As a Japanese historian who specializes in the Sengoku, this was really well done. Many samurai especially in Sengoku Jidai betrayed their lords, moved up to the leadership of Japan.Things you wouldn't think was honorable. Christian samurai were seen as a threat to local lords and created social mobility for peasants. Which were stopped by Hideyoshi, there are a few good books out there that state that Hideyoshi's invasion of Korea was to get rid of the Christian diamyo and samurai on Kyushu and western Honshu. Sengoku Jidai is probably some of the most interesting samurai. Although, during the Edo that is when we get a lot of daimyo rewriting history to make themselves seem more honorable, but if you look at the history you find out that is quite to the contrary. Its just an interesting time period. Also love how you depict early Japanese as pretty much the cowboys of frontier Heian court politics. Its not something that is usually depicted outside of those of us who study it.
I have heard that the strict honor bound code of bushido was actually created during Edo period, which was Tokugawa's attempt to pacify samurais and transform them into confusious bureaucrats. True?
Our modern understanding of Bushido comes from samurai and daimyo like Kaito Kiyomasa(who defected to Tokugawa) and Pro-Takeda Tokugawa samurai that tried to justify their loyalties and decisions to betray their lords by creating code of honor after the fault. Meaning that they were the paragons of virtue and that those who rebelled were not virtuous. They used Neo-Confucian philosophy to say they didn't betray their lords, but that the people they betrayed were not righteous rulers to justify their deeds. The code of honor was put in place during the Edo Period to stop rebellions and keep the peace. The famous hostage system of the Tokugawa coupled with Bushido in the Edo period was a form of social control. But, peasants still would commit various uprisings and a few of them led by those pesky Christians and sometimes Buddhist sects. Our modern view of Bushido comes from Inazao Nitobe's book Bushido-The Soul of Japan written in the Meijii Period to deconstruct and romanticize Japanese bushido in the Industrialist age. It was then utilized by Imperial Japan during the Pacific Theater of what the Allies called World War II. It has sense fallen out of favor in modern Japan for various factors. But, it is still romanticized especially Sengoku Jidai and the supposed honor that came with it. Even though the Sengoku lords were not very honerable themselves.
You can see how easy it was then, beginning with the Meiji Restoration, until right after WWII, to have the Samurai class become the ultimate corporate executives.
@@Cba409 Yeah, everything has it's weaknesses. Still you'd be hard pressed to think of a battle tactic that has been so consistently effective through so much of history.
Georgica Ionica actually china still used horse archers in the mid 1800s. unsure of their effectiveness. in the napoleonic wars russia had horse archers harass the french retreat and they even routed full groups of french later in the war. leipzig i believe
i read a book called "Invisible Armies"(its about guerilla warfare) forgot who the author is, and yes like what Alberto Barreto said the book stated that horse archers like what the Huns and Mongols used are excellent tools for harassing and fast attacks or in guerrilla warfare but when it comes to besieging cities/fortifications this mobile units are very much next to useless.
Any decent foot archers outshoot horse archers any day. The strength behind steppe horse archers was that the other half of the cavalry was heavy cavalry, or lancers, and both acted in unison. When relying of horse archers or light cavalry, the steppe armies lost repeatedly, it is only through large heavy cavalry charges supported with horse archers that they prevailed.
Akira Kurosawa's movies portray the time of samurai really well. I just watched "Ran" which is basically a Game of Thrones in Japan. So many betrayals everywhere.
'Ran' is based on 'King Lear'. Kurosawa admired western literature and he borrowed from it for many movies. 'Throne of Blood' draws on 'Hamlet', 'Lower Depths' from the play by the russian Gogol, 'Rashomon' from a french story-allegedly a re-working of a Dashiel Hammet original. 'The Idiot' by Fyodor D. of Russia was abridged and re-titled as... I don't remember. Anyways, if you like A.K. please look out for 'Ikuru', 'Stray Dogs', 'Hidden Fortress' 'Those Who Tread on the Tails of Tigers', and 'Drunken Angel'.
yeah, i think i recal that movie, if not mistaken it for another kurosawa movie. and i loved that irony - that son who was viewed as bigets traitor was most loyala to his father.
Samurai Death poem: Though my body may decay in the land of Ezo My spirit guards my lord in the east Hijikata Toshizō 1835-1869 Died: Battle of Hakodate, Boshin War
my haiku death poem my life sucks wasted youth, wasted life death is the final doorway i cross 197X-202X [I am certain I will die in the 2020's but I refuse to give my age lolz]
@@ThePluskota it's poetic licence, i'm no poet or scholar, and i was having a bit of fun, leave it to the internet to take away people's enjoyment....cus we all know the entertainment industries are hell bent on committing suicide
Shogun 2 always seemed to display Japanese Death Poems. A poem a solider would say either going into battle or bleeding to death on the field. Not surprisingly, the poems had to be very. . .short. I guess even in the agony of dying on the battlefield the Japanese are artistic.
Flash Point History ...it appears to me that Japanese army battle tactics developed differently to anywhere else in the world ....their appears to be large gaps between each samurai in the battle lines ( maybe to allow full us of the katana ) but the problem with this would be that any barbarian army using a massed charge would by weight of momentum smash their way through them ....l think that in warfare the Japanese would close ranks shoulder to shoulder and use their sharp halbeards ( 6 foot long converted farm implements ) to allow a unbroken battle line ....the katana and one on one fights would never break out whilst in battle....where as duels over chivalry to the death were common but not in on army to army battles .....in the 1st Mongol invasion of Japan the samurai attacked the large Mongol fleet from small boats and had great success on board these boats fighting on the decks in the chaos of dark torch light fights !!
@@nobbytang Please do not comment about things you do not know. The sword was the secondary weapon of the samurai at best. Both the bow and yari, spear, were used more extensively. Japanese 'halbards' were not converted farm tools. They were made by the same craftsmen that made the swords. Many resembled a sword on a pole such as the naginata. However their favourite polearm was the yari.
Japanese really take interest in firearm, people of Tanegashima and Sakai only need few years to fully producing firearm since the first time they got it from Portuguese
After the japanese invasion of korea, many koreans were shocked by the effectiveness of the arquebus that 70% of our entire army was consisted of gunman. However we still didnt know how to use it effectively so we still lost. In one battle 1 million korean gunman were defeated by 300 qing cavalry.
Katana barely used by Samurai, especially the mounted samurai. They usually goes with bow, spear, or naginata. Katana usually used last in CQC or some footed charge (when you expect a really close combat)
Yup, katakanas were back up weapons like any other sword, but like any other sword in the medieval period it could get really expensive, wielding one was like having a Rolls-Royce nowadays.
@@maelgugi not really a rolls Royce, though there certainly were swords that was that expensive, as time progressed they became cheaper and cheaper. By the 13th and 14th century, at least in Europe, the common man could well afford a sword for home or selfdefence. Think of it as a modern handgun. Served pretty much the same role
I have wielded a Katana and it is quite heavy. Certainly too heavy for most men, including bodybuilders to wield from a horse and particularly so if only used with one hand. Wakizashis were used by cavalry. But both Katanas and Wakizashis were used by commong Ashigaru warriors.
So the myth of how the Katana (made from glorious Nippon Steel folded 1,000,000,000,000 times) can easily slice an American WWII tank cleanly in half is true, right?
I always wondered if technology actually mattered in warfare, because it seems that the other side adopts technology so fast to really know if it made a difference, if only we had a measurement system for it, than we could know how much of the low tech you would need to equal one of the high tech weapons given that both sides are competent in using them of course. 100 bow men vs 10 musket rifle men, or equal numbers how effect would each one actually be, 1000 spear men vs 10 machine gun men. As far as I know you need to manufacture weapons which requires a lot of skill. the cost of transporting the weapons and training the troops and planning it seems like technology is one of the factors not the only factor, speed and precision seem important. If technology didn't matter at all, than it would be a burden and nobody would bother with it, I honestly don't know, you could always lose so many factors I guess. When Napolean started his wars he and his followers didn't think" what if the other armies have people who are just as smart" " what if they are just testing the waters and holding back and waiting for a weak point" I guess that is not something to think about when you have to go and battle, winning and not realizing what could go wrong. Napoleon was talented but the people he were fighting didn't take battle as serious to begin with, when they did take it serious Napoleon lost, they were holding back, waiting for a worthy adversary like |Napoleon.
