1. Japan: Early History to 1467
HIS 105 Chapter 9
Japan: Early History to 1467

2. Japan East of China 4 main islands and other smaller ones
Formed by volcanic eruptions
Mountainous
Only small area good for agriculture
Wet rice is the staple crop

3. Japan

4. Poor in natural resources
Beauty of their islands reflected in their art, architecture, and religion
Ancestors of the Japanese migrated to the islands about 5000 B.C.E. probably from Polynesia and S.E. Asia

5. Mt. Fuji

6. Japan

7. Jomon Culture Migrants Present 8000 – 300 B.C.E. Hunter/gatherers
Distinctive cord pattern pottery

8. Jomon Pottery Cord Pattern

9. Many other settlers came in from Korea and Manchuria and blended into a homogeneous society with a distinctive language, culture, and appearance
They drove the previous inhabitants, the Ainus, north where only a few exist today

10. Ainus

11. Yayoi Culture (300 B.C.E – 300 C.E.)
Wet rice introduced from Asian mainland
Had wheel-turned pottery
Had bronze ware (bells)
Divided into clans
Households were matriarchal
Had a clan deity and rigid social classes
Women had strong position in society:
Shamans
Empresses

12. Yayoi Pottery

13. Yayoi Bronze

14. Yamato State ( 300 – 600 C.E.) Gained dominance over other clans
Imperial cult developed around the sun goddess (land of the rising sun) and Shintoism
4th century- Yamato controlled southern islands and parts of Korea
Had contact with China through trade and migrants

15. Introduction of Chinese script made it possible for Japanese to learn from Chinese texts
Buddhism introduced in the 6th century and existed side-by-side with Shintoism
Shintoism
Animistic worship of the forces of nature
It included a great leader could be worshiped after death

16. Chinese Calligraphy

17. Shintoism

18. Mt. Fuji was holy
Each clan had a nature as its personal deity
Emperors seen as descendents of sun goddess so were living gods

19. 7th century – Yamato tried to style government after Chinese model
This ushered in a 2nd major turning point for Japanese – the spread of Chinese culture
Took place from 7th to 12th centuries
Occurred in 3 stages:
Learning about China
Introducing Chinese institutions
Trying to make Chinese ways Japanese ways

20. Japan remained politically independent but heavily influenced by China
Many copied ways , in the end, did not work in Japan:
Government became to heavy
Landlords resisted changes to more central control
Many Chinese laws made no sense in Japan

21. There was a rising opposition to outside influences
However, a distinctive Japanese culture resulted

22. Change in Capitals
New capital established at Nara in 710 styled after the Chinese
In 794, the capital moved to Heian (Kyoto)
Much later the capital moved to Edo or Tokyo in 1869
All capitals were laid out quite elaborately and those in government lived luxuriously

23. Peasants lived in pit houses in small villages
They worked on paddy rice farms
Used slash and burn techniques when preparing land for cultivation
There were also Buddhist temples

24. Pit Houses

25. Heian rulers followed both Shintoism and Confucius
Japanese believed they had only one dynasty in their history – all were descendents of the sun goddess

26. Heian Rulers By 12th century All land belonged to the emperor
It was redistributed every 6 years
Taxes were levied on people, not land
Things were all very stable until the end of Heian rule when taxes were placed on grain and landholdings became hereditary

27. Nobles and powerful temples were exempt from taxes

28. Samurai 792, the court began to rely on mounted warriors
They became the official troops of the emperor
They did not pay taxes
They were known as the samurai from the word samurau meaning “ to serve “

29. Samurai

30. They were the military of Japan until the 15th and 16th centuries when the “ foot soldier “ came into practice
Samurai paid for their own equipment and training, so many came from rich families
They were to preserve local order and to help collect taxes

31. Government Slowly changed from Chinese model in 9th century
New agencies emerged
Audit officers who tried to keep an eye on revenues
Bureau of Archivists who recorded imperial decrees
Police Commissioners who were responsible for law and order

32. The Court Emperor Had the power to appoint
Some families gained great influence through marriage to the emperor: the Fujiwara family
Emperor Shirakawa believed an emperor should govern and he did from ; then he stepped down but continued to rule for another 43 years
Other emperors followed his example

33. Culture
In Nara and early Heian Japan, culture was based in Shintoism and in village folkways
Court culture was still based in Chinese ways and teachings
Those in the court would read and write in Chinese and felt those who couldn’t were beneath them
760 – Japanese began writing their own stories in Japanese for a change
Collection of Ten Thousand Leaves

34. Many of the great writings during the Heian period were done by women
Chinese characters were used as phonetic symbols in that book of 4,516 poems
In 951 – a new alphabet or script, kana, was introduced for the Japanese
Many of the great writings during the Heian period were done by women
Tale of Genji by Murasaki Shikibu in 1010 was the world’s first novel
showed sensitivity, character development, and life

35. Kana

36. Buddhism Present in Nara Japan Mahayana Buddhism
Had monks and monasteries living away from society
Received money from the state
Popular in Japan first because of its rituals, gods, demons, angels, and its art
Later because of its philosophy

37. Not seen as foreign
Was felt deeply by Japanese
Shintoism was almost absorbed by Buddhism in the late Heian period

38. Feudal Rule
1185 – capital was moved to Kyoto and civil rule was replaced by military rule called “tent government” or bakufu
This rule introduced the Shogun who was technically under the emperor
This brought about social reorganization

39. Shogun

40. Taira rule in Kyoto was defeated by Minamoto Yoritomo (1147-1199) in 1185
It was a national victory
His soldiers were now his vassals
He had military governors in each province and military stewards on former Taira estates
Any money went to the stewards or to Kyoto

41. Minamoto Yoritomo

42. This was the start of Feudal Japan
After Yoritomo’s death in 1199, there was chaos
In 1266 Kubla Khan demanded that Japan submit to his rule
He brought in 30,000 troops in 1274, was victorious but then left
1281- he returned with 140,000 troops in an amphibious operation

43. It didn’t look good for Japan until the kamikaze (divine winds) hit sinking a good part of the Mongol fleet; the rest turned around and left

44. Women
Some became prominent like Yoritomo’s widow, Nun Shogun, who ruled after his death
Some became writers
There was that sun goddess connected to the royal family
For a time, women could inherit property
That changed as the warrior state appeared

45. Ashikaga Takauji 1331 – another emperor felt the emperor should rule
Ashikaga Takauji was sent to put down this emperor’s revolt, but he turned on Kyoto and destroyed the Kamakura government
After the revolt ended in 1336, a multi-state system emerged
Each state was run by a different warrior group

46. Ashikaka set up his own bakufu with its own organization
Vassals on the land became known as Daimyos owing lyalty to the Shogun

47. Statistics 1200 – Japan had 6 million people
Better agricultural techniques
New strains of rice
Iron tools
Peasants became self-sufficient
Barter system

48. By 15th century, military weapons, sake, lumber, vegetable oil salt, sea products were sold
Copper coins and market places appeared and permanent towns

49. Buddhism Pure Land Buddhism Emerged around 10th century
A variety of Japanese Buddhism that said the true teachings of Buddha had been lost and that only faith was necessary for salvation
It remains dominant in Japan today

50. Zen Buddhism Included meditation
Monks stressed a return to the “uncluttered mind”, the one with intuitive understanding
The most Chinese of Japanese sects
Religious experience counts more than words
Influenced the arts

51. No Plays Product of medieval Japan Mystery drama Bare stage
Male actors wearing beautiful robes and masks
Poetic language
Spirit possession of a character takes place and he dances

52. No Plays