1. Chapter 8, Section 3

2. The Geography of Japan Four main islands: Hokkaido (hah-KY-doh) Honshu (HAHN-shoo) Kyushu (kee-OO-shoo) Shikoku (shih-KOH-koo) Mountainous [volcanic in origin] (11% can be farmed) Isolation

3. Rise of the Japanese State First clans settled in the modern cities of Osaka and Kyoto. Clans Local ruler offered protection in exchange for a share of the harvest [FEUDALISM] Yamato clan leader achieved supremacy over all.

4. Chinese Influences Shotoku Taishu (574-622) Prince who wanted to unify clans to resist the Chinese invaders. Learned about the Chinese structure of government and brought those ideas back to Japan. Centralized government with a supreme ruler. To limit the power of the aristocrats. Ruler was a divine figure and symbol of Japanese nation. New tax system Village was the basic unit of government Farmland belonged to the state.

5. The Nara Period Fujiwara clan brings changes: New capital @ Nara. Emperor began to use the title “son of Heaven” Aristocrats became stronger. They kept the taxes for themselves.

6. The Heian Period 794 capital moved to Heian [HAY-ahn] (Kyoto). Real power was with the Fujiwara clan. Powerful families had the power. [FEUDALISM] Used military force to protect their interests. Samurai (“Those who serve”) Resembled knights. Lived by a strict warrior code = BUSHIDO “Way of the warrior” Loyalty to his lord.

7. The Kamakura Shogunate, 1192-1333 Minamoto Yoritomo Defeated rivals and set up his power near Tokyo. Centralized government Shogun = general Shogunate – emperor remained ruler in name only. Kublai Khan invaded Japan with 150,000 men. Almost the entire fleet was destroyed by a typhoon. http://www.historytoday.com/blog/2011/10/13th-century-mongolian-invasion-ship-discovered-under-japanese- seabed http://www.historytoday.com/blog/2011/10/13th-century-mongolian-invasion-ship-discovered-under-japanese- seabed 1333 overthrown by another family.

8. Collapse of Central Rule Power of aristocrats grew during the 14 th – 15 th centuries. Daimyo Heads of important families. Controlled the land; owed no taxes By 1500 there was a lot of chaos. Onin War, 1467-1477 Central authority disappeared. Armies burned temples and palaces in Kyoto.

9. Life in Early Japan Japanese made the most of limited resources: Farmed limited land available. Trade grew; markets appeared in larger towns.

10. The Role of Women Certain level of equality with men. Inheritance, could divorce if abandoned Subordinate to men. Aristocratic women at court. Often appear in paintings of the period.

11. Religion in Early Japan Worshipped spirits, called kami In trees, rivers, streams and mountains. Believed that sprits of ancestors were present in the air around them. Shinto: “The Sacred Way” or “the Way of the Gods” Divinity of the emperor Sacredness of the nation Some followed Buddhism which Buddhist monks brought to China in 6 th century A.D. Zen was very popular (became part of Samurai code). Different ways to achieve enlightenment.