Podcasts about Oda Nobunaga

A história de Yasuke, o lendário samurai negro que serviu ao poderoso Oda Nobunaga, é um dos episódios mais fascinantes e enigmáticos do Japão do século XVI. Sua trajetória desafia as noções tradicionais sobre identidade, raça e hierarquia social no período Sengoku (1467-1615), uma era marcada por guerras constantes entre clãs feudais.  Hoje exploraremos sua origem, sua ascensão a samurai, seu papel nas batalhas e as teorias sobre seu destino final.  ------------------------------------------------------------------Saudações habitantes da Terra! Curte e compartilha com quem gosta de Ufologia.Seja um apoiador! ⁠https://apoia.se/projetocontatopodcast⁠-------------------------------------------------- Minas/UFOWear - ⁠⁠https://reserva.ink/483449⁠⁠-------------------------------------------------- Relatos para: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠projetocontatopodcast@gmail.com⁠⁠⁠⁠-------------------------------------------------- Preencha o Questionário Ufológico e o Questionário Paranormal no linkabaixo! ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://forms.office.com/r/gfjzPx6Q9g⁠⁠--------------------------------------------------Apresentação, Edição, Produção, Pauta: Morgan Almeida Arte: Leandro Almeida (Dinho Rox)Apoiadores:Saulo JrAna CéliaFlávio FernandesGabriel AndradeLeandro A.Rodrigo FernandesWagner MeloJoabRayzaKaduAna MonteiroCezar Duque Aline Vieira

Assassin's Creed Shadows gives us the chance to explore the places where history occurred. One such place is recreated in remarkable detail: Azuchi Castle. Built by Oda Nobunaga as his ultimate stronghold, not only was its site of huge strategic significance, but it revolutionised Japanese castle-building and lent its name to a new era of Japanese history: the Azuchi-Momoyama period.Professor Oleg Benesch, author of Japanese Castles: Citadels Of Modernity In War And Peace joins Matt Lewis to explore the nooks and crannies of this architectural marvel. Echoes of History is a Ubisoft podcast, brought to you by History Hit. Hosted by: Matt LewisEdited by: Alex JonesProduced by: Matt Lewis, Robin McConnellSenior Producer: Anne-Marie LuffProduction Manager: Beth DonaldsonExecutive Producers: Etienne Bouvier, Julien Fabre, Steve Lanham, Jen BennettMusic by The FlightIf you liked this podcast please subscribe, share, rate & review. Take part in our listener survey here.Tell us your favourite Assassin's Creed game or podcast episode at echoes-of-history@historyhit.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Last time we spoke about how Zhang Xueliang lost Manchuria. In September 1931, the Mukden Incident ignited conflict in Manchuria as Japan executed a false flag attack, prompting a swift assault on Peitaying Barracks. Zhang Xueliang, urged by Chiang Kai-shek, chose not to resist, fearing a full-scale war. The Japanese invasion revealed deep political divisions in Manchuria, with some officials defecting, others sabotaging, and a few fighting back. Amidst chaos, Zhang sought to unify his forces, but rivalries and external threats complicated his efforts, setting the stage for prolonged conflict. In post-1929 Manchuria, nationalist activists joined the KMT, including Yan Baohang and his friends, who attended a 1931 conference in Nanjing. They aimed to resist Japanese influence while navigating local elite tensions and economic struggles. As Zhang Xueliang rose to power, he sought reform but faced distrust and challenges, including high military spending and a devastating depression. By 1931, Japanese aggression loomed, culminating in a coup that threatened the fragile nationalist aspirations in the region.   #139 Gokokujo and Collaborators  Welcome to the Fall and Rise of China Podcast, I am your dutiful host Craig Watson. But, before we start I want to also remind you this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Perhaps you want to learn more about the history of Asia? Kings and Generals have an assortment of episodes on history of asia and much more  so go give them a look over on Youtube. So please subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry for some more history related content, over on my channel, the Pacific War Channel where I cover the history of China and Japan from the 19th century until the end of the Pacific War. The Japanese Imperial General Headquarters had hoped to localize the Mukden Incident and communicated their orders to Kwantung Command. However as we had seen, the Kwantung Command in chief General Shigeru Honjo, had his wrist twisted somewhat by certain culprits in the form of Ishiwara Kanji and Itageki Seishiro. Honjo thus ordered the forces to proceed with expanding operations along the South Manchuria Railway zone. On September the 19th, the 29th infantry regiment stormed Mukden, easily overwhelming the Chinese forces within the inner walled city. Simultaneously the 2nd battalion occupied Pei Ta Ying, where they were met with some fierce resistance before storming Tung Ta Ying. Afterwards the 2nd Division drove out the remaining Chinese resistance from the eastern area of Mukden. Meanwhile the 1st Battalion fought Chinese forces at Kuan Cheng Tze near Changchun. By this point Honjo's request for assistance from the Korea Army was confirmed. General Senjuro Hayashi ordered the 20th infantry division to divide itself, forming the 39th mixed brigade who marched into Manchuria, without any authorization from Tokyo nor the Emperor to do so. By the end of the 19th, the Japanese had seized Liaoyang, Shenyang, Yingkou, Dandong, Fushun, Changchun and Jilin.  On the 20th, Wan Shu Cheng, the commander of the Chinese 2nd army ordered a withdrawal of the 44th and 643rd regiments stationed at Taching to head for Tiantsin. On the 21st the Japanese took Jilin city, by the 23rd they captured Jiaohe and Dunhua, both within Jilin. On the 26th, the Governor of Jilin, Zhang Zuoxiang who was not there at the time, was overthrown by a newly formed provisional provincial government with Xi Xia as its chairman. By October 1st Zhang Haiping would surrender the area of Taonan, later in October Ji Xing surrendered the Yanbian Korean Autonomous prefecture area and on the 17th Yu Zhishan surrendered Eastern Liaoning. General HQ in Tokyo were flabbergasted at the news all of this was being done without their orders, in fact in most cases it was directly against their orders. The civilian government of Japan was in absolute disarray over what was an act of Gekokujo. Gekokujo directly translated meaning "the low overcomes the high",was when someone of a lesser position in the military or politics overthrew someone in a higher position to seize power. The term goes all the way back to the Sui Dynasty of China, for Japan during the Kamakura period, but its most prominently known for being used during the Sengoku period. It was through the chaotic political climate of the Sengoku period that Oda Nobunaga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi rose to power. During the Showa period, Gekokujo would occur often. Those of the Kodoha faction used it as a means to an end during the 1920s and 1930s, assassinating political opponents as they tried to press for a Showa restoration. Back to Manchuria, as Gokokujo ran rampant, with reports coming in after each quick victory and city taken by Japanese forces, Tokyo General HQ felt utterly powerless to stop it. There is also another facet to this, the role of Emperor Hirohito. Many of you might only have a vague idea of how much “actual power” Emperor Hirohito had during the Showa Era. The Meiji Constitution of Japan going back to 1889 remained in force until 1947. It was enacted after the Meiji restoration in 1868 and provided a form of mixed constitutional and absolute monarchy. Thus in theory the Emperor governed the empire upon the advice of his ministers. In practice this meant while the Emperor was head of state, it was still the Prime Minister who was actually heading the government. Now this was all fine and dandy, however the constitution also stated the Emperor had direct control over the military. Imagine this scenario, you work for a company and take orders from the boss of the company. The father of the boss used to run the company and is seen as the face of it, but retired long ago and has no real authority. So you do the orders your boss gives you, but what about if that father figure suddenly shows up and gives orders? Many in the company would go ahead and do what the father says, feeling this obligatory need to. Now in the case of Showa Era Japan, the entire population of Japan saw the Emperor as a divine being, maybe you can call him the spiritual leader of Japan. He wasn't expected to intervene in political or military matters, but if he did, you but your ass people would follow his orders. Now since the Japanese navy and army knew the Emperor could directly control them, they actually used this as a tool. On many occasions in order to secure further funding or specific policy adjustment, military leaders would appeal to the Emperor or do things in the name of the Emperor, completely superseding the civilian government. Basically the military used the Meiji Constitution to earn a large degree of autonomy, case and point being the Mukden Incident. As long as they made it seem like they were doing everything they believed the Emperor wanted them to do, they believed they could get away with it. If the Civilian government came after them for their actions, they could appeal to the emperor, but how did Hirohito feel about all this? Rumors had emerged even before the Mukden Incident, to which Hirohito demanded the army be reigned in. Attempts were made, but the Mukden Incident went off on September 18th. The next day the imperial palace were given a report and Hirohito was advised by chief aide de camp Nara Takeji “this incident would not spread and if the Emperor was to convene an imperial conference to take control of the situation, the virtue of his majesty might be soiled if the decisions of such a conference should prove impossible to implement”.  As the Mukden incident was getting worse, the Kwantung officers began to demand reinforcements be sent from the Korea army. The current Wakatsuki cabinet met on the issue and decided the Mukden incident had to remain an incident, they needed to avoid a declaration of war. The official orders were for no reinforcements of the Korea army to mobilize, however the field commander took it upon his own authority and mobilized them. The army chief of staff Kanaya reported to Hirohito the Korea army was marching into Manchuria against orders. At 31 years of age Hirohito now had an excellent opportunity to back the current cabinet, to control the military and stop the incident from getting worse. At this time the military was greatly divided on the issue, politically still weak compared to what they would become in a few years, if Hirohito wanted to rule as a constitutional monarch instead of an autocratic monarch, well this was his chance. Hirohito said to Kanaya at 4:20pm on September 22nd “although this time it couldn't be helped, [the army] had to be more careful in the future”. Thus Hirohito accepted the situation as fait accompli, he was not seriously opposed to seeing his army expand his empire. If it involved a brief usurpation of his authority so bit, as long as the operation was successful.    It actually a lot more complicated, but to general sum it up, Emperor Hirohito cared about only one thing, the Kokutai. The Kokutai was the national essence of Japan. It was all aspects of Japanese polity, derived from history, tradition and customs all focused around the cult of the Emperor. The government run by politicians was secondary, at any given time the kokutai was the belief the Emperor could come in and directly rule. If you are confused, dont worry, its confusing. The Meiji constitution was extremely ambiguous. It dictated a form of constitutional monarchy with the kokutai sovereign emperor and the “seitai” that being the actual government. Basically on paper the government runs things, but the feeling of the Japanese people was that the wishes of the emperor should be followed. Thus the kokutai was like an extra-judicial structure built into the constitution without real legal framework, its a nightmare I know.    Emperor Hirohito was indoctrinated from a young age that the most important aspect of his reign was to defend the Kokutai. This is actually why Hirohito took so long to finally intervene during WW2 and call for Japan's surrender. I have taken far too long going down the rabbit hole of Showa Era Japan and Hirohito, if you are interested on the subject, over only my Youtube Membership or Patreon I did a two part exclusive podcast specifically on Hirohito's responsibility for the war.  The weeks following the Mukden Incident were marked by wide scale cooperation between the local Chinese leaders and Japanese invaders. In many places there was of course valiant resistance by Chinese forces, but it was not centrally coordinated and honestly amounted to little. The Kwantung army despite being vastly outnumbered was highly trained and highly mechanized in comparison to the Chinese. The Kwantung army had very few troops to conquer over 350,000 square miles, populated by over 30 million Chinese. Prior to 1931 the Kwantung Army numbered under 10,000, by late 1931 this would increase to 65,000 and by 1933 140,000. Yet during the initial invasion the army's behavior was heavily affected by the actions of the Chinese, or in many cases their inability to act. The only way Japan was going to do what they wanted to do was to encourage co-optation amongst the Chinese elites of Manchuria, typically at the provincial and local levels. This meant showering them with extravagant new positions in the new regime, promoting a policy of nonresistance and targeting prominent members of Zhang Xueliang's regime who were expected to oppose Kwantung rule.  When the Mukden Incident broke out, Zhang Xueliang was in Beiping acting in his new capacity as the North China Garrison commander. On the night of September 18th, Zhang Xuliang was enjoying an opera performance by the famous singer Mei Lanfang. His deputies also all happened to be away from Shenyang. Wan Fulin was in Beiping and Zhang Zuoxiang was attending his fathers funeral in Jinzhou. Within their absence the most senior provincial commanders were quickly pounced upon by Kwantung operatives who secured their cooperation. Within Shenyang the Eastern Borders Garrison commander Yu Zhishan and Xi Xia the acting provincial forces commander of Changchun both immediately defected to the Japanese. Although the Northeastern Army had roughly 130,000 troops within Manchuria, compared to the Kwantung and Korea army troops who together were roughly 50,000, Chiang Kai-Shek hastily issued a nonresistance order that was confirmed by Zhang Xueliang. The troops were to not fight back and instead await a negotiated settlement. While they waited, the Japanese secured high level provincial elite cooperation within a few weeks time. On November 10th, Zhang Zuolin's former civil affairs minister, Yuan Jinkai was made chairman of the committee in charge of Japanese controlled Liaoning. On December 16th, the formerly existing post of governor was re-established and a previous holder of this post under Zhang Xueliang, Zang Shiyi was appointed. Thus Yuan Jinkai's post as chairman was redundant. Meanwhile Xi Xia was made governor of Jilin.  Some of you might be wondering, why in the hell would Chiang Kai-Shek relay orders to not resist an invasion? Let us not forget the timeline here, during this exact time period, Feng Yuxiang and Yan Xishan formed an alliance in North China against the NRA; the Soviet of Jiangxi was running rampant and in the south the Old Guangxi clique was running amok. Even though Zhang Xueliang had 250,000 men on paper, only 100-130,000 of them were in Manchuria while the rest were scattered around Hebei. Chiang Kai-Shek had an expert understanding of the Japanese numbers, their training and equipment. To put it frankly, if the quote en quote “incident” escalated into a full-scale war, China would most likely lose. There was also another aspect to this, the role of the League of Nations and the current Wakatsuki government in Tokyo. Either of these bodies could potentially restrain what appeared to be renegade Japanese forces on the asia mainland.  Going a bit forward in time, the last redoubt during the invasion would be at Jinzhou where Zhang Xueliang would establish his HQ. When it was about to finally fall, Zhang Xueliang ultimately decided to withdraw his forces from Manchuria. According to the US minister to CHina, Nelson Johnson, Counselor Yano of the Japanese legation tam at Beiping had conducted informal discussions with the Young Marshal, in which he stated Jinzhou would inevitably fall to the Japanese and quote “the Tokyo Foreign Office would gain prestige and be better able to shape events to the advantage of China if the Chinese avoid[ed] a clash by withdrawing voluntarily.” He also advised Zhang Xueliang, that some of his followers might be reappointed to official positions within the newly emerging government in Shenyang. Nelson tells us “Chang is believed to have been led to his present decision by these inducements, along with the bitter hostility toward him at Nanking and the lack of support from that quarter.” Thus Zhang Xueliang was being blackmailed by both sides into nonresistance. By late December of 1931 it also seemed certain international intervention was not going to happen and Chiang Kai-Shek's resignation over Nanjing did not provide the Young Marshal with many options.  Now what about the Japanese government during all of this. When the Mukden Incident boke out, the government in Tokyo, headed by premier Wakatsuki Reijiro were appalled to hear the news of what was essentially a mutiny. The Kwantung officers disagreed with Tokyo's policies and kept Tokyo's consul in Shenyang under lock and key during the night of September 18th. If there had been more significant resistance to the invasion, Tokyo probably would have ordered the Kwantung army to withdraw. Without the co-optation of many Chinese elites, the Kwantung Army would have most likely not succeeded in taking all of Manchuria. The co-optation policy the Japanese took was also very much not an ad hoc measure. There had been elements within the IJA who had been working overtime to persuade cooperation with local power holders as part of their strategy. The Kwantung officers who launched the Mukden Incident, mostly working under Ishiwara and Itegaki had initially aimed to enact a simply military occupation in which “local Chinese officials would be granted a considerable degree of autonomy in exchange for their cooperation.” However, Tokyo HQ outright rejected annexation out of fear of Soviet reprisals and this led the mutiny leaders to  “the subterfuge of Manchurian independence.” The improvised nature of the original plan led to arguments between the different sections of those Japanese forces in Manchuria. Historian Akira Iriye noted “What emerges . . . is an almost total absence of ideology as a driving force behind military action.” While this sounds clearly dysfunctional, it actually aided the occupiers, because many areas of life in Manchuria were not immediately affected by the occupation and thus were more likely to cooperate.  The actual coordination of the occupation was placed in the hands of the Kwantung Army Special Affairs Unit “Tokumubu”, operating via the General Affairs Board of the Council of State under Komai Tokuzo. Komai Tokuzo had been born near Kyoto and from an early age was consumed with a desire to see China. He was trained as an agriculturalist, before he joined the SMR and worked for a company during the reign of Zhang Zuolin. He became acquainted with the Old Tiger and debated with him and other prominent leaders on questions such as Mongol land rights and the Guo Songling rebellion. During this time he befriended Yu Chonghan and Zhang Jinghui. After the Mukden Incident, he was appointed as a financial adviser to the Kwantung Army, a very senior post with direct access to Honjo Shigeru, the commander of the Northeast. As Akira Iriye also notes “in fact, [Komai] was a top-level adviser to the army on politics and economics in Manchuria.”Komai would become responsible for the strategies of co-opting local elite, and thus was essential to the power structure of the Kwantung Army going forward.  The Japanese utilized a lethal combination of violence and persuasion to take over. Many power brokers refused to cooperate and were forced into exile in North China. However, plenty of collaborators were found to quickly set up structures and controls within the new regime. The bulk of the Japanese forces moved into the principal cities of the SMR region first. Robert E Lewis, the adviser to the foreign affairs ministry in Nanjing sent a telegram declaring the Japanese had sent a large number of troops into Manchuria just prior to the 18th of September “On Friday night September eighteenth the Japanese Army sent from Korea into Manchuria through Antung seven army railway trains fully loaded with soldiers. On Saturday night September ninteenth [sic] Japanese army sent four additional trains loaded with soldiers in to [sic] Manchuria at the same point . . . Japanese occupied every Chinese public office in Antung excepting the customs house which has Europeans in it, also placed guard over Chinese customs superintendent to prevent his free action. [The Japanese] arrested superintendent of schools and forbad [sic] teaching of Dr Sun Yatsen's principles. Japanese army occupied Kirin seventy nine miles east of the south Manchuria railway zone on September ninteenth [sic] they seized and held the telegraph office telephone office wireless station provincial arsenal waterworks plant Bank of China Kirin Provincial Bank police headquarters and subdivisions Kuo Ming Tang [sic] Party headquarters and all other public offices. Search and seizure was conducted of non-military population. Troops and military cadets were disarmed when captured and the arms and munitions of the Chinese arsenal were removed by Japanese including modern rifles field guns heavy guns military motor trucks.”. The capture of Shenyang only took a single day. The Japanese military, their Chinese military collaborators and the local media all coordinated efforts to persuade the people to continue life as normal. Many businesses closed down temporarily within the first few days, worried about a breakdown of the social order or Japanese attacks. But a week after the initial occupation, reports came to the Chambers of Agriculture and Commerce in Shenyang that businesses were all operating normally again, public order was restored. On the second day of the occupation the Kwantung installed Colonel Doihara Kenji as the new mayor of Shenyang, yes that psychopath a mayor. However by October 20th, the mayorship would be handed over to Zhao Xinbo, who by that point became a legal adviser to the Kwantung Army.  The capture of Changchun took a bit longer than Shenyang. On September 23rd the Japanese demanded of the Jilin based forces their surrender. Their acting commander Xi Xia agreed to the demands so that in his words “the province fortunately to escape the horrors of war.” However there were some troops looking to resist. In some ensuing clashes, 200 Chinese soldiers and around 10 civilians were killed in combat. An eye witness reported “At 4 P.M. on the 23rd, the Japanese army made strong use of their armaments, causing Xi Xia concern. So that afternoon, he met [Japanese] commander Tamon, and said that the present situation was serious[;] . . . only he himself could take responsibility for removing the Jilin army's weapons . . . As a result, at 2 P.M. [the next day], they handed over 1,200 rifles, 11 machine-guns and 6 mortars.” Afterwards the city police were given permission to maintain public order, though they clearly were working under the Japanese. On September 24th, Xi Xia announced to the provincial assembly that the Chamber of Commerce of the old government was dissolved and that he would be leading the new Jilin governor's office. He also added that there would be no maintenance committees and that he would exercise complete control. Of course that was bullshit, he was nothing more than a Japanese puppet taking direct orders from Kwantung officers. Despite all of this, Jilin would not be fully dominated, for several months, northern Jilin was in control of rebel forces, based out of Bin county.  The Japanese occupation led to the removal of the Northeastern Governmental Affairs Council, the structure Zhang Xueliang used to nominally control the region. The Japanese did not seek to create a new cross-provincial authority until it seemed there existed popular demand for an independent state. While in the interim, the policy was to establish provincial authorities headed by prominent Chinese figures, secretly under Japanese control. Within Fengtian, the authority was originally only there to maintain public order, but by December it was declared to be a full provincial government. Within Jilin, Xi Xia declared an independent provincial government from the very start. Within the special Zone, Zhang Jinghui declared autonomy, but still stayed in contact with Zhang Xueliang for several months, fence sitting as it were.  At the provincial level, Zhang Xueliang had never really controlled Manchuria, it was honestly in the hands of his subordinates, many of whom already had close ties to the Japanese. For example, Yu Chonghan, a former foreign minister under Zhang Zuolin had for many years received a regular retainer as an “adviser” to the Japanese. He was retired in Liaoyuan when the Mukden Incident occurred and by November was persuaded to return to Shenyang to form a pro-Japanese statement. As far as Yu Chonghan was concerned “Zhang Xueliang squandered the regional assets on expanding their armies in a futile quest for national supremacy through military conquest”. The Japanese also made it apparent to various interest groups that cooperation with them would be advantageous. Take for example the imperial restorationists, yes they still existed. One was Zheng Xiaoxu, who would become the first Manchukuo prime minister. People such as him were persuaded by the prospect of restoring the Qing Dynasty, as batshit crazy as that sounds. There was also White Russians in Harbin persuaded they would be protected from KMT hooligans who had been assaulting them as of late.  In general a huge motivation for regional military leaders to collaborate was to minimize the effect that the Japanese occupation would impose on their spheres of influence. I mean lets be honest, if your choice was to collaborate and maintain some autonomy over your own little slice of Manchuria, or go into exile in North China, what would you choose? Many who opted to collaborate retained the same roles they had before the Mukden Incident. Zhang Shiyi who was acting governor of Liaoning prior became governor of Fengtian province. Zhang Jinghui was the commander of the Harbin Special Zone and this went unchanged. Xi Xia was deputy governor of Jilin, and since his superior Zhang Zuoxiang was exiled to Jinzhou, he simply succeeded his post. Through the initial cooperation, southern manchuria was taken over without wide-scale bloodshed, though there was of course some savage bombing of certain cities.  On September 24th, a Liaoning public order maintenance committee was set up and a Jilin provincial government followed on the 26th. Liaoning did not have a provincial government spring up immediately because the prominent elites such as Yuan Jinkai and Zang Shiyi at first had some qualms about turning against Zhang Xueliang. They of course believed it was possible Zhang Xueling could rally the Northeastern Army and recapture the occupied areas. Yet they chose immediately to maintain public order in a quasi neutral stance. To coordinate all of the newly formed collaborative bodies, the Kwantung Army set up a Control Bureau “Tochibu” with Komai Tokuzo in charge. He was given sole control over it  “so that if it were successful, then it would be the Kwantung Army's success, but if by some chance it should fail, then Komai alone could take the responsibility.” By far and large the Japanese wanted a cross-provincial administrative structure to appear organically created by the Manchurian lites. Therefore during the initial phase of the occupation the Japanese exercised control through the medium of public order maintenance committees, which had long been tradition in Manchuria to form organizations to deal with local social issues such as policing, fire fighting and so forth. Yuan Jinkai, the former chief secretary for military and civil affairs and governor of Fengtian, was now appointed by the Kwantung Army to lead their newly established public order maintenance committee. The committee's stated purpose was "to uphold local order and ensure that finance and businesses operate normally, as well as to establish police and militia forces responsible for maintaining public order." Additionally, other prominent local figures were recruited to various similar committees, including a Liaoning United People's Provisional Committee and a Northeastern Gentry and People's Committee for Discussing Solutions to the Current Situation. On September 28, both the Liaoning Committee and Xi Xia's Jilin administration issued a "declaration of independence" and created new government departments staffed by Chinese officials. It quickly became evident to the Japanese that Yuan Jinkai was not suited for the role of chairman. A contemporary Japanese commentator remarked that “his attitude appeared half-formed and confusing to those outside the provincial capital.” Specifically, Yuan was still reluctant to officially establish a Liaoning provincial government. Consequently, the Kwantung Army turned to the other remaining member of the triad of elders from Zhang Zuolin's administration, Yu Chonghan. From the early days following the Manchurian Incident, there had been indications that Yu was “moving toward participation.” Yu had a long history of collaboration with the Japanese, dating back to the Russo-Japanese War, during which he served as a spy for them. He would have been an obvious choice for the council from the outset if not for his recovery from a serious illness at his home in Liaoyuan. As it became apparent that local leaders had lost faith in Yuan Jinkai's judgment, consultations were held among the provincial heads, who recommended that Yu Chonghan be brought out of retirement to join the committee, provided his health permitted. On November 1, Morita Fukumatsu from the Fengtian Japanese Residents' Association visited Yu's home to assess his health. After Morita briefed Yu on the Committee's situation, they discussed a policy aimed at unifying the Northeast and the adoption of the Kingly Way (Wangdao) as a guiding principle for the new state. Yu agreed to come out of retirement, and on November 3, he traveled to Shenyang for a meeting with Honjo. During this meeting, Yu presented eight points he believed would foster a “paradise” of Sino-Japanese cooperation, which included reforms in local policing, tax and salary systems, and a commitment to non militarism. Subsequently, Yu was appointed head of the committee, with Yuan reporting to him. By the end of 1931, committee members who had previously hesitated to declare an autonomous government due to concerns that Zhang Xueliang might launch an attack to reclaim the Northeast were convinced to support the idea of separating from Nanjing's authority. Well Zhang Xueliang would try to face the Japanese with his northeastern Army. It would not only be him, other figures would emerge to lead resistance efforts against the Japanese, trying to claw back Manchuria from the Empire of the Rising Sun.  I would like to take this time to remind you all that this podcast is only made possible through the efforts of Kings and Generals over at Youtube. Please go subscribe to Kings and Generals over at Youtube and to continue helping us produce this content please check out www.patreon.com/kingsandgenerals. If you are still hungry after that, give my personal channel a look over at The Pacific War Channel at Youtube, it would mean a lot to me. Yes thus far the episodes have been awfully heavy on the politics, schemes and dynamics of how Manchuria was invaded. Some of you must be clamoring for the battles, and for the next few episodes that's exactly what we will jump into. For the fight for Manchuria has only just begun.