@@Tethloach1 First of all we would nead to consider how skilled the individual warrior is. Fore example a skilled archer would defeat a skilled gunman. This was the reason koreans didnt bother massproducing firmears. Second it doesnt matter how much technology advantage you have if your strategy is terrible. In one battle despite having more advanced weapon 1million disorganised korean gunman were defeated by 300 qing cavalries
Short, direct, and easy to digest for those unfamiliar with the topic. Really well put together considering the complexity of social and political changes throughout the various eras. Very well done.
I remember blowing my dads mind when I told him that samurai almost never used their katana, and were more horse archers. He was shocked and that when he started learning a crap ton about medieval units
And for those who don't know "Ninja" and "Samurai" means the same thing. And yes, it is true that some of the Samurai dressed like the Ninja villain "Shredder" from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. In other words this video covers the history of both Samurai and Ninja.
Actually, at one point, Japan was the largest producer of firearms worldwide. Production and development were curtailed after unification under the Tokugawa Shogunate. Larger caliber canons are a wholly different story.
Just a small note to the animation team: there's a few spelling mistakes on the map. 1. Oda Nobutada is written instead of Oda Nobunaga. Oda Nobutada is his son. The narrator is correct. 2. "Toyko" is written instead of Tokyo. The animation was beautiful by the way, probably the best that's ever been on this channel.
Fun Fact. The term bushido didnt exist till the late 19th century. Samurai code of honor was basically an unwritten law between samurais and their daimyos. So each samurai has their own version of the code or didnt even have one. Hence why during the Samurai Age nobody really gave a shit whenever Samurais would betray or run away from a fight if it benifitted them like in Sekigahara.
correct me if im wrong, but wasnt the term and concept revitalized to glorify the japanese spirit while they were in full swing adopting everything else the west had to offer?
@@Crosshill Japanese ultranationalists of the Showa specifically wrote about how the revival and indoctrination of Bushido on their own terms would be of use for militarizing the population of Japan. Sadao Araki - the father of Japanese ultranationalism and in many regards the architect of Imperial Japan - explicitly stated that the fascist movements (specifically Germany's) use of "founding myths" to reconstruct society was the primary inspiration for his bushido revival.
Remarkable work. I especially love debunking historical myths, and this video did a stellar job at that. I'm currently looking into Gallic myths myself and it's astonishing how much misconception is spread and repeated without second-guessing.
@@KingsandGenerals That would be awesome! But I already published the video; I can still send my research if you're interested. I'm actually working on a script about the St. Barthelemy Massacre for your guys!
Out of curiosity, do you plan to cover many more far Eastern topics such as the clashes between the Tang dynasty and Tibetan Empire, of the failed Ming invasion of Vietnam?
@@KingsandGenerals I love it when you do stuff about the eastern part of the world because western history is well known which is not the case for eastern history.
@@KingsandGenerals Cool, i'm sure you guys must be busy. The rise of the Qing dynasty in 17th century China or the battle of Jao Modo would also be fascinating.
@@Rokiriko There is, if you spoke about the Delhi Sultanate. Medieval Kingdoms 1212 AD mod(Attila Total War): 'Ghurid Sultanate'. It's the Delhi Sultanate, I don't know why it is called Ghurid.
This is really well done and informative. I had the honor of marching as the only gaikoujin samurai in the Shingenko omasturi, in Shingen’s personal guard. The sandals were too small for my feet (I am over six feet tall mind you), but it was a lot of fun and gave me a chance to honor the daimyo I revere most.
Officially Devins was perfect as always. But I do have a few remarks about this video. While it is more or less just as good as most of your videos (and they are generally excellent), I happened to be a student of Bushido, Kendo practicioner and Samurai history. There are some things in this documentary that could be clarified and elaborated. But I realize that it would be difficult to do with your typical 15 minute format. Other than that, great job, as always.
@@worsethanjoerogan8061 I must admit, I am grateful for all the work they do, people must learn to be patient, thousand of year of history will take a lot of time to cover. The quality is great so better for them to not rush it and keep the quality on. At the same time they can keep doing good videos like this for years with all the content available.
3:20 is picture of Japanese-Mongolian war, coming horse man from right is Takesaki, Suenaga. 8:05 is picture of revenge of Ako Ronin against Kira,kozukenosuke in 1703,1,30. Ako's member was 47 samurais. This period was extreme peace era. So this was big news and reported to Netherland soon.
Always wanted to know more about the Samurai of old Feudal Japan. It's quite wonderful to know about. My thanks to those who made this video a reality.
equally misunderstood, misinterpreted codes of conduct, both of them more bureaucratic and managerial than expected, lots of dead peasants, that actually makes perfect sense as a comparison
@@budakbaongsiah I believe it's part of Japanese military history. The emishi known for refusing Yamato authority for long time resulting to military conflict as king and general mention in the video using guerilla warfare and making northern part of japan as a frontier for Yamato people.
@@ShadyAnchovy How many sources that can be used regarding the matter, though? No source will come from the Ainu themselves, right? I do want to see K&G covers Samkusaynu, though.
You draw the border of China as if it directly controlled entire Korean peninsula during Japan's Heian period. During that period, Korea was called Silla. It was a tributary state to China's Tang dynasty, but Tang never "directly" controlled Silla as if it was their de facto territory. And also the border line between Korea(Actual name was Joseon) and Qing is little inaccurate. And finally, the border of Korea when it was annexed by the Japanese empire is also wrong. It should be corrected to the borderline of Joseon, which is mordern day N.Korea and S.Korea combined. Anyway I really enjoyed your videos so far. Keep up the good work.
@@umaransari9765 Looks like you are trying to say Baekjae. It was one of the minor kingdoms during Korea's three kingdoms period. Baekjae was completely annexed by Silla by the time of Japan's Heian period.
It is awesome to see a good video about the complex reality of the samurais, the warriors who significantly shaped Japan. It is just as good as the other battle videos and cultural videos done on this channel. One of the things I was wondering about was when you were going to cover the first actual Conquistador operation to occur within the New World, Columbus' invasion of the East Indies? I find that to be both fascinating and tragic, yet I have only found very little about what happened and would like to see more historians cover the events.
Amazing!! I have been looking forward someone to simplify these events and concepts and you really done great work!! Thank you so much, I truly wish to see new videos with more details! ♥♥♥
Excellent and well researched. Expected to find the classic misconception of "dishonorable firearms" in this video but was (thankfully) disappointed. And great job covering the "class conflict between the rising merchant class and the samurai. Quite ironic that the merchants that were previously at the bottom of the hierarchy (As to those who wonder how they got there although they made hella profit: everybody that didn't do physical work with their hands was looked down upon) overtook the warrior class.
Hey there mate! It's been a while! I just wanted to say that your channel is great,but you should know as long as you are not posting anything about persian empire,your channel is not complete. and there are great wars to cover such as invasion of egypt,Sasanid wars with Romans,Safavid wars with ottomans,camaings of Nader Shah and Agha Mohammad Khan and hundreds of others. Looking forward to see some of these covered mate. Cheers.
