Who are samurai? Samurai are a military-feudal class of minor nobles and princes (daimyo) in feudal Japan. Samurai are often compared to knights medieval Europe, but this analogy is largely incorrect.

The name "samurai" comes from the word saberu, which translates as "to serve"; in other words, a samurai is a serving warrior. Samurai were not only knight-soldiers. They were also the bodyguards of their master, and at the same time served him in everyday life.

Samurai with weapons, photo 1860

Education, training, training of samurai

The title of samurai in feudal Japan was inherited. In a samurai family, the upbringing of future samurai took place in accordance with the samurai code of honor - bushido - from an early age. IN early age the son of a samurai was given one or two (depending on the position of the father) small wooden swords. This taught the boy to respect his sword - a symbol of belonging to the warrior class. Great value attached to Confucianism. According to one of its provisions, children were obliged to honor and respect their parents, not to argue with them, even if the parents were wrong or treated their children badly, and not to upset them.

The purpose of instilling in children the duty of a son (oyakoko) was not only to develop respect for their parents, but also to create devotion to the emperor, who was considered the father of the warrior. The son's duty was the basis of the vassal's loyalty to the master. The mentor of the future samurai was revered no less than his father. The authority of the teacher was extremely great, his instructions were carried out without dispute. A famous proverb says: “A parent is the one who gave me life, a teacher is the one who made me a man.”

Raising in the family and training a mentor were the two main circumstances on which the cultivation of young samurai was based; they created a model of the ideal warrior, compiled on the basis of myths, Buddhist disdain for death, reverence for parents and devotion to their overlord. The family and the teacher primarily sought to strengthen the young man’s character, develop courage and fearlessness, perseverance and endurance.

They tried to raise young samurai to be courageous and brave, in other words, to cultivate character traits that were considered in the samurai class to be the main qualities that taught a warrior to give his life for the life of his master. This way of thinking was established by reading novels and stories about the fearlessness and military valor of famous heroes, about famous generals and samurai, and by watching theatrical plays. Often, the father ordered the future samurai, in order to develop courage, to go at night to a cemetery or to a land that had a bad reputation (where, according to legend, ghosts, demons, etc. lived). The boys were taken to public punishments and executions, in addition, at night there was an inspection of the severed heads of attackers, and the future samurai was obliged to put his personal sign to confirm that he really came here.

To develop perseverance and perseverance in boys, they were forced to do very hard work, not sleep at night (during the celebrations of the gods of learning), walk without shoes in winter, get up at dawn, etc. Hunger strike was also considered beneficial.

Boys and girls were instilled with the ability to control their actions and avoid emotional exclamations, groans and tears. “Why are you crying over such a trifle, coward?” the mother asked her crying son. “What if your hand is cut off in battle or you are forced to commit hara-kiri?” From the very early years Samurai children were raised to have a sense of honor and responsibility, honesty and discipline.

This upbringing developed fearlessness, composure and emotional stability, thanks to which samurai did not lose clarity of thought even in the most difficult situations.

Future samurai were required to constantly train, improve the art of wielding weapons, and have great strength and dexterity. Young samurai were required to have excellent command of the techniques of fighting with swords and spears, archery, they had to know jujutsu, be able to sit well in the saddle, and understand battle tactics.

In every family, at the court of every samurai, wonderful rooms were equipped for learning to wield a sword, places for practicing archery and physical exercise. Education, as a rule, began at 8 years old and ended at 16.

In addition to learning the art of war, there was also the development of literature, history, writing, etc. However, samurai studied these subjects only if they could be useful in military affairs. Special schools, which, for the sake of decency, were located on the estate of the feudal lord, in which they studied classical literature China, artistic creativity etc., were despised by the samurai. In such educational institutions The students studied were mainly sickly and weak children who were unable to learn the art of war, with physical disabilities, or people who voluntarily renounced violence. Laughing and looking down on such students, the samurai said: “Science is the miserable lot of the gentle effeminate courtiers of Kyoto, whose weakness and sickness does not allow them to use their muscles and does not give them the opportunity to study the sublime art of combat.”

However, it was in these schools that most Japanese philosophers, famous poets, writers and popular artists of the period of feudal Japan studied.

At the age of 15, the preparation of the future samurai was supposed to be completed. He was given real swords for battle (a set of daisho - katana and wakizashi), with which he was obliged not to be separated for the rest of his life; the girl received a short kaiken dagger - a sign of a woman’s belonging to the samurai class. The young samurai was moving to another age group- became an adult.

During the celebration of puberty (genbuku), the young man old tradition, they did a samurai hairstyle - sakayaki: they shaved the hair at the forehead and braided a knot of hair on the top of the head (motodori).

