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Tokugawa Ieyasu Research Paper

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Where the cherry blossoms bloom in the new spring, the rancid but familiar smells of fish permeate the nearby market, and people bustle across streets throughout the city, Japan is not only a unique and fascinating nation, but it also contains one of the richest and fascinating histories in the world. This history is heavily dependent on the nation’s past feudalist society, especially the shogunate and the samurai. This world centered around the warriors of medieval Japan did not come about spontaneously. Years, decades, and even millennia led up to the military’s rise in power. Eventually, this class dominated even the emperors’ rules. However, the lack of modern use and advancements led to the decline of feudalism and eventually, its extinction. Although gone, this integral part of Japan’s history is forever embedded in modern day by influence. Influenced by China, Japan in the Heian period was a time of literature and writing development, but this time also marked the successful rise of the warrior class. The samurai, aristocratic fighters meaning “those who serve,” were the primary mediums of conflict by the end of the 12th century (Editors of Time-Life Books, 9). The official establishment of a military government in Japan began with the …show more content…

The resulting Tokugawa period “saw Japan move from a country divided by civil war to a unified, stable, and mature state” (Earns, Lane). This was accomplished through Ieyasu’s establishment of a central authority through a new shogunate in Edo, or present-day Tokyo. A more organized government, the Tokugawa shogunate introduced regional authority by daimyo, brought social classes to working order, and resulted in a more flourishing economy through urbanization (Earns, Lane). This was the first step towards a more modernized Japan as it decreased conflict and created an increased orderly

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