Early Samurai
Battle of Don-no-ura
The battle of Dan no Ura, which took place in or quite near the Straits of Shimonoseki, was the culmination of the Gempei War (1180-85) and resulted in the complete destruction of the Taira leadership.
The battle had been essentially forced on the Taira by their loss of Yashima - their base on Shikoku. Pursued by Minamoto no Yoshitsune and isolated by the maneuvers ofMinamoto no Noriyori on Honshu and northern Kyushu, the Taira were forced to stand and fight. They were more experienced at naval warfare than the Minamoto, but this was offset to a great extent when a number of local warriors brought ships and seasoned Inland Sea sailors for the Minamoto. Though outnumbered in ships (perhaps 850 to 500), the Taira hoped to use the tides to their advantage. In the event, the tides did flow against the Minamoto initially, allowing the Taira to employ their archers to some effect. In the end, the tide changed and Yoshitsune, aided by the defection of the Taira general Taguchi Shigeyoshi, was able to drive home his attack. The child-emperor Antoku and his motherTaira no Tokuko (Kenreimon-in) committed suicide by drowning, followed by most of the Taira samurai - save their leader, Munemori, who was captured and later executed.
The battle of Dan no Ura, which took place in or quite near the Straits of Shimonoseki, was the culmination of the Gempei War (1180-85) and resulted in the complete destruction of the Taira leadership.
The battle had been essentially forced on the Taira by their loss of Yashima - their base on Shikoku. Pursued by Minamoto no Yoshitsune and isolated by the maneuvers ofMinamoto no Noriyori on Honshu and northern Kyushu, the Taira were forced to stand and fight. They were more experienced at naval warfare than the Minamoto, but this was offset to a great extent when a number of local warriors brought ships and seasoned Inland Sea sailors for the Minamoto. Though outnumbered in ships (perhaps 850 to 500), the Taira hoped to use the tides to their advantage. In the event, the tides did flow against the Minamoto initially, allowing the Taira to employ their archers to some effect. In the end, the tide changed and Yoshitsune, aided by the defection of the Taira general Taguchi Shigeyoshi, was able to drive home his attack. The child-emperor Antoku and his motherTaira no Tokuko (Kenreimon-in) committed suicide by drowning, followed by most of the Taira samurai - save their leader, Munemori, who was captured and later executed.
Samurai Dates of Importance
- 660 B.C. --- Legend says Jimmu Tenno became Japan's first emperor and set up the ruling Yamato State. Weapons and armour develop.
- 400's A.D. --- Horses introduced into Japanese fighting.
- 500's A.D. --- Buddhism arrived in Japan; becomes a powerful philosophy for rulers and warriors.
- 500's A.D. --- Soga clan dominated the Yamato court.
- 645 A.D. --- Taika Reforms began.
- 702 A.D. --- Taiho law codes established the Great Council of State.
- 710 A.D. --- Nara rule began with first permanent capital.
- 781 A.D. --- Emperor Kammu came to power and moved capital to Kyoto a few years later.
- 794 A.D. --- Heian period began.
- 858 A.D. --- Fujiwara family gained control of imperial court.
- 935 A.D. --- Taira Masakado revolted and proclaimed himself "The New Emperor." Other Samurai leaders exerted their influence across the land and changed the history of Japan.
- 1180-85 A.D. --- Minamoto Yoritomo takes up arms against the Taira clan in The Gempei War.
- 1192 A.D. --- Yoritomo became first permanent shogun of Japan and set up his Samurai government in Kamakura.
- Late 1200's A.D. --- Mongols invade Japan. The Samurai defeat the Mongols after many years of fierce fighting. The Samurai developed a style of formation combat and depended more on the sword as a primary weapon in battle.
- 1318 A.D. --- Go-Daigo became the 96th Emperor of Japan. He attempted to overthrow the Hojo regents, but gave rise instead to a new dynasty of Shoguns, the Ashikaga family, who set up their government in the capital city of Kyoto.
- 1400'a A.D. --- Master swordsmen established schools to teach their style of ken-jutsu.
- 1467-77 A.D. --- The Onin War saw the decline of the Shogun's power and began the Sengoku Jidai ("The Age of the Country at War") which lasted 150 years.
- 1542 A.D. --- Portuguese guns were introduced into Japan.
- 1560 A.D. --- Oda Nobunaga began the process of unifying Japan. Toyotomi Hideyoshi continued the quest after Nobunaga's death.
- 1592 A.D. --- Hideyoshi invaded Korea on his way to invading China, but died in 1598 before succeeding.
- 1603 A.D. --- The Tokugawa family began ruling Japan. The regime lasted more than 200 years.
- 1605 A.D. --- Miyamoto Musashi, Japan's most famous Samurai, began his musha-shugyo (warrior pilgrimage). Musashi fought and won more than 60 sword fights before the age of 30. He founded the Individual School of Two Skies and taught for many years. At the age of 60, Musashi wrote Gorin No Sho ("The Book of Five Spheres"), the most famous writing about the Japanese Sword Arts. He also wrote "The 35 Articles on the Art of Swordsmanship."
- 1615 A.D. --- Tokugawa Ieyasu drew up the "Buke Sho Hatto" (Rules for Martial Families) before his death. It gave Samurai 13 guides to living as a warrior during peace time.
- 1630 A.D. --- Japan cut its ties with the outside world.
- 1854 A.D. --- Commodore Matthew Perry opened trade between the United States and Japan.
- 1867 A.D. --- Emperor Mutsuhito regained his traditional powers and took the name Meiji. It was the beginning of the Meiji Restoration. Meiji (Mutsuhito) set up his new capital city in Edo (Tokyo).
- 1868 A.D. --- Emperor Meiji introduced the "Five Articles Oath" which began the dismantling of the Samurai class.
- 1873 A.D. --- Emperor Meiji established an army based on conscription; an army open to anyone.
- 1876 A.D. --- Emperor Meiji declared a new law that ended the wearing of swords. The Samurai had lost their profession and their right to wear swords. Their position as a special class ended after almost 1,000 years.
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