1890s photo showing a variety of armor and weapons typically used by samurai
Japanese swords are the weapons that have come to be synonymous with the samurai. Chokutō, swords from the Nara period, featured a straight blade. By 900, curved tachi appeared, and ultimately the katana. Smaller commonly known companion swords are the wakizashi and the tantō.[71] Wearing a long sword (katana or tachi) together with a smaller sword became the symbol of the samurai, and this combination of swords is referred to as a daishō (literally "big and small"). During the Edo period only samurai were allowed to wear a daisho. A longer blade known as the nodachi was also used in the fourteenth century, though primarily used by samurai on the ground.[72]
The yumi (longbow), reflected in the art of kyūjutsu (lit. the skill of the bow) was a major weapon of the Japanese military. Its usage declined with the introduction of the tanegashima (Japanese matchlock) during the Sengoku period, but the skill was still practiced at least for sport.[73] The yumi, an asymmetric composite bow made from bamboo, wood, rattan and leather, had an effective range of 50 or 100 meters (160 or 330 feet) if accuracy was not an issue. On foot, it was usually used behind a tate (手盾), a large, mobile wooden shield, but the yumi could also be used from horseback because of its asymmetric shape. The practice of shooting from horseback became a Shinto ceremony known as yabusame (流鏑馬).[74]
Pole weapons including the yari (spear) and naginata were commonly used by the samurai. The yari displaced the naginata from the battlefield as personal bravery became less of a factor and battles became more organized around massed, inexpensive foot troops (ashigaru).[75] A charge, mounted or dismounted, was also more effective when using a spear rather than a sword, as it offered better than even odds against a samurai using a sword. In the Battle of Shizugatake where Shibata Katsuie was defeated by Toyotomi Hideyoshi, seven samurai who came to be known as the "Seven Spears of Shizugatake" (賤ヶ岳七本槍) played a crucial role in the victory.[76]
Tanegashima were introduced to Japan in 1543 through Portuguese trade. Tanegashima were produced on a large scale by Japanese gunsmiths, enabling warlords to raise and train armies from masses of peasants. The new weapons were highly effective; their ease of use and deadly effectiveness led to the tanegashima becoming the weapon of choice over the yumi. By the end of the 16th century, there were more firearms in Japan than in many European nations. Tanegashima—employed en masse, largely by ashigaru peasant foot troops—were responsible for a change in military tactics that eventually led to establishment of the Tokugawa shogunate and an end to civil war. Production of tanegashima declined sharply as there was no need for massive amounts of firearms. During the Edo period, tanegashima were stored away and used mainly for hunting and target practice. Foreign intervention in the 19th century renewed interest in firearms, but the tanegashima was outdated by then, and various samurai factions purchased more modern firearms from European sources.
Cannon became a common part of the samurai's armory by the 1570s. They often were mounted in castles or on ships, being used more as anti-personnel weapons than against castle walls or the like, though in the siege of Nagashino castle (1575) a cannon was used to good effect against an enemy siege tower. The first popular cannon in Japan were swivel-breech loaders named kunikuzushi or "province destroyers". Kunikuzushi weighed 264 lb (120 kg) and used 40 lb (18 kg) chambers, firing a small shot of 10 oz (280 g). The Arima clan of Kyushu used cannon like this at the Battle of Okinawate against the Ryūzōji clan.
Staff weapons of many shapes and sizes made from oak and other hard woods were used by the samurai, commonly known ones include the bō, the jō, the hanbō, and the tanbō.
Clubs and truncheons made of iron or wood, of all shapes and sizes were used by the samurai. Some like the jutte were one-handed weapons, and others like the kanabō were large two-handed weapons.
Chain weapons, various weapons using chains were used during the samurai era, the kusarigama and kusari-fundo are examples.
Cross sections of Japanese sword lamination methods
Diagram of the katana sword
Samurai with various armor and weapons, c. 1802–1814
Antique Japanese tachi
Antique Japanese katana
Antique Japanese wakizashi
Reenactors with Tanegashima at Himeji Castle Festival
Japanese arrow stand with a pair of Yumi bows.