Motodori

The young man was put on a high headdress - eboshi, which was needed to wear motodori. The person who, during the celebration, attached eboshi to the head of the young samurai was called “usiromi” (guardian), or eboshi-oya (“eboshi father”). In Japan, the ceremony of entry into adulthood has been performed among both nobles and commoners since ancient times. Next, the samurai put on the clothes of an adult for the first time; it was a wide pair of trousers (hakama), similar to a skirt and a distinctive sign of a samurai. Their first festive dressing was a family celebration and corresponded with a trip to the temple of the patron god of the family.

During the ceremony, the samurai received adult name, formed a ceremonial cohabitation with his bride (hoda-awase), and passed the test of the samurai's strength.

As a rule, an influential and famous feudal lord was invited to become the guardian of the past genbuku; for samurai this was very important and at this time the mutual responsibility of the master and the bushi was established.

By picking up a sword and going through the initiation ceremony, the young man received freedom and independence, and was filled with a sense of dignity and responsibility. He became a real samurai.

Video about samurai

The video provides interesting facts about the most famous class of feudal Japan - the samurai.

Other interesting articles

U Japanese samurai has developed an almost mythical reputation. The idea of ​​katana-wielding warriors adhering to a noble code is incredibly romantic. Moreover, it was supported by legends and films. But in fact, many real facts about samurai are kept silent, since this would destroy the romantic flair created by cinema and literature.

1. “Horo” capes

Samurai wore massive 2-meter horo capes, which were stuffed with lightweight materials and fluttered around the samurai's body at the slightest wind. The horo was supposed to protect the samurai from arrows. The horo was also the main status symbol of the war. An enemy killed in battle wearing a horo was buried with honors.

2. Samurai swords

In the 13th century, when the Mongols attacked Japan, the inhabitants of the Land of the Rising Sun first encountered an army equipped with heavy armor. Their swords did not stand up to criticism at that moment. Thin Japanese weapons got stuck in Mongolian leather armor, and often simply broke in half. These thin samurai swords broke so often that they were forced to abandon them and begin making larger and heavier swords to resist the Mongols.

3. Samurai “sissies”

In feudal Japan, a man who spent the night with a woman was considered a sissy. Samurai believed that sex with women had a "feminizing" effect on a man's mind and body. The samurai married if he needed it to procreate, but he never allowed himself to get carried away by his wife. If a samurai was seen kissing his wife on public places, then his masculinity was in question. At the same time, homosexual relationships were perceived as something ordinary.

4. Guarantor-lover

When a boy was learning the art of the samurai, he was often paired with an older man. The elder taught the boy martial arts, etiquette, a code of honor, and in return used him to satisfy lust. This was called "sudo", which means "the path from boy to teenager." When a boy turned 13, he usually swore allegiance to his teacher and lived with him for the next six years. This was considered completely normal. One Japanese poet wrote: “A young man without an older guarantor-lover is like a young girl without a groom.” It really was treated like a marriage.

5. Immediately and in front of a witness

If a samurai was treated disrespectfully by someone from the lower class, then he could kill this person on the spot. There were several rules. The samurai had to do this immediately and in front of witnesses. Moreover, not doing this was considered shameful.

6. Right trouser leg only

Samurai began to be paranoid about their bathrooms after the incident of the daimyo Uesugi Kenshin, who was killed in the toilet in the 16th century. The killer sneaked into the toilet and stabbed Uesugi Kenshin with a spear, catching him by surprise with his pants down. After this, his rival Takeda Shingen became concerned that someone might do something similar to him and took action. Since then, all martial arts masters began to teach adherents to go to the toilet with their right pant leg completely lowered in order to ensure freedom of action. Samurai bathrooms were designed to be safe from assassins.

7. Post-mortem smell

The legendary samurai named Shigenari Kimura spent his last Stand in 1615, defending Osaka Castle. He boldly led his troops onto the battlefield, after carefully cutting his hair and fumigating his helmet with incense. Kimura knew that he would not survive and decided to "take care" of his future killer, leaving him with a fragrant corpse. He knew his head would be someone's trophy and he wanted it to smell good.

8. Dog in armor

At least one set of samurai armor, custom-made for a dog, survives today. Details are no longer known regarding how the dog armor was used, but scientists believe that it was likely that the armor was not intended for combat, but rather that it was used during parades or was simply ordered by someone from a collector. However, at one point in history, a samurai walked the streets of a Japanese city with a dog dressed in full battle armor.

9. Shakuhachi

One of the strangest types of samurai weapons are shakuhachi - bamboo flutes. Initially it was just musical instruments, played by Buddhist monks. Over time, flutes were transformed when a group of Buddhists called komuso began walking around with baskets on their heads, playing the flute and preaching. The samurai realized that these people with baskets on their heads were simply the perfect disguise and began to pretend to be them. The samurai spies who were sent to suppress uprisings looked like monks in komuso. At the same time, samurai flutes had spikes for use as self-defense weapons.