Another excellent documentary video, it’s a concerning factor of how the samurai class really elevated themselves as a respectful warrior class in contrast as being a defined example of honour, virtue and loyalty towards their masters. However this is somehow a kind of misconception as their were many betrays, assassinations, civil unrest and defections between the Daimyos, in comparison and concepts to the other anti-samurai warrior class during the culmination of feudal Japan and the shogunate the ninja or “shinobi” who served as assassins, mercenaries or covert agents and are trained in the skills of espionage, infiltration, sabotage, guerrilla tactics and assassination were deemed as dishonourable and beneath in the perceptions of the samurai. Here is the interesting factor when a ninja would pledge his sword or allegiances towards serving their masters or lords whether if it was for money, reputation or any particular reason they would be bound in always in staying loyal until the very end of their mission or contract and to never betray them. This would literally mean that they had a strict moral codes towards the service and absolute loyalty of their overlords, yes of course it’s perceptive in distinguishing them from the samurai class’s, but you still can’t ignore these historical facts.
sorry what do you mean the swords could not hoped to be weilded in combat? do you mean their too heavy to be useful such as the infamous nodachi katanas? or were they just super expensive with no practical benefit? or were the just no good for cutting?
The katana is the greatest sword for the greatest warrior. Everyone who knows anything knows that a pure Nippon steel sword faded 1000 times slices through anything including knight's armor, machine guns, tanks, and even WW2 ships! Japanese soldiers carried them into battle during WW2, time when everyone else used guns, that's how powerful they were.
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That is why 'Merica!!! had to create the Atomic Bomb. Because no modern weapon can defeat a Nippon steel katana when wielded on the land of the rising sun giving them super human powers and immortality. Its is also why no 'Merican!!! Has ever set foot on the land of the rising sun during WW2. Its was also the reason for the Japanese internment camps were made in 'Merica!!! To prevent the Japanese 'Merican!!! From accidentally getting their hand on a katana and being possessed by their ancient samurai ancestors to unleash hell on ''Merica!!!
Very interesting video and quite accurate. One small thing that's a bit misleading, if I may. The character on the right, at 9:37 isn't a samurai but Izumo no Okuni, a legend in Japan, for sure, but not for her skill in battle. She started as a street dancer and later became the creator of the Kabuki theatre. She was, indeed, dressed as a samurai, on this painting but it was most likely a purposely exaggerated representation of how the real samurai dressed back at the time. Not to say that Samurai didn't change their style and lost the prestige they had during the Sengoku jidai, but that choice of picture to illustrate this may not be the most correct. Again, not a big deal. It doesn't change the fact, and what you say is correct.
Yep. Both were descended from the Jōmon, who were the original inhabitants of the Japanese archipelago. The way we think it went was that the Yayoi people arrived from Korea later and mixed with the southern Jōmon groups, creating the Yamato people (aka modern Japanese). The more northern groups resisted for longer, creating the distinct Emishi and Ainu cultures in Tōhoku and Hokkaidō respectively. The Emishi were conquered by the 9th century and gradually assimilated into the Yamato, while the Ainu's relative isolation on Hokkaidō, Sakhalin, and other islands allowed them to remain independent for much longer and they remain a visible ethnic minority today.
"Emishi" was the original Sino-Japanese term for the "Ainu", the latter of which was what they called themselves. *"Emishi" (蝦夷) doesn't actually mean "hairy people" at all, but simply denotes "other" or "foreign people".* It's *basically the Asian equivalent to* the continental/Germanic term *"Walhaz"* which would later refer to either Gaul or Wales.
@F0RG1V3N So what? *I'm also hairy and tall-nosed* (fully bearded like every male from my mom's side), *as is anybody descended from the Mandarin classes.* I'm of Vietnamese extraction, and my mom is issued from the Trinh lords. And when I speak to Japanese people, they say I come across as Okinawan, so I am "correctly" a southerner to them. Hairless Asians are from the peasantry, or left-overs from conquered Austronesian populations, and this is especially the case the further down south you go in Asian societies.
@F0RG1V3N right, Austronesians are not hairless 😂 How could you even make that sort of a statement ? Have you seen the Dravidas of India and the Aborigines of Australia ? Even the Pacific islanders ?
In one of his books, I believe Dr. Stephen Turnbull describes one period in Japanese history as "The Golden Age of the Turncoat". That phrase always reminds me of the boardgame, Diplomacy.
Samurai sword is probably the most overrated weapon in history. Swords were sidearms, similar to pistols in modern warfare. They were good secondary weapons, self defense tools but not primary arm ( maybe except huge flamenbergs or scottish claymores). After all, you will need a weapon that can give you range ( spear, pike ) or projectile ( bow or guns ) if you want to avoid dying in the battlefield.
I enjoy learning about the samurai. Thank you for sharing this video. It is good to see, and show, that they were not myths, legends, but real human beings.
Samurai = Fushu/Ifu (Assimilated Emishi) + armed farmer+ military aristocrat Genji or Taira clan (descendants of the Emperor) The Emishi's Warabite Sword for cavalry evolved into the Tachi Sword (samurai sword for horseback). During the Muromachi period, the development of mountain castles and the expansion of the battlefield across Japan led to the use of the UchiGatana, which was developed for use in foot combat. Of course samurai use Tachi on horseback. Many of the Kenjutsu schools that developed in the Edo period have their roots in the Muromachi period. Many battle pictures are found in Japan. From the Heian to Kamakura period, most of the archers were mounted archers, but during the Muromachi and Sengoku periods, Of course there are horsemen but in the main they fought on foot with swords and spears and bow. So in my opinion "Horse and Bow This is Samurai Way" is an old term from a time when the battlefield was limited to the Urban area.
7:25- That part was strange since most Samurai movies--especially Kurosawa--had firearms wielded by Samurais and Levy. Even one of the plot in Seven Samurais involved stealing one from bandits to even the odds.
@@KingsandGenerals It's the truth. Your videos are awesome. BTW, I live in Granada, from where one of the Spanish forces that engaged in Bailen departed (the "Granada division" built around the Swiss infantry regiment led by Reding) and I'm hoping for you to make this battle. I've been to Bailen once, and also the stand of said division (which was the one to engage the main bulk of the battle before the rest of Castaños forces arrived and completed the encirclement) was... well, epic.
Depends on the century the word is used and who used it. Towards the end of the Middle Ages many French knights made a clear distinction between Knights and men at arms (Literally gens-d'arme, which later evolved into the gendarme[erie]), while some English scripture says men at arms are well equiped men who owned several horses and either squires or had followers, this could be knights, mercenaries, or wealthy citizens who had already experienced war. In the late middle ages, in English, people started to use 'Lance' for either knight or men-at-arms (Lance also implies a group of people. Usually a mounted, heavy fighter, squires, skirmishers and followers of all kind. All of this in various numbers), or sometimes also 'Glaive'. For a military report, the number of lances is more important than the number of knights or men-at-arms (if they made a distinction), so it became more popular in the rennaissance.
ah just like one russian professor said " the japanese sold their art well but they are just art try to use them on the battlefield and they will fail"
Just to put things straight (not a die-hard Japanophile here), but to be fair, the use of a very isolated incident of the betrayal of Akechi Mitsuhide to put a dampen the importance of Bushido and the importance of being honorable and also to put the role of film-romanticism at a pedestal, does sound a bit far-fetched. I believe there are records in many historical documents, in which Bushido was placed in high regards as code of conducts of the Samurai. Even knights during Medieval Times and Chinese Dynasties switched allegiances and formed pacts to rebel against their leaders or Lords to either usurp or exonerate themselves from oppression etc etc. Bushido has always been a prominent genre or idea behind many haiku. Nevertheless, this is a fantastic documentary! Superbly done!
BTW, the Sino-Japanese term *"Emishi" (蝦夷) doesn't mean "hairy people" at all, but simply denotes "other" or "foreign people".* It's basically the *Asian equivalent to the continental/Germanic term "Walhaz"* which would later refer to either Gaul or Wales. *If anybody knows their Japanese pop culture, they'll recall that the "Emishi" are the main characters in "Princess Mononoke".*
Really loved the video. It is a truth that not many people wanna face and keep on romanticizing the samurais. Remember that there are 3 major betrayals that changed the course of japanese history. Ashikaga Takauji who betrayed both Houjou and later, the Emperor to take the entire Japan establishing Muromachi shogunate Akechi Mitsuhide who betrayed Oda Nobunaga to avenge his mother (who he considered as a demon in disguise) and prevented the shogunate under Nobunaga Kobayakawa Hideaki who betrayed Ishida Mitsunari and handed Tokugawa Ieyasu the victory at the battle at Sekigahara helping to establish Edo Shogunate While there are definitely some of the well respected warriors (as mentioned in the video), but it is a total misconception that samurais were generally honorable men. There was a good reason why people got sick of Tokugawa shogunate even though there was no war going on at that time.
