuated to the ship. It was Mongolian army held a military congress at the base.Mongolian army marshal Kudung said. "Even if a small number of soldiers fight stubbornly without regard to their abilities, they will end up being prisoners of war in front of a large number of troops.Using exhausted soldiers and facing the ever-increasing enemy forces is not a perfect solution. We should withdraw. "The army will withdraw.
As the Mongolian army forced a nighttime withdrawal and encountered a storm at sea, many warships touched the cliffs and sank, causing much damage.
高麗史/卷一百四 諸軍與戰，及暮乃解。方慶謂忽敦、茶丘曰：「兵法，千里縣軍，其鋒不可當。我師雖少，已入敵境，人自爲戰，卽孟明焚船，淮陰背水也，請復戰。」忽敦曰：「兵法，小敵之堅，大敵之擒。策疲乏之兵，敵日滋之衆，非完計也，不若回軍。」
In the war, the Japanese army continued to win, and the Mongolian army continued to lose. The war situation of the Mongolian army was unfavorable and the rout continued.The Mongolian army was hit by a typhoon.However, many Mongolian troops were not damaged by the typhoon.Therefore, the war continued even after the typhoon.
高麗史/卷一百四 六月，方慶、周鼎、球、朴之亮、荊萬戶等，與日本兵合戰，斬三百餘級。日本兵突進，官軍潰，茶丘弃馬走，王萬戶復橫擊之，斬五十餘級，日本兵乃退，茶丘僅免。翼日，復戰敗績，軍中又大疫，死者凡三千餘人。
元史/卷165 十七年，加鎮國上將軍、都元帥。時朝廷議征日本，禧請行，即日拜行中書省平章政事，與右丞范文虎、左丞李庭同率舟師，泛海東征。至日本，禧即捨舟，築壘平湖島，約束戰艦，各相去五十步止泊，以避風濤觸擊。八月，颶風大作，文虎、庭戰艦悉壞，禧所部獨完。文虎等議還，禧曰：「士卒溺死者半，其脫死者，皆壯士也，曷若乘其無回顧心，因糧於敵以進戰。」文虎等不從，曰：「還朝問罪，我輩當之，公不與也。」禧乃分船與之。時平湖島屯兵四千，乏舟，禧曰：「我安忍棄之！」遂悉棄舟中所有馬七十匹，以濟其還。至京師，文虎等皆獲罪，禧獨免。
From the history book Xīn shǐ of Mongolian scholar Zheng Si-xiao (1241-1318)."The Japanese are brutal and not afraid of death.
Even if ten Japanese people encounter 100 enemies, they will fight against them. If they don't win, they all fight until they die.If they do not die in the war, they will be killed by the king's hand when they return.Japanese women are also very temperamental and should not be attacked.katana is extremely sharp. "
鄭思肖『心史』中興集 元韃攻日本敗北歌 倭人狠不懼死，十人遇百人亦戰，不勝俱死，不战死，歸亦為倭主所殺。倭婦甚烈，不可犯。幼歲取犀角刈 小珠，种額上善水不溺，倭刀極利，地高險難入，可為戰守计。
Mongolian scholar Wang Yun (1228-1304)"Japanese soldiers are equipped with bows, katana, and armor.There was no spear. The cavalry are united. katana is long and extremely sharp. All the soldiers are brave and do not seem to be afraid of death. " It is written that the samurai were fighting in groups instead of single combat.
秋澗先生大全文集 (四部叢刊本)/卷第四十 而過但弓以木為之矢雖長不能逺人則勇敢視死不畏
Interestingly the Sasumata is still being used in Japan, albeit in a more modern form. It's used by some law enforcement and in places like schools for the same purpose as its Edo-predecessor; to defend against, control and detain an assailant wielding a bladed/melee weapon. Since guns are extremely rare in Japan there's very little risk of mass/school shootings, but a madman can still do a lot of damage with just a knife a knife unless stopped and that's where something like a Sasumata shines. It lets you keep your distance and if you use several you can really pin an assailant down.
Finally! Someone acknowledges this.
So, the really big Japanese combat axes are probably used to break into wooden fortifications, analogous to the European boarding axe. There's another weapon that you'll see in depictions that's basically a great big mallet (the japanese name is O-mallet, i.e. big mallet, great mallet) which is also definitely for beating down doors, pavices, fences, etc. Basically a portable battering ram. Note that Japanese artists tended to exaggerate the size of impact weapons, axes, kanabos and mallets, so depictions of the O-mallet are very big indeed, but real ones (which I've never found unfortunately) were probably much handier in size.
Oh, fancy seeing you here. My most recent video was made as a direct result of one of your comments.