10. Samurai Devotion

The Samurai Code didn't actually exist until the 1600s, and before that, samurai constantly betrayed their masters. Even after this, the samurai's loyalty existed only on paper, but not in reality. real life. If the owner did not care about the samurai and did not adequately reward the warrior who protected him, then the samurai, as a rule, used any chance to slaughter him and go to serve the one who pays more. When Western missionaries first came to Japan, they were shocked by how much betrayal and backstabbing they saw.

And in continuation of the Japanese theme, we publish.

Who are samurai? They represent the feudal class of Japan, which was held in great esteem and respect among all other classes. Samurai were feared and respected for their cruelty in battles and nobility in peaceful life. The great names of the samurai of Japan are written in history, which will forever remember these legendary figures.

This is a kind of analogue of European knights, who swore an oath to serve faithfully to their master and played one of major roles in the Japanese community. Their activities and way of life were strictly bound by a code of honor, which was called “bushido”. The great samurai of Japan fought for the feudal lords or daimyo - the most powerful rulers of the country, who were subordinate to the powerful shogun.

The era of daimyo lasted from the 10th to the mid-19th century. During this time, the samurai managed to surround themselves with a kind of aura of nobility; they were feared and respected even outside the Land of the Rising Sun. Ordinary mortals admired them, admiring their cruelty, courage, cunning and resourcefulness. The samurai were credited with many feats, but the truth was actually much more prosaic - the famous samurai of Japan were ordinary killers, but what was the nature of their crimes!

Top most famous samurai of Japan

We can talk endlessly about great samurai. Their stories are shrouded in an aura of mystery and nobility; very often undeserved feats were attributed to them, but these individuals still remained the subject of worship and selfless respect.

• Taira no Kiyomori (1118 - 1181)

He was a commander and warrior, thanks to whom the first samurai administrative system of control in the history of the Japanese state was created. Before his work began, all samurai were simply hired warriors for aristocrats. After this, he took the Taira clan under his protection and quickly achieved success in political activity. In 1156, Kiyomori, together with Minamoto no Yoshimoto (head of the Minamoto clan), managed to suppress the rebellion and began to rule the two highest warrior clans in Kyoto. As a result, their alliance turned into bitter rivals, and in 1159 Kiyomori defeated Yoshimoto. Thus, Kiyomori became the head of the most powerful warrior clan in Kyoto.

Kiyomori was able to make serious progress in career ladder. In 1171, he gave his daughter in marriage to Emperor Takakura. A little later, their first child was born, who was often used as leverage on the emperor. However, the samurai’s plans could not be implemented; he died of fever in 1181.

• Ii Naomasa (1561 – 1602)

He was a famous general or daimyo during the period when the shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu was in power. He was one of the most loyal samurai that Japanese history has known. He rose significantly through the ranks and received great recognition after 3,000 soldiers under his leadership won the Battle of Nagakute (1584). He fought with such vigor that even his opponents admired his behavior on the battlefield. The Battle of Sekigahara brought him the greatest popularity. During the battle, he was hit by a stray bullet, after which he was never able to fully recover. His squad was called the “Red Devils” for the corresponding color of the armor that the warriors wore during battle to intimidate their opponents.

• Date Masamune (1567 - 1636)

The list of “The Most Famous Samurai” continues with this legendary personality. The daimyo was ruthless and merciless, as almost everyone said about him. He was an outstanding warrior and an excellent strategist, and his personality was made even more memorable due to the loss of one eye, for which Masamune received the nickname "One-Eyed Dragon". He was supposed to take the leading place in the clan after his father, but the loss of his eye caused a split in the family and his younger brother Date came to power. Already being a general, the samurai was able to gain a good reputation and was rightfully considered a leader. It was after this that he launched a campaign in order to defeat the neighboring clans. This created considerable excitement. As a result, the neighboring clan turned to the father with a request to curb his eldest son. Terumune was kidnapped, but he managed to warn his son about a similar outcome of events and asked him to kill all members of neighboring clans. Date Masamune followed his father's instructions.

Although this contradicts some ideas about samurai, Date Masamune was a supporter of religion and culture. He even knew the Pope personally.

• Honda Tadakatsu (1548 - 1610)

He was a general and one of the Four Heavenly Kings of Ieyasu along with Ii Naomasa, Sakakibara Yasumasa, and Sakai Tadatsugu. Of the four, Honda Tadakatsu had the reputation of being the most dangerous and merciless. He was a true warrior, even in the depths of his soul. So, for example, Oda Nobunaga, who, by the way, was not very happy with his followers, considered Tadakatsu a real samurai among all the other samurai. It was often said about him that Honda bypassed death itself, since he never received serious injuries, despite the fact that the number of his battles exceeded 100.

• Hattori Hanzo (1542 - 1596)

He was the most famous samurai and ninja of the Sengoku era. Thanks to him, Emperor Tokugawa Ieyasu survived, and a little later became the ruler of a united Japan. Hattori Hanzo showed brilliant military tactics, for which he received the nickname Devil Hanzo. He won his first battle at a very young age - Hanzo was only 16 years old at the time. After this, he was able to free the Tokugawa daughters from hostages at Kaminogo Castle in 1562. The year 1582 was decisive for him in his career and in gaining a leading position - he helped the future Shogun escape from his pursuers to the province of Mikawa. Local ninjas helped him in this operation.