This episode of *Oootheyfunny* dives into a mix of fascinating history, relatable life moments, and hilarious everyday experiences. We explore the incredible story of Yasuke, the first Black samurai, tracing his journey from Africa to Japan and his rise under Oda Nobunaga. Then, we get into the nerve-wracking moments that had our hearts racing—whether it's public speaking, job interviews, or the dreaded roller coaster anticipation. We also tackle the universal experience of visiting your mom's house, only to be handed a list of chores, and why that never seems to change. Finally, we break down the world of unsolicited advice, from the absurd to the well-intentioned, discussing why people can't resist giving it and how to handle it when it comes your way. With humor, insight, and engaging stories, this episode is a fun and relatable ride!

In this week's episode, the Cups discuss a character who will be featured in Assassins Creed: Shadows, but who is also pre-established in the AC canon already. It's likely that the canon information surrounding Oda Nobunaga will change once Shadows releases, but this episode covers what we know about him in canon so far. Now introducing Assassin's Creed Lorecast merch for everyone! Check it out at our shop! Want to chime in on the conversation? You can become a patron at the Master Assassin tier or higher and join us ON THE SHOW! https://www.patreon.com/aclorecast We've launched merch! Become a patron at the Assassin tier or higher to get these exclusive rewards! Check out our website! cupspodcasting.com If you enjoyed our podcast, give us a rating and review on Apple and/or Spotify! We'll even read your review out on the show! Join our The Cups Podcasts discord server where we dive deeep into all video game discussions. https://discord.gg/fxR2WVDNhP Come hang out on the Robots Radio discord server to join the fun! https://discord.gg/AW5Wc4kgZb If you love our merch, check out the artist behind the designs! https://libanezink.wixsite.com/libanezart If you love our music, check out the musician behind our theme! Pipeman Studios You can also find us on Twitter at @aclorecast, and you can dm us or email us at assassinscreedlorecast@gmail.com. Music by Pipeman Studios Website designed by H-I-T Media Solutions Merch designed by Lauren Ibañez Ink Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Recent video game trailers and releases are being trashed online and in comment sections. Naughty Dog's “Intergalactic” was criticized so heavily for their protagonist, a shaved head unidentifiable, the company turned off comments on the trailer. Games like “Concord” lost $400-million and were completely shut down. Countless gamers are furious how Ciri from “The Witcher” has had her look completely changed from female to, maybe female, while others are equally furious over “Dragon Age Veilgaurd” and its totally amateur production. Turns out its director is no surprise, an activist. “Assassin's Creed Shadows” was delayed until February 2025 due to criticism and a Japanese petition to cancel the game due to its cultural insensitivity to Japan. Why? Because Yasuke, a real black man who lived as a vassal to the warlord Oda Nobunaga, was turned into a full-fledged Samurai as the main protagonist of a game set in Japan. It doesn't help that half the staff have literally never made a game before. Defenders of the game say it must be racism, because Japanese didn't care that the other character, Naoe, a female Ninja, wasn't real - yeah, but she's also Japanese, not black. This is the same type of argument made by Corrine Busche of Dragon Age and by the outgoing CEO of Sony, Tony Vinciquerra, over Madame Webb: these things failed because people hated them, largely because of hate campaigns directed at minorities. Or, people hated them because they sucked. On the other hand, there were Onna-Bugeisha in Japan, noble female Samurai warriors. In some battles, up to a third of the warriors were female, though it was uncommon. So the same anger directed as AC-Shadows is not justified when we look at “Ghost of Tsushima 2,” which features of a female Japanese Samurai. Whatever your option is, however, the fact is AAA games are on average failing with massive budgets, often incompetent staff, and inflated promises. That's why games such as MiSide are totally dominating with virtually no budget or staff. -FREE ARCHIVE (w. ads)SUBSCRIPTION ARCHIVEX / TWITTER FACEBOOKWEBSITEPAYPALCashApp: $rdgable EMAIL: rdgable@yahoo.com / TSTRadio@protonmail.comBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/tst-radio--5328407/support.

2024 was a special year for Carnival and the Japan-New Orleans connection! Lafcadio Hearn's life & works inspired the theme for Rex Parade 2024: "The Two Worlds of Lafcadio Hearn - New Orleans & Japan". But why Hearn? What went into the float design? What other ways has Hearn left a lasting impact on both New Orleans & Japan? Find out today with a super-sized special Mardi Gras bonus episode, featuring insights from Rex historian/archivist Will French & historian/archivist emeritus Dr. Stephen Hales, Royal Artists float designer/artistic director Caroline Thomas, Lafcadio Hearn's great grandson Bon Koizumi,  legendary chef John Folse, Captain of the Krewe of Lafcadio John Kelly, JSNO's resident Lafcadio Hearn expert Matthew Smith, and even the Mayor of Matsue Akihito Uesada! Get ready for Mardi Gras 2025 by reflecting on this unique connection between New Orleans & Japan!------ About the Krewe ------The Krewe of Japan Podcast is a weekly episodic podcast sponsored by the Japan Society of New Orleans. Check them out every Friday afternoon around noon CST on Apple, Google, Spotify, Amazon, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts.  Want to share your experiences with the Krewe? Or perhaps you have ideas for episodes, feedback, comments, or questions? Let the Krewe know by e-mail at kreweofjapanpodcast@gmail.com or on social media (Twitter: @kreweofjapan, Instagram: @kreweofjapanpodcast, Facebook: Krewe of Japan Podcast Page, TikTok: @kreweofjapanpodcast, LinkedIn: Krewe of Japan LinkedIn Page, Blue Sky Social: @kreweofjapan.bsky.social, & the Krewe of Japan Youtube Channel). Until next time, enjoy!------ Music Credits ------Background music provided by: Royalty Free Music by Giorgio Di Campo for Free Sound Music http://freesoundmusic.eu FreeSoundMusic on Youtube  Link to Original Sound Clip------ Audio Clip Credits ------Thanks to Dominic Massa & everyone at WYES for allowing us to use some of the audio from the below Rex Clips:Segment about Royal Artist & Float DesignFull 2024 Rex Ball Coverage (Krewe of Lafcadio/Nicholls State segment)Thanks to Matsue City Hall & Mayor Akihito Uesada for their video message below:Message from Matsue Mayor Akihito Uesada------ Support the Krewe! Offer Links for Affiliates ------Use the referral links below & our promo code from the episode!Support your favorite NFL Team AND podcast! Shop NFLShop to gear up for football season!Zencastr Offer Link - Use my special link to save 30% off your 1st month of any Zencastr paid plan! ------ Past KOJ Hearn/Matsue/History Episodes ------Foreign-Born Samurai: William Adams ft. Nathan Ledbetter (Guest Host, Dr. Samantha Perez) (S5E17)Foreign-Born Samurai: Yasuke ft. Nathan Ledbetter (Guest Host, Dr. Samantha Perez) (S5E16)Explore Matsue ft. Nicholas McCullough (S4E19)Jokichi Takamine: The Earliest Bridge Between New Orleans & Japan ft. Stephen Lyman (S4E13)The Life & Legacy of Lafcadio Hearn ft. Bon & Shoko Koizumi (S1E9)Matsue & New Orleans: Sister Cities ft. Dr. Samantha Perez (S1E2)------ Links about Rex ------2024 Rex Parade/Float PDF with Full DesignsCaroline Thomas's Website------ JSNO Upcoming Events ------JSNO Event CalendarJoin JSNO Today!

C'est l'histoire d'un homme dont le vrai nom a été oublié, et que l'on appelle aujourd'hui « Yasuke, le samouraï noir ». Son origine aussi est imprécise, Yasuke était peut-être Congolais ou Mozambicain. Ce que l'on sait de source sûre, c'est que cet Africain, a quitté les côtes de l'actuel Mozambique dans les années 1580, avant d'accompagner des prêtres jésuites en Inde, puis au Japon. C'est là qu'il rencontrera Oda Nobunaga, grand chef de guerre unificateur du Japon, que l'on peut comparer à un Napoléon ou encore à Soundjata Keïta. Oda Nobunaga, impressionné par cet étranger si imposant, lui apprit le maniement des armes et fit de lui un samouraï. Aujourd'hui, l'histoire de Yasuke est racontée par Romain Mielcarek, journaliste indépendant, dans le livre « Yasuke, le samouraï africain, aux origines du mythe ». À lire aussiLe premier samouraï noir fait débat dans le jeu vidéo «Assassin's Creed: Shadows»

This season was a long one! The Krewe re-groups to reflect on Season 5 as a whole, and everything that went into it...  with a SPECIAL GUEST! Join us for one last audio journey in Season 5 as we discuss all the milestones, top moments, challenges, & fun anecdotes, in addition to a look ahead to Season 6 & listener feedback! Let's GO!------ About the Krewe ------The Krewe of Japan Podcast is a weekly episodic podcast sponsored by the Japan Society of New Orleans. Check them out every Friday afternoon around noon CST on Apple, Google, Spotify, Amazon, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts.  Want to share your experiences with the Krewe? Or perhaps you have ideas for episodes, feedback, comments, or questions? Let the Krewe know by e-mail at kreweofjapanpodcast@gmail.com or on social media (Twitter: @kreweofjapan, Instagram: @kreweofjapanpodcast, Facebook: Krewe of Japan Podcast Page, TikTok: @kreweofjapanpodcast, LinkedIn: Krewe of Japan LinkedIn Page, Blue Sky Social: @kreweofjapan.bsky.social, & the Krewe of Japan Youtube Channel). Until next time, enjoy!------ Support the Krewe! Offer Links for Affiliates ------Use the referral links below & our promo code from the episode!Support your favorite NFL Team AND podcast! Shop NFLShop to gear up for football season!Zencastr Offer Link - Use my special link to save 30% off your 1st month of any Zencastr paid plan! ------ JSNO Upcoming Events ------JSNO Event CalendarJoin JSNO Today!