In West and Central Africa axes and machetes are used in the same way to cut through the stockades that surround most communities.
In fact Japanese carpenters also use very large mallets (by today's standards) for timber frame construction, the extra size is also linked to the species of wood used, meaning for the weight you want you end up with a large head.
Not to say that the artist's didn't inflate the size for extra effect.
I was so disappointed when Ghost of Tsushima limited you to katana and bow. I really hope they make a follow-up game that will let players use a more varied arsenal like yari, naginata, or maybe even tetsubo.
Nioh 1 and 2 let you do that
Tetsubo is my favorite samurai weapon. I own two, a medium sized one and a big bad daddy sized one
the fact is, in that period, almost all samurai and attendants are using bow, Naginata and Tachi. Not even Yari and Katana were appeared
A lot of games leave out polearms entirely.
As Chinese martial artists (which I believe you have mentioned studying) and Japanese martial artist, I would like to point out that the traditional practice weapon for naginata was not the naginata-do shinai-naginata, but a single piece, solid wood naginata, essentially like the boken in construction. Additionally, in reference to the bo or staff usage in Chinese and Japanese martial arts, one of the other main reasons was due to training how to used the shaft of a yari, naginata or other polearm if the weapon end broke.
Love me some Yari Ashigaru in Shogun Total War, I think they sparked my love for the common rank-and-file footsoldiers over the decadent eiltes such as knights and samurai. Nice to see the Yari get some love, it is a pretty spear design.
1st Congratulations on your partnership with Royal Rmories and Windlass Steelcraft!
2nd
22:00 I am mad that you didn't go deeper into the Nagamaki, but you're absolutely right. It's a sword first and a polearm later.
Could it be that this tanged way of fixing spearheads was started on simpler bamboo poles and then retained as tradition? Because it looks like a no-brainer to do on a bamboo stick.
It's not really possible to use tanged spearheads with bamboo poles because the hollow compartment is too wide. You can't have an inch-thick tang.
It's different for arrowheads where the appropriate shaft size leads to bamboo and reeds having suitable hollow dimensions
@@MarcRitzMD Could be a problem, yes. A bamboo thin enough for this probably would be too weak/flexible. On the other hand earliest known bronze spearheads around the world often are tanged, so maybe this tradition is simply very old and was kept locally.
@@graveyard1979 no. The earliest spearheads you find in Japan are socketed. They are called hoko-yari. It's still unknown why they switched to tang spearheads.
@@graveyard1979 interestingly, i heard that japanese long spears or pikes were often made of bamboo as those were common materials and did indeed make the shafts bendy and particularly so for Oda's army whose spears were said to go up to 6 meters.
the bendiness of the bamboo shaft made thrusting and slashing difficult and its said they were often used as smashing implements. the foot soldiers would raise the spearhead all the way up to vertical, and swing it downwards like a whip and smash the opponents. apparently this made it easier to aim the weapon so even common minimally trained peasant soldiers could reliably hit their enemies.
or so i heard
@@halo12390 there's a japanese movie depicting this if I remember right
It'd be great to see a video about Japanese bows too, there's a lot of misconceptions and mysteries about them. Why are they shaped that way? (kneeling vs horseback riding) What would the draw weight have been historically? Are they like longbows or were they like recurve bows?
There a lots of them on YT. Its called yabusame. A very elite sport. Before Budo, it was known as Kyuba no Michi or Way of the Bow and the Horse.
in Tokyo I saw and drew a 55-60kg Yumi (Bow). This Yumi was made by a yumi master who copied a Yumi from a temple. BTW I do Kyudo.
@@lesliemitchell4984There's also this gem, which features some 110lbs Yumi, and an Edo period Yumi weighing in at 196lbs of draw.
m.ua-cam.com/video/rP8d81jzQJc/v-deo.html
@@jonajo9757 this is a better documentary ua-cam.com/video/UcwI-3tFUFs/v-deo.html
1. No idea, but even older Japanese bows made entirely of wood also followed an asymmetrical design. Bamboo wasn't really a factor, since people claim that "bamboo was weaker at the top" when old Yumi were just wooden bows with a bamboo backing, and that you can get around that issue by tillering.
2. I think my comment with the video says it all, but if you were a Samurai from the 1000s, and wanted to bypass your enemy's armor, which was really heavy in terms of protection, you'd use a high poundage bow with a heavy arrow while attempting to hit them at close range.
3. Both. (Though idk when the recurve came around)
Thanks Matt! I would love to see a Japanese bows video too.
