EARLY JAPAN AND KOREA
Early Japan was unified by a noble family that gave rise to a line of emperors.
Over time, power passed from the hands of the emperor to powerful aristocratic
families, then to military leaders called shoguns. Finally, centralized power
disappeared altogether. Korea’s history during this period is one of a struggle for
independence against the neighboring Chinese.
Early Japan
The ancestors of present-day Japanese settled in the Yamato Plain near the
location of the modern cities of Osaka ¯ and Ky¯oto in the first centuries a.d. Their
society was made up of clans. The people were divided between a small aristocratic
class (the rulers) and a large population of rice farmers, artisans, and household
servants. The local ruler of each clan protected the population in return for a share of
the annual harvest. Eventually, one ruler of the Yamato clan achieved supremacy over
the others and became, in effect, ruler of Japan.
The Impact of Geography
Chinese and Japanese societies have historically been very different. One of the
reasons for these differences is geography. Whereas China is located on a vast
continent, Japan is a chain of many islands. The population is concentrated on four
main islands: Hokkaido¯, the main island of Honshu¯, and the two smaller islands of
Kyush ¯ u and Shikoku ¯ . Japan’s total land area is approximately 146,000 square
miles (378,000 sq. km)—about the size of the state of Montana. Like China, much of
Japan is mountainous. Only about 11 percent of the total land area can be farmed.
The mountains are volcanic in origin. Volcanic soils are very fertile, which has helped
Japanese farming. The area, however, is prone to earthquakes. In 1923 an earthquake
nearly destroyed the entire city of Tokyo. The fact that Japan is an island nation has
also affected its history. Because of their geographical isolation, the Japanese
developed a number of unique qualities. These qualities contributed to the Japanese
belief that they had a destiny separate from that of the peoples on the continent.
Chinese Influences
In the early seventh century, Sh¯otoku Taishi, a Yamato prince, tried to unify the
various clans so that the Japanese could more effectively resist an invasion by the
Chinese. To do this, Prince Sh¯otoku sent representatives to the Tang capital of China
to learn how the Chinese organized their government. He then began to create a new
centralized system of government in Japan, based roughly on the Chinese model.
Prince Sh¯otoku wanted a centralized government under a supreme ruler. His
objective was to limit the powers of the aristocrats and enhance the Yamato ruler’s
(his own) authority. As a result, the ruler was portrayed as a divine figure and the
symbol of the Japanese nation. Sh¯otoku Taishi’s successors continued to make
reforms based on the Chinese model. The territory of Japan was divided into
administrative districts, and the senior official of each district was selected from among
the local nobles. As in China, the rural village was the basic unit of government. A new
tax system was set up. Now all farmland technically belonged to the state. All taxes
were to be paid directly to the central government rather than to local aristocrats.
The Nara Period
After Sh¯otoku Taishi’s death in 622, political power fell into the hands of the
Fujiwara clan. A Yamato ruler was still emperor. He was, however, strongly influenced
by the Fujiwara family. In 710 a new capital was established at Nara. The emperor
began to use the official title “Son of Heaven.” Though the reforms begun by Prince
Sh¯otoku continued during this period, Japan’s central government could not
overcome the power of the aristocrats. These powerful families were able to keep the
taxes from the lands for themselves. Unable to gain tax revenues, the central
government steadily lost power and influence.
The Heian Period
In 794 the emperor moved the capital from Nara to nearby Heian-kyo, on the site
of present-day Ky¯oto. At Heian-kyo, the emperor continued to rule in name, but actual
power remained in the hands of the Fujiwara clan. In fact, the government was
returning to the decentralized system that had existed before the time of Sh¯otoku
Taishi. Powerful families whose wealth was based on the ownership of tax-exempt
farmland dominated the rural areas. With the decline of central power, local aristocrats
took justice into their own hands. They turned to military force, and a new class of
military servants emerged whose purpose was to protect the security and property of
their employers. Called the samurai (“those who serve”), these warriors fought on
horseback, clad in helmet and armor, and carried a sword and a bow. Like knights, the
samurai were supposed to live by a strict warrior code, known in Japan as Bushido
(“the way of the warrior”).
The Kamakura Shogunate
By the end of the twelfth century, rivalries among Japanese aristocratic families
had led to almost constant civil war. Finally, a powerful noble named Minamoto
Yoritomo defeated several rivals and set up his power near the modern city of Tokyo.
To strengthen the state, he created a more centralized government under a military
leader known as the shogun (general). In this new system—called the shogunate—
the emperor remained ruler in name only, and the shogun exercised the actual power.
The Kamakura Shogunate, founded by Yoritomo, lasted from 1192 to 1333. At first the
system worked well. The Japanese were fortunate that it did, because the government
soon faced a serious challenge from the Mongols. In 1281 Kublai Khan invaded Japan
with an army nearly 150,000 strong. Fortunately for the Japanese, almost the entire
fleet was destroyed by a massive typhoon (violent storm). Fighting the Mongols put a
strain on the political system. In 1333 the Kamakura shogunate was overthrown by a
group of powerful families led by the Ashikaga family.