The bow of the Kamakura period
The arrow of the Kamakura period
A naginata blade from the Kamakura period
Three yari (Kagi yari, omi yari and su yari) mounted in koshirae
Main article: Japanese armour
A mounted samurai with horse armour (uma yoroi or bagai)
As far back as the seventh century Japanese warriors wore a form of lamellar armor, which evolved into the armor worn by the samurai.[77] The first types of Japanese armor identified as samurai armor were known as ō-yoroi and dō-maru. These early samurai armors were made from small individual scales known as kozane. The kozane were made from either iron or leather and were bound together into small strips, and the strips were coated with lacquer to protect the kozane from water. A series of strips of kozane were then laced together with silk or leather lace and formed into a complete chest armor (dou or dō).[77] A complete set of the yoroi weighed 66 lbs.[78]
In the 16th century a new type of armor started to become popular after the advent of firearms, new fighting tactics by increasing the scale of battles and the need for additional protection and high productivity. The kozane dou, which was made of small individual scales, was replaced by itazane, which had larger iron plate or platy leather joined together. Itazane can also be said to replace a row of individual kozanes with a single steel plate or platy leather. This new armor, which used itazane, was referred to as tosei-gusoku (gusoku), or modern armor.[79][80][81]
The gusoku armour added features and pieces of armor for the face, thigh, and back. The back piece had multiple uses, such as for a flag bearing.[82] The style of gusoku, like the plate armour, in which the front and back dou are made from a single iron plate with a raised center and a V-shaped bottom, was specifically called nanban dou gusoku (Western style gusoku).[79] Various other components of armor protected the samurai's body. The helmet (kabuto) was an important part of the samurai's armor. It was paired with a shikoro and fukigaeshi for protection of the head and neck.[83]
The garment worn under all of the armor and clothing was called the fundoshi, also known as a loincloth.[84] Samurai armor changed and developed as the methods of samurai warfare changed over the centuries.[85] The known last use of samurai armor occurring in 1877 during the Satsuma Rebellion.[86] As the last samurai rebellion was crushed, Japan modernized its defenses and turned to a national conscription army that used uniforms.[87]
Samurai armour
Ō-yoroi, Kamakura period, 13th–14th century, Kasuga Grand Shrine, National Treasure
Dō-maru with Black and White Lacing. Muromachi period, 15th century, Tokyo National Museum, Important Cultural Property
Toyotomi Hidetsugu's gusoku armour, Azuchi-Momoyama period, 16th-17th century, Suntory Museum of Art
Karuta tatami dō gusoku, Edo period. A lightweight portable folding (tatami) armour made from small square or rectangle armor plates called karuta. The karuta are usually connected to each other by chainmail and sewn to a cloth backing.
A re-creation of an armored samurai riding a horse, showing horse armour (uma yoroi or bagai)
Shell-shaped casque (Oitaragainari kawari kabuto), iron and papier-mâché for the shell, beginning of the Edo Period
Face guard (Menpō). Edo period. Tokyo Fuji Art Museum.
During the existence of the samurai, two opposite types of organization reigned. The first type were recruits-based armies: at the beginning, during the Nara period, samurai armies relied on armies of Chinese-type recruits and towards the end in infantry units composed of ashigaru. The second type of organization was that of a samurai on horseback who fought individually or in small groups.[88]
At the beginning of the contest, a series of bulbous-headed arrows were shot, which buzzed in the air. The purpose of these shots was to call the kami to witness the displays of courage that were about to unfold. After a brief exchange of arrows between the two sides, a contest called ikkiuchi (一 騎 討 ち) was developed, where great rivals on both sides faced each other.[88] After these individual combats, the major combats were given way, usually sending infantry troops led by samurai on horseback. At the beginning of the samurai battles, it was an honor to be the first to enter battle. This changed in the Sengoku period with the introduction of the arquebus.[89]
At the beginning of the use of firearms, the combat methodology was as follows: at the beginning an exchange of arquebus shots was made at a distance of approximately 100 meters; when the time was right, the ashigaru spearmen were ordered to advance and finally the samurai would attack, either on foot or on horseback.[89] The army chief would sit in a scissor chair inside a semi-open tent called maku, which exhibited its respective mon and represented the bakufu, "government from the maku."[90]
In the middle of the contest, some samurai decided to get off the horse and seek to cut off the head of a worthy rival. This act was considered an honor. Through it they gained respect among the military class.[91] After the battle, the high-ranking samurai normally celebrated with a tea ceremony, and the victorious general reviewed the heads of the most important members of the enemy which had been cut.[92]
Most of the battles were not resolved in the ideal manner mentioned above. Most wars were won through surprise attacks, such as night raids, fires, etc. The renowned samurai Minamoto no Tametomo said:
According to my experience, there is nothing more advantageous when it comes to crushing the enemy than a night attack [...]. If we set fire to three of the sides and close the passage through the room, those who flee from the flames will be shot down by arrows, and those who seek to escape from them will not be able to flee from the flames.
Kamakura samurai beheading (head collection)
Cutting off the head of a worthy rival on the battlefield was a source of great pride and recognition. There was a whole ritual to beautify the severed heads: first they were washed and combed,[94] and once this was done, the teeth were blackened by applying a dye called ohaguro.[95] The reason for blackening the teeth was that white teeth was a sign of distinction, so applying a dye to darken them was a desecration.[95] The heads were carefully arranged on a table for exposure.[94]
In 1600, Kani Saizō participated in the Battle of Sekigahara as the forerunner of Fukushima Masanori's army.[96] In the outpost battle of Gifu Castle, he took the heads of 17 enemy soldiers, and was greatly praised by Tokugawa Ieyasu.[96] He fought with a bamboo stalk on his back and would mark the heads of his defeated enemies by putting bamboo leaves in their cut necks or mouths, since he couldn't carry every head.[96] Thus he gained the nickname Bamboo Saizo.[96]
During Toyotomi Hideyoshi's invasions of Korea, the number of severed heads of the enemies to be sent to Japan was such that for logistical reasons only the noses were sent. These were covered with salt and shipped in wooden barrels. These barrels were buried in a burial mound near the "Great Buddha" of Hideyoshi, where they remain today under the wrong name of mimizuka or "ear mound."[97]