For those wondering about the "cute heart shaped" holes in the axe (for example), in Japan at that time it was not a "heart" shape but a "boar eye" shape and was a symbol of aggressiveness, a quality highly regarded when going to war. ^^
I'm seriously lol-ing at the incongruity there. How times and symbols change eh? What was a sign of fierce aggressiveness intended to inspire fear now makes us go "Aww, how cute".
I believe the various Japanese war fans, like tessen, would be an interesting dive. They show up in various media and mythology, but there isn't much that much discussion of them.
I was super excited to see this in my notifications!
There is a Japanese term for halberd proper: fusou (斧槍). I too hate the usage of "halberd" instead of "glaive" for naginata. Fusou are basically the masakari with the yari blade sticking out the top like you showed, but fusou is also a word used for European and Chinese halberds as well.
There's also the war mallet, the otsuchi. Hard to find info on those.
Really early spears in Japan were called hoko and were socketed, probably based on continental Asian examples.
Also, I once saw a truncated antique yari like you mentioned on eBay with hadome. It resembled a European greatsword in silhouette, funnily enough!
I forgot to mention the chigiriki, essentially a form of Japanese flail with a long haft and long chain as well. A bit like a pole-arm version of the kusarigama without the kama.
Would love to see a breakdown of the spear duel in Kurosawa’s Hidden Fortress.
Honestly just a Kurosawa fight review would make a great video.
Yes! These are effectively pike-length weapons used in a very non-pike-like manner.
This was choreographed by my teachers father I believe, and therefore is based on Katori Shintō Ryū. I've just started learning the yari (not yaaaari please!) and even though it's very "simple", like most "simple" things, it's very difficult.
Several sections in Ran would be outstanding as well.
+scholagladiatoria *I've researched the proper names for these polearms:*
04:58 ( 1) 三角槍 sᴀɴᴋᴀᴋᴜ _Yari_
05:36 ( 2) 素槍 _Suguyari_
05:55 ( 3) 大身槍 _Ōmiyari_
06:08 ( 4) 笹穂槍 _Sasahoyari_
07:43 ( 5) 袋槍 _Hukuroyari_
08:31 ( 6) 十文字槍 ᴢʏᴜ̄ᴍᴏɴᴢɪ _Yari_
10:26 ( 7) 片鎌槍 _Katakamayari_
12:08 ( 8) 歯齒 _Hadome_
15:35 ( 9) 薙刀 _Naginata_
20:50 (10) 杖 ʙᴏ
23:15 (11) 金棒 _Kanabō_
25:08 (12) 鉞 _Masakari_
28:01 (13) 貫手棒 ɴᴜɴᴛᴇʙᴏ̄
29:35 (14) 採物三道具 _Torimono no_ sᴀɴᴅᴏɢᴜ:
A. 突棒 ᴛᴜᴋᴜʙᴏ̄
B. 袖搦 _Sodegarami_
C. 刺股 _Sasumata_
You're actually mixing up different transliteration systems. Most of your denominations are hepburn, while "zyûmonzi yari" (and "tukubô" too) is based on kunrei-shiki system, which isn't used today except for some Japanese administrations, as it is mostly considered off-the-mark and misdirecting.
Hepburns are "jûmonji-yari", and "tsukubô" respectivelly -- and actually closer, when written as such in English, to what Japanese people would actually pronounce.
@@a.bettik8698 *I'm actually using ISO 3602:1989 日本式 **_Nihonsiki,_** a worldwide standard.* Hepburn committed a blunder in a Romanization chart, so Reader cannot tell ʒ from dʒ upon reading _ji_ - _Nihonsiki_ distinguishes じ _zi_ /ʒɪ/ from ぢ _di_ /dʒɪ/.
I'm no expert on Japanese polearms, and I find the rest of this video quite good (especially as an entry point for beginners), but I would argue that the nagamaki is more of a polearm than the kanabo. Nagamakis, as I understand it, were used in a manner similar to short naginatas. Even if it's two-handed (and many kanabo weren't) I'd still consider bludgeons their own class of weapon separate from polearms.
I love Japanese spears, they're really cool. Yari are some of my favourite kinds of spears, such a wide variety of them I love the long bladed ones in particular. These kinds of spears are very sword like, especially in their construction as mentioned, using the hidden tang method of attachment. I clicked on this video specifically, because of how rarely I see them mentioned in media.
Now you got me waiting on a video about the nagamaki. Especially interested in comparing it to similar weapons--the falx/rhomphaia comes to mind first.
I agree. Nagamaki was used as a sword. The position of legs, distance between hands and moves are diffirent from polearm fighting styles. Its very similar to big swords practice. And ist actually evolved from the extremely long odachi of the Nanbokucho period. Some tashi were sharpened only toward the end of the blade, so many warriors began wrapping the lower, blunted part of the nodachi blade to extend the handle. It resulted in the nakamakinodachi, a nodachi wrapped around its middle. Eventually, it became known as nagamaki and reached its peak during the Muromachi period, from 1338 to 1573.