Hattori Hanzo was an excellent swordsman and his recent years, as historical sources say, he was hiding under the guise of a monk. Many often attributed to this samurai supernatural abilities. They said that he could instantly hide and appear in the most unexpected places.

• Benkei (1155 - 1189)

He was a warrior monk who was in the service of Minamoto no Yoshitsune. Benkei is perhaps the most popular hero of Japanese folklore. Stories about his origins are varied: some claim that he was born to a raped woman, while others are inclined to believe that Benkei was a descendant of a god. Rumor has it that this samurai killed at least 200 people in each of his battles. Interesting fact– at the age of 17 he was more than 2 meters tall. He learned the art of using a naginata (a long weapon that is a mixture of a spear and an axe) and left a Buddhist monastery to join a sect of mountain monks.

According to legend, he went to the Gojo Bridge in Kyoto and was able to disarm every passing swordsman. Thus, he was able to collect 999 swords. During the 1000th battle with Minamoto no Yoshitsune, Benkei was defeated and forced to become his vassal. Several years later, while under siege, Yoshitsune committed ritual suicide while Benkei fought for his master. Rumor has it that the remaining soldiers were afraid to oppose this giant. In that battle, the samurai killed about 300 soldiers, who saw with their own eyes how the giant, pierced by arrows, was still standing. So everyone was able to find out about Benkei’s “standing death.”

• Uesugi Kenshin (1530 - 1578)

He was one of the most powerful commanders of the Sengoku era in Japan. He believed in the Buddhist god of war, and his followers were convinced that Uesugi Kenshin was an incarnation of Bishamonten. He was the youngest ruler of Echigo Province - at the age of 14 he took the place of his older brother.

He agreed to go against the greatest commander, Takeda Shingen. In 1561, the largest battle between Shingen and Kenshin took place. The results of the battle were mixed, as both sides lost about 3,000 people in this battle. They were rivals for more than 14 years, but even this fact did not stop them from exchanging gifts. And when Shingen died in 1573, Kenshin could not come to terms with the loss of such a worthy opponent.

Data on the death of Uesugi Kenshin are ambiguous. Some say that he died from the consequences of heavy drinking, others are inclined to believe that he was seriously ill.

• Takeda Shingen (1521 – 1573)

This is perhaps the most famous samurai in Japanese history. He is known for by and large, with its unique military tactics. Often referred to as the "Tiger of Kai" for its distinctive characteristics on the battlefield. At the age of 20, he took the Takeda clan under his wing, then united with the Imagawa clan - as a result, the young warlord gained power over all nearby territories.

He was the only samurai who had enough strength and skill to defeat the powerful Oda Nobunaga, who was striving for power over all of Japan. Shingen died while preparing for the next battle. Some say that he was wounded by a soldier, while others are inclined to believe that the samurai died from a serious illness.

• Tokugawa Ieyasu (1543 - 1616)

He is the first shogun and founder of the Tokugawa shogunate. His family practically ruled the Land of the Rising Sun from 1600 until the start of the Meiji Restoration in 1868. Ieyasu gained power in 1600, three years later he became shogun, and two years later he abdicated his position, but remained in power the rest of the time until his death. He was one of the most famous commanders in the entire history of Japan.

This samurai outlived many famous rulers in his lifetime: Oda Nobunaga laid the foundation for the shogunate, Toyotomi Hideyoshi seized power, Shingen and Kenshin, two of his strongest rivals, were dead. The Tokugawa Shogunate, thanks to Ieyasu's cunning mind and tactical thinking, would rule Japan for another 250 years.

• Toyotomi Hideyoshi (1536 - 1598)

He is also the most famous samurai of his kind. He was a general and a great politician of the Sengoku era, as well as the second unifier of Japan and the man who brought an end to the Warring States period. Hideyoshi made efforts to create some cultural heritage. For example, he introduced a restriction that meant that only members of the samurai class could carry weapons. In addition, he financed the construction and restoration of many temples, and also played a significant role in the history of Christianity in Japan.

Hideyoshi, despite his peasant origins, was able to become Nobunaga's great general. He failed to obtain the title of shogun, but made himself regent and built a palace. As his health began to fail, Hideyoshi began to conquer the Ming Dynasty with the help of Korea. The class reforms carried out by the samurai significantly changed the Japanese social system.

The history of the samurai - the mysterious class of warriors of ancient Japan - is surrounded by many secrets and myths. The role that samurai played in the formation of the national mentality of the Japanese is difficult to overestimate. Their descendants today do not carry swords and do not have the habit of cutting their bellies open in case of failure. But even after exchanging traditional armor for a business suit, combat equipment for a laptop computer, and a samurai clan for a commercial company, men from the Country rising sun remain true to the ideals of medieval warriors - defending justice in the name of the prosperity of the homeland.

