Samurai Army Ranks and Command Structure
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- čas přidán 16. 09. 2021
- A dive into the complex topic of Samurai military ranks and army command structures, specifically during the real apex of Samurai warfare in the later years of the Sengoku Jidai.
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Sources:
(All the Sources I used in this video were from Stephen Turnbull)
"Samurai Armies: 1467-1649"
"Samurai Armies: 1550-1615"
"Hatamoto: Horse and Foot Guard 1540-1724"
"Samurai Commanders: 1577-1638"
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Music:
"Fire of Prometheus III" Composed by Akira Ifukube
Intro:
Music by: Shawn Head of "Renzoh Flutes" / @tairyushakuhachi
Logo art by: theomnibus.art
/ theomnibus.art
Artwork and Images:
Classical art, which in most cases can be considered public domain.
Art from Osprey Publications.
Other modern artist renditions, if you see your work in this video please contact me so that I can give you proper credit!
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Social Media:
Facebook: / theshogunateyoutube
Twitter: / shogunatethe
#Samurai #History #Japan - Hry
Takeda Nobushige (武田 信繁) once stated:
"One's soldier should not abuse the enemy. 'Arouse a bee and it will come at you with the force of a dragon"
A man wise beyond his years, his loss truly was a devastating blow to the Takeda.
Good message to imperial japan though
"Let's invert our entire hierarchy just to confuse the enemy spies. 30,000 Generals and 1 private."
*Takes notes vigorously* Very interesting.
My lord our general has fallen
I've always thought samurai army ranks etc was a seriously underrated topic that is super interesting but gets almost no coverage at all.
Thanks for making these vids man!
Could you do a video about the logistics of a samurai army or the training of ashigaru troops?
The battles are of course interesting but training, equipment and logistics made the battles possible in the first place.
Who would tend to the fields when the peasents were drafted?
How did they return to their families and how long did they have to serve?
How long and rigorous was ashigaru training and how did they maintain unit cohesion?
How were the quantities of armor and weapons that were needed supplied to these (for the time) vast armies?
Were weapons and armor "recycled" and reissued after the battle?
If you see this, I really want to thank you. I've been working on a project for a few months now that's about a somewhat generic fantasy world (Elves, Orks, etc) set in a world in the general WW1 era, and one of the more unique country ideas I had was a confederation of petty armies that secured a bunch of islands in a vital spot for human civilization, so I was using the samurai as inspiration for this country in general terms. I found your channel recently and its been a great help in finding new concepts for this country, which had previously been a point of frustration to figure out.
This is an interesting topic. The basics of all armies are the same. But the titles, duties, and makeup of these armies is in constant flux. Standardization could not and did not occur until formalized states where established. Once this occurred traditions in how pick and maintain all segments of the state slowly develop. Armies are simply one part of this standardization. Even today ranks and scopes of duties exist in some militaries but not in others. Even though titles may be identical the authority and duties that go with the title are not exactly uniform in nature. This outline was as contextual as possible while still taking into account for the variations that are always present.
Watching this I can’t help wonder if more complex organizational structures were put in place in order to prevent consolidation of too much power beneath a diamyo, thus preventing family, friends, military underlings, etc from usurping the diamyo.
Do you know, how long I’ve been looking for something like this, for too damn long. Thank you for putting a massive headache for me to an end
Incredible work. Thanks so much for making this!
as far as english language sources on the topic it seems like Turnbull is the only person outside of academia really writing on the topic -- there's so much of it written in Japanese but afaik very little has been translated.
Thanks for the info and for the work you put into it.
I've always wondered about this but only had games and movies to learn from. Thank you.
This is amazing! I have been trying to find something like this for ages!!! You made my day! Thank you so much for all your research!
I always wanted this video. Thank you very much . The video is amazing.
Dude, I'm so happy I found your channel, cause I'm into stuff like that but never had access to the sources to learn that. Your stuff is a blessing for me.
Thanks homie I enjoy your videos 📹 always informative and entertaining
Another good one from the shogunate his videos are my stress busters during my walks !
Awesome video! keep up the good work!