Some of the shorter handled yari which I've seen online sort of reminded me of either Zulu spears or Okinawan rochin spears .
I was so looking forward to hearing you talk about the Nagamaki too, you absolutely called it lol. It seems like such a weird weapon, I want to hear experts' takes on its use and reasons for its existence. Thank you for all your work!
Yea Nagamaki needs a dedicated video of its own.
Great Video Matt! Just a quick thing about your very first point. Not only were bows more important until around the period of the first Mongol Invasion (Yuan Dynasty I believe), but Samurai the class though usually in quite a lot of armor were archers by default, mounted or on foot. Yes, they did close with the enemy pretty often at least to make passing attack, the Samurai by archetype were armored horse archers that may or may not have dismounted to fight. A lot like how in certain periods English knights had similar equipment but preferred to dismount to fight much of the time.
The reason Japanese spears have a tang is purely aesthetic, it gives a clean looking connection between the tip and shaft.
Considering most Yari were capped and/or bound for strength that statement really doesn't hold water. you can make very clean looking socketed heads and many taanged Yari do not look "clean" at all due to the reinforcements added onto the haft.
What's more likely is that the tanged spreahead was easier to produce (a tang is more easy to forge than a socket) and meant spear and sword/knife construction was very similar (so craftsmen could make spear and sword parts with mostly the same skillset).
Great video! Just one note about the naginata I'd like to add: the naginata was very prominent well before the Mongol invasions, it was used since the Heian period and especially during the Gempei war between the Taira and Minamoto clans.
Also, Japanese armour had it's apex actually precisely after the introduction of firearms - newer (and sometimes heavier) variants of armour that could protect the wearer from arquebus bullets were developed. The Tameshi gusoku, Namban gusoku and later, more intricate variants of the Tosei gusoku are the most splendid and magnificent types of samurai armour and they were all developed and used after the introduction of firearms.
Anyone who's played Sekiro is painfully aware the Japanese used axes...
Hi Matt, love all of your videos, including this one. A couple of short corrections about the martial art naginata. These are nit-picks, but I thought you might like to know as swords are your area of expertise.
1. The martial art of naginata today is just called 'naginata'. It is not widely referred to as 'naginata-jutsu' or 'naginata-do'. Occasionally, the adjective atarashii (new) is added, but it is fairly rare to do so, and is usually done by koryu to draw a distinction between different martial arts.
2. The martial art naginata is not an offshoot of kendo despite having some similar rules and equipment. Kendo and naginata are distinct from one another.
3. The shaft of a naginata isn't quite the same as a bo-staff. It has more in common with an elongated sword grip, in that it has an oval cross- section which helps with blade alignment.
Keep up the great work!
Would love to see you do a video on Chinese polearms. I've been reading Romance of the Three Kingdoms, and the characters use a mix of period-accurate weapons and weapons that are more reflective of the time the book was written. Would love an overview from you.
When it comes to Japanese polearms the Jumonji-Yari and the Naginata have always been my favorites. The Nagamaki is one that is often either confused for a Naginata or just completely forgotten about. While they are interesting, they aren't a favorite of mine, but still interesting. I just think you might as well use a Nodachi (or Odachi if you prefer) at that point.
The law enforcement ones were particularly interesting. Thanks for the great video.
Like English farm tools, you can still buy Asian ones that go back to the feudal times. A Rice Knife is most impressive even without a pole.
Great video Matt!
I can confidently speak for everyone in saying that we'd love to see more Japanese weapons. Especially earlier stuff. I know that good information on the sort of pre-samurai era can be scarce, but that's one of the aspects that makes it all so interesting. If you can scrounge anything up about pre-samurai era weapons and history of any kind, that would be wonderful.
So glad you decided to make a video about this, Matt. Kudos for covering so much information. It's probably the best presentation I've seen on the subject so far on UA-cam. You even talked about how most Yari have tangs instead of sockets. 👍
Bamboo is hollow so attaching the spearhead that way actually makes sense then.
Could be wrong but I don't think they made the shafts out of bamboo. I know they make the practice ones out of oak in modern times. Would also be difficult to mount the blade like a katana that way. Also the shaft was oval shape which helped with edge alignment.
Great, detailed video! As much as I love Japanese swordsmanship, it's nice to see different weapons get some time in the light.
