YASUKE - The Mysterious Samurai from Africa
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- čas přidán 7. 05. 2024
- The 16th century… TRULY an eventful period for Japan! The 1500s saw the death of a more than 200-year old Shogunate, the rise of one of history’s most fearsome warlords, constant bloodshed and the arrival of westerners on Japanese soil who were mainly interested in two things: Trading and introducing their religion to the Japanese population. But even more than that, the arrival of westerners in Japan brought with it a clash of cultures rarely seen in history and a good amount of stories worth telling!
One such story that had always captured not only my own interest and imagination, but also that of countless historians and other curious people, is the fascinating story of a man who made his way from the heart of the African continent all the way to Japan, where he might have achieved something that no other westerner in Japan had achieved before him: Becoming a Samurai!
Today, we take a look at the life story of Yasuke, a story that is just as intriguing as it is shrouded in mystery and speculation. We’ll explore how a man from Africa in the 16th century made it to Japan in the first place, WHY he made it there, who he met along the way and how he became part of what might be the most unlikely friendship in history.
#samurai #africa #japan
SOURCES:
Book: “Yasuke (African Samurai) : The Life and Legend of Japan’s First African Samurai” by Jeff Taylor
www.bbc.com/news/world-africa...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yasuke
www.nicolaroos.com/sculpture/
CHAPTERS:
00:00 - Intro
01:45 - Origins
05:01 - Arrival in Japan
06:35 - An Unlikely Friendship
11:55 - The End of Yasuke - Zábava
It's always the smaller channels with the better content.
I'll make sure to provide good content even when the channel gets a lot bigger 😎 thanks for tuning in!
Facts bro, I’ve stopped watching a lot of bigger channels because it’s the same regurgitated content half the time but like you said these smaller channels are always well done and great to watch
That I do agree with
I'm starting to notice that as well.
As a person who has a small channel I like to think that we represent how CZcams used to be. When you can just post up anything and it was a lot more creative. But times change in the best thing to do is to have a channel on CZcams but also link it to your own website where you're not censored or Shadow banned.
About two years after Nobunaga's death, records show that Indian and black mercenaries joined the side of Christian daimyo Harunobu Arima in the Battle of Okita-nawate in the Kyushu region.
They were firing cannons on board a ship.
Whether it was Yasuke or another black mercenary is not known. This is because their names are not recorded.
I hope you put a documentary about the relationship of samurai with kings in the history of Japan.
I was hoping you would do a video about him one of these days. And now it’s finally happening. I really wish we knew more about his life and his time in Japan.
Then you'll love the fact that the new Assassins Creed Red, that's set in feudal Japan during the times of Nobunaga Oda is based around the legend of Yasuke
I've been wanting to make this one for so long, but wanted to do the Nobunaga stuff first to learn about that time period in general a bit more 😬 hope you enjoyed it!
@anikihistory you should do something on the three unifiers: Hideyoshi, Ieyasu, and Nobunaga. Netflix has a series called age of Japan where they covered the three men in detail
@@MRHEEL-ys2rq That'll be one of the next videos, since i ended my Nobunaga video before Japan was unified. Looking forward to making that one too!
Glad a Filipino samurai finally got acknowledged
Great video as always. Just gotta say the chrono cross opening theme gives me chills every time. Awesome choice.
When a Catholic missionary met Nobunaga, a powerful man of the time, Nobunaga, a lover of curiosities, was intrigued by the African and could not believe that anyone could have such dark skin, so he ordered him to wash his body with water. The missionary generously presented the African to Nobunaga on the spot. Nobunaga gave him the name Yasuke, took a great liking to him, and carried him everywhere he went. However, Nobunaga's life came to an end the following year due to a rebellion by a general under his command. When the enemy general was asked by his subordinates what to do with Yasuke, he replied, He told them to send him to the missionaries, saying, "There is no need to kill him, because he is not a human being but an animal. The period was only a little over a year.
Solid content ANIKI and forever glad I discover your channel on Japanese history and historical events which always fascinates me as a kid learning about the land of the rising sun. Be well ANIKI and I will stay tune for more exciting video contents from you.
Outside of African American History, Japanese, Korean and African History is so interesting to me.
