History Quiz: Samurai

This was one of the ways in which Emperor Meiji tried to modernise Japan.

The term "samurai" dates back to the Asuka period, but referred to civilian public servants instead of a warrior class.

The helmet, because of the way it looked, apparently won him a fearsome reputation.

It was seen as a source of great pride and recognition.

Jan Joosten van Lodensteijn, known in Japan as Yayōsu, was born in Delft, while William Adams, known in Japan as Miura Anjin, was born in Gillingham in Kent. They were shipmates on a ship called De Liefde when they arrived in Japan.

He was the leader of the forty-seven Rōnin.

Originally a samurai, Oda Nobunaga later became a daimyō (a powerful feudal lord) and managed to conquer most of Honshu.

The province no longer exists, but it was located within the modern Mie Prefecture.

Yumi is the Japanese term for a bow, but when used in English it refers to traditional Japanese asymmetrical bows.

Lamellar armour is made up of small rectangular plates (also known as lamellae), leather or bronze laced into horizontal rows.

Buddhism influenced samurai philosophy in various ways. Zen meditation offered a process to calm the mind of a samurai, while the concept of reincarnation and rebirth led samurai to abandon torture and needless killing. The influence of Confucianism can be seen in the lord-retainer relationship of the samurai, where a samurai was required to show loyalty to his lord.

As mentioned in the explanation of the previous question, samurai believed in reincarnation and rebirth. As such, some samurai began to believe, at some point in their careers, that killing people was pointless, so they decided to become Buddhist monks.

She was, in particular, noted for her loyalty and courage at the Battle of Awazu.

Hasekura Tsunenaga was a kirishitan (meaning he was Catholic) samurai. He was sent by Date Masamune on a diplomatic mission to Pope Paul V, and on the journey he visited New Spain (a Spanish territory in the Americas), Spain and various other parts of Europe.

Only 10,000 samurai were sent to fight off 40,000 Mongols. However, due to heavy losses sustained by thunderstorms at sea, the Mongols were driven back by the samurai.