Wow how about in Star Wars the Jedi Knights which are basically samurai and knights but in outer space and partnered with galactic weaponry it is way too much battle from the prequel to sequel present day.
Nice video, well done and good points and history. Now, I read somewhere that samurais predate the Heian period, that they are part of the Ainu culture that already was on the islands. Also the few current Ainu on Japan islands are not the original ones but a mix of the original inhabitants and japanese people. Good luck.
If it's Japan People will prefer to use katanas more than hidden sleeve blade. Which will make the game very non-assassin's greed like. Perhaps ninja assassin is doable.
Short history extension for you: The Japanese Mafia, AKA the Yakuza started to form in the 1600s as "Bakuto" (gamblers) and "Tekiya" (peddlers), where Bakuto would run illegal gambling rings and other dodgy deals, the Tekiya would deal drugs or trick people into buying crap. Into the Tokugawa Era, when the ronin started to form and turn into mini crime gangs, they were known for their cruelty practising moves on civilians and raping women, so vigilante groups formed to form to fight them off - the Yakuza claimed to have originated from the vigilante group, hence why they are heavily glamourised, however, sources say it's more likely they originated from the ruthless ronin gangs. Bonus fact: Yakuza (Ya-ku-za) is three numbers: 893, and is a hand in a card game (I believe called "Yakuza") not unlike some popular western card games - it is the worst hand and means "Good For Nothing".
You may never link furious Samurai with beautiful Goldfish. believe it or not: Samurai is the Father of Japanese Goldfish! Samurais were the first goldfish keepers in Japan. During the fall of the Samurai class in the late Edo period, breeding goldfish become a Samurais' second job for income.
Because the lower class samurai of the Edo period were poor, some of them also had other side jobs, such as teaching children in cram schools called terakoya, selling chicken eggs, or making socks and gloves. However, it seems that those above a certain rank were prohibited from doing side jobs.
Our hoodies are warm and cozy: bit.ly/2CTEWGo
Next video 🇲🇲 myanmar. Thailand.🇹🇭. Khmer 🇰🇭Malaysia 🇲🇾 and Indo-china 🇻🇳 story of war please
What about your heart?
nice man i was looking forward to this
Sam u Raj. Translate that from Serbian...
As soon as I get money im buying one
As a Japanese historian who specializes in the Sengoku, this was really well done. Many samurai especially in Sengoku Jidai betrayed their lords, moved up to the leadership of Japan.Things you wouldn't think was honorable. Christian samurai were seen as a threat to local lords and created social mobility for peasants. Which were stopped by Hideyoshi, there are a few good books out there that state that Hideyoshi's invasion of Korea was to get rid of the Christian diamyo and samurai on Kyushu and western Honshu. Sengoku Jidai is probably some of the most interesting samurai. Although, during the Edo that is when we get a lot of daimyo rewriting history to make themselves seem more honorable, but if you look at the history you find out that is quite to the contrary. Its just an interesting time period.
Also love how you depict early Japanese as pretty much the cowboys of frontier Heian court politics. Its not something that is usually depicted outside of those of us who study it.
I have heard that the strict honor bound code of bushido was actually created during Edo period, which was Tokugawa's attempt to pacify samurais and transform them into confusious bureaucrats.
True?
Our modern understanding of Bushido comes from samurai and daimyo like Kaito Kiyomasa(who defected to Tokugawa) and Pro-Takeda Tokugawa samurai that tried to justify their loyalties and decisions to betray their lords by creating code of honor after the fault. Meaning that they were the paragons of virtue and that those who rebelled were not virtuous. They used Neo-Confucian philosophy to say they didn't betray their lords, but that the people they betrayed were not righteous rulers to justify their deeds. The code of honor was put in place during the Edo Period to stop rebellions and keep the peace.
The famous hostage system of the Tokugawa coupled with Bushido in the Edo period was a form of social control. But, peasants still would commit various uprisings and a few of them led by those pesky Christians and sometimes Buddhist sects.
Our modern view of Bushido comes from Inazao Nitobe's book Bushido-The Soul of Japan written in the Meijii Period to deconstruct and romanticize Japanese bushido in the Industrialist age. It was then utilized by Imperial Japan during the Pacific Theater of what the Allies called World War II. It has sense fallen out of favor in modern Japan for various factors. But, it is still romanticized especially Sengoku Jidai and the supposed honor that came with it. Even though the Sengoku lords were not very honerable themselves.
@@austinhornbeck5060 Bushido that talks about loyalty was actually created to justify betrayals.
That's why nobody wants to see how sausages are made.
You can see how easy it was then, beginning with the Meiji Restoration, until right after WWII, to have the Samurai class become the ultimate corporate executives.
If history classes were more like this, I probably wouldn't fall asleep as often
Haiku about Samurai:
I can see my men
Running from the battlefield
*A shamefur dispray*
SHAMEFUR DISPRAY
*sudoku
IMPOSSIBRU!!!
enemy army: BANZAI!!!! BANZAI!!! TAKE THEIR HEADS!!!
Ian Cabugsa
Racist much?
Perhaps most noteworthy, though, was Samurai Jack, who defeated the Shogun of Sorrow, Aku.
@@corvoattano4319 no duh its an animal or cartoon lol
All the while making sure he kept all aspects of the Bushido governing his life... A remarkable Samurai, he needs to be studied more...
God damn is there anything asian horse archers can't do!? I feel like they could go down in history as the most influential unit / tactic of all time.
@@Cba409 Yeah, everything has it's weaknesses. Still you'd be hard pressed to think of a battle tactic that has been so consistently effective through so much of history.
Georgica Ionica actually china still used horse archers in the mid 1800s. unsure of their effectiveness. in the napoleonic wars russia had horse archers harass the french retreat and they even routed full groups of french later in the war. leipzig i believe
i read a book called "Invisible Armies"(its about guerilla warfare) forgot who the author is, and yes like what Alberto Barreto said the book stated that horse archers like what the Huns and Mongols used are excellent tools for harassing and fast attacks or in guerrilla warfare but when it comes to besieging cities/fortifications this mobile units are very much next to useless.
Georgica Ionica ill look for it later and post it
Any decent foot archers outshoot horse archers any day.
The strength behind steppe horse archers was that the other half of the cavalry was heavy cavalry, or lancers, and both acted in unison. When relying of horse archers or light cavalry, the steppe armies lost repeatedly, it is only through large heavy cavalry charges supported with horse archers that they prevailed.
Akira Kurosawa's movies portray the time of samurai really well. I just watched "Ran" which is basically a Game of Thrones in Japan. So many betrayals everywhere.
I’ve been trying to watch that for so long how’d you watch it
'Ran' is based on 'King Lear'. Kurosawa admired western literature and he borrowed from it for many movies. 'Throne of Blood' draws on 'Hamlet', 'Lower Depths' from the play by the russian Gogol, 'Rashomon' from a french story-allegedly a re-working of a Dashiel Hammet original. 'The Idiot' by Fyodor D. of Russia was abridged and re-titled as... I don't remember.
Anyways, if you like A.K. please look out for 'Ikuru', 'Stray Dogs', 'Hidden Fortress' 'Those Who Tread on the Tails of Tigers', and 'Drunken Angel'.
@@don-tt1jk Fellow Wako.
yeah, i think i recal that movie, if not mistaken it for another kurosawa movie. and i loved that irony - that son who was viewed as bigets traitor was most loyala to his father.