In the same vein as the bo, the jo is a plain stick of a shorter length than a bo (typically ~128cm). The most famous extant style of jo is Shinto Muso Ryu, which was a policing art that also includes the truncheon and methods for tying people up. The group you showed holding the sandogu actually is a Shinto Muso Ryu group that studies those weapons as well!
Very insightful and well done! Japanese polearms are mostly unknown due to the katana's overwhelming popularity.
Honestly great video. I've been into Japanese weapons for about a decade, and I have to say as I watched this, I knew what you'd say next. You flowed very logically and reasonably through all of this, and covered everything very well.
I would like to see something about the pole flails, but totally understand not talking about it without enough sources.
I'd also add that the Sasumata has actually been updated, and is still in common use today in Japan by police, security teams, and in some cases even school teachers are taught to use aluminium sasumata as non-lethal security devices.
Anyway, awesome video! I didn't know about the axes. I mean, I honestly don't think about axes as weapons too often, since they're generally less common than polearms or swords, and I must admit when I think of Japanese weapons, I never would have thought of axes, but you certainly learn something new every day! I found it interesting how they basically experimented with a halberd-esque idea, as well.
Those triangular section spears of theirs look like serious business. No nonsense. Just a super-pokey poker.
Talking about asian polearms,a lot were influenced by China,with the the ge dagger axe being one of the oldest metal weapons found in japan. Great Ming Military has a very good index of polearms.
It would be definetly nice to see you continue with this topic,it is very useful to see a different approach.
Japan copycat Chinese sword
When you showed the Kanabō , I said to myself ‘oh look a Tetsubō’ likely I just have the name wrong, have confused it with one of the ‘man-pusher ‘variants or perhaps it’s just a slightly different form of Kanabō as oppose to another ‘type’ of polearm.
As I understand it, both names apply to that weapon. We have similar issues with naming European weapons.
It kinda depends on who you ask. Some say that the kanabo is reserved for the wooden ones with iron studs while tetsubo is reserved for the ones made completely of iron. Others will say either can be used for both. Either way don’t get caught up in semantics bc most people will know what you are referring to
That Asymmetrical yari with a single horizontal lug on 1 side of the head is very similar to the classical era Chinese dagger axe (Ji)
Virtually no one tells the story of the warrior who stabbed his enemy from a safe distance with a spear.
Love your content. been a subscriber for years. very surprised your channel is so "small" despite quality and quantity of content. Thanks for all you do!
27:51 - Seiyu Oyata was my instructor since the late 80s. The finest martial arts teaher the world will ever see. In many ways, traditional instruction died with him.
I saw that picture and immediately came to the comments to see if anyone else spotted it! He's a big figure in the dojo I trained at throughout high school in NC. I unfortunately never got to meet him before he passed, but I've heard many stories and am super happy to see him get at least some recognition in the wild!
Fun fact: the hole in Japanese axe blades is a shape called the inome (literally boar's eye), not a heart.
Astonishing craftmanship on these examples.
Love your stuff. Excellent review. They really are amazingly-crafted weapons and gear. Glad you mentioned the nagamaki; the leverage on that thing must have been insane for such a relatively-short weapon. IMO also a good way to increase reach without using precious steel. And I've always been partial to the naginata. I wish there was a way to learn/practice it, but alas I am stuck in the midwest of the US, heh. Thanks again Matt!
One thing of note on the topic of Naginata development and not being nearly as varied as the later Yari & something that plays even further into applying Glaive as a more fitting anglicized term as opposed to Halberd, are the examples of Chikushi Naginata - a pretty interesting design that seems to have been pretty rare but shared very similar mounting construction to Bardiches/Voulges. Some surviving examples even have double mounting facing opposite directions which gives a look similar to a pitchfork or somesuch, really neat stuff.
In the Warring States period of Japan, it was said that swords for thrusting and spears for striking. In fact, the spears were considerably long, over four metres, and it bends when swung, so striking with them using the bending as well, it can deliver powerful blow. If it hits the shoulder, the shoulder is broken; if it hits the head, the victim is knocked off through the helmet. Swords cannot pass through armour, so in battles during the Warring States period, opponents were killed by pulling them down to the ground and cutting or stabbing them through gaps in their armour or in the neck with a wakizashi or kogatana(single bladed dagger).
Among all types of Japanese historic melee weapons two types truely evolved to the extremes: a single edged sword and a spear. Kanabo is pretty basic type of mace and naginata, nagamaki and bisento were rather the sword derivatives than pole weapons.
