LESSON 9.11 Review 9.11.1
Key knowledge summary Use this dot-point summary to review the content covered in this topic. 9.2 How do we know about Japan under the sh̄oguns? • Japanese architecture tells us a lot about the way people lived.
• Artworks such as paintings provide evidence of the way people lived in feudal Japan. • Great works of literature often describe important events and people’s lifestyles. • Government documents were kept as national treasures. • Many traditional festivals and ceremonies survive today, giving us a view of some important traditions. 9.3 What was life like in early Japan? • The first Japanese state was established by the Yamato clan around the town of Nara. • During the Classical period, Buddhism was firmly established and the first great works of literature appeared. • Land reform was attempted in the seventh century but was abandoned as emperors granted land to their supporters. • In 794, the emperor moved his capital to Heian-kȳo (modern-day Kyoto), beginning the Heian period. • The Heian period saw growth in the power and importance of the daimȳo and the samurai. 9.4 How did the sh̄oguns take control? • Disputes arose in 1180 over the succession to the imperial throne, leading to a civil war. • The Minamoto clan supported the successful claimant to the throne, and its leader Yoritomo was appointed sh̄ogun in 1192. • From 1192, power passed from the emperor to the sh̄ogun for 700 years. • The sh̄oguns became so powerful because they were able to command military forces and maintain order. • In 1464, a dispute between two members of the Ashikaga clan led to civil war and a hundred years of instability known as the age of the warring states. • Order and unity were restored through the military conquests of the three great unifiers: Oda Nobunaga, Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Tokugawa Ieyasu. • The Tokugawa sh̄oguns also set up processes to isolate Japan from the rest of the world, in order to maintain the traditional Japanese way of life. 9.5 How did Japanese society organise itself? • Feudal society divided Japan into rigid social classes, with the emperor and the daimȳo nobles at the top of the class structure. • Below the ruling class were the samurai, peasants and artisans, with merchants at the bottom of the shi-n̄o-k̄o-sh̄o structure. • The Pillow Book , written during the Heian period, gives us an insight into the lives of women in feudal Japan. • Geishas were trained in art, music, dance and interesting conversation, and they entertained their clients with these skills. 9.6 Who were the samurai? • The samurai class was established to serve the daimȳo and provide them military support. • The samurai followed a warrior code known as bushid̄o. • Ronin were members of the samurai class who did not have a daimȳo master to serve. • The samurai gradually lost influence when their methods of fighting became obsolete and the peaceful period of the Tokugawa sh̄ogunate gave them no opportunities to fight.
TOPIC9 Japan under the sh̄oguns 253
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