It was also fascinating to learn that an important commander such as Kimata Morikatsu had a Hatamoto that flattered that of a Daimyo even if he served Ii Naomasa
Another day another great video from the Shogunate
16:00 can you make one for Takeda clan? Ranks for Takeda clan could be interesting
Interesting. Packed with useful explanations.
In the book "Shogun" by James Clavell, it portrays the honor of Hatomoto being bestowed on those trusted enough to carry weapons in the presence of their liege lord. I'm sure there is more to the title, but it proffers some insight as to how one might have been in varying service roles, but were elevated to a particular level of trust.
Just discovered your channel via the Nobunagas Ambition review, working through your vids right now and you definitely made a subscriber out of me! Really cool you're covering this part of history in depth. We don't see enough Japanese history youtubers
I really wish those games got better coverage.
Been trying to look up stuff for spere of influence: ascension and can't find anything.
Love these videos
I wonder how the structure was during Imjin war as Hideyoshi army was basically "united" as one with the various Damiyo under his command. Would this be Hideyoshis "Tenka Fubu" that Nobunaga keep talking about?
I can see your train of thought!
This is going to be a good one
Great video!
Thank you for all the vids u make dude. You are literally one of the only (intelligible) English speaking youtubers I can find who cover fuedal Japanese military history in depth, Metatron being the only other I can recall.
Would've love to see an Ikko Ikki command structure or other independent army groups, but I wasn't so lucky. But even so! This was extremely informative!
This overview really goes to show the level of division within Japan in this period, where each daimyo's army was almost reflective of an independent state, with similarities due to the general cultural background and the nature of equipment and tactics, but many individual differences due to local practice and needs, much like, say, the differences between European armies of various nations across history.
Great video! 意義深い動画ありがとう 楽しみました /// all my respect and best wishes!
参考になりました Love & Create!
I think you did a great job.
Very helpful for the novel I'm writing. Thanks!
Very informative and well-researched video. It would be interesting to know to what extent these command structures changed going into the peaceful Edo Period and up to Japan's eventual modernization.
Ooo can’t wait for the Samurai Navy next
Thank you 🙏🏾
IVE BEEN WAITING FOR THIS ONE
I love this video it saved me from sleepless nights thinking about how command structures work
if this comment reaches you I would like to thank you for this channel
and i have a question
did samurai fight dismounted in the later sengoku period? did they fight in yari Squires or bowmen?
Amazing video as always!! The content of this channel is pure gold for those who like japanese history. I really appreciate how you always try to bring accurate information to your subscribers, like a true historian. What do you think about making a video in the topic of seppuku? I really like this topic and I would love to hear you talk about this!
I've been planning on doing a video on that topic for a while. But as of right now, the best video out there on the topic of Seppuku is one by "Let's ask Shogo"!
@@TheShogunate Thank you for the recommendation! I will definitely check out!
That’s exactly what I was looking for
Makes sense for Nobunaga to have taken army organization seriously. Say what you want about him, he was very good at this war thing.
Great 👍
Samurai: "NOOOOOO!!!! YOU CANT JUST USE A LONG SPEAR AND EXPECT TO WIN!!!" Ashigaru: "haha spear go poke poke"
No human beings charged into spear pike walls. The games and movie scenes can fuck you up 😂
@@korsucx i feel like this was obviously a joke homes
@The Shogunate As always, I find your videos insightful, as well as informative. I had a slight question.
Where did you get, or create your societal triangles? I’m trying to make one for my own personal notes, and no one else.
Do you have a societal triangle for the Edo Period?
Don't mind me, just binging all the structure and weapon evolution videos for world building inspiration.
Now this is something I've actually been learning about in a book I've recently been reading and how critical the harvest of rice is to the supplies of an army is from a clans holdings and its vassals
Oh wow, that's the book I'm reading right now by Stephen Turnbull 😂.
I've also been learning about the Kashindan as well.
Today, when we go out to eat Yakiniku, the person having chopsticks and cooking is called "Yakiniku-Bugyou".
The same can be said on Nabe-ryouri, in that case "Nabe-Bugyou"
Could you recommend any books on the military tactics of some lords from the sengoku period?