This week we talk about Yasuke, the first non Japanese person to become a Samurai. Born somewhere in Africa, Yasuke became a samurai and close confident to the powerful Oda Nobunaga during one of the most tumultuous periods in Japan's history.This is a comedy/history podcast, the report begins at approximately 07:35 (though as always, we go off on tangents throughout the report)For all our important links: https://linktr.ee/dogoonpod Check out our other podcasts:Book Cheat: https://play.acast.com/s/book-cheatPrime Mates: https://play.acast.com/s/prime-mates/Listen Now: https://play.acast.com/s/listen-now/Who Knew It with Matt Stewart: https://play.acast.com/s/who-knew-it-with-matt-stewart/Our awesome theme song by Evan Munro-Smith and logo by Peader ThomasDo Go On acknowledges the traditional owners of the land we record on, the Wurundjeri people, in the Kulin nation. We pay our respects to elders, past and present. REFERENCES AND FURTHER READING:https://www.britannica.com/biography/Yasukehttps://time.com/6039381/yasuke-black-samurai-true-story/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yasukehttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/who-was-yasuke-japans-first-black-samurai-180981416/https://www.worldhistory.org/Samurai_Sword/ https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-48542673 https://www.britannica.com/biography/Oda-Nobunaga https://www.nichibun-g.co.jp/data/web-magazine/manabito/history/history109/ https://www.nytimes.com/2024/09/11/arts/assassins-creed-shadows-yasuke-samurai-japan.html Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

How many original castles does Japan ACTUALLY have standing? Where is Japan's oldest castle located? When counting castles in Japan, do castle ruins factor in? The Krewe is joined by William de Lange, the author of An Encyclopedia of Japanese Castles & many other Japan-related publications, to get the answer to these questions and so many more!------ About the Krewe ------The Krewe of Japan Podcast is a weekly episodic podcast sponsored by the Japan Society of New Orleans. Check them out every Friday afternoon around noon CST on Apple, Google, Spotify, Amazon, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts.  Want to share your experiences with the Krewe? Or perhaps you have ideas for episodes, feedback, comments, or questions? Let the Krewe know by e-mail at kreweofjapanpodcast@gmail.com or on social media (Twitter: @kreweofjapan, Instagram: @kreweofjapanpodcast, Facebook: Krewe of Japan Podcast Page, TikTok: @kreweofjapanpodcast, LinkedIn: Krewe of Japan LinkedIn Page, Blue Sky Social: @kreweofjapan.bsky.social, & the Krewe of Japan Youtube Channel). Until next time, enjoy!------ Support the Krewe! Offer Links for Affiliates ------Use the referral links below & our promo code from the episode!Support your favorite NFL Team AND podcast! Shop NFLShop to gear up for football season!Zencastr Offer Link - Use my special link to save 30% off your 1st month of any Zencastr paid plan! ------ Past KOJ Architecture & History Episodes ------Foreign-Born Samurai: William Adams ft. Nathan Ledbetter (Guest Host, Dr. Samantha Perez) (S5E17)Foreign-Born Samurai: Yasuke ft. Nathan Ledbetter (Guest Host, Dr. Samantha Perez) (S5E16)Change in Urban & Rural Japanese Communities ft. Azby Brown (S5E15)KOJ Podcast S5E6 - Inside Japanese Homes & Architecture ft. Azby Brown (S5E6)Kendo: The Way of the Sword ft. Alexander Bennett, 7th Dan in Kendo (S4E16)Jokichi Takamine: The Earliest Bridge Between New Orleans & Japan ft. Stephen Lyman (S4E13)The Chrysanthemum Throne ft. Dr. Hiromu Nagahara [Part 2] (S2E18)The Chrysanthemum Throne ft. Dr. Hiromu Nagahara [Part 1] (S2E17)The Age of Lady Samurai ft. Tomoko Kitagawa (S1E12)------ Links about William de Lange ------An Encyclopedia of Japanese Castles (Amazon)Japan Then & Now (Amazon, Released June 2024)Walking the Edo Sanpu (Amazon, Released August 2024)William's Website------ JSNO Upcoming Events ------JSNO Event CalendarJoin JSNO Today!

Um importante personagem da história japonesa se viu obrigado a cometer seppuku, uma forma de suicídio comum entre samurais, após ser traído pelo seu próprio general. Oda Nobunaga foi uma figura importantíssima na luta pela unificação do país. Mas ele fez uma série de inimigos pelo caminho. Neste episódio eu vou te contar tudo sobre Nobunaga, sobre o período Sengoku do Japão e o que você pode visitar em Kyoto que te conte mais sobre sua vida e morte. Locais mencionados no episódio: Castelo Azuchi - Província de Omi Nobunaga no Yakata Museum - Província de Omi Templo de Honnō-ji, em Kyoto Para contato, parcerias e sugestões você pode entrar em contato por: E-mail: passaporteprocrime@gmail.com Instagram: @andressaisfer TikTok: @andressa.isfer Ouça e apoie o Passaporte pro Crime na Orelo: ⁠orelo.cc/passaporteprocrime

This one goes out to all the ladies out there... well, and the fellas too if you're interested! The Krewe sits down with avid shojo enthusiast Taryn of Manga Lela Instagram/TikTok fame to talk all things shojo. Together they explore the variety of shojo genres, some challenges faced in the shojo industry, & what makes shojo different from those rambunctious shonen titles! Don't miss out!------ About the Krewe ------The Krewe of Japan Podcast is a weekly episodic podcast sponsored by the Japan Society of New Orleans. Check them out every Friday afternoon around noon CST on Apple, Google, Spotify, Amazon, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts.  Want to share your experiences with the Krewe? Or perhaps you have ideas for episodes, feedback, comments, or questions? Let the Krewe know by e-mail at kreweofjapanpodcast@gmail.com or on social media (Twitter: @kreweofjapan, Instagram: @kreweofjapanpodcast, Facebook: Krewe of Japan Podcast Page, TikTok: @kreweofjapanpodcast, LinkedIn: Krewe of Japan LinkedIn Page, Blue Sky Social: @kreweofjapan.bsky.social, & the Krewe of Japan Youtube Channel). Until next time, enjoy!------ Support the Krewe! Offer Links for Affiliates ------Use the referral links below & our promo code from the episode!Support your favorite NFL Team AND podcast! Shop NFLShop to gear up for football season!Zencastr Offer Link - Use my special link to save 30% off your 1st month of any Zencastr paid plan! ------ Past KOJ Anime/Manga/Pop Culture Episodes ------The Japanese Pop Music Scene ft. Patrick St. Michel (S5E10)Akira Toriyama: Legacy of a Legend ft. Matt Alt (S5E3)The History & Evolution of Godzilla ft. Dr. William (Bill) Tsutsui (S5E1)Thoughts on Godzilla Minus One ft. Dr. William (Bill) Tsutsui (S4Bonus)The History of Nintendo ft. Matt Alt (S4E18)Visiting Themed Cafes in Japan ft. Chris Nilghe of TDR Explorer (S4E15)Japanese Mascot Mania ft. Chris Carlier of Mondo Mascots (S4E8)Tokusatsu Talk with a Super Sentai ft. Sotaro Yasuda aka GekiChopper (S4E6)The Evolution of PokéMania ft Daniel Dockery [Part 2] (S4E3)The Evolution of PokéMania ft Daniel Dockery [Part 1] (S4E2)Japanese Independent Film Industry ft. Award Winning Director Eiji Uchida (S3E18)City Pop & Yu ft. Yu Hayami (S3E14)How Marvel Comics Changed Tokusatsu & Japan Forever ft Gene & Ted Pelc (Guest Host, Matt Alt) (S3E13)Talking Shonen Anime Series ft. Kyle Hebert (S3E10)Japanese Pro Wrestling ft. Baliyan Akki (Part 2) (S3E6)Japanese Pro Wrestling ft. Baliyan Akki (Part 1) (S3E5)Exploring Enka ft. Jerome White Jr aka ジェロ / Jero (S3E1)Japanese Arcades (S2E16)How to Watch Anime: Subbed vs. Dubbed ft. Dan Woren (S2E9)Japanese Theme Parks ft. TDR Explorer (S2E4)Manga: Literature & An Art Form ft. Danica Davidson (S2E3)The Fantastical World of Studio Ghibli ft. Steve Alpert (S2E1)The Greatest Anime of All Time Pt. 3: Modern Day Anime  (2010's-Present) (S1E18)The Greatest Anime of All Time Pt. 2: The Golden Age  (1990's-2010's) (S1E16)The Greatest Anime of All Time Pt. 1: Nostalgia (60's-80's) (S1E5)We Love Pokemon: Celebrating 25 Years (S1E3)Why Japan ft. Matt Alt (S1E1)------ Links about Taryn/Manga Lela------Taryn's LinksTaryn on TikTokTaryn on InstagramTaryn on Twitter/X------ JSNO Upcoming Events ------JSNO Event CalendarJapan Fest Sign-UpJSNO Annual Meeting RegistrationJoin JSNO Today!

Il Tokyo Game Show è finito e abbiamo perso il conto di quanta roba è stata mostrata. Tra Kojima che ha speso 900 miliardi per la photo mode, Monster Hunter Wilds che mostra il fabbro Gemma ed esplodono i preorder solo con quella scenetta cringe, Konami che sembra aver capito che se fa cazzate con MGS Delta gli vanno a dare fuoco la baracca e Phil Spencer che si veste da Oda Nobunaga e tenta la conquista del Giappone a colpi di Game Pass, Waifu e Arigato Gozaimasu. E c'è anche lo State of Play di Sony, tra remaster a caso, CULInception tra Automata e Stellar Blade, polemichette idiote sulle samurai femmine e Palworld che doveva sparire E INVECE. E voi? Quanta roba vi siete segnati dopo questi show? Chi_ha_vinto_la_console_war.gif? Unitevi alla nostra community su Telegram, ditecelo in un commento ❤️ UNISCITI ALLA COMMUNITY ❤️ https://t.me/MustacchiChat TUTTI I NOSTRI LINK

Ghost of Tsushima is a 2020 game released by Sucker Punch. It follows a trained samurai named Jin Sakai. This week a trailer for part two was released, titled Ghost of Yotei, this time featuring a female samurai called Atsu. The game is set to release in 2025. Ubisoft's Assassins Creed Shadows, their samurai themed game, was pushed back until 2025. As exciting as these games may be, some people are upset that politically correct DEI is influencing their development. ACS includes Yasuke, a black man born in Africa who became a bodyguard of a Jesuit missionary. He eventually was brought into the inner circle of the warlord Oda Nobunaga and even fought by his side in one battle. Yasuke would be recorded as the first foreign born samurai, though many dispute this claim, since it has limited documentation. There is nothing wrong with including him in the game so long as the story is accurate and it is not done for pandering. Isn't this what anti-DEI advocates say anyway: stick to the history! This doesn't seem to be the case, though. As for GOY, the game includes a female protagonist, which also has some people upset, claiming that DEI surely influenced the decision. Despite the justified frustrations over DEI, based on its discriminatory and dangerous essence, there actually were more than a few female samurai, not to mention that Yasuke is indeed considered a real samurai. The samurai are legendary, especially due to their defending against multiple Mongol invasions - with the assistance, of course, of storms too. The samurai are even considered by some to be the most feared and powerful warrior anywhere in the world history. A female samurai was called Onna-Bugeisha, a female martial person, and they comprised, it is estimated, about 2% of all the warrior class. These girls were usually noblewomen and although some of their stories were fact made fiction, their existence is without dispute and their stories are rarely told. The same can be said of the women who assisted men during the American Revolutionary War - Mary Pitcher - stories that once again are fact made fiction. The underlying issue here is that many people on the ‘right' have almost a visceral reaction to black characters or female characters and this is precisely the unconscious action the Democrats want to cultivate, to bring back segregation and discrimination based on these lines in the sand. It is how they finally nullify the rule of law and destroy the United States. -FREE ARCHIVE & RSS: https://www.spreaker.com/show/the-secret-teachings Twitter: https://twitter.com/TST___Radio Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thesecretteachings WEBSITE (BOOKS, RESUBSCRIBE for early show access): http://thesecretteachings.info Paypal: rdgable@yahoo.com CashApp: $rdgable EMAIL: rdgable@yahoo.com / TSTRadio@protonmail.com

Historians Nathan Ledbetter & Dr. Samantha Perez rejoin the Krewe to continue our conversation on foreign-born samurai, this time highlighting the life of William Adams! In this episode, we explore his relationships with both Japanese & non-Japanese while in Japan, the similarities between William Adams's story & House of the Dragon (what?!), how he was a big inspiration for James Clavell's classic novel (and the adaptations) Shogun... AND SO MUCH MORE!------ About the Krewe ------The Krewe of Japan Podcast is a weekly episodic podcast sponsored by the Japan Society of New Orleans. Check them out every Friday afternoon around noon CST on Apple, Google, Spotify, Amazon, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts.  Want to share your experiences with the Krewe? Or perhaps you have ideas for episodes, feedback, comments, or questions? Let the Krewe know by e-mail at kreweofjapanpodcast@gmail.com or on social media (Twitter: @kreweofjapan, Instagram: @kreweofjapanpodcast, Facebook: Krewe of Japan Podcast Page, TikTok: @kreweofjapanpodcast, LinkedIn: Krewe of Japan LinkedIn Page, Blue Sky Social: @kreweofjapan.bsky.social, & the Krewe of Japan Youtube Channel). Until next time, enjoy!------ Support the Krewe! Offer Links for Affiliates ------Use the referral links below & our promo code from the episode!Support your favorite NFL Team AND podcast! Shop NFLShop to gear up for football season!Zencastr Offer Link - Use my special link to save 30% off your 1st month of any Zencastr paid plan! ------ Past KOJ History Episodes ------Foreign-Born Samurai: Yasuke ft. Nathan Ledbetter (Guest Host, Dr. Samantha Perez) (S5E16)Kendo: The Way of the Sword ft. Alexander Bennett, 7th Dan in Kendo (S4E16)Jokichi Takamine: The Earliest Bridge Between New Orleans & Japan ft. Stephen Lyman (S4E13)How Marvel Comics Changed Tokusatsu & Japan Forever ft Gene & Ted Pelc (Guest Host, Matt Alt) (S3E13)The Chrysanthemum Throne ft. Dr. Hiromu Nagahara [Part 2] (S2E18)The Chrysanthemum Throne ft. Dr. Hiromu Nagahara [Part 1] (S2E17)The Age of Lady Samurai ft. Tomoko Kitagawa (S1E12)The Life & Legacy of Lafcadio Hearn ft. Bon & Shoko Koizumi (S1E9)------ Links about Nate ------Ubisoft's Echoes of History "Japan's First Unifier: Oda Nobunaga"Ubisoft's Echoes of History "Samurai vs Shinobi: The Tensho Iga War"Nate on BlueSky------ JSNO Upcoming Events ------JSNO Event CalendarJoin JSNO Today!

In this throwback episode Sebastian takes you back to the conclusion of the African Samurai series. In the 1580's Japan was a on the precipice of a massive transformation. For over a century the country had been embroiled in war, but by 1581 the end seemed to be in sight. The powerful Lord Oda Nobunaga was on the path to unifying the fractured nation. It was at this time that a remarkable man from East Africa, known as Yasuke, came into his service. Nobunaga would take a shine to this foreigner and would eventually honour him with a ceremonial sword and a monthly stipend. For many historians this makes Yasuke the first ever foreigner born Samurai. Legend has it that he played a pivotal role in Oda Nobunaga's final living moments. Should we trust these stories of Samurai derring-do? Tune-in and find out how a loosely tied top knot, a public scrubbing, and the slippery definition of “samurai” all play a role in the story.

Joined by guest host Dr. Samantha Perez, the Krewe sits down with Princeton's Nathan Ledbetter to unpack how the term "samurai" evolved over the centuries and dig into foreign-born samurai, specifically Yasuke. Uncover everything they you need to know about the African samurai right here in this episode... AND SO MUCH MORE!------ About the Krewe ------The Krewe of Japan Podcast is a weekly episodic podcast sponsored by the Japan Society of New Orleans. Check them out every Friday afternoon around noon CST on Apple, Google, Spotify, Amazon, Stitcher, or wherever you get your podcasts.  Want to share your experiences with the Krewe? Or perhaps you have ideas for episodes, feedback, comments, or questions? Let the Krewe know by e-mail at kreweofjapanpodcast@gmail.com or on social media (Twitter: @kreweofjapan, Instagram: @kreweofjapanpodcast, Facebook: Krewe of Japan Podcast Page, TikTok: @kreweofjapanpodcast, LinkedIn: Krewe of Japan LinkedIn Page, Blue Sky Social: @kreweofjapan.bsky.social, & the Krewe of Japan Youtube Channel). Until next time, enjoy!------ Support the Krewe! Offer Links for Affiliates ------Use the referral links below & our promo code from the episode!Support your favorite NFL Team AND podcast! Shop NFLShop to gear up for football season!Zencastr Offer Link - Use my special link to save 30% off your 1st month of any Zencastr paid plan! ------ Past KOJ History Episodes ------Kendo: The Way of the Sword ft. Alexander Bennett, 7th Dan in Kendo (S4E16)Jokichi Takamine: The Earliest Bridge Between New Orleans & Japan ft. Stephen Lyman (S4E13)How Marvel Comics Changed Tokusatsu & Japan Forever ft Gene & Ted Pelc (Guest Host, Matt Alt) (S3E13)The Chrysanthemum Throne ft. Dr. Hiromu Nagahara [Part 2] (S2E18)The Chrysanthemum Throne ft. Dr. Hiromu Nagahara [Part 1] (S2E17)The Age of Lady Samurai ft. Tomoko Kitagawa (S1E12)The Life & Legacy of Lafcadio Hearn ft. Bon & Shoko Koizumi (S1E9)------ Links about Nate ------Ubisoft's Echoes of History "Japan's First Unifier: Oda Nobunaga"Ubisoft's Echoes of History "Samurai vs Shinobi: The Tensho Iga War"Nate on BlueSky------ JSNO Upcoming Events ------JSNO Event CalendarJoin JSNO Today!