Collapse of Central Rule
The power of the local aristocrats grew during the fourteenth and fifteenth
centuries. Heads of noble families, now called daimyo (DY•mee•oh), “great names,”
controlled vast landed estates that owed no taxes to the government. As family
rivalries continued, the daimyo relied on the samurai for protection, and political power
came into the hands of a loose coalition of noble families. By 1500, Japan was close
to chaos. A disastrous civil war known as the Onin War, which lasted from 1467 to
1477, led to the virtual destruction of the capital city of Kyoto. Central authority
disappeared. Powerful aristocrats in rural areas seized control over large territories,
which they ruled as independent lords. Their rivalries caused almost constant warfare.
Life in Early Japan
Early Japan was mostly a farming society. Its people took advantage of the
limited amount of farmland and abundant rainfall to grow wet rice (rice grown in flooded
fields). Trade in Japan was slow to develop. Barter, rather than money, was used until
the twelfth century. Manufacturing began to develop during the Kamakura period.
Markets appeared in the larger towns, and industries such as the making of paper and
porcelain and iron casting emerged. Trade between regions also grew. Goods were
carried in carts, on boats, or on human backs. Foreign trade, mainly with Korea and
China, began during the eleventh century. Japan shipped raw materials, paintings,
swords, and other manufactured items in return for silk, porcelain, books, and copper
coins.
The Role of Women
In early Japan, women may have had a certain level of equality with men. An
eighth-century law code, for example, guaranteed the inheritance rights of women.
Wives who were abandoned could divorce and remarry. Later practices, however,
show women were considered subordinate to men. A husband could divorce his wife
if she did not produce a son or if she committed adultery, talked too much, was jealous,
or had a serious illness. Although women did not possess the full legal and social rights
of men, they played an active role at various levels of society. Aristocratic women were
prominent at court. Some became known for their artistic or literary talents. Women
often appear in the paintings of the period along with men. The women are doing the
spring planting, threshing and hulling rice, and acting as salespersons and
entertainers.
Religion in Early Japan
Early Japanese people worshiped spirits, called kami, whom they believed
resided in trees, rivers, streams, and mountains. The Japanese also believed that the
spirits of their ancestors were present in the air around them. In Japan, these beliefs
evolved into a religion called Shinto (“the Sacred Way” or “the Way of the Gods”),
which is still practiced today. Over time, Shinto became a state doctrine linked to a
belief in the divinity of the emperor and the sacredness of the Japanese nation. Shinto,
however, did not satisfy the spiritual needs of all the Japanese people. Some turned
to Buddhism, which Buddhist monks from China brought to Japan during the sixth
century a.d. Among the aristocrats in Japan, one sect, known as Zen, became the
most popular. Zen beliefs became part of the samurai warrior’s code of behavior. Zen
Buddhism teaches that enlightenment comes through strong self-discipline and a long
process of meditation.
Culture in Early Japan
During much of the history of early Japan, aristocratic men believed that prose
fiction was merely “vulgar gossip” and was thus beneath them. Consequently, from the
ninth to the twelfth centuries, women were the most productive writers of prose fiction
in Japanese. From this tradition appeared one of the world’s great novels, The Tale of
Genji, written by court author Murasaki Shikibu. Her novel traces the life of nobleman
Genji as he moves from youthful adventures to a life of compassion in his later years.
In Japanese art and architecture, landscape serves as an important means of
expression. The landscape surrounding the Golden Pavilion in Ky¯oto displays a
harmony of garden, water, and architecture that makes it one of the treasures of the
world.
The Emergence of Korea
The Korea Peninsula, only slightly larger than the state of Minnesota, is relatively
mountainous. Its closeness to both China and Japan has greatly affected its history.
Indeed, no society in East Asia was more strongly influenced by the Chinese model
than Korea. In 109 b.c., the northern part of the Korea Peninsula came under the
control of the Chinese. The Koreans, however, drove them out in the a.d. 200s.
Eventually, three separate kingdoms emerged: Koguryo in the north, Paekche
(PAK•chuh) in the southwest, and Silla in the southeast. Each of the kingdoms was
governed by the combination of a hereditary monarch and powerful aristocratic
families. From the fourth to the seventh centuries, the three kingdoms were bitter
rivals. This period also saw the introduction of Buddhism to Korea, which quickly
became the state religion of each of the kingdoms. After 527 Silla kings adopted
Buddhist names and sponsored the building of many Buddhist temples. One was a
nine-story wooden pagoda, which was perhaps the tallest in East Asia. As the Silla
kingdom became more allied with the Chinese, the monarchy turned to Confucian
ideals to run the country.
Gradually, with the support of the Tang dynasty of China, the kingdom of Silla
gained control of the peninsula. After the king of Silla was assassinated, however,
Korea sank into civil war. Finally, in the early tenth century, a new dynasty called Koryo
(the root of the modern word Korea) arose in the north. This kingdom adopted Chinese
political institutions in order to unify its territory and remained in power for four hundred
years. In the thirteenth century, the Mongols seized the northern part of Korea. By
accepting Mongol authority, the Koryo dynasty managed to remain in power. Mongol
rule led to much suffering for the Korean people, especially the thousands of peasants
and artisans who were forced to build ships for Kublai Khan’s invasion of Japan. After
the collapse of the Mongol dynasty in China, the Koryo dynasty broke down. In 1392
Yi So˘ng-gye, a military commander, seized power and founded the Yi dynasty, which
would rule Korea for over five hundred years. The Korean people were once again in
charge of their own destiny.
