The Samurai's Role In Early Japan

The samurai are some of the most well known and recognizable figures found in history. But how did they come to be and what was their life like? The samurai warriors developed from the three major clans battling for land and power in Japan. They became their own class just before the start of the 10th century and were known by two names, one of them was samurai and the other bushi. No matter what name they went by, total loyalty was given to whomever they served and in return, the samurai received a stipend, land, and higher positions of power within his area. The Japanese samurai became a versatile class of warriors who guided their Emperors and families in Japan for hundreds of years.

The samurai had many purposes in early Japan from handling day-to-day disturbances in the village to defending Japan from foreign invaders. The samurai role in government was simple. Help the Daimyo, or landlords, maintain order. This varied throughout Japan but basically meant to keep the villagers in the fields producing and maintaining the crops. Some …show more content…
The samurai were regulated into two classes; the lower social standing samurai were combined with the commoner while the ones with higher social standing maintained their status. This was until the government of Japan prohibited samurai from wearing two swords in 1876, and with that ending the samurai special rights. During this time many samurai felt the government had gone too far and actually rebelled against Japan and other samurai that still stood by the government. The samurai against Japan formed a rebellion called the Satsuma rebellion. Its leader Saigo Takamori lead the charge through many battles until it became clear that this would not be won. Saigo eventually committed hara-kiri before he could be captured during the Battle of Shiroyama. His death effectively ended the rebellion. The movie “The Last Samurai” is loosely based on this