Moving on with our third part of the Gishiwajinden Tour, we head to the old area of Matsuro, which, for us, means modern Karatsu.  Here we have some of the oldest rice paddies in all of Japan, but Karatsu is so much more.  It was part of Matsura, where the Matsura family (aka league, factions, or pirates, depending on how you saw it) arose.  It is also a short hop from Nagoya, which briefly became the capital of Japan; Nagaoka-kyo gets a mention in the histories, but Nagoya rarely merits it, since it was just the Taiko and every actually important person minus the Tenno. For more photos and others such things, check out: https://www.sengokudaimyo.com/podcast/matsuro-koku/   Rough Transcript: Welcome to Sengoku Daimyo's Chronicles of Japan.  My name is Joshua and this is Gishiwajinden Tour, Part Four:  Matsuro-koku So far on this tour through the locations listed in the Weizhi's Wa Record, the Gishiwajinden, following the route to Queen Himiko of Wa, we've hit the area of Gaya, or Gara; Tsushima—or Tuma-koku; Iki, aka Iki-koku; and now we are arriving at Karatsu, thought to be the location of Maturo-koku. Now before we go any further, let's talk about the name.  After all, up to this point in the account, the names haven't been too far off.  Well, Tsushima was recorded as something like Tuma in the Chinese record, which seems reasonable, and “Iki” was actually recorded as something like “I-dai”, though we are pretty sure that was a transcription error based on other evidence. But Karatsu and Maturo, really don't seem related.  Also, didn't we earlier equate Matsuro with Matsuura, Matsura?  But if you look for Matsuura on a map it is quite some distance away from Karatsu—in fact, it is in modern Nagasaki prefecture as opposed to Karatsu, which is in modern Saga prefecture. First off, Karatsu is a later name for the city, not the area.  It literally means “Tang Port”, and that name seems to appear in the 15th century in the form of Karatsu Jinja, or Karatsu Shrine.  So no, the names Karatsu and Matsuro are not related.  Prior to being called Karatsu, though, it was part of a larger area called Matsura.  It sits at the head of the Matsura River, which spills out into what is now called Karatsu Bay.  In ancient times this seems to have been the heart of the area known as Matsura or Matsuro.  Over time it was incorporated into the larger area known as Hi no Kuni, and when Hi no Kuni was divided up by the Ritsuryo state into Hizen and Higo, we see the Matsura district, or Matsura-gun, is a part, along the coast.  The fact that it is spelled as “Matsu” and “Ura”, meaning “pine beach”, might hint at the original name of the place or could be a false etymology, imposed by the need to record the location in kanji, the Sinitic characters used at the time.  Fun fact time:  Hizen refers to the area of the land of Hi that was closer to Yamato, while Higo refers to the area of the land of Hi that was further away.  If you look at a modern map of where these two ancient provinces were, however, you'll notice that by a slight technicality, Higo is actually closer, as the crow flies.  But remember, people are not crows, at least not in this life, and in all likelihood, most of the travel to and from Yamato would have been via sea routes.  So Hizen is closer to Yamato from that perspective, as you would have to sail from Higo, around Hizen, or take the long way south around Kagoshima. But where were we? So Matsura district in Hizen started at Matsura-gawa and the area around Karatsu bay, and included modern areas of Hirado all the way out to the Goto islands.  That was a pretty large area.  It later got further subdivided into East, West, North, and South Matsura subdistricts, with Karatsu in the Eastern subdistrict, and some portion of the west.  Eventually, Karatsu city became its own administrative district, in modern Saga prefecture, and so did Hirado city, in what was the old Northern Matsura sub-district, joining Nagasaki prefecture.  The western sub-district went to Karatsu or incorporated as Imari, known for their Imari-ware pottery.  And that left a small portion of the northern sub-district. The incorporated villages and islands eventually came together as Matsuura city, in Nagasaki prefecture, which is what you'll see, today.  And that is why, looking at a modern map, “Matsura” and modern “Matsuura” are not precisely in the same place. That history also helps demonstrate the historical connections between Karatsu, Hirado, Iki, and Tsushima—as well as the Goto islands.  This region was where the Matsura clan arose, which controlled at least out to Iki, Hirado, and the Goto archipelago, and it was known for its strong navy, among other things. For our trip, heading to Karatsu was originally borne out of convenience:  Our goal was to take the ferry so that we could travel along the ocean routes.  We had traveled the route from Izuhara, on Tsushima, to Ashibe port, on Iki island.  During that trip it was interesting to watch as Tsushima disappeared and then eventually Iki appeared on the horizon, but it wasn't immediate, and I suspect you would have wanted an experienced crew who knew the route and knew what to look for.  Conversely, from Indoji port, on Iki, to Karatsu I felt like we were constantly in sight of one island or another, or at least could see the mountains of Kyushu to get our bearings.  There wasn't really a time that felt like we were that far out from land.  Even so, it would still have been a treacherous crossing back in the day. Coming in to Karatsu from the ferry, the first thing you will notice is the castle.  Karatsu castle, also known as Maizuru Castle, is a reconstructed castle, but it really does provide a clear view of what one would have seen.  The original was abandoned in the Meiji period and sold off in 1871.  The main keep was later demolished and made into a park.  In 1966 they built a new, 5-storey keep on the original base, and from 1989 onward have continued to make improvements to various parts of the castle moats and walls.  You can still see the layout of the Ninomaru and honmaru sections of the castle, encompassing the old samurai districts of the jokamachi, or castle town, of Karatsu during the Edo period. Our primary goal in Karatsu, however, was not castle focused.  We wanted to go back to an earlier time – the Yayoi period, to be precise - and Karatsu and the Matsuro-kan did not disappoint.  While not quite as extensive as the reconstruction at other Yayoi sites like Harunotsuji or Yoshinogari, the site at the Matsuro-kan is still impressive in its own right. What is the Matsuro-kan, you might ask?  It is the building and grounds of what is also known as the Nabatake site.  In 1980, construction workers were excavating for a road through the Nabatake section of Karatsu when they noticed they were pulling up artifacts.  An investigation between 1980 to 1981 determined that the artifacts were from the late Jomon to middle Yayoi period.  Further investigation discovered the presence of old rice paddies.  In 1983 the site was designated as a national historic site, further excavations were carried out, and the Matsurokan was built to house the artifacts and also provide some reconstructions of what the rice paddies would have looked like.  For context these are some of the oldest rice paddies found in Japan, along with the nearby Itazuke rice paddies, in neighboring Fukuoka prefecture, and are key for giving us insights into what we know about early rice field cultivation. Here I should point out that these fields were in use through the middle Yayoi period, while the mission to Yamato—or Yamatai—recorded in the Weizhi would have been in the late Yayoi or early Kofun period, so likely several hundred years later.  There are other Yayoi settlement remains found up and around the peninsula, and there are Kofun in the area, especially along the banks of the Matsura river.  Given how built up much of the area is, it is possible that any large scale settlement may have been destroyed by subsequent settlements, or is somewhere that there just hasn't been a good reason for a full excavation.  Still, who knows what we might eventually find.    The Matsurokan appears to stick with the dating of the Yayoi period from about 300 BCE.  This is based largely on assumptions regarding the development of different pottery styles.  Recent research has suggested that this should be pushed back to about 800 or even 1000 BCE, suggesting a more gradual development.  For our purposes, it is enough to note that this site appears to cover from the final Jomon era in Kyushu to the coming of wet rice agriculture with the advancing Yayoi culture. Based on what was found at the site, the wet rice paddies were created in what at least one scholar has suggested as a “primitive” wet rice paddy.  The paddies themselves appear to have been placed in a naturally swampy area, irrigated by a natural stream.  This would have made flooding the fields relatively simple, without the large ponds or waterworks required to cover a more extensive area.  This may have sufficed for a small village, possibly only a handful of families living together and working the land. Besides the impressions of the paddies themselves, various tools, pottery, and more were also found at the site.  Stone harvesting knives were plentiful—a semicircular stone knife that was held in the fingers of one hand, allowing a harvester to grasp the stalks and cut them quickly.  This was the standard method of harvesting prior to the arrival of the sickle, or kama, and is still in use in some parts of China and Southeast Asia.  It is more labor intensive than the sickle, but provides some benefits in the consistency and lack of waste product. The Matsurokan demonstrates how a lot of the Yayoi tools are, in fact, still in use in one form or another in different cultures that also absorbed rice cultivation, showing how widespread it became. In addition, there are artifacts such as shards of pottery showing what looks to be the imprint of a woven fabric, and various equipment for weaving and sewing.  We have some beams and posts from buildings, which give us something at least try to guess at how things were put together. There are bones of various animals as well as stone arrowheads.  There are also fish and even dugong bones, suggesting they also made a living from the nearby sea.  And there are various bits of jewelry, including magatama, and what appears to be a shark's tooth with holes drilled in so it could be worn on a cord.    There are also carbonized rice grains found at the site, likely grown there. We don't have any ancient strains of rice that can be proven to come from these fields, but in their reconstruction, outside the museum, they have rebuilt some of the rice fields and grow old rice variants in them.  This is used, in part, to teach local schoolchildren about rice cultivation – in fact, local schools are allocated individual paddies each growing season. Besides the rice paddies, the Matsurokan also boasts several reconstructed dwellings.  These are similar to ones you might find elsewhere depicting what life was like back in the Yayoi period. As the Yayoi period gave way to the kofun, we do see some mounded tombs in the area, though not quite as many as in others.  Matsura appears to be rather rural. Around the Heian period, we see the rise of a local group that comes to be known as the Matsura group, or Matsura-tou, which eventually consolidated into the Matsura family.  There are several lineages claiming that the Matsura family descended from the Minamoto or Abe clans or through branch families thereof.  Matsura-to itself is sometimes called the 48 factions of Matsura.  It wasn't as much a family as an alliance of local warriors, each with their own base of operations.  I can't quite tell if the lineage of the later Matsura clan, as they were known, were meant to represent a single lineage or the various lineages that came together.  For all we know, they may have married into official families or otherwise concocted lineages to help legitimize them as much as anything else—this far out from the center, in the 11th century, there wasn't necessarily as much oversight. Early in the 11th century they also had a chance to prove themselves with the Toi invasion – that was the Jurchen invasion we mentioned last couple episodes.  After the Toi invaders attacked Tsushima and Iki, they set their sites on Hakata Bay, which was the closest landing to the Dazaifu, the Yamato government in Kyushu.  They were chased off and headed down the coast.  Minamoto Tomo is said to have led the forces that repelled the Toi invaders, who finally departed altogether, striking one more time on Tsushima before heading back to wherever they came from. Minamoto Tomo is said, at least in some stories, to have been the founder of the Matsura clan, or at least the leader of the 48 factions, which then coalesced into the Matsura clan, which eventually would run the Hirado domain. Over two hundred and fifty years after the Toi Invasion would come the Mongols.  If the Toi were bad, the Mongols were much worse.  The Toi were a band of marauders, who caused a lot of havoc, but do not appear to have had state backing.  The Mongols were perhaps more appropriately the Yuan empire, who had already conquered the Yellow river valley and were working on the Song dynasty along the Yangzi.  While the Toi had brought with them Goryeo warriors as well—who may or may not have joined up willingly—the Mongols had huge armies from all over that they could throw at a problem. As we talked about in the past two episodes, the Mongols swept through Tsushima and Iki and then headed straight for Hakata, the closest landing zone to the Dazaifu, the government outpost in Kyushu.  Even during the height of the Kamakura shogunate, this was still an important administrative center, and would have given the Mongols a huge advantage on holding territory and eventually sweeping up the archipelago. Fortunately, they were stopped.  Whether it was the gumption, skill, and downright stubbornness of their samurai foes or the divine wind that swept up from the ocean, the Mongols were turned back, twice. During each of these invasions, the Matsura clan and others rushed to the defense of the nation, but unlike with the Toi invasions, there do not appear to have been any serious battles along the Matsuura coastline—not that I can make out, anyway. After the Mongol invasion, Kyushu was not left out of the troubles that would follow, including the downfall of the Hojo, the rise of the Ashikaga, and the eventual breakdown of the shogunal system into the period known as the Warring States period.  Through it all the Matsura continued to ply the seas and encourage the trade from which they and others, like the Sou of Tsushima, came to depend on.  They also allied with other entrepreneurial seafarers, known to others as pirates, and they started trading with a group of weird looking people with hairy beards and pale skin, who came to be known as the Nanban, the southern barbarians—known to us, primarily, as the Portuguese. One faction of the Matsura were the Hata—no relation to the Hata that set up in what would become the Kyoto region in the early periods of Yamato state formation.  The Hata ruled the area that would become Karatsu, but eventually they were taken over by the Ryuzoji, who were allied with Toyotomi Hideyoshi. Hideyoshi's interest in the Karatsu and Matsura area had to do with its easy access to the continent.  And so Hideyoshi began to pay attention to Nagoya, at the end of the peninsula down from Karatsu.  And no, not *that* Nagoya.  If you hear Nagoya, today, you are probably talking about the bustling metropolis in Aichi, which was where Toyotomi himself got his start, growing up and going to work for the local warlord, named Oda Nobunaga.  Due to a quirk of Japanese names and how they read particular characters, this is a different Nagoya. The Kyushu Nagoya had been one of the Matsura trading posts, run by a sub-branch of the Hata family, who had built a castle on the site.  Hideyoshi had much grander plans for the area.  In 1591 he began work on a massive castle and associated castle town.  This castle was to be his new headquarters, and he moved his entire retinue there from Osaka, with an expectation that all of the daimyo would follow him.  Sure enough, they showed up with their own vassals, setting up camps around the peninsula and in the new city-to-be. The castle was the base of operations from which Hideyoshi coordinated the invasions of Korea.  It was a massive undertaking, and extremely impressive.  The city itself sprung up, and although the wood was still new, and the buildings somewhat hastily put together, it was soon a bustling metropolis and briefly became the center of art and culture in the entire archipelago. Hideyoshi himself had a teahouse built within the confines of the castle, where he apparently spent most of his days, even when receiving reports on how things were going across the sea on the archipelago.  The city had a Noh theater, as well.  It must have been a sight to see. As for the castle itself, based on the remains, it was massive.  It appears to use the contours of the hill upon which it sits.  It seems there was a previous castle there of some kind, and it is unclear how much this was merely expanded, but Hideyoshi's new castle was truly monumental, with a labyrinth of gates to get in -- similar  to Himeji Castle, for anyone who has been there, but with a serious vertical incline as well.  Nagoya Castle was second only to Osaka castle, and yet it was erected quickly—only 8 months.  I guess that's what you can do when you can mobilize all of the daimyo across Japan.  Even today, ruined as it is, the walls tower over you, and you can spend hours wandering the grounds. For all that it was impressive, the good times at Nagoya Castle lasted only for a brief seven years—when Hideyoshi passed away, the council of regents moved back to Osaka, and Nagoya castle was deliberately destroyed, stones removed from the walls such that it could never survive a true siege. This was a sign to the Korean peninsula – the Joseon court - that, with the death of the taiko, Japan had given up any pretext of conquering the peninsula. Today, only the stones and earthworks remain of the briefly thriving city, but on the grounds is a wonderful museum that catalogs this particular slice of Medieval life.  The Nagoya Castle Museum of Saga prefecture is off the beaten path—there is no train, so you'll need to take a bus or private car to get there—but it is well worth it. The museum itself is dedicated to Japanese and Korean cross-strait relations, which feels a bit like atonement given that the castle was built with conquest in mind. Of course, the centerpiece of the Museum is the castle, but it also does a good job telling the story of relations between the peninsula and the archipelago.  It starts in the ancient times, talking about how, even during the Jomon period, there were commonalities in fishhooks and similar equipment found from Kyushu up through the Korean peninsula.  From there, of course, trade continued, as we've seen in our journey through the Chronicles.  It talks about some of the shared cultural items found from the Yayoi through the Kofun, and also demonstrates how some of the earliest Buddhist statues have clear similarities to those found in Silla.  It goes over the various missions back and forth, and even gives a map of the Toi Invasion that we talked about hitting Tsushima and Iki. The Mongol invasion is also heavily talked about, but not nearly so much as the invasion of Korea.  There is another reproduction of the letter of King Sejeong, with the faked seal from the Sou clan in Tsushima.  This of course, was the period when they built Nagoya-jo into a castle and city of at least 100,000 people, almost overnight.  Even the Nanban were there, trading in the city while supplies from across the country were gathered and shipped off to keep troops fed on the invasion of Korea. There are plenty of images from this time—from a Ming envoy to Nagoya castle to images of the invasion from the Korean perspective, with Koreanized samurai manning the walls of the castles they had taken.  They don't exactly lionize the samurai, but they don't accentuate some of the more horrific things, either, like the piles of ears taken from those killed because taking their heads, as was standard practice in older days, was too cumbersome. There is also some discussion of relations afterwards—of the Joseon embassies, though those went through Hakata, Nagoya-jo having long been abandoned at that point.  For reasons one can probably understand, it doesn't go into the post-Edo relations, as that is much more modern history. After the destruction of Nagoya castle, the area was largely abandoned, but the city of Karatsu proper really thrived during the Edo period.  Karatsu was also a castle town, as we've mentioned, but a bit out of the way.  As sailing ships were now more sturdy and able to handle longer sea crossings, it was now often Hakata, in Fukuoka, that received much of the trade, and the Dutch traders who had replaced the Portuguese, were limited to Dejima, in Nagasaki. When Hideyoshi swept through, the Hata were not exactly considered trustworthy, and were placed under the Nabeshima, a branch of their rivals, the Ryuzouji.  During the invasion of Korea, the Hata rebelled, and were destroyed for it in 1593.  Their territory was given to Terazawa Hirotaka, who had been put in charge of the construction of Nagoya castle and later put in charge of the logistics for the invasion effort from the Kyushu side.  As a result, he was granted the lands formerly controlled by the Hata, including Karatsu, and what would become the Karatsu domain. Hirotaka could see which way the wind blew—in more ways than one.  After Hideyoshi's death, he supported Tokugawa Ieyasu, allowing him to keep and even expand his fief.  He redirected the Matsura river—then known as the Hata river—to its present course, and he built a pine grove along the northern beach that is the third largest such grove in all of Japan.  Known as the “Niji no Matsubara”, or the ”Rainbow Pine Forest” for its shape, it was erected as a windbreak to protect the precious farmland just on the other side.  It is still there today, still managed, and quite famous.  You can drive through the pine trees or stop and walk through them, even out to the beach.   And there is even a fantastic burger truck that parks along the main road through the pine grove, so you can enjoy a lovely picnic among the trees. The Terazawa would not remain in place for very long.  During the Shimabara rebellion of the early 17th century—a rebellion based on either taxes or Christianity, depending on whom you ask—the Terazawa line was extinguished.  Terazawa Katataka, then ruler of the Karatsu domain, was held liable for mismanagement of the domain and loss of a castle to the rebels.  He had land confiscated and he felt publicly humiliated, and so he took his own life while he was in Edo.  As he had no heir, the Terazawa line died out. Karatsu domain went through a variety of hands after that.  Its value fluctuated, but it is generally thought that the real value of the domain, thanks to the ability to trade, was well beyond what it was assessed to produce.  As such it was a lucrative position, and also held sway as a check against Nagasaki, watching the trade there with the Dutch merchants.  Because of all of this, the lord of Karatsu was also banned from holding certain government positions, so as not to distract from their duties, making the position something of a blessing and a curse. Through the years, Karatsu thrived.  They were and are still known for a type of traditional pottery, known as Karatsumono, or Karatsuware, and they maintain elaborate festivals.  One of the festivals, the Karatsu Kunchi, is considered a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage.The Karatsu Kunchi is an annual parade where neighborhood associations carry giant floats through the city from Karatsu Shrine down to the shore.  It was inspired, in the early 19th century, by the famous Gion Matsuri of Kyoto—a wealthy merchant saw that and donated the first lion-head float to Karatsu Shrine.  Later, others would create their own floats. These floats, known as “Hikiyama” or “pulled mountains” can be five or six meters high and weigh anywhere from two to five tons.  There appear to be 14 hikiyama, currently, though there used to be 15—a black lion is currently missing.  The floats have gone through a few iterations, but are largely the same, and often have some relationship to the neighborhoods sponsoring them. From Matsura, aka Matsuro-koku, we went north along the coast of Kyushu to Itoshima, thought to the be old country of Ito-koku, and beyond that, the Na-koku of Fukuoka.  We'll cover both of those in our next and final installment of our Gishiwajinden tour. If you like what we are doing, tell your friends and feel free to rate us wherever you listen to podcasts.  If you feel the need to do more, and want to help us keep this going, we have information about how you can donate on Patreon or through our KoFi site, ko-fi.com/sengokudaimyo, or find the links over at our main website, SengokuDaimyo.com/Podcast, where we will have some more discussion on topics from this episode. Also, feel free to reach out to us at our Sengoku Daimyo Facebook page.  You can also email us at the.sengoku.daimyo@gmail.com.  Thank you, also, to Ellen for their work editing the podcast. And that's all for now.  Thank you again, and I'll see you next episode on Sengoku Daimyo's Chronicles of Japan.