You should make a video about how budhdhism came from india to japan..and how samurais adopted it......lots of love from india🤗🇮🇳❤🇯🇵
I'd love to see a video about Japanese cavalry. There isn't much information online.
With this Much bureaucracy already existing in the Military, was there a similar structure for diplomacy? Like the one where tokugawa declare loyalty to Toyotomi, were there separate people for Negotiations or that it was the kashindan which was involved in diplomacy as well?
@10:37 Conscripted foot soliders with spear bow or matchlock.... what about the sword they are holding in the image? Im curious about ashugaru swords like the loan sword unit in shogun 2
Could you cover the ashigaru recruitment process in one of tmyour future videos?
Would it be possible to do a video highlighting the feudal structure of japan during the kamakura and ashikaga shogunates? I understand the shogun had his Daimyo, but I haven't been able to figure anything out below that.
I actually did something like that a while ago! czcams.com/video/0bbe7tGF6fo/video.html
@@TheShogunate Thank you so much for replying, I'll be sure to check this out. Love your channel
Do you know any source for Heian period armies? And/or Kamakura?
Oh and thank you for this video, really interesting... tho I have never in contrary to hear from you an hour long documentary in this topic ;)
For Heian, Hired Swords by Karl Friday. Not sure about Kamakura but I think Friday also has a book about it.
4:45 / 9:40 / 12:09 - Were all major and minor officers of ashigaru units samurai or were there non samurai officers? How low or high did they go? How common was it?
7:16 - Wikipedia mentions ōmetsuke or oometsuke as lesser versions of metsuke, while not mentioning yokome. Are these the same as yokome? If not, how are they different?
11:35 - At the top it says all samurai had personal attendants. Do these include the lower samurai that were sometimes farmers and the like? Less relevant, in mid to late Edo, did lesser samurai ever decide to dip really low in the caste to merchant to make more money? Was it a big faux pas or was it relatively common in mid to late Edo?
I have a question where do you get all these traditional Japanese painting pictures from ?
This video reminded me of Kurosawa's Kagemusha. The night battle during the siege was pretty unique and interesting since it was shown in the POV of the commanders receiving reports and issuing commands. Since then I've been curious how Samurai armies work compared to European armies.
Organizationally, there's no single gold standard for a European army in the 16th century. They relied on hiring companies of mercenaries. These would be made predominantly of pikemen and matchlock gunners.
Professional cavalry was still mostly the responsibility of knights, although they adapted to the context in various ways.
These merc armies answered to coin more than anything else. Individual companies had their own officers and command structures, with the total sum of companies answerable to a general determined by the payer.
Or, basically, it's complicated and contextual.
Interesting, it seems my extensive worldbuilding research, application, and playing tabletop strategy games made this video very easy to follow and retain. I actually made rough guesses as to how things worked up to this point that, I'm surprised, seems correct in broad principle.
I can also see the few similarities to typical European armies, but noting I think such armies to that sort of scale were relatively rare compared to the constant fighting between warbands and power struggles in Japan. Strain on resources will do that.
I applaud the wisdom (I assume the norm) for promotion and even upper leadership in an aristocratic type society for merit over bloodlines. This aspect of military culture is something much less frequent in Ancient and Medieval history (outside Roman and Byzantine Empire), to a degree even into Napoleonic Wars and WWI. So many horrendous blunders in epic wars can be attributed to clearly putting the wrong generals in charge. Maybe I'm wrong, but I would attribute this to the frequency of infighting and logistical-scale battles in these times of Japanese history, and what I assume is a dedication to study and practical application over religious casting of lots and prayers or political favoritism. Because losing meant a great deal was a stake with not as far to run or allies and neutral parties to call upon.
The most interesting to me though was devotion of command to military unit types instead of the absolute command structure in most Western armies. I've played around with this concept before watching this video, but theoretically it would require a very tight-knit, reliable, and mobile messaging system and cultural cooperation and trust. I'm willing to bet Japanese warfare of the period(s) with so much emphasis on cavalry in a more collectivist society allowed for the swiftness and efficiency of this system. Might even be a reason the Japanese struggled with long-term expansion campaigns, because their armies would, in theory, not be structured for long distance conquest and independence of army sections necessary to operate.