Absolutely phenomenal film! Kurosawa was a master!
Samurai Death poem:
Though my body may decay in the land of Ezo
My spirit guards my lord in the east
Hijikata Toshizō
1835-1869
Died: Battle of Hakodate, Boshin War
my haiku death poem
my life sucks
wasted youth, wasted life
death is the final doorway i cross
197X-202X
[I am certain I will die in the 2020's but I refuse to give my age lolz]
@@Red_Lanterns_Rage not a haiku
@@ThePluskota it's poetic licence, i'm no poet or scholar, and i was having a bit of fun, leave it to the internet to take away people's enjoyment....cus we all know the entertainment industries are hell bent on committing suicide
Shogun 2 always seemed to display Japanese Death Poems. A poem a solider would say either going into battle or bleeding to death on the field. Not surprisingly, the poems had to be very. . .short. I guess even in the agony of dying on the battlefield the Japanese are artistic.
Theyre called Haiku en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haiku.
@achtundachtzig cool good to know
Flash Point History ...it appears to me that Japanese army battle tactics developed differently to anywhere else in the world ....their appears to be large gaps between each samurai in the battle lines ( maybe to allow full us of the katana ) but the problem with this would be that any barbarian army using a massed charge would by weight of momentum smash their way through them ....l think that in warfare the Japanese would close ranks shoulder to shoulder and use their sharp halbeards ( 6 foot long converted farm implements ) to allow a unbroken battle line ....the katana and one on one fights would never break out whilst in battle....where as duels over chivalry to the death were common but not in on army to army battles .....in the 1st Mongol invasion of Japan the samurai attacked the large Mongol fleet from small boats and had great success on board these boats fighting on the decks in the chaos of dark torch light fights !!
@@nobbytang Please do not comment about things you do not know. The sword was the secondary weapon of the samurai at best. Both the bow and yari, spear, were used more extensively. Japanese 'halbards' were not converted farm tools. They were made by the same craftsmen that made the swords. Many resembled a sword on a pole such as the naginata. However their favourite polearm was the yari.
@@SilverforceX Please do not speak of things which you are not aware of. I just wanted to continue the trend
Last time I was this early I read the script in advance and even recorded myself reading it!
Hey hows your day going?
@@grimmech4268 Ever since K&G gave my comment that loving heart, it's been perfect.
The love can't be denied.
both of you guys are so NOICE
Best youtubers ever
Japanese really take interest in firearm, people of Tanegashima and Sakai only need few years to fully producing firearm since the first time they got it from Portuguese
True.
@DiscordChaos and the quality is far better than in the Europe
After the japanese invasion of korea, many koreans were shocked by the effectiveness of the arquebus that 70% of our entire army was consisted of gunman. However we still didnt know how to use it effectively so we still lost. In one battle 1 million korean gunman were defeated by 300 qing cavalry.
They never took up the Flintlock, tho.
@Marcelo Henrique Soares da Silva Portuguese? Ottoman had the best cannons and bombardier at the time
Who watching this after playing Ghost of Tsushima?
I am!!
Yup
Caught
xd
Me
Katana barely used by Samurai, especially the mounted samurai. They usually goes with bow, spear, or naginata. Katana usually used last in CQC or some footed charge (when you expect a really close combat)
Yup, katakanas were back up weapons like any other sword, but like any other sword in the medieval period it could get really expensive, wielding one was like having a Rolls-Royce nowadays.
Shofa Pranata what is a ningata?
@@maelgugi not really a rolls Royce, though there certainly were swords that was that expensive, as time progressed they became cheaper and cheaper. By the 13th and 14th century, at least in Europe, the common man could well afford a sword for home or selfdefence.
Think of it as a modern handgun. Served pretty much the same role
@@goldenfiberwheat238 a naginata was a polearm with a sword like blade mounted on a long staff
I have wielded a Katana and it is quite heavy. Certainly too heavy for most men, including bodybuilders to wield from a horse and particularly so if only used with one hand. Wakizashis were used by cavalry.
But both Katanas and Wakizashis were used by commong Ashigaru warriors.
So the myth of how the Katana (made from glorious Nippon Steel folded 1,000,000,000,000 times) can easily slice an American WWII tank cleanly in half is true, right?
Obviously :-)
Fool! Nippon steel is folded 1,000,000,000,001 times.
1,000,000,000,002 and you can shred off the universe to pieces
Uneducated filthy westeners! The Katana is folded 1,000,000,000,003 times and it was the first object of Mankind to split atoms in half!
Damn no wonder my sword sucks, only 999,999,999,999 folds.
None sense, we all know they all wield katanas and ride their horses while charging at unlikely odds like modern Gatlings.
*nonsense
Just like we all know the Emperor of the French was short and irascible due to his inferiority complex...wait a second
Only in one recorded battle, which they knew they were charging to their deaths, and just wanted to go out in style.
I always wondered if technology actually mattered in warfare, because it seems that the other side adopts technology so fast to really know if it made a difference, if only we had a measurement system for it, than we could know how much of the low tech you would need to equal one of the high tech weapons given that both sides are competent in using them of course. 100 bow men vs 10 musket rifle men, or equal numbers how effect would each one actually be, 1000 spear men vs 10 machine gun men. As far as I know you need to manufacture weapons which requires a lot of skill. the cost of transporting the weapons and training the troops and planning it seems like technology is one of the factors not the only factor, speed and precision seem important. If technology didn't matter at all, than it would be a burden and nobody would bother with it, I honestly don't know, you could always lose so many factors I guess. When Napolean started his wars he and his followers didn't think" what if the other armies have people who are just as smart" " what if they are just testing the waters and holding back and waiting for a weak point" I guess that is not something to think about when you have to go and battle, winning and not realizing what could go wrong. Napoleon was talented but the people he were fighting didn't take battle as serious to begin with, when they did take it serious Napoleon lost, they were holding back, waiting for a worthy adversary like |Napoleon.
@@Tethloach1 First of all we would nead to consider how skilled the individual warrior is. Fore example a skilled archer would defeat a skilled gunman. This was the reason koreans didnt bother massproducing firmears. Second it doesnt matter how much technology advantage you have if your strategy is terrible. In one battle despite having more advanced weapon 1million disorganised korean gunman were defeated by 300 qing cavalries
I love how you always use the music from shogun 2 whenever you make a vid about Japanese warfare.
Some were from Shogun 1...
what up fam
@@nomooon big deal
Short, direct, and easy to digest for those unfamiliar with the topic. Really well put together considering the complexity of social and political changes throughout the various eras. Very well done.
Thank you for watching :)
I remember blowing my dads mind when I told him that samurai almost never used their katana, and were more horse archers. He was shocked and that when he started learning a crap ton about medieval units
And for those who don't know "Ninja" and "Samurai" means the same thing.
And yes, it is true that some of the Samurai dressed like the Ninja villain "Shredder" from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
In other words this video covers the history of both Samurai and Ninja.
My comment is meant for those who are waiting for the history of Ninjas.
I’m here because of Ghost of Tsushima
You are watching the wrong video then - there is a newer one on the topic
Kings and Generals sweet!
Me too 🤓
good for you
St0w1k blow me
Actually, at one point, Japan was the largest producer of firearms worldwide. Production and development were curtailed after unification under the Tokugawa Shogunate. Larger caliber canons are a wholly different story.
Just a small note to the animation team: there's a few spelling mistakes on the map.
1. Oda Nobutada is written instead of Oda Nobunaga. Oda Nobutada is his son. The narrator is correct.
2. "Toyko" is written instead of Tokyo.
The animation was beautiful by the way, probably the best that's ever been on this channel.
Excellent
Fun Fact. The term bushido didnt exist till the late 19th century. Samurai code of honor was basically an unwritten law between samurais and their daimyos. So each samurai has their own version of the code or didnt even have one. Hence why during the Samurai Age nobody really gave a shit whenever Samurais would betray or run away from a fight if it benifitted them like in Sekigahara.