Welcome to Neo-Reality Collective | Pop-Culture News and Reviews Talk, Hosted by Eric Brown! In the Eighty-Third Episode, More X-Men: From The Ashes comics and storylines effecting our merry band of mutants in the post-Krakoa Landscape with Storm joining THE AVENGERS and Dazzler getting her own solo series in a line wide relaunch that's featuring nearly a dozen projects with more no doubt on the way from Head of X, Tom Brevoort, and his team while Jonathan Hickman, probably no doubt getting concessions due to the nature of X-Men, returns to the mutants with Greg Capullo one more time with Wolverine: REVENGE, a violent RED BAND limited series. In what took way longer than it should have, Ubisoft is FINALLY taking The Assassins and Templars' Secret War to Feudal Japan in ASSASSIN'S CREED SHADOWS that caused some issues with fans with their Historical Character that existed in history with Oda Nobunaga's Retainer, Yasuke, being one of the two main characters while ignoring the fictional female native Japanese character that plays the Assassin because reasons. It's that time of year again, and CALL OF DUTY is making the rounds, this time returning to the world of Black Ops with BLACK OPS 6, this time taking us to the early-90s into the GULF WAR and if leaks and promotional material is suggest, we'll be heading into the early 2000s, more specifically, 2001. September 11th, 2001 in a radically global changing event that shook the world that reverberates to this very day. All this and more on Neo-Reality Collective! Brought to you by TheEveryDayFan, check out their links below! The EDF Links https://theeverydayfan.com https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCnEZoZqtklXhw95WkF2BY4g/ https://open.spotify.com/show/0EwipBBMm4jcL2GRyBwauu

Oda Nobunaga. He's one of feudal Japan's most infamous and consequential figures, known to many as Japan's first ‘Great Unifier'. From humble beginnings as the daimyo of Owari province, he embarked on a mission to unite all of Japan under his sole control. But how did he emerge as Japan's dominant warlord in an era of incessant social upheaval and civil war? In the fifth episode delving into the history behind the latest Assassin's Creed game, Assassin's Creed Shadows, Matt Lewis and Nathan Ledbetter explore Nobunaga's ruthless ascent to power, his brutal battles with the Shinobi Ikki league and his tragic downfall at the hands of his ally, Akechi Mitsuhide. Echoes of History is a Ubisoft Podcast brought to you by History Hit.​​Hosted by: Matt LewisEdited by: Anisha DevaProduced by: Joseph Knight, Peta Stamper, Matt LewisProduction Coordinator: Beth DonaldsonExecutive Producers: Etienne Bouvier, Julien Fabre, Steve Lanham, Jen BennettIf you liked this podcast please subscribe, share, rate & review. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Yasuke is one of the most captivating and yet mysterious figures within Japanese history. In 1581, at the height of the civil war, he crossed paths with the country's most powerful warlord, Oda Nobunaga. Their meeting bound the two men together and set Yasuke on a path to becoming the first known samurai of African descent in Japan.Delving into the history behind one of the two main characters in the latest Assassin's Creed game, Assassin's Creed Shadows, Matt Lewis and Thomas Lockley examine the few surviving historical sources to reveal what we know about Yasuke, Japan's first African samurai.Echoes of History is a Ubisoft podcast, brought to you by History Hit. Hosted by: Matt LewisEdited by: Anisha DevaProduced by: Joseph Knight, Peta Stamper, Matt LewisProduction Coordinator: Beth DonaldsonExecutive Producers: Etienne Bouvier, Julien Fabre, Steve Lanham, Jen BennettIf you liked this podcast please subscribe, share, rate & review. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Filling in the rest of Takara's reign with the stories of the various envoys at court, the Baekje princes living in Yamato, and the story of a 7th century millenial cult. For more, check out https://sengokudaimyo.com/podcast/episode-107   Rough Transcript Welcome to Sengoku Daimyo's Chronicles of Japan.  My name is Joshua, and this is episode 107: Winds Across the Straits Villagers gathered near the center of their community.  In contrast to the clean, walled up compounds of the local elites, with their raised floor buildings, the buildings here were much simpler, often sitting directly on the ground, or dug down into the earth in the pit dwelling style that had been used for centuries.  Mostly what anyone would notice were the thatched roofs, which had been used for centuries to keep out the rain and snow.   A tall watchtower was currently unmanned as everyone had gathered around, curious at the news coming from the east. A wandering mystic had come to town, and she was spreading words of hope across the country of Yamashiro.  Over the past few years there had been droughts, famine, earthquakes, and more.  People had tried everything in conjunction with the advice of their local hafuri, or priests. They had petitioned the local kami of the rivers and lakes, they had tried imported practices like sacrificing horses, and at a nearby village they had changed the location of the marketplace to see if that would work. Even when the rains had come, the damage had been done.  Food was scarce, and many of those who had survived were hardly in the best of situations.  Life in the village, working the land, was quite different from the life of the elites.  The wealthy had servants and slaves to tend to their needs, and they had access to stores of grain and other food in times of trouble.  They also had charge of the mononofu—the warriors who worked for them and were often an implicit—if not explicit—threat of violence for anyone who didn't pay their expected taxes.  This is perhaps what made the mystic's message so alluring.  She told them about the teachings of a man from the River Fuji, in the East, named Ohofu Be no Ohoshi:  he claimed to have discovered a new kami, the god of Tokoyo, the Everlasting world.  It was said that those who worshipped this god, who appeared in the land in the form of a caterpillar that thrived on orange tree leaves, would earn great things in this new world, when it came.  The poor would become rich and the old would become young again, when the promises of Tokoyo came to fruition. But it wasn't as easy as just saying some words.  True devotees would need to prove themselves, casting out the valuables of their house and setting out any food on the side of the road.  They would then yell out: “The new riches have come!” Then they were to worship these insects that were the kami's incarnation.  They would put them in a pure place and worship them with song and dance.  Many had already started doing this, the mystic said.  Indeed, the people of Yamashiro had heard rumors of some of these new practices, but only now were learning about why they had arisen.  It was a lot to ask, to give up their valuables and the little food they had — but then again, in this dew drop world, what was there to lose, for those already working themselves to the bone?  Was this any more incredible than asking the hafuri to pray to the kami, or even relying on that new religion in Yamato, where they prayed to giant bronze and gold statues to bring about prosperity and happiness.  Besides, if so many others had joined up already, perhaps there was something to these fantastic stories. And thus, village by village, a new religion began to take hold of the countryside, eventually making its way to the capital of Yamato, itself.     Greetings, listeners!  While the thing we covered last episode -- the Isshi Incident of 645, which is to say the assassination of Soga no Iruka in front of Her Majesty Takara, aka Kougyoku Tenno -- certainly dominates the narrative in the popular imagination for this particular point in Japanese history, there was a lot more going on over these last few years, both over on the continent in the archipelago.  And so this episode we are going to cover some of that:  From the missions from Baekje, Goguryeo, and Silla, which were likely driven by conflict on the peninsula, to the Baekje Princes who resided in the Yamato court as political hostages as well as esteemed guests.  And to finish it off we'll talk about the popular 7th century millennial cult that sprang up in Yamashiro around the worship of the God of Tokoyo, the Everlasting World.  All in the reign of the Empress known to history as Kougyoku Tennou…. At least for now. Michael Como, in his book on Shoutoku Taishi, makes particular note of some of the overarching themes across the straits and how that affected what was happening—or at least what gets remembered—in Yamato.  As we discussed back in episode 98, Como makes the point that the early, opposing Buddhist factions that placed Shotoku Taishi on a pedestal were largely connected with one or more continental factions.  While the Soga were heavily connected with Baekje, other family groups, like the Hata, were more closely tied with Silla, at least according to later accounts. And on top of that, the area around Koshi and Tsunaga had ties with Goguryeo.  As the Tang dynasty and Goguryeo were in contention on their own borders, no doubt both of them and their allies were looking to nearby nations for either support or at least neutrality.  One can also see how peninsular enmities might also make their way across the strait to the archipelago with families of various ethnic backgrounds no doubt carrying on some of the continental prejudices with them even into a new land. A lot of the accounts for this reign that aren't dealing with the weather and natural disasters—topics of particular concern from the 642 to 643—are dealing with the continent. It started out in 642, with Baekje envoys arriving in the first month of that year, apparently to deliver their condolences on the death of the sovereign.  They were accompanied by Yamato's envoy to Baekje, Azumi no Yamashiro no Muraji no Hirafu, who left them at Tsukushi to rush back to Yamato via post-horse, while the Baekje envoys took their time via the normal, ship-borne route. And right off the bat we have a few things of note.  The first is this idea of post-horses.  The various circuits around the archipelago had reportedly been set up some time back, even before horses were a thing.   While a single horse would have been rather fast overland, the mention of post-horse system implies a method of travel more akin to the short-lived pony express in the American west, where various post stations were set up across the major highways so that officials could quickly traverse them, riding horseback from one station to the next, where a fresh horse would be waiting for them.  This way the horses themselves could be properly fed and rested, since no single horse could cover all of the ground in a straight up gallop, just as no person could.  Instead, this is something like a relay race, where the envoy Hirafu became the baton passed from horse to horse.  The Pony Express used stations set up at intervals of approximately 5 to 20 miles, so that the horses could be changed out frequently.  Of course, changing horses would also take some time—I've found some sources citing average speeds of only about 10 miles per hour for the Pony Express, but that beats by far the four miles per hour for a fast walker, not to mention the ability to keep going for much longer than just 8 hours a day.  Of course, he would have had to take a boat for at least some of the journey, likely crossing from Kyuushuu over to Honshuu near Shimonoseki or something similar, at which point he could have caught another horse from there.  The resonates with something that goes back to pre-Qin Dynasty times, when kingdoms on the continent would set up not just courier stations with horses, but systems of canal boats, and inns for people to stay overnight on long journeys.  Still, it must have been a grueling experience. That such a means of conveyance could take Hirafu from Kyushu to Yamato, though, implies that Yamato's reach was fairly solid all the way out to the Dazai near modern Fukuoka, at least.  It is unclear how these post stations were set up in regards to the local Miyake, or royal granaries, another government project we've talked about, but either way it demonstrates a certain degree of control over the region. And so Hirafu was able to make it back to the court in time for the ceremonies associated with the mourning of Tamura, aka Jomei Tennou, and the ascension of Her Majesty, Takara no Ohokimi.  He likewise was able to inform the court of Baekje's condolence envoys' imminent arrival and give the court a head's up on the situation in Baekje, where he said that the country was “greatly disturbed”.  When the Baekje envoys themselves arrived, Azumi no Hirafu, Kusakabe no Iwakane, and Yamato no Aya no Agata were sent to ask them about their news. From what we know in the Samguk Sagi, King Wicha of Baekje had just come to the throne.  The previous king, King Mu, died in the third month of 641, so it hadn't even been a year since his death.  Furthermore, we are told that his wife, the mother of King Wicha, had also passed away.  The Baekje envoys asked for the return of prince Saeseong, possibly the younger brother of Prince P'ung, saying he had behaved badly and they wanted to convey him back to the King, but Takara refused.  Presumably, based on context, this was one of the hostages that Yamato held from Baekje, but why they wouldn't turn them over to the Baekje envoys isn't explained.  I suspect it had something to do with the politics of King Wicha coming to the throne, which seems like it may have not been accepted by everyone, as evidenced by his tour of the realm, mentioned in the Samguk Sagi, which was likely a political move to demonstrate his authority over the realm. This colors a lot of what we are going to talk about, so let's try to get some of it straight off the bat.  Unfortunately, as we talked about in Episode 105, some of the Baekje related dates are questionable, and that means that there is a lot here that I'm going to give you where we may have to back track a bit and see if we can put it in the right order.  I'm going to try to give you the information in largely chronological order according to the Nihon Shoki, but then I'll also try and place it where we think it might actually go, so apologies if this feels disjointed. Also, let me take a moment to talk a little bit more about the Baekje royal family, which will become rather important to our narrative.  For one, there is King Wicha, son of King Mu.  Mu passed away in 640 and Wicha came to the throne.  Wicha already had several children of his own, one of whom, Prince Pung, or Prince Pungjang, will feature heavily in both the Japanese and Korean sources, though as we mentioned in episode 105, the dates around Prince Pung's arrival, which the Nihon Shoki has about 630, doesn't match up with what we know.  We are fairly confident that Prince Pung returned to Baekje in 661, which accords with the Nihon Shoki, Samguk Sagi, and Tang records.  However, Best makes a good case that he didn't actually come over to the archipelago until much later—probably 643. He wasn't the only royal prince of Baekje in Yamato, however.  We are told of two others:  Saeseong and Gyoki.  Saeseong is mentioned as being a bit of a troublemaker, and requested to come home, but Yamato refuses to let him go.  Gyoki is said to have caused trouble and been banished with some 40 others out to sea.  I have a suspicion that much of this is misplaced in the Chronicle.  Saesong may have been there first or perhaps came over with Prince Pung—I've seen him mentioned as the younger brother to Prince Pung, but I also wonder if he wasn't the younger brother to King Wicha.  Gyoki, meanwhile, despite what we initially hear about him, is invited to Yamato shortly after that entry and treated like a real celebrity.  It is unclear to me if he is a younger brother to Wicha or an elder brother to Prince Pungjang, but either way, he seems to have been a royal prince that wasn't quite in line for the throne. I suspect that in reality the mission that is listed as coming in 641 was actually much later—possibly in the 650s.  That would explain some of it, including the gossip that the Senior Counselor, Chijeok, died in the 11th month of the previous year, Aston writes off most of this as an unreliable narrative by servants.  Jonathan Best, in his translation of the Samguk Sagi, is a bit more generous and suggests that, much as with Prince Pung-jang, whom the Nihon Shoki records arriving in the 630s but who couldn't reasonably have arrived until the 640s, there was probably a dating issue.  The scribes were using records with the branch and stem system of dates, and so it could easily have been off by a factor of ten or twelve years, at least.  We know, for instance, that there is a record of Senior Counselor Chijeok in the Nihon Shoki in the 7th month of 642, though it says he died in 641.  Furthermore, we have his name on a fragmentary inscription, likely dating to 654, noting him as a patron of a Buddhist monastery.  So it would seem that word of his death was exaggerated or parts of this are coming from later accounts, and the scribes simply made a mistake.  Hence my suggestion that this entire entry might be misplaced.  If so, it would make more sense for Yamato to be asking about the fates of people that they knew, and hence hearing the fates of Chijeok and Gyoki, who had both visited Yamato and would have been known to the court.   Regardless, it likely was the case, as recorded in the Nihon Shoki, that the envoys' ship was anchored in Naniwa harbor and the envoys were put up at the official government residence there, in modern Ohosaka.  This may indicate that the mission mentioning Chijeok and Gyoki got conflated with other entries about the actual envoys of condolence and congratulations. Then, 19 days later, on the 22nd day of the 2nd month, another group of envoys showed up.  This time it was Goguryeo.  As mentioned, Goguryeo had a few things going on, but they still knew how to make an entrance.  For example, the Chronicles mention that high ministers were sent to the district office in Naniwa to inspect the gold and silver that Goguryeo had sent with their envoys, along with other things from their country.  This may have been them trying to get Yamato on their side. That said, Goguryeo had been going through a lot themselves, we are told.  First off, based on the Samguk Sagi accounts, Goguryeo had sent envoys to the Tang in 640.  In 641, the Tang court returned the favor, and in so doing their envoy, the Director of the Bureau of Operations in their Ministry of War, Chen Dade, used it as a chance to spy out the border region.  At every walled town he would offer the local officials gifts of silk, and ask to be allowed to see the scenic spots.  They let him roam freely, so by the time he went back he had an intimate account and understanding of Goguryeo's defenses along the Tang-Goguryeo border.  Goguryeo seems to have been completely unaware of this touristic espionage, but then again, they may have been distracted dealing with their own internal problems. And so the Nihon Shoki reports that the envoys delivered news of this to the court: How the younger prince of Goguryeo died in the 6th month of 641.  Then, in the 9th month, the Prime Minister murdered the king, along with some 180 people.  He then put the son of the younger prince on the throne as king. In the Samguk Sagi, these events appear to happen a year later.  Yon Gaesomun killed King Keonmu in the 10th month of 642 and put Prince Chang, aka Pojang, on the throne.  The Samguk Sagi says he was the younger brother of King Keonmu, the son of King Taeyang—who was the younger brother of King Yeongnyu, so that may be where the Nihon Shoki gets that he was the “son of the younger prince”.  Still, the gist is correct, even if it seems to be off by a year or so.  From here, Goguryeo would be at war with the Tang dynasty for much of the next thirty years, all under the reign of King Pojang.  They were able to fend the Tang off for a while, but the Tang would eventually ally with Silla, and though Baekje seems to have supported Goguryeo in general, Baekje itself was also caught between the Tang and Silla.  They no doubt hoped for Yamato's aid, but while the archipelago may have had warriors, they were still a good ways from the continent, and would likely need to avoid confrontation with Silla, who now controlled all the way to the Nakdong river basin.  Not that they wouldn't try.  Insert dramatic sound effects alluding to a later episode. All that prognosticating aside, at this point, at least from the envoys' point of view, all of the future was unwritten.  Both Goguryeo and Baekje guests were entertained at the Naniwa district office, and envoys were named to Goguryeo, Baekje, Silla, and to the no longer extant Nimna—the latter seems to have been, at this point, a not-so-polite fiction between Silla and Yamato that Nimna was still at least semi-independent. It was at this time that Gyoki was also brought to Yamato and lodged in the house of Azumi no Hirafu, the previous envoy to Baekje.  Gyoki likely knew Hirafu from his time at the Baekje court.  This was probably the actual arrival of Gyoki, I suspect. A week or so later, the Silla envoys of congratulations and condolence arrived: congratulations on Takara's ascension and then a group of envoys expressing condolence for her husband's death.  They left after less than two weeks—apparently they simply delivered their message and left, unless there was some other reason having to do with the Baekje and Goguryeo envoys being there at the same time.  No mention is made in the Nihon Shoki of exactly why they turned around so quickly. Meanwhile, Gyoki was living it up.  He's referenced as the Chief Envoy from Baekje at this point—probably the highest ranking individual from the court present.  On the 8th day of the fourth month he attended an audience with Her Majesty, Takara, and then two days later he was partying with Soga no Emishi out at his mansion in Unebi.  Soga no Emishi had good conversations and presented a good horse and twenty bars of iron, but curiously the hostage crown prince, Sesaeng, was not invited to any of this. Given that we know what the Chroniclers think of Soga no Emishi, I'm wondering if there isn't a little bit of that same feeling towards Gyoki.  