30:50 the idea of having spiked shafts is to stop or catch a sword swing but more importantly to avoid people from grabbing or to try to take control of the weapon or to fight back while being arrested. this make a lot of sense in a law enforcement scenario, it would be a lot easier for an officer to reduce someone if they could use their less than lethal weapons without having someone trying to grab it, specially if that someone carries a lethal weapon like a sword.
man!, I imagine someone would have to be very brave back then to try to catch some crazy sword wielding criminal with nothing to loose with a less lethal weapon like that trying not to kill him
I love how the contruction of the spears was just as well thought out as the swords
1. *sigh* Now we're going to need a video on naginata vs guandao vs glaive. Construction differences and how they were used.
2. It's interesting that the japanese policeforce continues to train with the tsukubo (not to mention that it's been revived in training staff to stop spree killers, given the rarity of guns) but european policeforces have not had any sort of mancatcher revival despite blade violence being not that uncommon. All sorts of push-pole weapons are incredibly effective against someone wielding a knife or shorter sword, as long as you have backup (ie, more people with pushpoles that are nearby).
Great vid Matt! Love a highlight on lesser known weapons. I found it so funny when you said Japan was saved by nature and it's one of my favorite examples of deus ex machina in history. Personally love the highlight on the Japanese law enforcement gear and would love a video all about their weapons, pole weapons and jitte, and, if any information exists, their development and contemporary usage. Always looking forward to your next video and see you next time
For the naginata's origin, I just have the mental image of a blacksmith sitting there, staring at the table in front of him, where he's got a spearhead and a sword blade, who've both got the same exact tang, going "Hmmmmmmmmmm". And then it smash cuts to a samurai swinging a naginata at a screaming peasant.
10:45 - The Yari with the one sided protrusions at that timestamp resembles ancient Chinese halberd-like polearms (Han Dynasty era Ji and Dagger axe). I wonder if these Yari could be used in similar fashions where the projection is used as an armor penetrating spike that is swung at an enemy?
Love that you talk about the Japanese polearms, such important weapons in Japanese (military) history but so often overlooked! To see an awesome yari-fight watch Kurosawa's Hidden Fortress.
Just a note on pronunciation: daishō (literally "big little") is pronounced more like "die shaw" (with a long o) than "day shaw". ;)
Or rather, "die show" no?
Bananas come in a variety of different forms. Some straight some curved up, sometimes one straight and one curved up.
A uniting civilizational desire: "I'd like to merk that guy, and I'd like to keep him at a distance."
From what I remember from another video, the projections on the head of a polearm also prevent overpenetration. Because that basically leaves you disarmed in that moment.
As always and as expected, very intersting!
Great video as always Matt and thank you for uploading! 👍👍
There is one bit of clarification I'd like to make though and it's on the purpose of the barbs or spikes on the Torimono Sandōgu.
While yes the barbs could snag and become entangled in a combatants clothing, that was only a side effect, their main purpose was to prevent a combatant from being able to grab onto the end of the weapon and possibly gain control of it. 👍
lmao i started a match of WOWS and clicked play on this video to listen in the background- the torpedo sound effect during the ad freaked me out!
Great video! One explanation for Yari using stems instead of sockets is the availability of bamboo, which is very easy to get a stem into, and more durable.
A naginata can be used for both stabbing and slashing purposes.
It's no wonder that it was the weapon of choice for the heroine of Kick-Ass.
The period whenYari spears were popular on the battlefields of Japan was from the late Sengoku period (around 1540) to the peace after Genna era (1615). Kanabo became less frequently used on the battlefield after the 14th century. Samurai use a martial art called kumiuchi against armored soldiers. In this case the samurai uses the short katana, wakizashi. Kumiuchi changed to jujutsu and judo. The Song dynasty of China imported katana and naginata from Japan in the 11th century. Since katana is practical, China, Korea, and Mongolia imported katana from Japan and had their soldiers use it.
Genpei seisui ki by Sanemitsu Tohei in the 13th century "Concerning one-on-one battles, it was common to cut at each other with a katana after battling using bows and arrows, which was followed by kumiuchi (grappling)."
Mongolian scholar Zheng Si-xiao (1241-1318)."The Japanese are brutal and not afraid of death. Even if ten Japanese people encounter 100 enemies, they will fight against them. If they don't win, they all fight until they die.If they do not die in the war, they will be killed by the king's hand when they return.Japanese women are also very temperamental and should not be attacked.katana is extremely sharp. "
鄭思肖『心史』中興集 元韃攻日本敗北歌 倭人狠不懼死，十人遇百人亦戰，不勝俱死，不战死，歸亦為倭主所殺。倭婦甚烈，不可犯。幼歲取犀角刈 小珠，种額上善水不溺，倭刀極利，地高險難入，可為戰守
Mongolian scholar Wang Yun (1228-1304)"Japanese soldiers are equipped with bows, katana, and armor. There was no spear. The cavalry are united.katana is long and extremely sharp. All the soldiers are brave and do not seem to be afraid of death. " It is written that the samurai were fighting in groups instead of single combat.
