Shogun

A shogun was the top military ruler in feudal Japan. The shogun was appointed by the emperor, and was placed under the emperor in the social hierarchy. However, he had more power than the emperor. The shogun was considered the head of government and had absolute power over territories in Japan. In 1192, Minamoto Yoritomo became the first shogun to control Japan under a military-style government. One of the most famous shoguns was Tokugawa Ieyasu. He became shogun in 1603 and was known for uniting the country. He ruled in the capital city Edo (now called Tokyo). The Tokugawa family ruled Japan until the end of feudalism in 1868.

Samurai

A samurai's job was to fight for and protect the daimyo and shogun. In fact, samurai means “one who serves.” In return he received land, crops, and a home near the daimyo's castle. They were expert horsemen, equally comfortable fighting on land and in the saddle. In order to become a samurai, you had to have been born into a samurai family. At the age of 5, boys were sent to learn techniques including sword and spear fighting, archery, and jujutsu. Women would also learn basic sword fighting, called kendo, in order to defend their homes when the men were off fighting. The samurai had to follow strict rules, called bushido, or “the way of the warrior.” The samurai had to learn and follow codes of conduct including honor, loyalty, self control, not complaining, and how to fight and die without fear. They also spent time studying literature, poetry, music, art, and performing traditional tea ceremonies.

Peasants

The peasants were the lowest ranking class in feudal Japan. This class was divided into three sub-classes. The farmers and fishermen were at the top because they were the ones that produced the food for all of society. They made up 90% of the population. Farmers worked on the land owned by the daimyo and were forced to give up most of their crops (mainly rice). Below the farmers and fishermen were the craftsmen, or artisans. They were skilled sword makers, dressmakers, and woodworkers. The bottom of the peasant class were the merchants. They were shopkeepers and traded and sold goods that others would make. Merchants were considered the lowest ranking because they made a living off of other people's work. Over time, however, the role of merchants grew as feudalism in Japan began to dwindle towards the late 1800's.

Emperor

Japan's feudal system lasted from about 1185 to 1868. Although the emperor was at the top of the social hierarchy, he had very little power during this time. Wars between rival clans caused the emperor to lose power and control, and the emperor was soon considered just a symbolic figure-head. Each emperor in Japan was believed to be a direct descendant of the sun-goddess, Amaterasu.

Daimyo

A daimyo was under the authority of the shogun. Daimyos were very wealthy noblemen and landowners that ran the countryside. The daimyo class often lived in huge castles and owned all the surrounding land. In Japanese, dai means “large” and myo means “private land.” Feudalism in Japan centered around these rich landowners who let farmers live on and use their land in return for their crops and loyalty. Since the daimyos were very powerful and continually fought each other, they hired huge armies of samurai warriors to fight for them and to protect their land. Some famous daimyos included Oda Nobunaga, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, and Tokugawa Ieyasu (before he became a shogun). Over time the power of the daimyo decreased, eventually leading to the end of feudalism in Japan by 1868.