It didn't come in common use until that time, but the word appears in text as far back as 1616 in the Kōyō Gunkan.
correct me if im wrong, but wasnt the term and concept revitalized to glorify the japanese spirit while they were in full swing adopting everything else the west had to offer?
*Bushido as a strict and codified set of rules
It's a term popularized by Inazo Nitobe's book "Bushido".
@@Crosshill Japanese ultranationalists of the Showa specifically wrote about how the revival and indoctrination of Bushido on their own terms would be of use for militarizing the population of Japan. Sadao Araki - the father of Japanese ultranationalism and in many regards the architect of Imperial Japan - explicitly stated that the fascist movements (specifically Germany's) use of "founding myths" to reconstruct society was the primary inspiration for his bushido revival.
Remarkable work. I especially love debunking historical myths, and this video did a stellar job at that. I'm currently looking into Gallic myths myself and it's astonishing how much misconception is spread and repeated without second-guessing.
Thanks! Share your research with us, let's make a video :-)
@@KingsandGenerals That would be awesome! But I already published the video; I can still send my research if you're interested.
I'm actually working on a script about the St. Barthelemy Massacre for your guys!
Out of curiosity, do you plan to cover many more far Eastern topics such as the clashes between the Tang dynasty and Tibetan Empire, of the failed Ming invasion of Vietnam?
Yep, but not sure when.
and failed Mongol invasion of India against Delhi Sultanate
@@KingsandGenerals I love it when you do stuff about the eastern part of the world because western history is well known which is not the case for eastern history.
@@KingsandGenerals Cool, i'm sure you guys must be busy. The rise of the Qing dynasty in 17th century China or the battle of Jao Modo would also be fascinating.
@@Rokiriko There is, if you spoke about the Delhi Sultanate. Medieval Kingdoms 1212 AD mod(Attila Total War): 'Ghurid Sultanate'. It's the Delhi Sultanate, I don't know why it is called Ghurid.
This is really well done and informative. I had the honor of marching as the only gaikoujin samurai in the Shingenko omasturi, in Shingen’s personal guard. The sandals were too small for my feet (I am over six feet tall mind you), but it was a lot of fun and gave me a chance to honor the daimyo I revere most.
*Draws katana*
"Noting personal, kid"
M-Masaka!
Nothing personnel*
"Teleports behind you"
*god tier counter sword draw*
OMAE WO SHINDEIRU
*AAATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATATA!!!!!!!!!!!
A slight correction, Akechi Mitsuhide was self-appointed Shogun for a full 13 *days* before Toyotomi Hideyoshi took him out, not months.
Edit: Typo
Thanks!
*Akechi
Excellent work as always :)
Thanks :-)
Good use of the Shogun 2 footage and audio. They fit perfectly with this video.
Officially Devins was perfect as always. But I do have a few remarks about this video. While it is more or less just as good as most of your videos (and they are generally excellent), I happened to be a student of Bushido, Kendo practicioner and Samurai history. There are some things in this documentary that could be clarified and elaborated. But I realize that it would be difficult to do with your typical 15 minute format.
Other than that, great job, as always.
you could clarify some things in the comments, i like to read comments first on videos like this, so i can compare and contrast with the video later
Could you do a series on Pyrrhus and the Pyrrhic wars?
So much history, so little time
What about Papyrus and the Papyric wars?
Or Epirus and the Epic wars
@@worsethanjoerogan8061 I must admit, I am grateful for all the work they do, people must learn to be patient, thousand of year of history will take a lot of time to cover. The quality is great so better for them to not rush it and keep the quality on. At the same time they can keep doing good videos like this for years with all the content available.
3:20 is picture of Japanese-Mongolian war, coming horse man from right is Takesaki, Suenaga. 8:05 is picture of revenge of Ako Ronin against Kira,kozukenosuke in 1703,1,30. Ako's member was 47 samurais. This period was extreme peace era. So this was big news and reported to Netherland soon.
Always wanted to know more about the Samurai of old Feudal Japan. It's quite wonderful to know about. My thanks to those who made this video a reality.
Interesting video on the evolution of Samurai. It's true that they are often referred to as the the Knights of the East.
Thanks :-)
equally misunderstood, misinterpreted codes of conduct, both of them more bureaucratic and managerial than expected, lots of dead peasants, that actually makes perfect sense as a comparison
just bought total war: shogun 2 and the rise of samurai nicely timed video for me thank you
Please, tweet that at Total War profile on twitter. :-)
Hope you enjoy it! Definitely one of my most played games of all time. Still go back to it every now and then.
@@Frozone9 just conquered japan as hojo clan yey!
This is my favorite video about History of Japan. The animation is really fluid. It pleasing in the eyes.
Make video about the ainu, emishi, and jomon people
Thinking about it!
Rahmad Setyadi looks like you have good knowledge of Japanese history
Now THAT would be very interesting. That's not military history though, unless we're talking about Samkusaynu (Shakushain)'s rebellion.
@@budakbaongsiah I believe it's part of Japanese military history. The emishi known for refusing Yamato authority for long time resulting to military conflict as king and general mention in the video using guerilla warfare and making northern part of japan as a frontier for Yamato people.
@@ShadyAnchovy How many sources that can be used regarding the matter, though? No source will come from the Ainu themselves, right? I do want to see K&G covers Samkusaynu, though.
Concise, easy to follow. Carries the impact of your message well. Good work. Thanks for posting.
Imagine if Marco Polo season 3 had focused on Kublai's failed invasion of Japan as stated in the earlier parts of this video.
Lol they'd have to spend their whole budget on one naval battle though.
it was such a great show. it's a shamefur dispray for them to cancel it like that.
Mogami: How many heads did you get Takeshi?
Takeshi: How many did you get?
Mogami: 14
Takeshi: I got 15
Mogami: *Gurggle Gurggle*
I just discovered your channel. Thanks to Ghost of Tsushima game lol. What an amazing channel, UA-cam algorithm finally does its job well.
We have newer videos on the topic, check them out!
This one of the few channels that actually present reasonably accurate histories. I've always enjoyed reading about the samurai.
You draw the border of China as if it directly controlled entire Korean peninsula during Japan's Heian period.
During that period, Korea was called Silla. It was a tributary state to China's Tang dynasty, but Tang never "directly" controlled Silla as if it was their de facto territory.
And also the border line between Korea(Actual name was Joseon) and Qing is little inaccurate.
And finally, the border of Korea when it was annexed by the Japanese empire is also wrong. It should be corrected to the borderline of Joseon, which is mordern day N.Korea and S.Korea combined.
Anyway I really enjoyed your videos so far. Keep up the good work.
Thanks :-)
I guess there was silla and other empire too can't remember name
@@umaransari9765 Balhae was at the north of Silla, which was founded by the refugees of the Goguryeo.
BloodMure yeah Baeklhae
@@umaransari9765 Looks like you are trying to say Baekjae. It was one of the minor kingdoms during Korea's three kingdoms period. Baekjae was completely annexed by Silla by the time of Japan's Heian period.
I really wish they had created some sort of video capturing technology back then. I would have loved to see the ancient world like that
It is awesome to see a good video about the complex reality of the samurais, the warriors who significantly shaped Japan. It is just as good as the other battle videos and cultural videos done on this channel. One of the things I was wondering about was when you were going to cover the first actual Conquistador operation to occur within the New World, Columbus' invasion of the East Indies? I find that to be both fascinating and tragic, yet I have only found very little about what happened and would like to see more historians cover the events.
Much more on the way, as usual :-)
Amazing!! I have been looking forward someone to simplify these events and concepts and you really done great work!! Thank you so much, I truly wish to see new videos with more details! ♥♥♥
Excellent and well researched. Expected to find the classic misconception of "dishonorable firearms" in this video but was (thankfully) disappointed. And great job covering the "class conflict between the rising merchant class and the samurai. Quite ironic that the merchants that were previously at the bottom of the hierarchy (As to those who wonder how they got there although they made hella profit: everybody that didn't do physical work with their hands was looked down upon) overtook the warrior class.