The word "samurai" comes from the ancient Japanese verb "samurau" - "to serve." Thus, a samurai is a “servant”, “servant”. Another popular Japanese word for samurai is bushi (warrior).
As a special class, samurai existed throughout the history of Japan. Initially, they were in the service of aristocratic families, which originated in the ancient Japanese hierarchy of priests. But by the end of the 12th century. the largest samurai clans acquired independent political and military weight, and the aristocrats had nothing to oppose them.
For centuries, one samurai clan replaced another, fighting for the title of shogun - the military ruler of the country, in whose hands, unlike the emperor, real power was concentrated.

Right of two swords
The basis of the samurai ideology was Zen Buddhism and the teachings of Bushido (“the way of the warrior”), which had evolved over centuries, based on the principles of Confucianism. At the forefront was the complete submission of the samurai to his master.
The idea of ​​strict self-discipline inherent in Zen Buddhism was almost an ideal for warriors. According to the canons of Zen, each of them was obliged to persistently and purposefully cultivate will, self-control and composure.
The power of the samurai was determined by the income from the lands granted to him. The greater this income, the larger the detachment the samurai could bring under the banner of his master. The donated lands were not perceived as the real property of the samurai: if the bushi fell out of favor, they could easily be taken away and transferred to another warrior.
Samurai differed from representatives of other classes in two things: a special hairstyle with a shaved forehead and combed back hair, as well as the right to carry two swords - a large and a small one. (All men who had reached the age of majority were allowed to wear a small sword).
Until the beginning of the 17th century. Anyone lucky enough could become a samurai brave man, including peasant or city dweller. There was no clear division between the classes at that time, and the title of samurai was awarded by the prince for any military merits. A kind of “competition” was held among the samurai with awards for, say, the first to climb the wall of an enemy fortress or the first warrior to engage in battle with the enemy.
Despite the specifics of the profession, many samurai, especially from influential families, masterfully wielded not only a sword, but also a brush: they received a good education, knew how to write poetry, and practiced calligraphy.

Forget about life and death
The life of a samurai has always had two sides. One of them is the honors and rich gifts that samurai received from their masters for faithful service. The other, which significantly prevailed over the first, was constant hardship and deprivation, the cold and hunger of military campaigns, pain and blood. In such difficult conditions, maintain a sober mind and peace of mind The warrior was helped by moral and ethical preparation. And although for centuries there were no written laws of samurai behavior, all their actions were invariably determined by the traditional upbringing and philosophical views of that time. The bizarre fusion of these truths with local beliefs created a unique system. Its basis was enlightenment (satori), which was achieved through meditation, as well as solving moral and philosophical problems. A samurai could gain satori in battle only if he was able to completely forget about both life and death.
Enlightenment could descend on a samurai not only on the battlefield, but also at home, in short periods peaceful life preceding the next war. This, for example, was facilitated by some interior details. Let’s say that lightweight sliding partitions in a warrior’s house allowed him to connect the spaces of his home and the adjacent garden. And in the wall niches of samurai houses there invariably hung a scroll with a philosophical statement, poetry or a painting made in traditional Japanese technique.
In order to achieve enlightenment, Japanese warriors often and for a long time they admired nature, because the landscape, according to the worldview of the samurai, represented the consonance of everything in the world. Contemplation of the moon or cherry blossoms in spring - all this helped a person understand the essence of nature and merge with it.
The tea ceremony also helped to penetrate into the essence of life. As a special gift for a feat he accomplished, a samurai sometimes received a vessel with incredibly expensive tea. And to celebrate the honor shown to him by presenting such a gift, he invited guests to the house and treated them to this rare drink.

