Samurai Archives Japanese History Podcast

In the third and final of our Samurai Behaving Badly series, we examine Samurai deceit, deception, and betrayal - illustrated by a virtual rogues gallery of treacherous Samurai, including Yamato Takeru, Minamoto Yoshinaka, Akamatsu Mitsusuke, Hojo Soun, Oda Nobuhide, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, Mori Motonari, the 47 Ronin, the Shinsengumi, and others. Support the podcast on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/samuraiarchives Mentioned in this podcast: Shogun-ki Blog The 47 Ronin: Feudal Drive-By Of Yore http://shogun-yashiki.blogspot.com/2011/05/47-ronin-feudal-drive-by-of-yore.html Miura, Ayako. Lady Gracia - A Samurai Wife's Love, Strife, and Faith IBC Publishing, Tokyo, 2004 (Translated by Susan Tsumura) http://astore.amazon.com/samurai-20/detail/4925080822 Support this podcast: Shop Amazon.com, suport the podcast: http://amzn.to/wnDX2j Samurai Archives Bookstore: http://astore.amazon.com/samurai-20 Samurai Archives Shop (T-Shirts, etc) http://www.cafepress.com/samuraiarchives Contact Us: Twitter @SamuraiArchives h

Everyone is familiar with the classic image of the honorable Samurai, fearless in the face of death and ardently adhering to the tenets of Bushido, so we've decided give a counterpoint to this image with examples of Samurai deceit, deception, betrayal, and generally dishonorable mayhem. In the second of our Samurai Behaving Badly series, we examine the belief that Samurai would rather die than surrender - illustrated by examples from Ogasawara Nagatada, Yamanaka Shikanosuke, and Matsunaga Hisahide. Support the podcast on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/samuraiarchives Mentioned in this podcast: Berry, Mary E. Hideyoshi (Harvard East Asian Monographs) Council on East Asian Studies, Harvard University (January 1, 1989)http://astore.amazon.com/samurai-20/detail/0674390261 Support this podcast: Shop Amazon.com, suport the podcast: http://amzn.to/wnDX2j Samurai Archives Bookstore: http://astore.amazon.com/samurai-20 Samurai Archives Shop (T-Shirts, etc) http://www.cafepress.com/samuraiarchives Contact Us: Twitte

Everyone is familiar with the classic image of the honorable Samurai, fearless in the face of death and ardently adhering to the tenets of Bushido, so we've decided give a counterpoint to this image with examples of Samurai deceit, deception, betrayal, and generally dishonorable mayhem. In the first of our Samurai Behaving Badly series, we examine concepts of loyalty - loyalty to clan, lord, and family, with examples of grievous disloyalty from the likes of Akechi Mitsuhide, Araki Murashige, Kobayakawa Hideaki, Mori Motonari, Sue Harukata, and the vassals of the unfortunate Besho Yoshichika. Support the podcast on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/samuraiarchives Mentioned in this podcast: Neilson, David Society at War: Eyewitness Accounts of Sixteenth Century Japan PhD Dissertation University of Oregon, 2007 http://gradworks.umi.com/32/85/3285619.html Berry, Mary Samurai Trouble: Thoughts on War and Loyalty. The Journal of Asian Studies, Vol 64, No. 4, 2005 http://www.jstor.org/pss/25075901 Friday, Karl Bushi

In this podcast we examine the myth of Japan's Samurai giving up the gun during the Edo period (1603-1868). In 1979, Professor Noel Perrin wrote a book called Giving Up the Gun, Japan's Reversion to the Sword, 1543-1879, and in this book he claims that Japan gave up the gun, or "put the genie back in the bottle" as it were, and pushes his theory to show that the contemporary nuclear arms race happening as he wrote the book could be reversed. A great thought, unfortunately in academic circles in the West and Japan, his work is not taken seriously, and the Japanese language version explicitly states that the book is not based on historical fact. Despite this, writers and scholars who do not generally focus on Japan have liberally cited his work, which has kept the myth alive. Add to that the pop-culture image of Samurai as honor-bound righteous warriors who would never do something so dishonorable as shoot an enemy from a distance, and it's easy to see why the myth has endured. Japan in fact didn't "give up th