This is a good deep dive. Def subscribing. I have so many black history channels im subscribed to but this is the first time a Japanese History channel came across my recommendations
It is cool that this man's story exists and thank you for sharing it with us :)
I only wish we knew his birth name and what happened to him after he left the historical record
Thats Leboron Jami-san
Thats Leboron Jami-san
When i was in a samurai museum before in Osaka an African tourist put on the samurai armor to take a photo.
Suddenly all the Japanese people were at awe and proceeded to take out their phones and take photos of him.
It was quite a scene.
I also was at awe by the contrast of him and how it was so juxtaposed to the light tinted samurai armor. No doubt the ancient samurai also must have felt this way when they met Yasuke
I cant believe this video just dropped a moment ago! I was literally just watching your video on Oda Nobunaga's attempt to unify Japan a few hours ago, and was so shocked that Yasuke was one of his samurais!
I went to Gifu last week before the new year and only found out about Oda then and his significance. Everyone in Japan learns about him in school in the same way people from the uk learn about Henry VIII.
So its a shame that Japanese people in general dont know anything about Yasuke
Yasuke's story is a very interesting topic. Some people seem to dismiss him as a "nobody" (read that opinion on reddit lmao) but i think there is just enough information about him to allow a lot of interesting speculation and theories while also leaving room for a bit of mystery and doubt. Had a lot of fun researching this one!
@anikihistory good point and great research. I really enjoyed the video. Thank you 😊
Really cool video. I’m so glad that this moment in history was recorded by many sources.
Many sources?
@@HolgerDanske at least 3 were mentioned
@@megamonstercookies 3 is not 'many'.
@@HolgerDanske then replace with 'multiple'
Great video. Thanks. Liked and subscribed!
Nice call, Aniki. Right up your alley. Thanks.
Could you possibly do Gunji Koizumi founder of British/European Judo and the Budokwai.
I wrote it down on my list, i've been thinking about doing a video about the history of Japanese martial arts in general so this might be a very helpful suggestion. Thanks for the comment!
@@anikihistory Also Gunji's friend/instructor Yukio Tani.
I desparately wanted to see Chadwick Boseman as Yasuke , in the role of him, but he's no more, but now they are saying that Omar Sy is gonna play him, so I am really confident about the project
Nice content!!
Love how much you put into your videos! So many little details which is amazing and makes it easier to picture it in your head. Also, it’s a great channel to listen to when you are going to sleep. 🖤
Don't know if you remember me asking for this topic, but either way, I'm thankful for the time, effort and insight into this video. I'm an African, so the subject matter is interesting and important to me 🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏
❤❤
asuke. Throughout his life, he was a samurai porter. He is not a samurai. From Japan 🇯🇵
Yasuke was legitimately a Samurai. More than that he was part of Nobunaga’s inner circle. That’s an honor most samurai did not have. Nothing you say can change that
Man your channel get better with each video
Thank you! I try my best 😬
I have watched a few of your videos. This one won you a subscriber.
Thanks for the sub and for watching! 😬
Thank you for the good content!
Thanks for watching!
Chrono Cross and Baten Kaitos music, oh my gosh!
He left Japan when the benefactor to the mascot died.
There is no record or knowledge of what happened to Yasuke
@@TFM03 Same with him being a samurai.
He wasn’t a mascot, he was a human being!
@@kuroneko7022 Oh sorry, he was a conversation piece. A novelty. A trinket. A trifle.
6:48 I’d read that the Vietnamese had similar reactions the first time they saw Black men during the Vietnam war
An old black man in my church who was in the Korean War said the Koreans asked black men to show them their tail, that’s how ignorant they were. 😂
Isn't that like a parallel story to the Book Shogun with the dutch (?) Navigator? Was that also "true"?
I read Shogun a long time ago, and as far as i know, it is completely fictional. (Someone correct me if i'm wrong). I remember it as a pretty good depiction of what was going on in Japan at the time, though. Great book!
The model for ''SHOGUN'' was Englishman William Adams.
He was given the name ''Anjin Miura'' and a small fiefdom by Tokugawa Ieyasu.
There was also a Dutch navigator named Jan Joosten van Lodensteyn.
He was given the name Ya-Yosu.