Head like a trophy
For several centuries, from the 11th to the first half of the 14th century, each samurai, choosing a worthy opponent before starting a battle, had to loudly shout out his name and list the feats accomplished by both his ancestors and himself. The purpose of such a “presentation” was to make oneself known and thereby undermine the morale of the enemies. True, the illustrious name could not only instill fear and a desire to retreat into the adversary, but, on the contrary, inflame the desire to defeat the noble samurai, thereby earning a reputation as an excellent warrior.
Anyone who, after listening to such a presentation, considered himself ready for battle, came forward. No one has ever interfered in a samurai fight. That is why, from the outside, the battle of the armies of the Japanese feudal lords resembled a simultaneous duel of several hundred or even thousands of people.
The army was divided into infantrymen, archers and mounted warriors. Each unit was headed by commanding officers. They, in turn, were subordinate to two generals who were attached to the commander-in-chief.
In addition, the army had a detachment of scouts - shinobi or ninja, whose task was to provide the latest information about the size and composition of the enemy army, about its movements and losses.
The warrior's servants had to insure their master, give him weapons and collect the heads cut off by him during the battle.
In addition to the set of rules that regulated the course of battle, there were also those that related to the presentation of military trophies and the receipt of awards for them. Thus, all severed heads collected after the battle had to be “inspected” by the commission. And every samurai tried to cut them down as much as possible, and it was highly desirable that they belong to noble military leaders or outstanding warriors, since the amount of remuneration and honors provided depended on this. The heads were displayed on special trays, and each of them was accompanied by a note indicating the name and rank of the defeated enemy.
It happened that in the heat of battle, the heads of allies and even servants were inadvertently found among the trophies. The typical punishment for such an offense was the cutting off of the little finger, which had virtually no effect on combat effectiveness, but served as a formidable warning for the future.
If no other outcome of the battle other than death, shameful flight or surrender was foreseen, the samurai chose death by committing ritual suicide - hara-kiri or seppuku (translated from Japanese as “ripping open the abdomen”). The warrior, who decided to take his own life, knew that his family would receive appropriate honors and awards for the courage he had shown, and he himself would remain in the memory of posterity as a hero.
The act of hara-kiri demonstrated courage to the enemy, and became an example to follow for his comrades. Delay in his execution was tantamount to loss of face. And this inevitably entailed a contemptuous attitude towards both the warrior himself and his relatives. During the ritual, the samurai had to courageously endure all the torment and not cry out in pain. Some warriors, in order to deprive the enemy of the pleasure of identifying and presenting a “noble head” as a trophy, disfigured their faces beyond recognition before committing suicide. And others, while the death throes lasted, found the strength to write farewell poems with their own blood.

Another World Invasion
Firearms brought to Japan in the first half of the 16th century, although they aroused admiration for their power, did not correspond to the ideals of warfare that dominated the Japanese military at that time. After all, according to the unwritten law of the samurai, death had to be not only worthy, but also beautiful, so that descendants would not have to blush. Now personal courage, the art of close combat and the rest of the arsenal of various ceremonial techniques aimed at victory turned out to be useless in the face of an accidental shot. Especially if it sounded treacherous from around the corner or from behind. However, by the beginning of the 17th century. firearms became firmly established, forever undermining the medieval principles of the Japanese samurai.

The Edo era began (1603 - 1868), a long period of peaceful existence of the Japanese state. The samurai, born of war and its personification, began to lose the meaning of life and a sense of stability. This inevitably led to the degradation of the class. Funding for military campaigns, due to their absence, was cut more and more every year, and then stopped altogether, which significantly affected the number of the middle layer of samurai.
Perhaps the most worthy activity for the samurai who remained out of work at that time was work in fire brigades. Yesterday's warriors treated her with great responsibility. They went to fires as if they were going to war - in full samurai garb and armor, often showing no less heroism than in battle.
Sometimes, in order not to starve and provide their family with at least some stability, samurai made a difficult decision for themselves - they adopted the children of rich merchants, whom they despised so much. Others began making bamboo umbrellas, fans, toothpicks, weaving sandals, and breeding goldfish. The more fortunate ones opened fencing schools where they taught the basics of the art hand-to-hand combat, taught those wishing to wield a spear, sword and bow.

Some samurai turned into merchants, others turned into robbery. Just a couple of centuries ago, any of the ancestors of these courageous and proud people, without hesitation, would have preferred instant death to even a hint of such a life. The old bushi looked with sadness and anger at the licentiousness of modern morals, which erased the memory of the true purpose of a warrior.
This state of affairs led to the fact that in the middle of the 18th century. In Japan, books began to appear designed to revive the high goals of the samurai, to return them to their former dignity, glory and respect. The inhabitants of the Land of the Rising Sun have awakened an interest in ancient stories and stories about the lives of “ideal warriors.” Medieval treatises on the art of war and norms of behavior became in demand again, and new ones were written: “Introduction to military art", "The Book of Five Rings", "Hidden in the Leaves". These works played an important role in the revival of the institution of samurai. The principles and ideals set out in them by the 19th century. became known as the “Code of Samurai Honor”, ​​or “Bushido” (translated from Japanese as “Way of the Warrior”).
The general idea of ​​all these works went back to the ancient samurai principles and was exhausted by the introductory phrase from the treatise “Hidden in the Leaves”: “I realized that the Way of the Samurai is death.” The point is that every warrior dies the moment he picks up a sword for the first time, while the physical fact of death is a mere formality. As in the days of the ancestors, the samurai was supposed to forget about his life and devote it entirely to serving his master. A true warrior had only three virtues - loyalty, courage and justice.