After all, we were previously told he and some 40 others were exiled, so perhaps this is just leading up to that? Gyoki and his companions were later invited to witness an “archery hunt” in front of the Yosami Miyake in Kawachi.  This is glossed as “Uma-yumi” or “Horse-Bow”, leading one to wonder if this was similar to yabusame, the traditional horsed archery, performed at various shrines each year.  Or perhaps it was one of the other archery games from horseback, many of them much less savory, often using a live animal as the target, usually staked or confined to an area, and the archers circle around and shoot at them. By the 5th month of 642 – a little over three months after Baekje had first arrived with envoys of condolences, we are told that a shipp of Baekje envoys anchored together along with the ship of the Kishi family.  This is likely Naniwa no Kishi, as Naniwa no Kishi no Kuhina had been assigned as envoy to Baekje.  The envoys delivered their goods and Kuhina reported on their mission. Once again, the dates look to be slightly off.  Had Kuhina really traveled to Baekje and back in just three months?  It is possible, but not typically how things were done at the time.  Ships often had to take their time, navigating the Seto Inland Sea and then checking in at modern Fukuoka before following the island chains out to Tsushima.  At that point they could sail around Tsushima, or cross at a narrow part of the island, known today as Kofunakoshi.  We know that this was used from at least the 9th century as a place where ships coming to and from the islands would stop, often transmitting their goods to a local ship on the other side, with a crew that presumably better knew the waters and was under the command of the appropriate government.  In addition, as the ships reached various checkpoints they would stop for a while, and often another ship would be sent ahead to prepare the way for an official delegation.  Since they didn't have phones, something like this would have been required to inform the next post to be ready to receive the visitors. More likely, this would have been Kuhina finally ready to depart to take on his mission with Baekje. Shortly after this, we are told that one of Gyoki's companions died, and then his own child died—we aren't told if it was from disease or something else.  It did provide an opportunity to see some of the cultural differences between Baekje and Yamato at the time, as Gyoki and his wife refused to attend the ceremonies for their late son.  The Chroniclers explained that, in Baekje and Silla, when someone dies, the parents, siblings, and spouse were not supposed to look on them again. For what it's worth, I could find no relationship between this and any contemporary Korean practice.  This may have been something in Baekje and Silla that eventually went away.  Then again, it is possible there was something else going on, and it was misinterpreted by the Wa.  Given that the Chroniclers are dismissive of the practice, it is entirely possible that this was just slanderous rumor, too.  The Chroniclers make a point of saying that the people of Baekje and Silla who practice these kinds of death rites are without feeling, and thus no better than animals.  So, yeah, clearly the Chroniclers were presenting just the facts, right? Gyoki's child was buried in Ishikawa in Kawachi, and Gyoki moved his family to a house in Ohowi, in Kudara—which is to say the area of Kawachi named for Baekje. Two months after he lost his son, on the 22nd day of the 7th month, Senior Counsellor Chicheok and colleagues were entertained at the Yamato court.  This is that same Senior Counsellor previously thought to be dead.  Again, Aston simply treats it as gossip, while I tend to wonder if the records aren't out of order—unless Chijeok was some kind of Baekje Benjamin Button.  Entertainment at the Yamato court apparently included havingvarious people wrestle for their entertainment. Even Prince Gyoki himself entered the contest.  When the banquet was finished they went to pay their respect's at Gyoki's compound, likely stopping by and having a bit of a nightcap. Two weeks later the Baekje envoys tried to leave, but the storms kicked up.  One of the ships was wrecked on the shore.  Fortunately, it seems like those on the boat survived and they were placed on another boat a couple weeks later.  A day after that, the Goguryeo envoys left for their own country. The Baekje envoys finally made it back, we are told, 11 days later, on the 26th day of the 8th month.  Not bad given the journey they had to undertake, and actually a bit hard to believe.  In contrast, the Silla envoys, who left in the 3rd month, apparently only made it as far as the island of Iki, between Kyushu and Tsushima, by the 10th month of 642.  Perhaps they were just going at a more leisurely pace, but it does make it hard to trust that all the records were rearranged in precisely the correct order. As for this period, outside of the Silla envoys, the entire episode, starting on the 2nd day of the 2nd month of 642, finally concluded—mostly—over six months later.  It occupies most of that part of Chronicle, with the exception of the accounts of the weather, drought, and famine. After all of these people had returned to the peninsula, the Nihon Shoki focuses on a few local things from the archipelago.  Soga no Emishi was ordered to raise a levy in Afumi and Koshi to build a temple, the court levied various provinces to make ships—we aren't told why but previously this was often something done in preparation for war—and then Takara ordered Soga no Emishi to build a new palace with levies on various provinces and workmen from Toutoumi and Aki.  That was all in the 9th month, at the end of which, we are told that several thousand Emishi from the Koshi region, where Soga no Emishi had been ordered to levy workers for a temple earlier in the month, submitted to Yamato and were entertained at court. Soga no Emishi himself entertained them at his house and asked them about their welfare. This is all a bit confusing, but let's try to understand some of what might be going on.  First, you may recall in the previous reign there was a mention with General Katana who went to the east to subdue an uprising of Emishi there, so it is possible that this is a continuation of that.  At the same time, these Emishi, we are told, are from the land of Koshi. It is likely that this is evidence of Yamato's increased presence in the northern region of the island of Honshi, which stretched along the northern edge of the Chubu, or middle Honshu, region, including the Noto peninsula and eastward to Tohoku, or the Northeast region.  This had been an important area for various resources, including the source of jade magatama, since at least the early days of the Yayoi period, judging from artifacts discovered at various sites.  It is also a region connected to the current dynasty, in that Wohodo no Ohokimi, aka Keitai Tennou, generally seen as the progenitor of the current line of sovereigns, is said to have come from that region. Furthermore, this region is closely connected to various overseas trade routes.  While the most common route we hear about, at least at this point in the chronicles, is the Seto Inland Sea route, there was also a route along the Japan Sea side of Honshu, which included the areas of Izumo and the port of Tsunuga—modern day Tsuruga—which includes the Kehi shrine, purportedly for a kami who came over from the peninsula.  At least one Goguryeo mission explicitly used this route—whether intentionally or otherwise—to get to Yamato, crossing over to Afumi, aka Lake Biwa, and then taking the rivers south to Naniwa. Michael Como suggests that there is enough evidence to suggest a fairly heavy Goguryeo influence in the region.  He also suggests that the Soga had a good deal of interactions and influences themselves with Goguryeo, pointing out that Shotoku Taishi's teacher had supposedly been a monk from Goguryeo, and that the plan for Asukadera, the Soga temple, with three golden halls around a central pagoda, is extremely similar to temple plans found in Goguryeo and not in Silla and Baekje. I do feel it is worth pointing out that it is very possible that this was not Asukadera's original layout, and it is hard to say how much of the stories surrounding Shotoku Taishi we can trust. Still, Koshi was an area that had a long history of trade with the continent, and the ease of the waterways from Yamato to the Japan Sea would have made it at least strategically useful to the growing state. There is another aspect here, but it is a bit more tenuous.  There are some that suggest that Soga no Emishi's own name, or at least the name as it is handed down to us today, comes from his dealings with the Emishi people.  Here we see him intimately involved in Koshi, in the Emishi coming to submit, and him then hosting them in his own house.  So even if his name is coincidental, there does appear to be some connection there. And we are still in the first year of Takara's reign.  It was in this twelfth month that Okinaga no Yamana no Kimi finally pronounced a eulogy for the entire royal line.  As you may recall, Takara's husband, Tamura, aka Jomei Tennou, had been a member of the Okinaga royal line, so this was likely part of the ceremonies around his death and burial. There is more here about the placement of palaces, which we touched on a lot in the last episode.  There is also a lot about storms, weather, and peach blossoms blooming. Then on the thirteenth day of the third month of 643, the second year of Takara's reign, there was a terrible fire in Naniwa.  The official guest quarters for Baekje burned down, and the houses of the common people also caught fire. This is also around the time that Best suggests that Prince Pungjang, son of King Wicha of Baekje, may have actually arrived, as we discussed earlier.  That actually could be tied to events a month later, when the Dazai in Tsukushi—the government outpost on Kyushu—sent a mounted messenger to Her Majesty, Takara, to let her know that Gyoki's younger brother, the son of the King of Baekje, had arrived.  The Baekje ships, which had arrived in the area of modern Fukuoka around the 21st day of the 4th month finally arrived in Naniwa two months later.  Presumably the Baekje envoys' official guest quarters had been repaired or rebuilt at this point, and several high ministers went to inspect the tribute.  They couldn't help but notice that the tribute this time was less—fewer items and of lower quality that previously.  The Envoys promised that they would make up the shortfall. Around all of this, the drama between the Soga, Prince Naka no Oe, and others was playing out, with Iruka attacking and eventually killing Yamashiro no Oe, all of which was discussed in the last episode.  Meanwhile we get a small line about Prince Pung keeping four hives of bees on Mt. Miwa, but apparently they didn't grow large enough to multiply, so that doesn't seem to have taken off. We'll return to Prince Pungjang later.  For now, we have seen much of the disturbances that were caused and eventually led up to the Isshi Incident in 645, and 644 is full of many long entries about everything that happened, but I don't want to worry about that—we covered most of that last episode.  What I do want to concern ourselves with is the story I started the episode with – the curious tale of a man named Ohofube no Ohoshi, who started up his own millennial cult. Now there has been quite a bit of speculation around this episode, especially given that all we really have is a single entry, dated to the 7th month of 644, and here I'll quote Aston's translation:  “A man of the neighbourhood of the River Fuji in the East Country named Ohofu Be no Oho urged his fellow-villagers to worship an insect, saying: "This is the God of the Everlasting World. Those who worship this God will have long life and riches." At length the wizards and witches, pretending an inspiration of the Gods, said:--"Those who worship the God of the Everlasting World will, if poor, become rich, and, if old, will become young again." So they more and more persuaded the people to cast out the valuables of their houses, and to set out by the roadside sake, vegetables, and the six domestic animals. They also made them cry out: "The new riches have come!" Both in the country and in the metropolis people took the insect of the Everlasting World and, placing it in a pure place, with song and dance invoked happiness. They threw away their treasures, but to no purpose whatever. The loss and waste was extreme. Hereupon Kahakatsu, Kadono no Hada no Miyakko, was wroth that the people should be so much deluded, and slew Ohofu Be no Oho. The wizards and witches were intimidated, and ceased to persuade people to this worship. The men of that time made a song, saying: Udzumasa Has executed The God of the Everlasting World Who we were told Was the very God of Gods. This insect is usually bred on orange trees, and sometimes on the Hosoki. It is over four inches in length, and about as thick as a thumb. It is of a grass-green colour with black spots, and in appearance entirely resembles the silkworm.” This is remarkable in several ways.  For one, we get a glimpse of how a popular cult might get started.  Since it is at this same time the cult of Shotoku Taishi is taking hold in some temples, it is interesting to draw parallels between the two.  Como points this out in his book on Shotoku Taishi, and notes several other things.  For one is the discussion of this “ever-lasting world”, or Tokoyo.  We've heard of Tokoyo before – the  term is found in the Chronicles in the section around the Age of the Gods.  Sukuna Bikona himself leaps off to Tokoyo from a blade of grass in one story, much like an insect himself. Tokoyo is a bit mysterious.  It isn't the land of the dead, where Izanami goes to live when she dies in childbirth.  Neither is it the Great Plain of Heaven, Takama no hara, where Amaterasu dwells.  We have the gods of the Heavens and gods of the Earth, but no gods of Tokoyo.  Indeed, Tokoyo is mentioned, but not well described.  By all accounts it would appear to be a place that spirits go after death to an unchanging world, rather than coming back to this one. This fits in with various other continental ideas starting to come over at the time, especially as part of the Mahayana Buddhist tradition, which included a search for effective ways to reach enlightenment.  There had been feelings for some time that humans were already in the latter days of the law, or Mappo: the concept that the further we get from the time of the Buddha, the more morality would decline and the harder it would be for people to break the chains of materialism and desire that hold them to this plane of existence.  As such, some sects and teachers taught simpler and more expedient methods, in an effort to save all of the sentient beings.  Things like an abbreviated mantra that would help you get into a paradise where you could eventually attain enlightenment certainly had its adherents, especially amongst those who might not have the time or inclination to join the monastery themselves.  The idea of a Pure Land, or Joudo, took off early, This Pure Land, is most commonly connected with Amida Butsu, the Amithaba Buddha.  Sutras referencing Amida and the Pure Land were translated by Kumarajiva as early as the 5th century, and may have been part of the larger corpus of scrolls brought over to the archipelago.  According to the sutra, they say that if you honestly chant Amida Butsu's name just once—often through the phrase “Namu Amida Butsu”—then rather than being reborn again into the world on your death, you would instead be reincarnated in a Pure Land, where you could focus entirely on your own enlightenment for however long it would take, removing yourself from the pain and suffering of this world.  This practice was taught by the Sanron school as well as by the Hossou school in the 7th and 8th centuries, along with other practices.  It would continue to be taught, especially developing in the Tendai sect. Of course chanting “Namu Amida Butsu” was something you could do while working the fields, or doing any other number of profane, yet necessary tasks.  So you can see why this was an attractive idea to many people, even if they didn't have the ability to start a temple or study the scriptures or become monks or nuns themselves, at least in this life. Pure Land belief and practices continued to grow and develop in various Buddhists sects, but really took off as an independent practice in Japan in the Kamakura Period, appealing to warriors and commoners alike with its seemingly simple mantra. Shotoku Taishi himself is closely connected to the Pure Land concept, as Como points out.  He and his teacher, Eija, are both said to have attained the Pure Land upon their deaths.  The famous embroidery, commissioned after Shotoku Taishi's death, known as the Tenjukoku Mandala, presumably also describes a country of Heavenly Long Life.  “Tenjukoku” does not have an immediate connection to any particular continental sect or philosophy, but it does seem to be at least a cognate for some of these other ideas such as the Joudo Pure Land OR the Tokoyo of Ohofube no Ohoshi. Whether Ohoshi was, in fact, influenced by other continental ideas is unclear.  We're not even sure if his was the first use of the concept of “Tokoyo” or if that was an idea already planted in the public consciousness by that time—though if so, I would think it would be a bit more widespread.  One could understand, however, how people who had been through famines, floods, earthquakes, disease, and more might find the idea of an eternal ever-after where they could be rich and young again quite inviting.  Enough people found it so that they apparently were willing to give up everything they owned and place it out on the streets.  Even if this wasn't just a scheme to go and scoop up all the goods and skip town, one can see how this may have been viewed as disruptive and unhealthy for the community, at least by those comfortably seated in power, whose workforce was being pulled away from their labors to this new belief system. The ones who were spreading this good news, while called wizards and witches by Aston, use characters that one could just as easily ascribe to Shinto priests and sacred Miko.  Since Shinto wasn't fully formed as we know it today, I think it might be better to say various ritualists and diviners.  Whether they were true believers or simply “pretending” to be inspired, as the Nihon Shoki says, who can say for certain.  What makes one vision more objectively “true” than another, beyond your own belief and faith? And it should be remembered that bringing in new spiritual ideas wasn't, well, new.  That's how Buddhism got started, and likely was one of the ways that Yamato itself expanded its own influence.  How many other quote-unquote “cults” like this existed, and how many were absorbed into the establishment and how many were cast aside? In this case, it would seem that Ohoshi's main problem was likely that he was attracting the wrong sorts of people, which is to say he was appealing to commoners.  In the Warring States period, we would see a not dissimilar dynamic with the independent Joudo Shinshu, a sect of Pure Land Buddhism, supporting commoners in what became known as the ikkou ikki.  They formed communities that helped each other, but at the same time bucked the yoke of the local daimyo and others.  This would bring about violent retribution from warlords like Oda Nobunaga, who wasn't having any of it. Similarly, as the Tokoyo sect spread into Yamashiro and down into the capital region, Kadono no Hata no Miyatsuko no Kawakatsu decided to take matters into his own hands.  Ostensibly, he was upset that people would be so deluded, and under that pretext, he had Ohoshi killed and his followers intimidated.  Cutting the head off the snake, as it were, caused the body to wither, and apparently the Tokoyo cult was not so everlasting after all. And here's where we bring things back around.  You may recall Hata no Kawakatsu, or at least his family.  The progenitor of the Hata family was called Uzumasa, and even today their name is affixed to an area of Kyoto, which was built in the old Hata territory.  Hence the poem about Uzumasa executing the God of the Everlasting World. That area, from Lake Biwa down to Naniwa, is on that corridor from Yamato to Koshi.  The Hata themselves are connected with the continent—especially with Silla.   The Hata temple of Kouryuuji even has a Silla image said to have been obtained by Shotoku Taishi and given to them.  Along with Shitennoji, it is one of several Silla-influenced temples that helped promote the cult of Shotoku Taishi.  It is, of course, possible that we are reading way too much into this.  Some of these things could just be coincidence, but then again, why was it written down and why did the Chroniclers feel that it was important to spend ink on the process?  That's the real question here.   And what more was going on that never got written down, or at least not clearly?  It is likely that we will never truly know the answer to all of these questions.  Unless some ancient documents are found from the period that miraculously survived, with significantly different stories, it would be hard to say much more, but that doesn't mean we can't wonder. But that's all we'll do for now.  At this point, I think we've covered these years from 642 to 645 as best we could, and it is probably time to move on.  I'm not going to prognosticate on next episode just yet, other than to say that we will eventually need to talk about the Taika Reforms—the Great Change.  But that may take a little more time to research so that we can do it properly, but we'll see. Until then, thank you for listening and for all of your support. If you like what we are doing, tell your friends and feel free to rate us wherever you listen to podcasts.  If you feel the need to do more, and want to help us keep this going, we have information about how you can donate on Patreon or through our KoFi site, ko-fi.com/sengokudaimyo, or find the links over at our main website, SengokuDaimyo.com/Podcast, where we will have some more discussion on topics from this episode. Also, feel free to Tweet at us at @SengokuPodcast, or reach out to our Sengoku Daimyo Facebook page.  You can also email us at the.sengoku.daimyo@gmail.com.  Thank you, also, to Ellen for their work editing the podcast. And that's all for now.  Thank you again, and I'll see you next episode on Sengoku Daimyo's Chronicles of Japan.