From the 1540's through the battle of Nagashino and on until the end of the Sengoku period (Approx. 1477-1615) , Western guns in Japan played a bigger and bigger role in war and revolutionized warfare during the 16th century. In this podcast, your hosts examine the use and distribution of Western guns during this time with records of the numbers of guns held by Daimyo armies and deployed in battle, and how warfare changed during this period. Support the podcast on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/samuraiarchives Mentioned in this podcast: Baxter, James C. and Joshua A. Fogel, ed. Paul Varley Oda Nobunaga, Guns, and Early Modern Warfare Writing Histories In Japan. International Research Center for Japanese Studies Kyoto 2007 http://bit.ly/mLNUtu The Impact of Firearms on Japanese Warfare, 1543-98 By Delmer M. Brown, The Far Eastern Quarterly, Vol. 7, No. 3 (May, 1948), pp. 236-253 http://bit.ly/kJ3v7N Neilson, David Society at War: Eyewitness Accounts of Sixteenth Century Japan PhD Dissertation University of O

In the 3rd episode of the Samurai Archives Podcast, your hosts tackle the history of the gun in Japan prior to and including the introduction of firearms by the Portuguese in the 1540's. Contrary to popular belief, and often overlooked by historians, guns did in fact make their way into Japan as early as the 1450's, mainly through Ryukyu or to mainland Japan via China and Korea. Although they remained more of an oddity or curio until they were mass produced beginning in the 1540's, there are accounts of them in Japan long before the introduction by Western traders, which we present to you in this episode. And, for anyone who has ever wondered what the difference is between a musket, matchlock, and arquebus, we'll give you a concise explanation of the types of firearms in question. Support the podcast on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/samuraiarchives Mentioned in this podcast: Weapons & Fighting Techniques of the Samurai Warrior 1200-1877 AD By Thomas, D Conlan, Amber Books Ltd, 2008 http://bit.ly/iTAroK

This is part 2 of 2 of our Battle of Nagashino podcast. Few battles in Japanese history are as hyped or misunderstood as the Battle of Nagashino. For over 400 years, an iconic image of the modern forces of Oda Nobunaga, using Western guns to destroy the traditional Takeda cavalry, held sway over interpretations by both Japanese and Western historians. The Battle of Nagashino took place on 29 June, 1575. The campaign occurred in Mikawa province, in the vicinity of Nagashino Castle, hence the name. However, the main engagement that came to be known as the Battle of Nagashino took place at Shitaragahara, approximately three kilometers from Nagashino Castle. We continue our discussion of the battle of Nagashino and the "Military Revolution" theory adopted by many Western historians including Delmer Brown and Geoffrey Parker. We also look at the primary and secondary sources for the battle of Nagashino, and look into the history of guns in Japan, and their importance in Japanese warfare of the time. Support the po

Few battles in Japanese history are as hyped or misunderstood as the Battle of Nagashino. For over 400 years, an iconic image of the modern forces of Oda Nobunaga, using Western guns to destroy the traditional Takeda cavalry, held sway over interpretations by both Japanese and Western historians. The Battle of Nagashino took place on 29 June, 1575. The campaign occurred in Mikawa province, in the vicinity of Nagashino Castle, hence the name. However, the main engagement that came to be known as the Battle of Nagashino took place at Shitaragahara, approximately three kilometers from Nagashino Castle. The main forces were the Takeda, led by Takeda Katsuyori, on one side, and a partnership between Oda Nobunaga and Tokugawa Ieyasu on the other. The Takeda were centered in Kai province, and controlled parts of Shinano, Totomi, and Suruga provinces. The Tokugawa directly bordered them in Mikawa and Totomi provinces to the south and west; they were the junior partner in an alliance with the Oda, who controlled most

