Feudalism

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Feudalism

Overview

• For centuries, both Japan and Europe used a socioeconomic system called feudalism. In Europe, feudalism lasted from about CE 300 to 1400, except in Russia, where it began in the 11th century and continued through 1850. Japanese feudalism lasted from the 12th century to the 19th century.
• Historians and economists have identified several things characteristic of a feudal system:
• use of servient tenement
• elevated status of a specialized warrior class
• bonds of obedience tying individuals together, from tenant to warrior to noble
• lack of centralized authority

Warrior class

Between the farming peasant class and the land-owning nobles, a specialized warrior class arose. Due to the lack of centralized authority in these lands, fighting was a regular part of life. Nobles often fought each other in land disputes. Sometimes, kings and emperors went to war with each other. In order for their battles to be successful, they needed dedicated warriors. The primary occupation of these individuals was to fight and lead armies. When they were not engaged in fighting, they were expected to train for battle. In Europe, these warriors were referred to as knights. In Japan, they were known as samurai.

Servient tenement meant that people received goods and services instead of money for their work. A tenement is any property that is held, rather than owned, and the vassals (as the peasant farmers were called) on these lands never owned it but worked on it in return for their livelihood. When feudalism was active in Europe and in Japan, those two areas were “cash poor.” There was no real, consistent monetary system. All monetary value was based on real estate holdings, precious metals, and jewels. Taxes and dues were paid in crops and services. People working the land kept a portion of their harvest for food and seed. The rest of the harvest was given to the landlord (usually a noble) as payment for use of the land. Similarly, the tenants were expected to provide service in the military when they were needed.

Servient tenement

Additionally, in order to be a knight, a man also had to come from a proper lineage and hold enough wealth to support his rank. Some basic requisites of chivalry included the following:

• believe in the teachings and directions of the Catholic Church
• defend the Catholic Church
• defend the weak and poor
• love your country
• fight bravely
• fight infidels and heretics without mercy
• tell the truth
• be generous
• be a champion of right and good versus injustice and evil
• respect the honor of women (leading to the term chivalrous)
• never refuse a challenge from an equal or turn one’s back on a foe

During this time, land was power. The more land a noble owned and controlled, the greater his wealth in food and manpower. Woven into this economic structure were certain ethical and moral codes. In Europe, this was known as chivalry. In Japan, it was referred to as bushido. These codes required qualities such as courage, justice, mercy, and courtesy as well as obedience to the noble in the form of honor and loyalty. The established religions of the time reinforced these codes as divinely ordained.In addition to requiring knights to be loyal to their lords and protect their lands and serfs (peasants), chivalry also required them to strictly adhere to the Roman Catholic Church and its teachings and ritual practices.

bonds of obedience

The samurai also believed in a practice known as seppuku. This could happen due to cowardice in battle, being taken prisoner, or getting caught in a dishonest act.

• live frugally (spending little money)
• be honest
• show kindness
• have honor in all dealings
• show filial piety (respect for one’s parents)
• practice self-discipline
• display courage

Some basic principles of bushido included these:

bonds of obedience (continued)

Like chivalry, bushido was the code of conduct followed by the Japanese samurai. The primary obligation of the samurai was to his daimyo (Japanese lord). The literal meaning of bushido is “the way of the warrior.” The term was not officially used until the 16th century, yet the idea and unwritten rules of bushido date back to the 12th century. Bushido ethics were influenced by Chinese Confucianism and Buddhism. The samurai were required to display obedience to authority while exemplifying virtue to the lower class. The moral code of bushido evolved over time. However, the ideals of military skill and fearlessness in battle always remained.