Rise+of+theSamurai

Japan Background Essay 3: __Yoritomo and the Rise of the Samurai__ __**Emperors Lose Power:**__ The first emperor, Jimmu, ruled about 660 B.C. Over the next 2,500 years, many of his relatives served as emperor. Some were strong and wise like Jimmu and Shotoku, but many were not. Some were only interested in living a good life -- collecting art, writing poetry, and practicing Buddhism. They left the difficult matters of leading the military and raising taxes to others. Usually, the emperor gave these jobs to rich, powerful families whom the emperor trusted. In exchange, the powerful families got the right to keep a percentage of the taxes they raised. Eventually, these families got more powerful than the emperor, and the emperors lost their ability to rule Japan.

__**Families of Warriors:**__ The powerful families of Japan controlled all matters within their territory. They could tax the peasant farmers and the land owners. They could make their own laws. Some of these families got extremely rich and had huge private armies. The families often fought wars with each other to expand their territory and maintain power. Because they were constantly fighting, family members trained every day with the use of all kinds of weapons – knives, bows, spears, but especially swords. Swords were the favorite weapon of the times, and Japanese swords became the best in the world. Japanese swordsmanship was also the best in the world. One-on-one, a good Japanese sword fighter could beat any other fighter.

__**Samurai:**__ These warriors, who served the great families of Japan, came to be known as “samurai,” which means “one who serves.” A samurai lived by a strict code, called the bushido, or “way of the warrior.” A samurai would always serve his leader without question, even if it meant his own death. Failure was not an option. There was only success or suicide. A good samurai considered it a great honor to die in battle at the request of his leader, but preferably not before chopping off the heads of a few enemy warriors. Samurai always carried two swords – the katana (long sword) and wakizashi (short sword). No one else was allowed to carry these swords. A samurai had the power of life or death over peasants. If a peasant made a rude comment, or even failed to bow, a samurai would chop off his head instantly.

__**Women Samurai:**__ Being a samurai didn’t just mean being a warrior. It was a social class, and all members or followers of the powerful clans were considered samurai. Women could be samurai, too, though they didn’t usually fight in battle. They were expected to serve their husbands and their family leader, taking their own lives if requested to do so. If a woman displeased her husband, he could order her to commit suicide, and she had to obey. Occasionally women became very powerful. Some members of the royal family became empresses. Rarely, a woman would even become the military leader of a powerful clan.

__**Family Feud:**__ Around 1160 A.D., two families became more powerful than any others – the Taira and the Minamoto. These two clans began feuding, and started a huge civil war to control all of Japan. The Taira family controlled the important land aroundKyoto, the home city of the imperial family. Because of this, the Taira could force the emperor to support them. The emperor had no real power, but he was still the spiritual leader of Japan, and he was the only one who could formally declare someone “shogun,” military leader of all Japan. The other major family, the Minamoto, greatly desired to take the city of Kyoto, so they could force the emperor to support them instead.

The Taira and the Minamoto fought a huge battle, and the Minamoto won. They temporarily took control of Kyoto. But the Taira fought back. In the second battle, they crushed the Minamoto and assassinated their leader. The Minamoto leader’s entire family was executed; however, the Minamoto leader’s widow was so beautiful that the Taira leader made a deal with her. If Lady Minamoto would agree to marry the Taira leader, he would not only let her live, but would also allow her two sons to live. In order to make sure they didn’t grow up and seek revenge on the Taira, however, they had to become monks and live their lives in separate monasteries, never to see each other again. Even though Lady Minamoto hated the Tairas, she agreed to the marriage so her sons could live.

__**The Two Sons:**__ The elder son’s name was Yoritomo (yo-ree-to-mo). His younger brother was Yosune (yo-sheet-su-nuh). They grew up hating the Taira family and wanting revenge. At age 15, Yoshitsune escaped from his monastery. While in hiding, he trained daily to become a great samurai warrior. Meanwhile, his older brother Yoritomo, who had been sent to a far away province, began meeting in secret with old Minamoto clan members and loyal friends of his father’s. The Tairas had many other enemies who were happy to help Yoritomo. He united all these people into a small army, set up his own rebel government, and began gaining power. Yoshitsune eventually joined his brother, and became his main military commander. Yoshitsune proved to be a brilliant fighter and leader. He fought many battles against the Taira, and won many surprise victories even when he was badly outnumbered.

Gradually, the Minamoto brothers pushed the Taira back. The Taira were forced to abandon Kyoto, and they took the young boy emperor Antoku with them as a hostage. Antoku took many of his important belongings, including the three heavenly gifts that Jimmu had gotten from the gods centuries before. The Taira tried to escape by sea, but the Minamoto ships followed, and there was a huge naval battle. Though Yoshitsune was again outnumbered, he cleverly positioned his ships to ambush the enemy. When it became clear that the Minamoto had won, the Taira were so upset that many of their samurai committed suicide by jumping into the water in full armor and drowning. The boy emperor also drowned in the battle, and the famous mirror, sword, and jewel were lost at sea. Later, Yoshitsune sent divers to search for the priceless treasures. Eventually, the mirror and the jewel were found, but the sword was lost forever.
 * The Final Battle: **


 * The First Shogun: **

The Minamotos now had complete military control of Japan. Yoritomo, as the eldest son, was supreme ruler. He chose a new emperor from the imperial family – someone he could easily control. This puppet emperor named Yoritomo to be the first shogun, chief military ruler of all Japan. Then, to assure that his power would never be threatened, Yoritomo ordered his devoted younger brother, Yoshitsune, to commit suicide, even though Yoshitsune had been responsible for Yoritomo’s victory. Yoshitsune, being a loyal samurai, obeyed. Yoritomo ruled Japan efficiently until his death in 1199. According to legend, he was riding his horse one day when the ghost of his dead brother Yoshitsune appeared before him. In shock and terror, Yoritomo fell from his horse and broke his neck. Thus, Yoshitsune was revenged.


 * Questions on Rise of the Samurai:Yoritomo:** **
 * 1) Why did the emperors lose power?
 * 2) The word samurai means what?
 * 3) What was the samurai’s favorite weapon?
 * 4) Who were the two feuding families who fought a civil war?
 * 5) What is a “shogun” and how do you become one?
 * 6) How did Lady Minamoto save her sons’ lives?
 * 7) How did Yoshitsune help his brother?
 * 8) What happened in the final sea battle between the two families?
 * 9) Why did Yoritomo make Yoshitsune commit suicide?
 * 10) How did Yoritomo die?