Medieval Japan and Korea

Japanese Middle Ages Japan started as a grouping of clans Chinese influence affected the Japanese way of government 500 C.E. Under Shotoku Taishi, the Japanese gained a centralized government with an Emperor at it’s head Also gained a new tax system

Location, Location, Location After Taishi, emperors traditionally were of Yamato descent, but were “influenced” by other clans. First of these “influential” clans was the Fujiwara First order of business was to establish a capital at Nara in 710AD

Got to pay your taxes! Once Taishi established the Yamato Emperor he also started a system of taxes that sounds like feudalism However, after the Fujiwara established Nara problems occurred

Moving out! In 794 AD the capital was moved to Heian (modern day Kyoto) due to corruptive influence of nobles there. However, at this time the government was starting to become decentralized

“The Way of the Warrior” As the emperor lost more and more power local nobles started to use samurai These men were like knights in Medieval Europe but used swords and bows on horseback in place of lances Also like knights, samurai lived under a strict code called Bushido or “way of the warrior” Bushido code

Kamakura Shogunate By the end of the 1100s the emperor was only that in name. Local warlords had begun to carve out their own lands in a time of great civil war In 1192 Minamoto Yoritomo established the shogunate system after defeated most of his rivals See diagram on pg. 392 Emperor (high rank/little to no power) shogun (ruler)  Daimyo (large landowners)  Samurai  Peasants, merchants, artisans

Life in Early Japan Role of Women Religion Culture Were seen as almost equal to men Faced easy divorces Religion Shinto Zen Zen Buddhism Culture Female authors Landscape art and architecture

Korea in a Nutshell Korea has a long history of invasion 109BC after China started to control Northern Korea three kingdoms emerged: Koguryo, Paekche and Silla Silla gradually took over, but it was the Koryo kingdom that united Korea and gained 400 years of power Chinese influenced government. With the invading Mongols in 13th century, the Koryo became vassals until 1392 when the Mongol dynasty crumbled. At this point a Yi Song-gye established the Yi dynasty and once again Korea was in control of itself