In this podcast, originally recorded in April 2010, Joseph (Author of the Ancient Japan Blog: http://japanesearchaeology.com) and Chris interview Travis Seifman about his recently published article Seals of Red and Letters of Gold: Japanese Relations with Southeast Asia in the 17th Century, which can be found here: http://scholarspace.manoa.hawaii.edu/handle/10125/18229. The paper is a version of his M.A. dissertation in Japanese Studies at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London, and it concerns Japan's diplomacy and trade with Southeast Asia during the 17th century. Support this podcast: Support the podcast on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/samuraiarchives Shop Amazon.com, suport the podcast: http://amzn.to/wnDX2j Samurai Archives Bookstore: http://astore.amazon.com/samurai-20 Samurai Archives Shop (T-Shirts, etc) http://www.cafepress.com/samuraiarchives Contact Us: Twitter @SamuraiArchives https://twitter.com/#!/samuraiarchives Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/pages/Samurai-Arc

Your intrepid hosts Chris, Nate, and Travis are back for part 2 of the AAS/ICAS (The Association for Asian Studies and the International Convention of Asia Scholars) Conference wrap-up. This time they examine the themes and concepts presented in the seminar entitled Negotiating One's Place in Japan's Long Sixteenth Century. The presentations in this Sengoku-specific seminar included: An Individual Paradigm for Merchant Success at the Close of the Long Sixteenth Century, Suzanne Gay So Many Choices (And So Few Options) For Local Warriors, David Spafford This Land is My Land: Masuda Motonaga and the Politics of Territorial Redistribution in Choshu Domain, David A. Eason Warrior Conflicts With Their Daimyo in Early Seventeenth Century Japan, Luke S. Roberts Books, articles, and links mentioned in this podcast: The Moneylenders of Late Medieval Kyoto by Suzanne Marie Gay, University of Hawaii Press, 2001 http://astore.amazon.com/samurai-20/detail/082482461X An Apology of Betrayal: Political and Narrative Strategi

Travis Seifman, author of the recently published article Seals of Red and Letters of Gold - Japanese Relations with Southeast Asia in the 17th Century, and conference attendee joins Chris and Nate with part one of the AAS/ICAS (The Association for Asian Studies and the International Convention of Asia Scholars) Conference wrap-up. They go over a few more seminars that they had attended, as well as comments and reactions to the lectures, speakers, and the conference itself. The seminars and lectures mentioned in this podcast include: Okinawa, Furusato, and the Creation of a Postwar Vision of Japaneseness, Thomas O’Leary Celebrations of the Heart – Romantic Lit by Yuikawa Kei, Eileen B. Mikals-Adachi Portraits of Modern Japanese Working Women – the Literature of Hayashi Mariko, Hiromi Tsuchiya Dollase To Be Beautiful, Or Not To Be Beautiful, That Is The Question—Himeno Kaoruko’s Seikei Bijo, Satoko Kan Who is Aiko? ~ The Absent ‘Father’ in Natsuo Kirino’s I’m Sorry, Mama., Kayo Takeuchi “Food Imagery and Parody

For the next podcast in our conference series, your hosts Nate and Chris come to you again live from the AAS/ICAS (The Association for Asian Studies and the International Convention of Asia Scholars) Conference held in Honolulu. They finish up the rundown of the Zen Buddhism and the Muromachi Shogunate seminar, and then give their comments and reactions to a Linguistics seminar and seminar on the digital archives of the Japan Center for Asian Historical Records. Support the podcast on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/samuraiarchives Links mentioned in this podcast: Japan Center for Asian Historical Records: http://www.jacar.go.jp/ The Pritzker Military Library: http://www.pritzkermilitarylibrary.org/events/2009/06-11-ron-werneth.jsp

For the first podcast in our conference series, your hosts Nate and Chris come to you live from the AAS/ICAS (The Association for Asian Studies and the International Convention of Asia Scholars) Conference held in Honolulu, Hawaii, from March 31st to April 3rd, 2011. You'll hear reactions and comments on the first few seminars of the first day, including lectures covering Japan's current security issues, religion and manga, and Zen Buddhism and the Muromachi Shogunate. Recorded on site at a table at the conference, sound quality is pretty much as expected - hopefully the background noise will enhance the overall experience with that "on the ground, in the trenches" feel. Consider it overall a work in progress, and enjoy! Support the podcast on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/samuraiarchives