This week on the Revised Intro to Japanese History: the beginning of the end of the age of war and the rise of Oda Nobunaga. How did Nobunaga go from the ruler of less than a single province to the most powerful man in Japan in just a few decades? And what do we really know about the man himself, his plans, and his vision for Japan's future? Show notes here.

Thời Chiến Quốc là một thời đại loạn lạc bậc nhất trong lịch sử Nhật Bản. Các daimyo (đại danh - hay như ta thường gọi là lãnh chúa cho quen thuộc) nổi lên cát cứ khắp nơi để thâu tóm quyền lực. Quyền lực của Mạc phủ Ashikaga và Thiên hoàng xuống thấp đến mức không ai coi trọng, hữu danh vô thực. Suốt hơn một thế kỷ dài đằng đẵng, các lãnh chúa gây chiến, triệt hạ, thâu tóm lẫn nhau để mong thâu tóm cả thiên hạ trong tay. Thế cục biến đổi theo nhiều cách không ai có thể đoán định được. Trong số hằng hà sa số cái tên xuất hiện trong thời đại này, nổi bật nhất vẫn là ba cái tên: Oda Nobunaga, Hashiba Hideyoshi (sau này là Toyotomi Hideyoshi) và Tokugawa Ieyasu. Câu chuyện về cách ba người họ kết thúc thời Chiến Quốc chắc khá nhiều người đã biết rồi: Nobunaga quét sạch thiên hạ, Hideyoshi tiếp bước công việc ấy và cuối cùng Ieyasu hoàn thành nó. Đó là nói một cách vắn tắt, còn thực sự chuyện chẳng hề đơn giản hay "hòa bình" như thế. Thiên hạ về tay Tokugawa, phải trải qua bao biến cố, mà lớn nhất chính là một trận đại chiến được coi là "trận chiến lớn nhất Nhật Bản". Đó là trận đại chiến diễn ra tại cánh đồng Sekigahara tháng 10 năm 1600. Trận đại chiến phân chia thiên hạ, cuộc quyết đấu đẫm máu giữa Toyotomi và Tokugawa. __ Tủ sách hoành tráng của Spiderum: https://shope.ee/2q3x7O0fxv Các đầu sách bạn có thể quan tâm: - Người trong muôn nghề - Định hướng nghề nghiệp toàn diện: https://shope.ee/AURO9YQc3A - Người trong muôn nghề: Ngành IT có gì?: https://shope.ee/9pBhMKT9Oy - Người trong muôn nghề: Ngành Kinh tế có gì? - Tập 1: https://shope.ee/9UYqxiUQ4w - Người trong muôn nghề: Ngành Kinh tế có gì? - Tập 2: https://shope.ee/9KFQlPV3Pv - Người trong muôn nghề: Ngành Sáng tạo - Nghệ thuật có gì?: https://shope.ee/9zV7YdSW47 - Người trong muôn nghề: Ngành Xã hội - Nhân văn có gì?: https://shope.ee/5pfYayiNWK - Mùi mẹ - Món quà dành tặng người phụ nữ yêu thương: https://shope.ee/6AIOzah6qU - DevUP - Phát triển toàn diện sự nghiệp lập trình viên: https://shope.ee/9esHA1Tmjx - Seneca: Những Bức Thư Đạo Đức – Chủ Nghĩa Khắc Kỷ Trong Đời Sống - Tập 1: https://shope.ee/6zrW08ngb2 - Seneca: Những Bức Thư Đạo Đức – Chủ Nghĩa Khắc Kỷ Trong Đời Sống - Tập 2: https://shope.ee/A9oXkwRsj8 - Mở khóa thương mại điện tử Việt Nam: https://shope.ee/5V2iCMjeCI - Doing good better - Làm việc thiện đúng cách: https://shope.ee/6KbpBtgTVV - Động lực nội tại - Làm sao để yêu công việc và đạt đến thành công: https://shope.ee/6UvFOCfqAW - Bước ra thế giới: Cẩm nang du học và săn học bổng: https://shope.ee/5fM8Ofj0rJ - Chuyện người chuyện ngỗng (Vũ Hoàng Long): https://shope.ee/4AXKcUjKAQ __ Hóng các cuộc hội thoại thú vị, nhiều kiến thức bổ ích trên kênh Talk Sâu: https://b.link/talksau Lắng nghe những câu chuyện về thế giới nghề nghiệp cùng podcast Người Trong Muôn Nghề: https://b.link/NTMN-Podcast ______________ Bài viết: Sekigahara - Trận chiến phân chia thiên hạ Được viết bởi: Hải Stark Link bài viết: https://spiderum.com/bai-dang/Sekigah... ______________ Giọng đọc: Nguyễn Lê Minh Thi Editor: Hikari ______________ Bản quyền video: Spiderum Bản quyền nhạc: Youtube Audio Library, Epidemic Sound ______________ --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/spiderum/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/spiderum/support

In this episode of the Exiled Minds Podcast we delve into the captivating story of Yasuke, the African samurai, and the enigmatic daimyo Oda Nobunaga, two figures whose lives intersected during the tumultuous era of feudal Japan. Join us as we unravel the extraordinary journey of Yasuke, a man of African origin brought to Japan by Italian Jesuit missionaries. Discover how he caught the attention of Oda Nobunaga, one of Japan's most formidable warlords, and became a respected retainer in a land where foreigners were rare, let alone revered as samurai. Follow here: https://linktr.ee/exiledminds Support: Help improve the show if you find anything of value please share and subscribe plus you can donate here. Cash App -- £Rohanno6 Paypal: paypal.me/exiledm Links: https://tinylink.onl/0fff https://tinylink.onl/2bca https://tinylink.onl/1d88 https://tinylink.onl/a915 https://tinylink.onl/aabb https://tinylink.onl/fa2c https://tinylink.onl/b7dd Friends Of EMP: Follow Algo Rhythm -- https://bit.ly/3uq7yRY Follow Apoc -- https://bit.ly/3DRCUEj Follow Ash -- https://bit.ly/3CUTe4Z Follow Daryl -- https://bit.ly/3GHyIaN Follow James -- https://bit.ly/3kSiTEY Follow Jennifer -- https://bit.ly/3BVLyCM Follow Joseph -- https://bit.ly/3pNjbzb Matt's Book -- https://linktr.ee/matthewco For 80% discount off Matt's Matrix book, use the coupon code: DT87C (the code is not case sensitive) Follow MysticWook -- http://bit.ly/3J1uFdh Follow Nightstocker -- https://bit.ly/3mFGGtx Robert's Book -- https://amzn.to/3GEsFUK Follow TamBam -- https://bit.ly/3LIQkFw Michael Strange Troubled Minds Radio -- https://troubledminds.org Tune in to the Troubled Minds Radio Network here: https://live365.com/station/Troubled-Minds-Radio-Network---KUAP-DB-a21921 --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/liam-martin31/message

In this episode of the Exiled Minds Podcast we delve into the captivating story of Yasuke, the African samurai, and the enigmatic daimyo Oda Nobunaga, two figures whose lives intersected during the tumultuous era of feudal Japan. Join us as we unravel the extraordinary journey of Yasuke, a man of African origin brought to Japan by Italian Jesuit missionaries. Discover how he caught the attention of Oda Nobunaga, one of Japan's most formidable warlords, and became a respected retainer in a land where foreigners were rare, let alone revered as samurai. Follow here: https://linktr.ee/exiledminds Support: Help improve the show if you find anything of value please share and subscribe plus you can donate here. Cash App -- £Rohanno6 Paypal: paypal.me/exiledm Links: https://tinylink.onl/0fff https://tinylink.onl/2bca https://tinylink.onl/1d88 https://tinylink.onl/a915 https://tinylink.onl/aabb https://tinylink.onl/fa2c https://tinylink.onl/b7dd Friends Of EMP: Follow Algo Rhythm -- https://bit.ly/3uq7yRY Follow Apoc -- https://bit.ly/3DRCUEj Follow Ash -- https://bit.ly/3CUTe4Z Follow Daryl -- https://bit.ly/3GHyIaN Follow James -- https://bit.ly/3kSiTEY Follow Jennifer -- https://bit.ly/3BVLyCM Follow Joseph -- https://bit.ly/3pNjbzb Matt's Book -- https://linktr.ee/matthewco For 80% discount off Matt's Matrix book, use the coupon code: DT87C (the code is not case sensitive) Follow MysticWook -- http://bit.ly/3J1uFdh Follow Nightstocker -- https://bit.ly/3mFGGtx Robert's Book -- https://amzn.to/3GEsFUK Follow TamBam -- https://bit.ly/3LIQkFw Michael Strange Troubled Minds Radio -- https://troubledminds.org Tune in to the Troubled Minds Radio Network here: https://live365.com/station/Troubled-Minds-Radio-Network---KUAP-DB-a21921 --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/liam-martin31/message

The mystic juggalo weebs J. David Osborne and Kelby Losack are joined by screenwriter, author, and Mutual Aberration Society host Ryan Jackson to discuss 2023's Netflix anime ONIMUSHA, directed by godfather of the show, Takashi Miike and based on the Capcom series of video games. We discuss: the Agitator sound board, slur buttons, how Koreans say "I," Nick-r-Treat and '90s commercials, Programmed to Kill, Subliminal Jihad, Programmed to Chill, the life and music of XXXTentacion, Do Every Thing Wrong! by Jarett Kobek, Island Boys selling their souls and kissing each other, gates of hell, Miike's career trajectory, Yakuza-run production companies, the Capcom video games ONIMUSHA is based on, which Japanese emperors were the best aka the worst, why is Oda Nobunaga always a villain in Japanese media?, identifying as samurai, vikings as the white samurai, the ONIMUSHA movie that never happened because Heath Ledger died, how we feel about all the Miike touches in the ONIMUSHA anime, why ONIMUSHA stans are mad about the anime, lore nerds, writers against plotting, filmmakers who are painters, are Takashi Miike and David Lynch each other's yin and yang?, why AI is not a threat and how to either use it or not care, paint-by-numbers critics, why Star Wars is best in video game form, utilizing the unique aspects of the medium in which you are creating in, the history of samurai and western cross-referencing, idea vs execution... and this is all within the first hour. We made this one free as a reference point for what Agitator is all about. It's a good hang, it's a comedy show, it's craft and hustle talk, it's anime obsession, it's esoteric, and it's uninhibited. Best podcast in the world. Check out our books, short films, bonus and uncut episodes, book club, and exclusive private Discord access at patreon.com/agitator 

In the wake of Oda Nobunaga's death, Hashiba Hideyoshi rushed to finalize a truce with the Mori Clan before racing back to Kansai with his army to face off against the forces of Akechi Mitsuhide.Support the show

By 1582, Oda Nobunaga's efforts at unification were gaining momentum as he increasingly consolidated power for himself. Just when it appeared that he couldn't be stopped, he was betrayed by a subordinate and assassinated.Support the show

Oda Nobunaga became the most politically powerful daimyo in all of Japan by the early 1580s. In this episode, we explore his governance, economic management, and personal style.Support the show

How did an enslaved East African man become Japan's first foreign samurai, and the only ever samurai of African descent? How did Yasuke catch the attention of Japan's most powerful warlord Oda Nobunaga, to become the most unlikely of national heroes?In this episode of Not Just the Tudors, Professor Suzannah Lipscomb talks to author Craig Shreve who, in his new novel The African Samurai: The incredible story of Yasuke, magnificently reconstructs the story of this fascinating lost historical figure.This episode was produced by Rob Weinberg.Discover the past on History Hit with ad-free original podcasts and documentaries released weekly presented by world renowned historians including Dan Snow, Suzannah Lipscomb, Lucy Worsley, Matt Lewis, Tristan Hughes and more. Get 50% off your first 3 months with code TUDORS. Download the app on your smart TV or in the app store or sign up here >You can take part in our listener survey here >For more Not Just The Tudors content, subscribe to our Tudor Tuesday newsletter here > Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Oda Nobunaga and Tokugawa Ieyasu team up against their mutual enemy the Takeda Clan and Nobunaga wins one of the most decisive victories of his entire career. When facing off against the Uesugi Clan two years later, however,  Nobunaga surprisingly lost a battle against a smaller army.Support the show

Oda Nobunaga seized absolute power in the capital in 1573, but he still had many enemies to contend with in Kansai and beyond.Support the show

What do pocket watches, Korean prisoners, and samurai armor have in common? All of them help explain the close relationship between Portuguese merchants and Japanese warlords in the late 1500s. In this episode of Gladio Free Europe, we see how Portuguese Catholics entered the inner circles of Japan's most powerful men before a sudden change of heart turned this glamorous foreign religion into an underground cult. This episode focuses on the ways different feudal daimyo responded to the sudden arrival of Christianity. A few noblemen converted outright. Some welcomed the missionaries just to get access to their foreign guns. One very important warlord distrusted the Jesuits, would set Japan on a course to ultimately eradicate Christianity in the islands. While accounts of early East-West contact typically focus on European merchants and missionaries visiting Asia, this period saw people and goods and ideas move in both directions. We'll We go over the career of early Japanese Christians in Europe, such as a mysterious figure named Bernardo as well as an official diplomatic mission sent by three Christian warlords to the Papal States. And we can't forget the famous African samurai Yasuke, who arrived with the Jesuits only to become a close ally of the great unifier Oda Nobunaga. He and another Catholic would be a witness to Nobunaga's shocking betrayal, which would ultimately spell the doom of the Japanese Catholics. Stay tuned for our upcoming final episode of this series, chronicling the long period of Christian persecutions that ended with a brutal last stand in the city of Shimabara.

Programa 3x154. Una altra hist

Programa 3x154. Una altra hist

⁠⁠⁠Support us on Patreon⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ --- In 1549, a Portuguese priest and a Japanese pirate disembarked on the port of Kagoshima with one purpose: to bring Christianity to the islands of Japan. They would be remarkably successful. Within 50 years, hundreds of thousands of Japanese people had been baptized, from lowly fishermen and merchants to powerful noblemen at the center of the shogun's circle. Yet after 100 years, almost all trace of this foreign religion had vanished. This episode is this first of a series covering the history of Christianity in Japan, which is going to explore how this faith, once praised by no less than the great warlord Oda Nobunaga, came to be persecuted with a fervor rivaling the Spanish Inquisition being carried thousands of miles away in Europe. Liam and Russian Sam explore how the 16th century brought political and religious upheavals to both Japan and Europe. In the east, this came in the form of the Warring States Period, or Sengoku Jidai, when samurai, shoguns, and Buddhist warrior-monks fought for control of Japan. In the west, the Protestant Reformation split Europe apart and led to the formation of the Jesuits, a well-connected order of priests commanded to spread the power of the Catholic Church by any means necessary. What caused the civil war that tore Japan into pieces? Why were many Japanese people so accepting of a foreign religion? And where do the pirates come in? All this and more in this week's episode of Gladio Free Europe.

Beleaguered and surrounded by enemies, Oda Nobunaga nearly fell into a deadly trap while seeking battle against the Asakura Clan of northern Omi Province. Then the Takeda Clan started stabbing westward, seeking to liberate the shogun from the grasp of Nobunaga. The drama would end, however, with Yoshiaki's removal and subsequent exile from Kyoto, thus marking the end of the Ashikaga Shogunate.Support the show

After conquering Mino Province, Oda Nobunaga needed to not only carve a path to the capital itself, but extend his control over a broad section of the Kansai region. Support the show

After finally conquering his foes in Mino Province, Oda Nobunaga established a new headquarters in the newly-rebuilt Gifu Castle and introduces a new official motto for his regime - Tenka Fubu.Support the show

The Sengoku Period, also known as the Warring States Period, was a turbulent and violent period of Japanese history when rival warlords or daimyo fought bitterly for control of Japan. The period falls within the Muromachi period (Muromachi Jidai, 1333-1573 CE) of Japanese medieval history when the Ashikaga shogun capital was located in the Muromachi area of Heiankyo (Kyoto). The beginning of the Sengoku period witnessed the Onin War (1467-1477 CE) which destroyed Heiankyo. The fighting that followed over the next century would eventually reduce the warlords to only a few hundred in number as the country was effectively carved up into princedoms. Eventually, one warlord rose above all his rivals: Oda Nobunaga, who set Japan on the road to unification from 1568 CE. Help us out by filling out this survey Travel to Japan With Me here Bonus episodes as well as ad-free episodes on Patreon. Find us on Instagram. Join us on Discord. Submit your relatives on our website Join the Book Club on http://chirpbooks.com/history Get some delicious COFFEE Podcast Youtube Channel Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Episode 215: New Gamer Mistakes!   News: (3:12) New Unmatched Sets Two new Unmatched sets announced, for 2023 release announced with an update from Unmatched tales to amaze. Brains and Brawn - set 5 (final one) of Marvel Unmatched - She Hulk, Dr. Strange, and Spiderman. Q3 Release.  Suns Origins - Featuring two individuals from Japan's history. “Oda Nobunaga was the daimyo of the Oda clan, renowned for unifying feudal Japan” and “Tomoe Gozen was a legendary onna-musha of the Minamoto clan.” Q4 release Evacuation Evacuation designed by Vladimír Suchý and publisher Delicious Games- 1-4 players,  60-150 minutes - estimated Release October 2023 (Essen). Designer of Underwater Cities, Woodcraft, Shipyard, Last Will, Prodigals Club, Pulsar 2849, Shipyard and others. The Sun has become too harsh to withstand life on the planet, players must move their economy to another planet and establish new operations. Players compete to be the best at performing this task. Wild Gardens Wild Gardens is on Backerkit, designed by Isaac Vega, Illustrated by Alyssa Menold and published By Rose Gauntlet Entertainment. From BGG: “Discover the exciting world of foraging where new foods and friends await! Wild Gardens is a strategy game where 1-4 players take on the role of foragers, competing to cook delicious meals for the most discerning of guests. Travel to a variety of real-life locations, carefully planning your moves to gather ingredients, upgrade your skills, complete recipes, and serve up your creations to a host of hungry guests. Personalize your foraging strategy to suit your unique playstyle and turn those tasty dishes and satisfied guests into valuable victory points. The player with the most points at the end of the game wins!” Freelancers: A Crossroads Game Freelancers: A Crossroads Game - Designed by Donald Shults, art by Chris Bryan, Allison Carl, Sam Mameli (Better Legends), Sean McCoy, Karl Stjernberg and published by Plaid Hat games. This is a follow up to Forgotten Watters that uses RPG elements as well as an app to drive the storytelling. 3-7 players August 2023 release(Gencon) Clank! Legacy 2: Acquisitions Incorporated: Darkest Magic Clank! Legacy 2: Acquisitions Incorporated: Darkest Magic - Designed by  Paul Dennen, Jay E. Treat, III and Published by Dire Wolf 2-4 players Coming to Kickstarter May 2nd 2023 What have we been playing: (22:51) (Adam) Ticket to Ride: San Francisco, Final Girl (Courtney) Earth (Kent) The Great Spilt (Matt) Just One, Scout (Rob) D&D (Roy) Unmatched Adventures: Tales to Amaze Topic: New Gamer Mistakes! (1:04:52) Using the Top 100 on BGG to find games for your first time Chasing FOMO Don't worry about getting all the expansions up front Take it slow and go at your own pace Also make sure to not push anyone else too fast into heavier games Make sure you learn most of the rules before sitting down to play Learn about filler games Have a game setup before people arrive to a gameday Follow Epic Gaming Night @EpicGamingNight on Twitter and Instagram EpicGamingNight.com We stream the show normally on Tuesday nights bi-weekly at 9 PM Eastern time at www.youtube.com/epicgamingnight  

Yasuke was a remarkable figure in Japanese history, an African man who rose to become a samurai in the late 16th century. Originally from Mozambique, Yasuke was brought to Japan by a Jesuit missionary named Alessandro Valignano, but his talents and strength caught the attention of the powerful warlord Oda Nobunaga. Nobunaga was so impressed with Yasuke that he made him a retainer and samurai. Yasuke's life was full of intrigue and adventure, including battles, political machinations, and ultimately his mysterious disappearance from the historical record. His story offers a fascinating glimpse into a little-known chapter of Japanese history, and raises questions about race, identity, and power in feudal Japan. Listen now to hear his full story! - Thank you for listening Weirdos! Show the podcast some love by rating, reviewing, subscribing and sharing it today. Your support means so much to us. Let's stay in touch

In the 1580's Japan was a on the precipice of a massive transformation. For over a century the country had been embroiled in war, but by 1581 the end seemed to be in sight. The powerful Lord Oda Nobunaga was on the path to unifying the fractured nation. It was at this time that a remarkable man from East Africa, known as Yasuke, came into his service. Nobunaga would take a shine to this foreigner and would eventually honour him with a ceremonial sword and a monthly stipend. For many historians this makes Yasuke the first ever foreigner born Samurai. Legend has it that he played a pivotal role in Oda Nobunaga's final living moments. Should we trust these stories of Samurai derring-do? Tune-in and find out how a loosely tied top knot, a public scrubbing, and the slippery definition of "samurai" all play a role in the story.