Hey there mate! It's been a while!
I just wanted to say that your channel is great,but you should know as long as you are not posting anything about persian empire,your channel is not complete. and there are great wars to cover such as invasion of egypt,Sasanid wars with Romans,Safavid wars with ottomans,camaings of Nader Shah and Agha Mohammad Khan and hundreds of others.
Looking forward to see some of these covered mate.
Cheers.
More of Samurai pls.
Another excellent documentary video, it’s a concerning factor of how the samurai class really elevated themselves as a respectful warrior class in contrast as being a defined example of honour, virtue and loyalty towards their masters. However this is somehow a kind of misconception as their were many betrays, assassinations, civil unrest and defections between the Daimyos, in comparison and concepts to the other anti-samurai warrior class during the culmination of feudal Japan and the shogunate the ninja or “shinobi” who served as assassins, mercenaries or covert agents and are trained in the skills of espionage, infiltration, sabotage, guerrilla tactics and assassination were deemed as dishonourable and beneath in the perceptions of the samurai. Here is the interesting factor when a ninja would pledge his sword or allegiances towards serving their masters or lords whether if it was for money, reputation or any particular reason they would be bound in always in staying loyal until the very end of their mission or contract and to never betray them. This would literally mean that they had a strict moral codes towards the service and absolute loyalty of their overlords, yes of course it’s perceptive in distinguishing them from the samurai class’s, but you still can’t ignore these historical facts.
Thank you for watching :)
My favorite channel is back at it again ❤ talking about my favorite game ever TW Shogun2 💪
Mae susume!
Edit : 6:59 best part.
I love this channel. Keep up the good work!
We will, thank you!
Who's watching this after watching 'The Last Samurai'.
sorry what do you mean the swords could not hoped to be weilded in combat? do you mean their too heavy to be useful such as the infamous nodachi katanas? or were they just super expensive with no practical benefit? or were the just no good for cutting?
The katana is the greatest sword for the greatest warrior. Everyone who knows anything knows that a pure Nippon steel sword faded 1000 times slices through anything including knight's armor, machine guns, tanks, and even WW2 ships! Japanese soldiers carried them into battle during WW2, time when everyone else used guns, that's how powerful they were.
Please be a troll
@@Ken-df8cp r/woosh
HI I'M BILLY MAYS HERE, TALKING TO YOU ABOUT NIPPON STEEL! ARE YOU LOOKING FOR A SHARP TOOL TO MAKE PERFECTLY SHAVED CORNED BEEF FOR A REUBEN?! NEED TO SLICE THROUGH AMERICAN STEEL ON YOUR WAY TO CONQUERING THE PACIFIC THEATER?! HAVE I GOT THE TOOL FOR YOU, INTRODUCING THE KATANA: PURE NIPPON STEEL FADED 1000 TIMES! USE IT TO SLICE THRU LIFE'S PROBLEMS OR YOUR ENEMIES, EVEN CONQUER A NATION, GO NUTS!!! BILLY MAYS HERE FOR THE KATANA!
That's why they lose, wield a katana in gunfight is a bad idea
That is why 'Merica!!! had to create the Atomic Bomb. Because no modern weapon can defeat a Nippon steel katana when wielded on the land of the rising sun giving them super human powers and immortality. Its is also why no 'Merican!!! Has ever set foot on the land of the rising sun during WW2.
Its was also the reason for the Japanese internment camps were made in 'Merica!!! To prevent the Japanese 'Merican!!! From accidentally getting their hand on a katana and being possessed by their ancient samurai ancestors to unleash hell on ''Merica!!!
Very interesting video and quite accurate.
One small thing that's a bit misleading, if I may. The character on the right, at 9:37 isn't a samurai but Izumo no Okuni, a legend in Japan, for sure, but not for her skill in battle. She started as a street dancer and later became the creator of the Kabuki theatre. She was, indeed, dressed as a samurai, on this painting but it was most likely a purposely exaggerated representation of how the real samurai dressed back at the time. Not to say that Samurai didn't change their style and lost the prestige they had during the Sengoku jidai, but that choice of picture to illustrate this may not be the most correct.
Again, not a big deal. It doesn't change the fact, and what you say is correct.
Here because I watched Shogun
4:32 if any of you are wondering the song is Civ 5 japan - war theme
I take it the Emishi are related to the Ainu of Hokkaido no?
James Tang I believe so, both descended from the jomon
Yep. Both were descended from the Jōmon, who were the original inhabitants of the Japanese archipelago. The way we think it went was that the Yayoi people arrived from Korea later and mixed with the southern Jōmon groups, creating the Yamato people (aka modern Japanese). The more northern groups resisted for longer, creating the distinct Emishi and Ainu cultures in Tōhoku and Hokkaidō respectively. The Emishi were conquered by the 9th century and gradually assimilated into the Yamato, while the Ainu's relative isolation on Hokkaidō, Sakhalin, and other islands allowed them to remain independent for much longer and they remain a visible ethnic minority today.
"Emishi" was the original Sino-Japanese term for the "Ainu", the latter of which was what they called themselves.
*"Emishi" (蝦夷) doesn't actually mean "hairy people" at all, but simply denotes "other" or "foreign people".* It's *basically the Asian equivalent to* the continental/Germanic term *"Walhaz"* which would later refer to either Gaul or Wales.
@F0RG1V3N So what? *I'm also hairy and tall-nosed* (fully bearded like every male from my mom's side), *as is anybody descended from the Mandarin classes.* I'm of Vietnamese extraction, and my mom is issued from the Trinh lords.
And when I speak to Japanese people, they say I come across as Okinawan, so I am "correctly" a southerner to them.
Hairless Asians are from the peasantry, or left-overs from conquered Austronesian populations, and this is especially the case the further down south you go in Asian societies.
@F0RG1V3N right, Austronesians are not hairless 😂
How could you even make that sort of a statement ? Have you seen the Dravidas of India and the Aborigines of Australia ? Even the Pacific islanders ?
In one of his books, I believe Dr. Stephen Turnbull describes one period in Japanese history as "The Golden Age of the Turncoat". That phrase always reminds me of the boardgame, Diplomacy.
Finally, yall covered my heritage haha. Awesome.....
Your videos are awesome and truthful. Thank you. I hope you create more of this videos about warriors .
Samurai sword is probably the most overrated weapon in history. Swords were sidearms, similar to pistols in modern warfare. They were good secondary weapons, self defense tools but not primary arm ( maybe except huge flamenbergs or scottish claymores). After all, you will need a weapon that can give you range ( spear, pike ) or projectile ( bow or guns ) if you want to avoid dying in the battlefield.
Thanks for another great video!
I recognize a lot of the names and battle due to Rurouni Kenshin - goated anime!
Ghost of Tsushima anybody?
Wasn't there a real Ghost of Tsushima back in those years.
I enjoy learning about the samurai. Thank you for sharing this video. It is good to see, and show, that they were not myths, legends, but real human beings.
Thank you for watching :)
I read Sumerian and quickly clicked. Then I realized it was samurai and got disappointed :(
Well, one day it will be Sumerian. :-)
But there's a samurai in the thumbnail
Never heard of Sumerian , did a quick search , no where near as interesting as samurais anyway lol
@@jt4478 How are they not interesting? They're the first civilization in recorded history.
@@danieldossantos5868 Because Kenshin was not old enough to play the Age of Empire 1, where Sumerian had some sexy catapults.
Samurai = Fushu/Ifu (Assimilated Emishi) + armed farmer+ military aristocrat Genji or Taira clan (descendants of the Emperor)
The Emishi's Warabite Sword for cavalry evolved into the Tachi Sword (samurai sword for horseback).
During the Muromachi period, the development of mountain castles and the expansion of the battlefield across Japan led to the use of the UchiGatana, which was developed for use in foot combat.