But when conditions are favorable it works wonderfully. Our modern militaries with such swift transportation logistics operate more closely on these principles meaning the Samurai were ahead of their time and leadership recognized the potential of modernizing come the 19th century and the advent of industrialization in the 20th century to become the most powerful entity in the Pacific. Adapting to whatever works in practicality on limited resources will do this.
So is there in info on the logistics of the Samurai armies? Since I find it intriguing that the samurai made radical improvements in their ability to conduct war, after foreigners either invaded or interacted with them throughout their history, and tactics and structures remain all well and good but none of that happens without supplies. And I sadly have found little or seen little on the subject. Like where they like the Romans or more like the Mongols? (Couldn’t think of a different comparison so, sorry)
Greetings! I know this is a very late topic to talk about, but I saw this video and I thought of a more advanced way to explain this more clearly! I was wondering if you could talk about, the " Sonae" in Sengoku Jidai. Please contact this comment if you need more information!
Me gustaría entender el ingles fluido para comprender más ampliamente el video, es una lastima, pero este canal encanta de todas formas
Yo lo que hago normalmente es poner los subtítulos en inglés y así me guío fácilmente, pero a veces estos videos no los incluyen de inmediato :/
@@azarishiba2559 Hago lo mismo, pero como bien dices es difícil entenderlo todo :'l
Do you have a good resource for info about the Azai clan and Odani castle or its final seige?
Neat
So this rank structure was generally the same throughout Japan right? Did it change based on size? And how large were most armies in general?
These are very broad questions so if you could just briefly give some specifics I'll buy you a sake one day. The average u.s. army brigade today is 3-5000 soldiers strong. I'd guess the average lesser known daimyo would have several of these, correct?
Shingen had some 24 generals... Taisho? how many troops did each general command? where there different levels of general such as major general and lieutenant general.
The size of the shoulder pads was used as rank
That's kind of how they did the taxes during the period not only was diamonds correcting their own version of taxes also how they ruled as well as well I mean culturally they're United but the system has been so fragmented that every time the diamyo have their own rules law
That's all well and good, but can that army comp beat a Oda ashigaru rush?
It's kind of funny to me that in 1559 uesugi had appearently more flag bearers than gunners.
I may comment later but it would be interesting to see how you can still find Tang influences on this system. More on Sonae and Te could also be nice as it feels thay at least the sonae woud be the primary tactical unit in the sengoku period.
Finally
Did you already make a video about specific formations, how they worked and against what other formations? I cannot seem to find one.
Also: were these samurai formations or ashigaru formations? As far as a I speculate, there wasn't really a thing like "samurai formations"... but I'm not an expert.
That would become a HUGELY interesting video.
I have not made a formations video, but the sources I was using to put this video together also go heavily into that, so I could easily make one.
I think that would be great, wouldn't you agree? :)
Is daimyo a vassal of the emperor?
So I'm not sure if it's clear, are the leaders of the Ashigaru units (taisho, bugyo, and kashira) promoted Ashigaru or are they Samurai?
Also are all Samurai mounted like their European counterparts? And I assume since Ashigaru literally means "foot soldier" there were no mounted units.
Before the Warring States Period, the Ashigaru Daisho was chosen from among the Ashigaru group. During the Sengoku period, the ashigaru (foot soldier generals) were warriors under the direct command of their lord.
Ashigaru did not have cavalry, and were generally divided into three types: bow, gun, and spear. There were also special units called "flag-footed foot soldiers," who were not combatants but carried military flags, which was considered a great honor but also a great danger of being targeted.
I am saving this video for future reference. One question: could this tendency toward structural flexibility have been partly the reason for the much later convoluted command structures and sometimes complicated war planning of the Japanese Imperial forces in WW2?
The "metsuke" was retained as a peacetime political office within the Tokugawa shogunate. When the shogunate sent a diplomatic mission to the US in 1860, a "metsuke" accompanied the ambassador, alarming the Americans who mistook the job for a spy. Eventually, the misunderstanding was resolved when someone familiar with Western history on the Japanese side explained that a "metsuke" was what the Romans would have called a "censor."