秋澗先生大全文集 (四部叢刊本)/卷第四十 而過但弓以木為之矢雖長不能逺人則勇敢視死不畏
Chinese Ming Dynasty General Qi Jiguang (1528-1588) "It is difficult to approach with my soldier's sword, it is too late with a spear, and if we encounter them, everyone will be cut off and killed.
This is because their weapons are sharp and they are free to use powerful and heavy swords that can be swung with both hands. " "For Japanese, a fowling gun from a distance is effective. But the Japanese have absolutely no fear and charge at point blank range where they can attack or stab. Therefore, we should equip ourselves with Japanese-style long swords."
明 戚继光 纪效新书 Jixiao Xinshu 此自倭犯中國始有之。彼以此跳舞、光閃而前、我兵已奪氣矣。倭善躍、一迸足則丈餘、刀長五尺、則丈五尺矣。我兵短器難接、長器不捷、遭之者身多兩斷、縁器利而雙手使、用力重故也。 今如獨用則無衛、惟鳥銃手賊遠發銃、賊至近身再無他器可以攻刺、如兼殺器則銃重藥子又多、勢所不能、惟此刀輕而且長、以備臨身棄銃用此。況有殺手當鋒、故用長刀備之耳。
Chinese Ming Dynasty Martial Artist Cheng Zongyou (1561-1636) "No other sword can match the Japanese sword. In Japanese swordsmanship, the change from side to side is strange and mysterious, and it is not predictable to ordinary people. Therefore, even if we use polearms such as spears, we are always defeated by Japanese swords. "
明 程冲斗 单刀法选 单刀说 器名单刀，以双手用刀也，其技擅自倭奴，锻炼精坚，制度轻利，靶鞘等物，各各如法，非他方之刀可并，且善磨整，光耀射目，令人心寒。其用法 左右跳跃，奇诈诡秘，人莫能测，故长技每每常败于刀
Ming history book两朝平攘录"Japanese are good at foot combat, so he can kill an enemy within a four-meter range. When they swing the katana around, we can only see the white light shining and we can't even see the person who controls the katana. ”
诸葛元声 两朝平攘录 刀长五尺馀，用双刀则及丈馀地。又加手舞六尺，开锋凡一丈八尺。舞动则上下四方尽白，不见其人。
Korean History Veritable Records of the Joseon Dynasty (1413)"Japanese soldiers wielded their long katanas and rushed sharply left and right, their sharp attacks invincible."
朝鮮王朝実録 天兵短劍、騎馬, 無火器, 路險泥深, 不能馳騁, 賊奮長刀, 左右突鬪, 鋒銳無敵。
I often watch some Kobudo demonstrations to broaden my interest and the polearms aside from the spears are under-represented outside of Japan.
Sodegarami actually means "sleeve entangler" by the way.
I've been waiting for this!
A few observations:
1) AFAIK, the closest to the Jumonji Yari is the Spetum or Runka.
2) I'm surprised that they didn't have much akin to Poleaxes, Halberds, or warhammers. I would have added at least a short (blunt) spike on a Naginata, similar to what many billhooks and glaives had.
3) their way of fixing things to wood was also used for all sorts of tools including sickles and axes. Especially, axes and naginatas make me wonder why the pins and the cut-out didn't splinter the wood.
4) Their spears are really good for thrusting with their triangular design, but the tips are surprisingly blunt. Tapering doesn't seem to have been practiced near anywhere as much as we did in Europe.
Well they did have a warhammer but its was much more crude well more of a club if anything the kanabo/tetsubo has alot of variants
Runka made me pause. Let's just say it's verb in Swedish involving the shaft.
@@twosheds7105 I've heard it before... I think the word for the weapon is Italian though.
Similar story with Kant being pronounced just the same way as c##t.
The list can certainly be continued...
They actually did. Not mentioned here, but yari is, though translated as spear, better understood as “polearm.” Essentially the yari did have variations that looked like Poleaxe’s like the Ono su yari(more practical variations are called “fusou”) and Halberds(Magari Yari). They did have a warhammer, but it must have been incredibly uncommon.
@@michaelterrell5061 Thank you for giving me names to look up.
Absolutely brilliant good sir!! This was very well plotted, it was informative - comprehensively so, to be completely honest. The commentary is considerate and accurate, and very well stated (intellectually). I applaud your virtuosity, sir, expertly done..
I would also love to learn more about the Japanese Bisento, if you might (perchance) know a bit about it.❤
Well done Matt! Great overview of a voluminous subject.