There are no former samurai
But samurai was never destined to be revived. In 1868, after more than 250 years of military rule by the Tokugawa shoguns and the almost complete isolation of Japan from the rest of the world, the entirety of state power returned to the 122nd Emperor Meiji. After the restoration of imperial power, the life of the state changed completely. The former institutions of power and property were abolished, estates were abolished, and the foundations were laid absolute monarchy, European standards have been introduced in many areas of life.
In 1871, according to an imperial decree, it was created new army numbering more than 100 thousand people. It was staffed by conscription, and soldiers were recruited not only from the military class, but also from all other strata of society. The last point in the centuries-old history of samurai was set in 1876, when the wearing of the main pride of a samurai - two swords - was officially banned.
However, the ex-samurai did not lose their privileged position in Japanese society. It was from their midst that the cadres of officials were replenished; the officer corps of the army and navy mainly consisted of legendary warriors. The Bushido Code, the glorification of samurai valor and traditions, the cult of war - all this became the most important integral part ideology of militaristic Japan until the end of World War II. Even today, the term “samurai” is sometimes used to refer to members of the Japanese army.

Elena STEPUNINA

In the early morning of the twenty-fourth of September 1877, the era of the samurai ended. It ended romantically, somewhat tragically, and beautifully in its own way. Most readers probably even have an idea of ​​what it’s about: to the sad music of Hans Zimmer, young idealists in funny medieval Japanese armor, along with Tom Cruise, died under a hail of bullets from Gatling machine guns. These Hollywood samurai tried to cling to their glorious past, which consisted of worshiping the lord, meditating before the sword, and keeping their sacred country clean from the dirty white barbarians. The viewer squeezed out a tear and empathized with the noble and wise Ken Watanabe.

Now let's see how it really was. It was no less beautiful, sad, but still a little different than in “The Last Samurai”.

Briefly about what Japan had to go through three hundred years before that memorable date.

Civil war between a bunch of daimyo, remained in the memory of posterity as “Shingoku Jidai”, left us as a legacy not only the word for the name of the Jedi Order, but also in the long term the regime of the Tokugawa shogunate. For about two hundred and fifty years, the Tokugawa shoguns ruled Japan, having previously isolated it from the outside world. Two and a half centuries of isolation gave Japan an amazing opportunity to preserve the medieval way of life while in Europe Russia was building St. Petersburg and smashing the Swedish Empire, the Thirteen Colonies fought with Britain for independence, the Bastille was being dismantled into bricks in Paris, and Napoleon watched the dying Guard at Waterloo. Japan remained in the warm and cozy sixteenth century, where it was extremely comfortable.

Japan was pulled out of its cozy isolation by force in the mid-nineteenth century. Americans, British, Russians, French - everyone suddenly became interested in Asia. The Holy Empire in the blink of an eye found itself in the middle of a large, aggressive and alien world. The world, which was technically ahead of Japan by about two hundred years.

The culprit in this situation was quickly found. The Tokugawa shogunate was accused of all sins, as it failed to protect its country from white barbarians. An influential opposition front has emerged in the country in the Choshu and Satsuma domains, which expressed its goals in a short slogan: “Sonno joi.” Or “we will restore the Emperor, drive out the barbarians.”

Yes, there was an emperor in Japan, he just didn’t have real power, the shoguns ruled for him. This opposition to the shogunate initially did not find the strength to do more than guerrilla warfare And terrorist attacks in relation to the unwanted servants of the shogun and Europeans. The turning point came a little later.

A young man named Ito Hirobumi, an idealistic revolutionary who had already become famous for his active participation in the arson of the British Embassy in Edo, was hired by the ruler of the Choshu domain for a secret operation. Together with four young men, they were secretly taken to China, where they were hired as sailors on a British ship. Their goal was to get into the enemy's lair - London - and collect information about their enemy.

What Ito Hirobumi saw in the UK was enough to turn the young Japanese’s entire understanding of the world upside down. He hastily returned to his homeland, where he decided to make every effort to modernize the backward country and quickly bring it into the club of world powers.

Ito Hirobumi should be discussed in a separate article. This is the man who actually created the Japanese Empire. He created a constitution, became the first prime minister of the country, under him Japan occupied Korea, defeated Russia in the war of 1905... But for now, the country is still ruled by a weakening shogun, who is opposed by the “sonno joi” movement. By this time, however, the second part of this slogan had already fallen off: it became clear that the war with the white invaders would be the end of Japan. The task was to restore imperial power.

The task was completed in 1868. Ito Hirobumi, Saigo Takamori, Yamagata Aritomo, Okubo Toshimichi and other former radical revolutionaries, together with an army of forces loyal to the emperor, captured the imperial palace, and then managed to finish off the forces loyal to the shogun. Two hundred and fifty years of the Tokugawa era are over.

Emperor Meiji formed a new government, which included the heroes of the revolution. Japan immediately began to make up for the lost time of two hundred and fifty years.

Certainly, new life impossible without reforms. The Japanese fanatically rejected everything that seemed outdated to them and not in keeping with the new times. One of these reforms affected the army. Samurai and feudal lords were becoming a thing of the past; they were to be replaced by a modernly equipped professional army, like everywhere else in the world. And if there were no problems with modern equipment (America, Germany, France and Russia gladly sold firearms and artillery to the Japanese), then difficulties arose with the reform of the entire system. Without going into too much detail, the Japanese military system differed very little from the medieval European system. There was a supreme ruler, there were feudal daimyos, there were personal squads of bushi samurai warriors. In the nineteenth century, this approach had already outlived its effectiveness for about three hundred years. The daimyo became poorer and lost their lands, and the samurai became poorer after them.