A place in Tokyo named ''Yaesu'' is named after him.
Yasuke...was not given a surname, making it difficult to determine whether he was officially a samurai or not.
If he had worked a little longer, it is possible he would have been given a surname.
Why is a surname so important ?@@wadepsilon01
FASCINATING Story.
Japan is different. You’d NEVER hear of China or Korea having a Black man as a vassal, much less even in their country at that time. 😂
There is records of black people in china in the 1500s. They worked the trade ports on the coast alo😅 the Sea of Japan
Dope
He's such an interesting historical figure!
While not as interesting as Yasuke, another interesting samurai story is the one called "The Duce's Samurai" as in the samurai of Benito Mussolini. This was a japanese man enamoured with Italy, their military and the fascists ideas.
He had an interesting life, so if you can, please do read about him.
Only one foreigner was officially made Samurai - William Adams the English Pilot of which James Clavell's The Shogun was based on. This is the only foreigner on record made an actual Samurai and given rank, a stipend and bearing any real relevance on Japanese History as he fired his cannon during the battle of Sekigahara. Yasuke was a slave who was gifted to Oda Nobunaga who liked to wear Western Armour and made good use of Muskets against the Takeda Cavalry. Yasuke would have towered above anyone in Japan and so would have cast an intimidating figure holding a spear or naginata next to Nobunaga, but he was not recorded as being made Samurai. Revisionist History distorts the truth and leads us into the realms of fantasy which is great for a Netflix show or Anime, but not historically accurate. Samurai William (Adams) was permitted to wear the two swords legally, negotiated for the Dutch East India Company during the time as sadly his letters back home were ignored and not believed, so he remained there to the end of his days. After the death of Oda Nobunaga,Yasuke's story ends, which speaks to his likely outcome.
Adams' ship also carried a Dutchman named Jan Joosten van Lodensteyn, who also served under Tokugawa Ieyasu.
He called himself ''Ya-yosu'', owned a mansion, and had a Japanese wife.
It is said that the place named Yaesu near the present Tokyo Station is also named after him.
Jan Joosten is recorded as having drowned when his ship ran aground in Southeast Asia in 1623
You people REALLY hate to hear anything positive about black people. Instead, you want to lift up colonizing, invading British who’ve wreaked havoc on brown people of the world.
it's unlikely that he had his original african name when he landed on Japan. All european-owned slaves had their birth names altered.
"What?! A man that doesn't need ninja clothes to hide in the shadows?!"
Nobunaga probably never expected such technology
Lemme guess.. after getting mad at everyone correcting him not to hold his sword sideways, he'd eventually melt his kitana down, to make a necklace and a grill, in order to get his "muthafuckin' shine on".
Shiiieeeeet don't do my mans like dis.
That’s so ignorant I can’t even believe it’s
6:34 Is this Oda Nobunaga?
🎉
弥助いがいに、有馬家arimaにblack samuraiがいました。大砲が仕事でいくさに参加しています。
I think that a person should. Make a request to the vadican.for the mention of his name within the vadican archives . as the origin of his birth place and the truth of wear he went to . As he came with a representative of the cathartic church. It may be with in the vadican archives .
Are you having a stroke???
Make no mistake. Most of this is pure politically-correct b.s.
❤❤❤yowyow waagwaan❤❤❤
I would say that after he was captured, I’m sure the missionaries found out about it and stepped in on his behalf to stay his execution. Then he was probably given back to the missionaries and live the rest of his life working for them. Just my hypothesis.
I know they say it isn't going to be historically accurate but I'm excited to see what new lore about yasuke we get from assassin's creed :red later this year
yasuke wasnt a slave despite popular belief. he was a mercenary soldier in an african tribe that worked for portuguese esp at the ports. when vasco dagama secured the sea route to india they took many african soldiers with them to help them secure their interests.thats how he ended up in india and later with missionaries to japan.
As a blk person, it’s still wild to me how in countries like china, we still get treated like we are tourists attractions where chinese people still go nuts just to take pictures with us. It’s a very bizarre experience to say the least.
That’s why I will never set foot in China! My American dollars will not go to a country that mistreats black people.
He was a retainer not samurai😂
Can you explain the difference & site sources?