The different clans of japan might as well be different kingdoms each with a different regional culture and military tactics all while speaking the same language and worshipping more or less the same gods
Was there a samurai equivalent of a squire?
The more I look at it. The more I see that this is similar to what yakuza organization would look like.
I thought the concept of Fudai and Tozama were conceptualized by Tokugawa Ieyazu??
The oda is a what I want to know about
he was probably the cruelest of them all.
I want to know name of the cloak or jacket that some samurai officer wear, it is usually white with decoration, please help.
Jinbaori?
@@penguasakucing8136 thank you so much for the name.
@@penguasakucing8136 Yes, jinbaori. They are gorgeous. I have a Sanada Yukimura's jinbaori replica which sometimes I wear in some special Japanese Language classes (I'm a teacher).
You forgot the NekoGuntai - the elite cat girl brigade every feudal army needed.
I know more about the samurai then my Aztec heritage
how many men are there withihn a kumi?
When hideyoshi forbid non samurai from carrying weapons, does that mean he disbanded the ashigaru?
Ashigaru would have probably been distributed weapons, but they were not allowed to take them home after the end of a campaign.
@@TheShogunate that makes sense, were they entitled to wages though?
The edict of separation basically made ashigaru samurai.
so Samurai with Teppo is Samurai who lead Teppo unit ? and samurai with Yumi bow is leading yumi archer unit
👌
how larg was one of this army under a lord. how mean horcemen & footmen in total. it sound like a modren army & lajesteks force behinde them. a army march on there food.
1:3 ratio between Samurai and Ashigaru? And to think, people kept emphasizing how the ashigaru were the mainstay of warfare... Turns out, the samurai were about a third of the forces. That means they were able to be basic squad commanders, and still had extra left over to form their own units.
A ratio of 1:3 would actually make the samurai form a quarter of the forces.
@@Koelebig Whoops. Nice catch. Normally I remember that with ratios, that a third is 1:2. Even so, the way historians wax on about the samurai being replaced by Ashigaru, and it turns out there's one samurai for every 3 Ashigaru, a quarter of their forces...
At that rate, they're far more prevalent than the "gutful men," of the world wars.
@@vanivanov9571 No problem. It was an easy slip. I almost fell for it as well, but felt that I had to mention it. ;)
Also, is there a hard distinction to be made between ashigaru and samurai? It can be a confusing subject.
@@Koelebig There is a caste difference. Ashigaru are peasants, samurai are nobles. Some Ashigaru did get promoted to Samurai for performing deeds of valor in this period.
The Samurai theoretically train their whole lives for war, like knights, and so they perform a lot better than the drilled peasant soldiers.
@@vanivanov9571 Yes, I understand that, but during the Sengoku period the ashigaru were transformed from being peasants-soldiers to professional soldiers in large standing armies. In effect these ashigaru were also samurai and if I remember correctly they were at the start of the Edo period promoted to samurai status, redrawing the boundaries between farmers and soldiers.
Just based on comments, views, and general engagement in videos related to historical Samurai and warfare details... it seems the public is far, far less interested in this compared to the same level of investment with similar European topics.
This surprises me greatly considering how legendary and revered the Samurai are in pop culture and opinion by the common layperson compared to Knights and the Medieval or Renaissance Period.
I wonder if the aggressive defenses that have come about by HEMA and Medieval enthusiasts in the past 2 decades turned the tables and the digging into Japanese history reveals cultures that aren't living up to what most expected to find. Or if there's less interest to research the affirmations of what is believed to be legendary and superior. Or both.
I am just here for my narative driven camping in Shogun2
Such militaristic Feudal Rank system must have some resemblance with Indo Aryan feudal sistem of Satraps/Saka in ancient era.
I mean, the feudalism sistem came out from conquest and subjugation of new territories
Jizamurai or Monk soldiers on the other hands hailed from confederation communal system that sprang out from the opposition against the feudalism government practived by Samurais
You forgot one bugyô type: the famous bugyô-eyes. :B
Would that have been an different than a medieval European army?
It's honestly similar in the broad strokes. The details are different
🇧🇷✌👍👍
Number one thing you need to know, Samurai don't do melee combat on horses.