There was also one thing. Throughout almost their entire history, the Japanese fought quite a lot and, mainly, with each other. After Japan was unified under the Tokugawa at the beginning of the 17th century, peace and quiet reigned in the country. By the nineteenth century, Japan's military class had not fought for several generations. The samurai turned into a relic of a bygone era; they were arrogant gentlemen spoiled by their privileges, engaged in poetry, conversations in night gardens and tea parties. Well, imagine the army of a country that has not fought for two and a half centuries. An original spectacle, isn't it?

But the samurai took the impending abolition of their privileges and the reform of the entire political life of the country painfully. They still saw themselves as the guardians of the true warrior spirit and traditions of Japan. Saigo Takamori, the hero of the revolution, was looking for a way to prove the need to preserve the ancient system. The new government, which included the above-mentioned revolutionaries along with Saigoµ, considered the possibility of war with Korea and its annexation. Decrepit China, ravaged by two opium wars and corroded on all sides by Europeans, could no longer protect its old ally, and Saigo Takamori demanded to take advantage of the situation. Ito Hirobumi was categorically against it: Japan needs peace, and we’ll deal with expansion later. In the end, the emperor himself supported the peace party. Saigo spat, collected his belongings and left the capital for his homeland, the Principality of Satsuma. There he abandoned politics, dug in his garden, walked, hunted and wrote poetry.

“Since ancient times, unfortunate fate has been the usual price for earthly glory,
What better way to walk through the forest to your hut, carrying a hoe on your shoulder.”

But soon other dissatisfied samurai began to flock to Satsuma, mostly extremely young age. Saigo Takamori was still a hero and role model. The former military man decided to help young people find their place in life and opened several academies for them, where young men studied science, including military science. Infantry and artillery schools were opened, Saigo willingly bought weapons for his charges.

Of course, it all looked suspicious. It is not known for certain whether Saigoµ was preparing an open rebellion. Personally, I am inclined to doubt this, but the government thought differently. Soon, the students dragged a “spy” to Saigo, who, after torture, revealed that he had been sent here to collect information and then kill Saigo Takamori. Confessions after torture gave the students moral justification for retaliating. Soon, having learned about the government's plans to transport weapons from Saigo Takamori's warehouses to Osaka, they decided to prevent this and secretly stole guns and cannons from the arsenals. Unbeknownst to Saigo Takamori.

At this time he was in the forest hunting. Upon returning and learning what had happened, Saigo lost his temper. What happened was open rebellion. There was nothing to do. Saigoµ could not leave his charges to their fate. With a heavy heart, he announced the mobilization of forces loyal to him, making it clear that he was not going to oppose the authority of the emperor. His former comrades who discriminate against his subjects who served him faithfully are his true enemies.

The very first battle became a serious test for Saigo. They besieged Kumamoto Castle, expecting an easy victory, but to Saigoµ's surprise, the castle's garrison repelled one attack after another, although it consisted of conscripts, volunteers, merchants and peasants. Of course, the castle itself played a significant role - although it was three hundred years old, it still remained a formidable and impregnable fortress, inaccessible to the light artillery of Saigo Takamori.

The siege dragged on, and the imperial army came to the aid of the defenders. Takamori's troops were defeated, after which he began to retreat back to Satsuma. This retreat was long and bloody. Supplies, equipment, weapons - all this was not enough. Some rebel samurai armed themselves with swords and went into the forests to fight guerrillas. Saigo Takamori and about five hundred of his remaining supporters walked towards own death.

The samurai's swan song was the Battle of Shiroyama. Five hundred idealistic samurai, armed haphazardly and with whatever they could find, were surrounded by the imperial army, commanded by Saigo's old friend, Yamagato Aritomo. Thirty thousand professional soldiers were thoroughly prepared to attack an enemy sixty times their number. Yamagato tried to persuade Saigo to resolve the matter peacefully, but the last samurai did not answer his friend’s letter.

In the early morning of the twenty-fourth of September 1877, the era of the samurai ended. It ended romantically, somewhat tragically, and beautifully in its own way. Yes, samurai were armed with swords when they rushed at guns and artillery in a suicidal attack. But the point here was not a fundamental rejection of new weapons - they simply had no ammunition left. Saigo could have saved his life and surrendered - but is this a way out for a samurai? His death instantly became surrounded by legends, saying that the warrior, pierced by a bullet, knelt down, turned towards Kyoto and ripped open his stomach.

Saigo Takamori was not going to stand in the way of progress and modernization. He was smart enough to understand the pointlessness of this. The last samurai became a victim of circumstances, and later a national hero, who was officially pardoned by the emperor. Japan has entered a completely new era.