Are you Japanese? If not, you don’t k is details about this. I know is you hate hearing about this Black man in Japan’s history.
Them folk stay big mad. lol
He wasn't a samurai. Never could be. Samurai is a class you’re born into, not a rank bestowed upon someone. Like burakumin.
Actually up until 1591 you could (!) move between social classes in Japan and enter the warrior class thus gaining the title of samurai, like Hideyoshi did as he was actually a farmers boy. It was Hideyoshi himself who, with an edict in 1591, made social classes hereditary.
Yasuke was definitely a samurai and even more important than being samurai is he was in Nobunaga’s inner circle. Also you may not agree but professors from Nihon University College of Law in Tokyo have confirmed his status as samurai. Not only that the professors who published the work on Yasuke had to not only get approval from the Japanese university but also the descendants of the Oda clan. So who do you think is more responsible? You racists who can’t believe a black man was not a samurai or the University and Oda family who say he was samurai? 🤔
@@TFM03 Cite the sources.
🖕🏾racist
なぜ彼らは私たちの歴史を盗まなければならないのですか？
日本から真実を伝える
弥助には苗字がないつまりそれだけ低い身分であり馬に乗って戦に参加する様な扱いではない。
君たち外国人は侍を一括りにするが正式に国を持ち兵隊を抱える将軍や戦の時だけ武器を借りて、食事にありつくために傭兵になる足軽までいる。
歴史に置いて記述が少ないのは隠蔽されたからではなく、そもそも語る様なエピソードがないからだ。
弥助はヨーロッパの商人が奴隷として日本に連れてきた際、信長がその珍しさから商人から譲り受け、家と妻を与えはしたがその役割は侍とは名ばかりの、身の回りの世話をする執事の様な役割の一人に過ぎず、出先で見せびらかすのが関の山だった。
当時の殿様や将軍は小さい頃から策略や戦について学び、時には親、兄弟とも争った。
そんな時代に置いて、とてもじゃないが日本で生まれ育ったわけでもない弥助に戦の中で重要な役割を与える訳が無い。
はじめまして。弥助いがいに有馬家で黒人侍がいました。大砲が仕事だったそうです。
I don’t think Lord Mitsuhide really thinks Yasuke as Animal.
I’m from Kameoka ruled by Lord Mitsuhide.
And he is still worshipped by local people as merciful and wise daimyo.
If he was a really racist, he wouldn’t mind execution of Yasuke at all.
watch Japan's Mysterious African Heritage
As cool as the idea and story of a black samurai would be Unfortunately it isn't true... yasuke was not a samurai but he was a retainer under nobunaga.
If he was a retainer, he was (!) a samurai 🤔😜
@b.b.e.a. no he was a sword bearer
It’s amazing how many of you have a problem with Yasuke.😂
@@kuroneko7022 no problem with Yasuke.. I do have a problem with fiction being passed as historical fact
What a netflix style bullshit lol
Lots of Americans don’t like this story of Yasuke. 😂
Over 40% of Japanese men belong to haplogroup D, a paternal lineage thought to have originated in East Africa some 50,000 to 60,000 years ago. IJS do better my guy
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he wasnt a samurai, he was a retainer (a servant of the Nobunaga family). these sorts of sensationalistic titles keep promoting this African fantasy.
Someone’s butt hurt
Yep, we wuz samurai and all of that.
Imagine endorsing the manipulation of historical narratives to enable specific groups to assert dominance and mask their dearth of achievements. @@megamonstercookies Not on my watch.
Samurai (侍、さむらい) They were the well-paid retainers of the daimyo, the great feudal landholders. They had high prestige and special privileges.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samurai
You probably are thinking bout hatamoto kind of retainer hahahaha
Imagine believing this bullshit is true. Disgraceful.
Bruh you’re so late to the party fam & very historically inaccurate… You need to do more research on Africans in ancient China & Japan, they set up the first 2 or 3 dynasties in China & had great influence ancient Japanese society … Japanese still use African words in their language. And the Japanese still say in order to be a true samurai you have to have at least a once of African blood in you… Do better research fam… He’s not the first African or the first black samurai… But otherwise good job covering Yasuke but please do better…