Tokugawa Leyasu: The First Shogun Warrior

These sources tell readers that in the early Tokugawa period, the Shogun/Bakufu placed emphasis on the creation of a moral, secure, and precise suzerain/vassal state. With rigid rules, the Shogunate attempted to create a state of accountability where individuals and groups served their specific place in society. From these sources, readers learn that the Shogun place strict restrictions on almost all Japanese persons concerning many aspects of everyday life.

Tokugawa Ieyasu, the third of Japan’s unifiers, was able to create a stable regime that brought peace to Japan for 250 years. Under his system, “the centralization of feudal state and society went much further than it had in the earlier periods.” (Sources, 121). During this time, Shogun and roughly 260 feudal lords, called daimyos, ruled Japan. According to law, the positions of daimyos were inherited, which meant that a daimyo would be succeeded by one of his sons and this succession would be approved by the Shogun. The Shogun was theoretically selected by the emperor, who fulfilled his role as the “final legitimizing authority in Japan” (sources 121).

The Minamotos won, and the emperor made Minamoto Yoritomo shogun, the head of the military. Yoritomo however wanted more and took all power away from the emperor and made himself dictator. At this time the samurai gained power, through land given to them by the new shogun. Their rise in status was beginning.

The Edo period set in the era of 1603-1867 was commonly known as the Tokugawa Period, this was when the Japanese society was ruled by Tokugawa Shogunate and the country’s 300 regional Daimyo, which at the time were powerful territorial lords who rules most of Japan which then was contained under strict social order, economic growth and prohibited foreign contact with outside countries. Many of japans historical artists would usually create illustrations on large scrolls of paper which are called ‘Emakimono’. Paint ceramics, calligraphy on silk or paper, use ink wash to paint vast landscapes. The most popular art form was ukiyo-e.

In 1159, Kiyomori of the Taira clan was victorious over the Minamoto clan. Kiyomori murdered all the adults of the Monamoto clan and forced the children into exile. The emperor rewarded Kiyomori victory by giving him an advisor position in the government. This event was significant because Kiyomori was the first warrior in Japan’s government. Like the Fujiwara family, Kiyomori desired a royal bloodline within the Taira clan. So the Taira clan consorted with the imperial family in efforts to secure an imperial bloodline. Later, Kiyomori obtain a higher government position and more importantly a grandson was born and is heir to the throne. Feeling cheated an imperial prince sought the exiled Minamoto to overthrow the Taria clan. In 1180, Yoritomo of the Minamoto clan formed an army and battled with Taira clan that is known as the Genpei War. Eventually, Kiyomori died and the Taria clan shortly declined after him. During these battles warriors ran amok pillaging the Japan’s cuntryside. To end the chaos and violence the imperial turned to Yoritomo. Yoritomo in return raise an army of samurais and took complete control of the government and transformed it into a military government. The Kamakura government consisted of the emperor, shogun, and the house men. The emperor served merely as a figurehead, he little to no control of his government. The shogun had

The samurai, or bushi (warrior), are well-trained cavalrymen that serve a particular lord. The first recorded history of the samurai was about the 9th century A.D. At that time the capitol of Japan was Kamakura, a military installation. Japan was ruled by an emperor who controlled his empire through the use of shoguns. Shoguns were generals that ruled over

Tokugawa rulers during the 17th century greatly improved a multitude of separate political aspects and as a result, positively impacted the nation and citizens. A primary example of this is Tokugawa’s establishment of the capital at Edo which in present day Japan is called the iconic Tokyo. Additionally, he established a strong central government, along with his shoguns imposing an era of unity, stability, and peace in Japan. The shoguns closely monitored and controlled the local daimyo possessed a relative amount of power but remained to be tested for their loyalty and kept under control by the shoguns who restricted their family and eventually became hostages. The daimyo was required to maintain two residences in an attempt to prevent rebellion because of this wasting factor which prohibited them as they had minuscule amounts of time to construct a powerful army due to constantly needing to defend two residences. The Tokugawa period was an era of peace, stability, and

Every leadership position was hereditary, passing the same titles down the lines of esteemed Japanese families. Only the Shogun could give favor and titles to families, completely cutting off any chance at social mobility. This strategic move kept daimyo competing with each other to please the Shogun, losing the chance to band together and overthrow the government instead (Lecture, 2013 Feb 12). This decentralized government was inefficient for any kind of domestic and foreign affairs to be handles quickly. There was no sense of nationalism and profits circulated only among the elite, who controlled trade. The large degree of separation between the domains ultimately resulted in civil war, permanently bringing down Tokugawa

Ieyasu’s early life was not one that went smoothly. He was born in a castle in the Okazaki Castle Mikawa to his parents, Matsudaira Hirotada and Odai-no-kata, or Lady Odai. He lived from 1543 to 1616. Ieyasu was born for greatness from the beginning. His father was the daimyo, meaning powerful ruler, of Mikawa and his mother Odai-nokata was the daughter of a nearby samurai lord. Ieyasu’s mother and father were step-siblings and had him at a very young age. They separated shortly after his birth due to his mother being sent back to her family. After a few years both Lady Odai, and Hirotada remarried and had children giving Tokugawa eleven half siblings total.

The Tokugawa shogunate was a very important and stable government in Japanese history. It was the connection of the feudalism and capitalism of Japan. For over two hundred years, challenges to Tokugawa authority were few, and this era was known as the time of Great Peace. In general, its appearance for the populace was grateful, because of a period of freedom from the warfare marked Sengoku, from the middle of 15th century to the end of 16th century. During that period, the chain of islands that makes up Japan was ruled by samurai and warlords. During the late sixteenth-century Oda Nobunaga, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, and finally Tokugawa Ieyasu took power in succession and finally united the whole Japan. However, the success of Tokugawa

The death of emperor Hideyoshi and subsequent ascension to the throne of Hideyori in 1598 set into motion events that would alter the political landscape in Japan for the next two hundred and fifty years. Tokugawa Ieyasu, in his quest to become absolute ruler of Japan defeated Hideyori loyalists in the battle of Sekigahara and was appointed Shogun by Hideyori in 1603. This military “coup d’état” effectively gave Tokugawa complete control of Japan and reduced the emperor to little more than a figurehead in the governing of Japan. As history would show, the feudal system of government that Tokugawa created ultimately led to

Tokugawa leyasu was born 1543.When leyasu .When leyasu 4 year old, he got the education suitable for a nobleman. In 1605 he received the title of shogun from Emperor Go-Yōzei. After being shogun few years he created the Tokugawa shogunate, which ushered in the Edo period, and was the third Shogunal government. In 1609 leyasu chose to distance Japan from European influence. Few year later leyasu died at age 73 , his tomb was in a pubic place ,people can worship him in there. We can see leyasu was a powerful person in japan.

There were many key individuals that helped shape the Tokugawa period, but the most important of them all was Tokugawa Ieyasu. He impacted the period so heavily that the period is named after him. Ieyasu was the first shogun and founded Shogunate which is a military dictatorship. This was the start of the shogun and its immense power. As stated by Britannica, “As shogun, Ieyasu achieved hegemony over the entire country by balancing the power of potentially hostile domains (tozama) with strategically placed allies (fudai) and collateral houses (shimpan).” (Encyclopedia Britannica, 2017). This shows that he carefully thought through his plans. After he achieved this, he later

Yuzan Daidoji, Oscar Ratti, and Thomas Cleary. The Code of the Samurai. Boston: Tuttle, 1999. 10-44.

Tokugawa had centralized government with 450 daimyo put into a place. He required them to meet in Edo every other year, having a residency for at least one year. The families of the daimyo also had to stay as hostages, so they could