Of course samurai use Tachi on horseback.
Many of the Kenjutsu schools that developed in the Edo period have their roots in the Muromachi period.
Many battle pictures are found in Japan.
From the Heian to Kamakura period, most of the archers were mounted archers, but during the Muromachi and Sengoku periods, Of course there are horsemen but in the main they fought on foot with swords and spears and bow.
So in my opinion "Horse and Bow This is Samurai Way" is an old term from a time when the battlefield was limited to the Urban area.
why do you think samurai comprised a large percentage of japanese armies in contrast to knights being a small force in European armies.
Quick question. Who do u think would win? The average 13th century European army or the average 13th century Japanese army?
Unbelievable how you managed to say so much in just 13 minutes!
We talk fast? :p Thank you! :-)
7:25- That part was strange since most Samurai movies--especially Kurosawa--had firearms wielded by Samurais and Levy. Even one of the plot in Seven Samurais involved stealing one from bandits to even the odds.
Not Knights of East but warriors of Japan.
Cool! You guys make excelent videos, and Cogito surely knows a lot
Thank you :-) The script for this one was written by Matt Hollis. :-)
@@KingsandGenerals It's the truth. Your videos are awesome.
BTW, I live in Granada, from where one of the Spanish forces that engaged in Bailen departed (the "Granada division" built around the Swiss infantry regiment led by Reding) and I'm hoping for you to make this battle. I've been to Bailen once, and also the stand of said division (which was the one to engage the main bulk of the battle before the rest of Castaños forces arrived and completed the encirclement) was... well, epic.
Man-at-arms: any professional heavy horse-fighter, be it knights or men not of noble birth. A mistake on your part.
Depends on the century the word is used and who used it. Towards the end of the Middle Ages many French knights made a clear distinction between Knights and men at arms (Literally gens-d'arme, which later evolved into the gendarme[erie]), while some English scripture says men at arms are well equiped men who owned several horses and either squires or had followers, this could be knights, mercenaries, or wealthy citizens who had already experienced war.
In the late middle ages, in English, people started to use 'Lance' for either knight or men-at-arms (Lance also implies a group of people. Usually a mounted, heavy fighter, squires, skirmishers and followers of all kind. All of this in various numbers), or sometimes also 'Glaive'.
For a military report, the number of lances is more important than the number of knights or men-at-arms (if they made a distinction), so it became more popular in the rennaissance.
I'm going to make my own video about them. Samurai are always fascinated me.
Cool
Great stuff!
Grateful to Universe and your channel to let me know about the great Samurai ...
ah just like one russian professor said " the japanese sold their art well but they are just art try to use them on the battlefield and they will fail"
3:46 This is some high-level genjutsu!
*"Tell them I'm coming"*
Just to put things straight (not a die-hard Japanophile here), but to be fair, the use of a very isolated incident of the betrayal of Akechi Mitsuhide to put a dampen the importance of Bushido and the importance of being honorable and also to put the role of film-romanticism at a pedestal, does sound a bit far-fetched.
I believe there are records in many historical documents, in which Bushido was placed in high regards as code of conducts of the Samurai.
Even knights during Medieval Times and Chinese Dynasties switched allegiances and formed pacts to rebel against their leaders or Lords to either usurp or exonerate themselves from oppression etc etc.
Bushido has always been a prominent genre or idea behind many haiku. Nevertheless, this is a fantastic documentary! Superbly done!
By the God's, this is a great video!
Thanks. :-)
an amazing day
kings and generals uploaded a video on Samurai and I have 10 days holiday I am so happy
Have fun :-)
Kings and Generals thanks fam
No love for Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the second great unifier of Japan? His invasions of Korea gave us the legendary admiral Yi Sun Shin. Come on!
Love how you used Total war: SHOGUN 2 gameplay
Hey! What about TIMAR and Ottoman Military System?
What about 'em?
BTW, the Sino-Japanese term *"Emishi" (蝦夷) doesn't mean "hairy people" at all, but simply denotes "other" or "foreign people".* It's basically the *Asian equivalent to the continental/Germanic term "Walhaz"* which would later refer to either Gaul or Wales. *If anybody knows their Japanese pop culture, they'll recall that the "Emishi" are the main characters in "Princess Mononoke".*
31 ninjas disliked this video
Really loved the video. It is a truth that not many people wanna face and keep on romanticizing the samurais. Remember that there are 3 major betrayals that changed the course of japanese history.
Ashikaga Takauji who betrayed both Houjou and later, the Emperor to take the entire Japan establishing Muromachi shogunate
Akechi Mitsuhide who betrayed Oda Nobunaga to avenge his mother (who he considered as a demon in disguise) and prevented the shogunate under Nobunaga
Kobayakawa Hideaki who betrayed Ishida Mitsunari and handed Tokugawa Ieyasu the victory at the battle at Sekigahara helping to establish Edo Shogunate
While there are definitely some of the well respected warriors (as mentioned in the video), but it is a total misconception that samurais were generally honorable men. There was a good reason why people got sick of Tokugawa shogunate even though there was no war going on at that time.
They generally are honorable. You act as if everyday they go out betraying their masters. Lol.
You are reading me type.
Love this channel! Seriously underrated!
Wow how about in Star Wars the Jedi Knights which are basically samurai and knights but in outer space and partnered with galactic weaponry it is way too much battle from the prequel to sequel present day.
Nice video, well done and good points and history.
Now, I read somewhere that samurais predate the Heian period, that they are part of the Ainu culture that already was on the islands. Also the few current Ainu on Japan islands are not the original ones but a mix of the original inhabitants and japanese people.
Good luck.
TOTAL WAR SHOGUN 2
Went to Japan for a month 2 months ago and thanks to the videos, I knew so much!
Who's here because of ghost of tsushima
P. S YT recommended me this lol
your mother
*I have been practicing Bushido and Zen since 1985. I find it very useful and it has served me well in life.*
C'mon ubisoft you know what we want
what we want?
filip látera Assassin Creed Japan
Ghost of Tsushima will be out next year, which should fill that gap nicely, and without all the tedious sci-fi and ancient aliens shit.
Aaron Boone agree
assassin creed origins and Odyssey don't feel like Assassin Creed game but some sci fi game
If it's Japan People will prefer to use katanas more than hidden sleeve blade. Which will make the game very non-assassin's greed like. Perhaps ninja assassin is doable.
Short history extension for you:
The Japanese Mafia, AKA the Yakuza started to form in the 1600s as "Bakuto" (gamblers) and "Tekiya" (peddlers), where Bakuto would run illegal gambling rings and other dodgy deals, the Tekiya would deal drugs or trick people into buying crap. Into the Tokugawa Era, when the ronin started to form and turn into mini crime gangs, they were known for their cruelty practising moves on civilians and raping women, so vigilante groups formed to form to fight them off - the Yakuza claimed to have originated from the vigilante group, hence why they are heavily glamourised, however, sources say it's more likely they originated from the ruthless ronin gangs. Bonus fact: Yakuza (Ya-ku-za) is three numbers: 893, and is a hand in a card game (I believe called "Yakuza") not unlike some popular western card games - it is the worst hand and means "Good For Nothing".
2:10 why are Japanese horses always painted so thicc?
Anime influence. :-)
Oh wow a comment from you! I love the videos I really like the battle of shiloh.
@@imperialhistory3585 Thanks!
Just another unattainable beauty standard.
The Japanese and Indians painted their war horses.
You may never link furious Samurai with beautiful Goldfish. believe it or not: Samurai is the Father of Japanese Goldfish! Samurais were the first goldfish keepers in Japan. During the fall of the Samurai class in the late Edo period, breeding goldfish become a Samurais' second job for income.
Because the lower class samurai of the Edo period were poor, some of them also had other side jobs, such as teaching children in cram schools called terakoya, selling chicken eggs, or making socks and gloves.
However, it seems that those above a certain rank were prohibited from doing side jobs.