Love your series on all types of hand(s) weapons. Just watched your 4 months old video on Japanese pole arms. Fascinating! One comment I'd like to make is on the "police" arms at the end. I think you missed the main purpose of the Little spikes up and down the iron part running down the shaft covered in little spikes. To me, it's obvious these sharp nubs are to prevent the (sometimes) criminal from grabbing the shaft and twisting it out of the hands of the policeman. That would hurt! More that than twisting it up in the loose clothing as you suggested. Just a thought from a complete novice.
Thanks for your brilliant video series, my man!😀
Sode-garami literally means sleave-catcher. It were the hooks on the end that were used for this. You're probably right about the 'thorns'.
I used to play WoWs for a while. I also loved the chester and other early American ships. The had these massive broadsides that were so much fun to fire.
A point about the cross section of Naginata being emulated on Katana and Wakizashi. Yes! That also happened. But a lot of those WERE naginata.
It's called Naginata Naoshi. Becasicallly a reshaped naginata now mounted and used as a Wakizashi. It is believed that more antique Naginata survive as Naoshi than as their original naginata shapes.
The picture at 23:15 is just fantastic.
The myths of katana were created by both the pop culture in modern days and the need for the establishment of the nation-state during the Meiji Restoration. The primary weapons for the samurais were bows (later muskets) and polearms. They were more often used by pirates for raidings than actual samurais.
swords were used a lot depending on the contacts a sword would have been the preferred the weapon(not just talking about Japan here), swords have always had a great importance one of japan's national treasures is a sword.
There’s also the hazuyari, which is a yumi bow with yari spearheads on the ends.
Should have mentioned the yari tanto which is obviously not a polearm, but kinda cool that it looks exactly like a tiny spearhead mounted in the hilt of a knife and had the same role as a rondel dagger for fighting someone in armor close up.
The general Honda Tadakatsu was a famous spear-wielder, his spear was named "Tonbokiri" - Dragonfly Cutter. It got it's name as it was so sharp a dragonfly landed on the blade and cut itself.
There is a replica of the Tonbokiri in the Tokyo National Museum.
So once again the spear is the most important weapon. I'm begging to wonder if Matt has a contract with a big spear corporation.
We have ignored Big Spear for too long in favour of Sexy Swords.
The crossover to tools always interests me. The Yari or yair kana are woodworking tools, they where used as a plane before wood block planes became prevalent, they are still usd today some specific traditional carpentry. They where triangular with a hollow ground back sharp on both sides witj a subtle curve along the length so you only have a small section cutting and you can "roll" through the cut.
Suspect the tool came first then they just put them on a big stick to mess people up with.
What would possibly explain the presence of heart-shaped cut outs in Japanese hand axes AND in European made tomahawks from colonial America? It seems such a specific combination of tool and motif- would love a theory on why. Is there a convergent evolution arguement? Or is there some kind of influence being transmitted across the ocean? Cool video Matt!
From what I know, it isn't a heart, but rather a boar's eye.
"Parray their shaft with yours"
😔 Why am I like this...
Just a note as a practitioner of atarashi naginata. Its shaft is oval, not rounded like a staff, therefore its use varies quite a lot on practice.
Thanks for the video. I learned a good bit from this. I was taken back when you mentioned spear tangs
I'm also interested in comparitive wood treatment as well. Say bamboo vs ash and other woods alike. Me and my friend got into a little squabble about this topic a couple of time now. My stance always being "even if it is worse by any degree it was useable and survable by history shows that that they were used"
It was awesome to see you talk about this topic! I knew about most of these, but not to the extent that you shared! Long time listener, looking forward to more of your videos!
Cool spearheads have a hamon line on them. Attention to detail
There is also a type of naginata called tsukushi naginata that looks like a bardiche
The protrutions also allow for controlling the opponents poleweapons, which atleast in my experience is one of the best features of something like a halberd
Excuse me, the guy at the mall that sold me my katana for 30$ said it's the ultimate weapon and I cannot be defeated if I wield it.
Really interesting video. The triangular blade will create a very nasty wound that will bleed copiously
Pretty sure they still use a version of the sasumata even today, as a safer alternative to tasing / wrassling
Japanese wood chisels use the same combination of a tang and a "socket" to hold it together
The artworks depicting those weapons are fantastic
I get it, but still always puzzled that polearms are so often overlooked for Samurais in popular media & games.
very interesting video I saw in 2018 at the shinjuku samurai museum a very wide and thick short naginata blade (80mm Wide 8mm Thick) we where told that it was cutting horse necks, not sure how true but would have had a chance.
As in all cultures, the most popular weapon is some form of long, pointed stick.