Welcome to episode 54! We have two stories celebrating Black history for the month of February! First off, we have the rough and gruff, gun-toting, cigar smoking, take no shit Mary Fields, often known to history as "Stagecoach Mary!" She was the United States' first Black woman (and 2nd woman) to run a star route for the postal system. A star route mail carrier used a stagecoach on treacherous and rocky rural roads out west and had to defend against wild animals and bandits all the while. Next, KT takes us back 3 more centuries to feudal Japan to learn about Yasuke, the African man who arrived in Japan with a Jesuit missionary and became the close confidant of Oda Nobunaga, the "Great Unifier" of Japan as well as the first non-Asian samurai! *~*~*~*~ Mentioned in the Stories: Stagecoach Mary's Gravesite Statue of Yasuke Map of Feudal Japan *~*~*~*~ The Socials! Instagram - @HightailingHistory TikTok- @HightailingHistoryPod Facebook -Hightailing Through History or @HightailingHistory Twitter - @HightailingPod *~*~*~*~ Source Material: Stagecoach Mary-- https://books.google.com/books?id=2_GwyvHcT-EC&lpg=PA128&ots=qpm-6p0p0q&dq=%2522mary%2520fields%2522%2520%2522hickman%2520county%2522&pg=PA130#v=onepage&q=%2522mary%2520fields%2522%2520%2522hickman%2520county%2522&f=false (Pages 112, 128-131) https://postalmuseum.si.edu/stagecoach-mary-fields https://www.history.com/news/meet-stagecoach-mary-the-daring-black-pioneer-who-protected-wild-west-stagecoaches https://www.jstor.org/stable/24766796?mag=how-mary-fields-became-stagecoach-mary&seq=5#metadata_info_tab_contents Yasuke-- https://www.britannica.com/biography/Yasuke https://time.com/6039381/yasuke-black-samurai-true-story/ https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/who-was-yasuke-japans-first-black-samurai-180981416/ *~*~*~*~ Intro/outro music: "Loopster" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 License http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/ --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/laurel-rockall/message

This episode we look at some of the physical evidence from this period.  In particular, since we are talking about the sovereign known as Ankan Tenno, we will look at a glass bowl, said to have come from his tomb, which appears to have made its way all the way from Sassanid Persia to Japan between the 5th and 6th centuries CE.  Along the way we'll take a brief look at the route that such an item may have taken to travel across the Eurasian continent all the way to Japan. For more on this episode, check out https://sengokudaimyo.com/podcast/episode-79 Rough Transcript: Welcome to Sengoku Daimyo's Chronicles of Japan.  My name is Joshua, and this is Episode 79:  Ankan's Glass Bowl. We are currently in the early part of the 6th century.  Last episode was our New Year's wrapup, but just before that we talked about the reign of Magari no Ōye, aka Ohine, aka Ankan Tennō.   According to the Chronicles, he was the eldest son of Wohodo, aka Keitai Tennō, coming to the throne in 534.  For all of the various Miyake, or Royal Grannaries, that he granted, his reign only lasted about two years, coming to an unfortunate end in the 12th month of 535.  The Chronicles claim that Ohine was 70 years old when he died, which would seem to indicate he was born when his father, Wohodo, was only 13 years of age.  That seems rather young, but not impossibly so. It is said that Ankan Tennō was buried on the hill of Takaya, in the area of Furuichi.  And that is where my personal interest in him and his short reign might end, if not for a glass bowl that caught my eye in the Tokyo National Museum. Specifically, it was the Heiseikan, which is where the Tokyo National Museum hosts special exhibitions, but it also hosts a regular exhibition on Japanese archaeology.  In fact, if you ever get the chance, I highly recommend checking it out.  I mean, let's be honest, the Tokyo National Museum is one of my favorite places to visit when I'm in Tokyo.  I think there is always something new—or at least something old that I find I'm taking a second look at. The Japanese archaeology section of the Heiseikan covers from the earliest stone tools through the Jomon, Yayoi, Kofun, and up to about the Nara period.  They have originals or replicas of many items that we've talked about on the podcast, including the gold seal of King Na of Wa, the Suda Hachiman mirror, and the swords from Eta Funayama and Inariyama kofun, which mention Wakatakiru no Ōkimi, generally thought to be the sovereign known as Yuuryaku Tennō.  They also have one of the large iron tate, or shields, on loan from Isonokami Shrine, and lots of bronze mirrors and various types of haniwa. Amongst this treasure trove of archaeological artifacts, one thing caught my eye from early on.  It is a small, glass bowl, round in shape, impressed throughout with a series of round indentations, almost like a giant golf ball.  Dark brown streaks crisscross the bowl, where it has been broken and put back together at some point in the past.  According to the placard, this Juuyo Bunkazai, or Important Cultural Property, is dated to about the 6th century, was produced somewhere in West Asia, and it is said to have come from the tomb of none other than Ankan Tennō himself. This has always intrigued me.  First and foremost there is the question of provenance—while there are plenty of tombs that have been opened over the years, generally speaking the tombs of the imperial family, especially those identified as belonging to reigning sovereigns, have been off limits to most archaeological investigations.  So how is it that we have artifacts identified with the tomb of Ankan Tennō, if that is the case? The second question, which almost trumps the first, is just how did a glass bowl from west Asia make it all the way to Japan in the 6th century?  Of course, Japan and northeast Asia in general were not strangers to glassmaking—glass beads have a long history both on the Korean peninsula and in the archipelago, including the molds used to make them.  However, it is one thing to melt glass and pour it into molds, similar to working with cast bronze.  These bowls, however, appear to be something different.  They were definitely foreign, and, as we shall see, they had made quite the journey. So let's take a look and see if we can't answer both of these questions, and maybe learn a little bit more about the world of 6th century Japan along the way. To start with, let's look at the provenance of this glass bowl.  Provenance is important—there are numerous stories of famous “finds” that turned out to be fakes, or else items planted by someone who wanted to get their name out there.  Archaeology—and its close cousin, paleontology—can get extremely competitive, and if you don't believe me just look up the Bone Wars of the late 19th century.  Other names that come to mind:  The infamous Piltdown man, the Cardiff Giant, and someone we mentioned in one of our first episodes, Fujimura Shin'ichi, who was accused of salting digs to try to claim human habitation in Japan going back hundreds of thousands of years. This is further complicated by the fact that, in many cases, the situation behind a given find is not necessarily well documented.  There are Edo period examples of Jomon pottery, or haniwa, that were found, but whose actual origins have been lost to time.  Then there are things like the seal of King Na of Wa, which is said to have been discovered by a farmer, devoid of the context that would help to otherwise clear the questions that continue to surround such an object.  On top of this, there are plenty of tombs that have been worn down over the ages—where wind and water have eroded the soil, leaving only the giant stone bones, or perhaps washing burial goods into nearby fields or otherwise displacing them. So what is the story with the tomb of Ankan Tennō, and this glass bowl? To answer this, let's first look at the tomb attributed to Ankan Tennō.  The Nihon Shoki tells us in the 8th century that this tomb was located at Takaya, in the area of Furuichi.  This claim is later repeated by the Engi Shiki in the 10th century.  Theoretically, the compilers of both of these works had some idea of where this was, but in the hundreds of years since then, a lot has happened.  Japan has seen numerous governments, as well as war, famine, natural disaster, and more.  At one point, members of the royal household were selling off calligraphy just to pay for the upkeep of the court, and while the giant kofun no doubt continued to be prominent features for locals in the surrounding areas, the civilian and military governments of the intervening centuries had little to no budget to spare for their upkeep.  Records were lost, as were many details. Towards the end of the Edo period, and into the early Meiji, a resurgence in interest in the royal, or Imperial, family and their ancient mausoleums caused people to investigate the texts and attempt to identify mausoleums for each of the sovereigns, as well as other notable figures, in the Kojiki and the Nihon Shoki.  Given that many of those figures are likely fictional or legendary individuals, one can see how this may be problematic.  And yet, the list that eventually emerged has become the current list of kofun protected by the Imperial Household Agency as imperial mausolea. Based on what we know, today, some of these official associations seem obviously questionable.  Some of them, for instance, are not even keyhole shaped tombs—for instance, some are circular, or round tombs, where the claim is often made that the other parts of the tomb were eroded or washed away.  Still others engender their own controversy, such as who, exactly, is buried in Daisen-ryō, the largest kofun, claimed to be the resting place of Ōsazaki no Mikoto, aka Nintoku Tennō.  Some people, however, claim that it is actually the sovereign Woasatsuma Wakugo, aka Ingyō Tennō, who is buried there, instead.  What is the truth?  Well, without opening up the main tomb, who is to say, and even then it is possible that any evidence may have already been lost to the acidic soils of the archipelago, which are hardly kind to organic matter. By the way, quick divergence, here—if you look up information on Daisen-ryō, aka Daisen Kofun, you may notice that there are drawings of a grave, including a coffin, associated with it.  That might get you thinking, as I did at one point, that Daisen kofun had already been opened, but it turns out that was a grave on the slopes of the square end of the kofun, and not from the main, circular burial mound.  Theoretically this may have been an important consort, or perhaps offspring or close relative of the main individual interred in the kofun, but most likely it is not for the person for whom the giant mound was actually erected.  So, yes, Daisen kofun remains unopened, at least as far as we know. As for the kofun identified for Ankan Tennō, today that is the tomb known as Furuichi Tsukiyama Kofun, aka Takaya Tsukiyama Kofun.  While the connection to Ankan Tennō may be somewhat unclear, the kofun has had its own colorful history, in a way.  Now most of the reports I could find, from about '92 up to 2022, place this kofun, which is a keyhole shaped kofun, in the correct time period—about the early to mid-6th century, matching up nicely with a 534 to 535 date for the reign given to Ankan Tennō.  But what is fascinating is the history around the 15th to 16th centuries.  It was just after the Ounin War, in 1479, when Hatakeyama Yoshihiro decided to build a castle here, placing the honmaru, the main enclosure, around the kofun, apparently incorporating the kofun and its moats into the castle design.  The castle, known as Takaya Castle, would eventually fall to Oda Nobunaga's forces in 1575, and most of the surrounding area was burned down in the fighting, bringing the kofun's life as a castle to an end. Some of the old earthworks still exist, however, and excavations in the area have helped determine the shape of the old castle, though there still have not been any fulsome excavations of the mound that I have found.  This makes sense as the kofun is designated as belonging to a member of the imperial lineage. There are, however, other keyhole shaped kofun from around the early 6th century that are also found in the same area, which also could be considered royal mausolea, and would seem to fit the bill just as well as this particular tomb.  In addition, there are details in the Chronicles, such as the fact that Magari no Ohine, aka Ankan Tennō, was supposedly buried with his wife and his younger sister.  This is, however, contradicted by records like the 10th century Engi Shiki, where two tombs are identified, one for Ankan Tennō and one for his wife, Kasuga no Yamada, so either the Chronicles got it wrong, or there were already problems with tomb identification just two centuries later.  So we still aren't entirely sure that this is Ankan Tennō's tomb. But at least we know that the glass bowl came from a 6th century kingly tomb, even if that tomb was only later identified as belonging to Ankan Tennō, right? Well, not so fast. The provenance on the bowl is a bit more tricky than that.  You see, the bowl itself came to light in 1950, when a private individual in Fuse, Ōsaka invited visiting scholar Ishida Mosaku to take a look.  According to his report at the time, the bowl was in a black lacquered box and wrapped in a special cloth, with a written inscription that indicated that the bowl had been donated to a temple in Furuichi named Sairin-ji. There are documents from the late Edo period indicating that various items were donated to Sairin-ji temple between the 16th to the 18th centuries, including quote-unquote “utensils” said to have been washed out of the tomb believed to be that of Ankan Tennō.  Ishida Mosaku and other scholars immediately connected this glass bowl with one or more of those accounts.  They were encouraged by the fact that there is a similar bowl found in the Shōsōin, an 8th century repository at Tōdai-ji temple, in Nara, which houses numerous artifacts donated on behalf of Shōmu Tennō.  Despite the gulf of time between them—two hundred years between the 6th and 8th centuries—this was explained away in the same way that Han dynasty mirrors, made in about the 3rd century, continued to show up in burials for many hundreds of years afterwards, likewise passed down as familial heirlooms. Still, the method of its discovery, the paucity of direct evidence, and the lack of any direct connection with where it came from leaves us wondering—did this bowl really come from the tomb of Ankan Tennō?  Even moreso, did it come from a 6th century tomb at all?  Could it not have come from some other tomb? We could tie ourselves up in knots around this question, and I would note that if you look carefully at the Tokyo National Museum's own accounting of the object they do mention that it is quote-unquote “possibly” from the tomb of Ankan Tennō. What does seem clear, however, is that its manufacture was not in Japan.  Indeed, however it came to our small group of islands on the northeastern edge of the Eurasian continent, it had quite the journey, because it does appear to be genuinely from the Middle East—specifically from around the time of the Sassanian or Sassanid empire, the first Iranian empire, centered on the area of modern Iran. And it isn't the only one.  First off, of course, there is the 8th century bowl in the Shousoin I just mentioned, but there are also examples of broken glass found on Okinoshima, an island deep in the middle of the strait between Kyushu and the Korean peninsula, which has a long history as a sacred site, mentioned in the Nihon Shoki, and attached to the Munakata shrine in modern Fukuoka.  Both Okinoshima and the Shōsōin—at least as part of the larger Nara cultural area—are on the UNESCO register of World Heritage sites, along with the Mozu-Furuichi kofun group, of which the Takaya Tsukiyama kofun is one.. Okinoshima is a literal treasure trove for archaeologists. However, its location and status have made it difficult to fully explore.  The island is still an active sacred site, and so investigations are balanced with respect for local tradition.  The lone occupant of the island is a Shinto priest, one of about two dozen who rotate spending 10 days out at the island, tending the sacred site.  Women are still not allowed, and for centuries, one day a year they allowed up to 200 men on the island after they had purified themselves in the ocean around the island.  Since then, they have also opened up to researchers, as well as military and media, at least in some instances. The island is apparently littered with offerings.  Investigations have demonstrated that this island has been in use since at least the 4th century.  As a sacred site, guarding the strait between Kyushu and the Korean peninsula, fishermen and sailors of all kinds would make journeys to the island and leave offerings of one kind or another, and many of them are still there: clay vessels, swords, iron ingots, bronze mirrors, and more.  The island's location, which really is in the middle of the straits, and not truly convenient to any of the regular trading routes, means that it has never really been much of a strategic site, just a religious one, and one that had various religious taboos, so it hasn't undergone the centuries of farming and building that have occurred elsewhere. Offerings are scattered in various places, often scattered around or under boulders and large rocks that were perhaps seen as particularly worthy of devotion.  Since researchers have been allowed in, over 80,000 treasures have been found and catalogued.  Among those artifacts that have been brought back is glass, including glass from Sassanid Persia.  Pieces of broken glass bowls, like the one said to have come from Ankan's tomb, as well as what appear to be beads made from broken glass pieces, have been recovered over the years, once more indicating their presence in the trade routes to the mainland, although when, exactly, they came over can be a little more difficult to place. That might be helped by two other glass artifacts, also found in the archaeological exhibit of the Heiseikan in the Tokyo National Museum: a glass bowl and dish discovered at Niizawa Senzuka kofun Number 126, in Kashihara city, in Nara. This burial is believed to date to the latter half of the 5th century, and included an iron sword, numerous gold fittings and jewelry, and even an ancient clothes iron, which at the time looked like a small frying pan, where you could put hot coals or similar items in the pan and use the flat bottom to help iron out wrinkles in cloth.  Alongside all of this were also discovered two glass vessels.  One was a dark, cobalt-blue plate, with a stand and very shallow conical shape.  The other was a round glass bowl with an outwardly flared lip.  Around the smooth sides, the glass has been marked with three rows of circular dots that go all the way around, not dissimilar from the indentations in the Ankan and Shōsōin glass bowls. All of these, again, are believed to have come from Sassanid Persia, modern Iran, and regardless of the provenance of the Ankan bowl, it seems that we have clear evidence that Sassanian glassworks were making their way to Japan.  But how?  How did something like glass—hardly known for being the most robust of materials—make it all the way from Sassanid Persia to Yamato between the 5th and 8th centuries? To start with, let's look at Sassanid Persia and its glass. Sassanid Persia—aka Sassanid or Sassanian Iran—is the name given to the empire that replaced the Parthian empire, and is generally agreed to have been founded sometime in the early 3rd century.  The name “Sassanid” refers to the legendary dynastic founder, Sassan, though the first historical sovereign appears to be Ardeshir I, who helped put the empire on the map. Ardeshir I called his empire “Eran sahr”, and it is often known as an Iranian or Persian empire, based on their ties to Pars and the use of the Middle Persian, or Farsi, language.   For those not already well aware, Farsi is one of several Iranian languages, though over the years many of the various Iranian speaking peoples would often be classified as “Persian” in English literature.  That said, there is quite a diversity of Iranian languages and people who speak them, including Farsi, Pashto, Dari, Tajik, and the ancient Sogdian language, which I'm sure we'll touch on more given their importance in the ancient silk road trade.  Because of the ease with which historical “Iranian” ethnic groups can be conflated with the modern state, I am going to largely stick with the term Persian, here, but just be aware that the two words are often, though not always, interchangeable. The Sassanid dynasty claimed a link to the older Achaemenid dynasty, and over the subsequent five centuries of their rule they extended their borders, dominating the area between the Caspian Sea and the Persian Gulf, eastward to much of modern Afghanistan and Pakistan, running right up to the Hindu Kush and the Pamir mountains.  They held sway over much of Central Asia, including the area of Transoxiana.  With that they had access to both the sea routes, south of India and the overland routes through the Tianshan mountains and the northern and southern routes around the great Taklamakan desert – so, basically, any trade passing between Central and East Asia would pass through Sassanid territory. The Persian empire of the Sassanids was pre-Islamic—Islamic Arab armies would not arrive until about the 7th century, eventually bringing an end to the Sassanid dynasty.  Until that point, the Persian empire was largely Zoroastrian, an Iranian religion based around fire temples, restored after the defeat of the Parthians, where eternal flames were kept burning day and night as part of their ritual practice.  The Sassanids inherited a Persian culture in an area that had been dominated by the Parthians, and before that the Hellenistic Seleucids, and their western edge bordered with the Roman empire.  Rome's establishment in the first century BCE coincided with the invention of glassblowing techniques, and by the time of the Sassanid Empire these techniques seem to have been well established in the region. Sassanid glass decorated with patterns of ground, cut, and polished hollow facets—much like what we see in the examples known in the Japanese islands—comes from about the 5th century onward.  Prior to that, the Sassanian taste seems to have been for slightly less extravagant vessels, with straight or slightly rounded walls. Sassanid glass was dispersed in many different directions along their many trade routes across the Eurasian continent, and archaeologists have been able to identify glass from this region not just by its shape, but by the various physical properties based on the formulas and various raw materials used to make the glass. As for the trip to Japan, this was most likely through the overland routes.  And so the glass would have been sold to merchants who would take it up through Transoxiana, through passes between the Pamirs and the Tianshan mountains, and then through a series of oasis towns and city-states until it reached Dunhuang, on the edge of the ethnic Han sphere of influence. For a majority of this route, the glass was likely carried by Sogdians, another Iranian speaking people from the region of Transoxiana.  Often simply lumped in with the rest of the Iranian speaking world as “Persians”, Sogdians had their own cultural identity, and the area of Sogdia is known to have existed since at least the ancient Achaemenid dynasty.  From the 4th to the 8th century, Sogdian traders plied the sands of Central Eurasia, setting up a network of communities along what would come to be known as the Silk Road. It is along this route that the glassware, likely packed in straw or some other protective material, was carried on the backs of horses, camels, and people along a journey of several thousand kilometers, eventually coming to the fractious edge of the ethnic Han sphere.  Whether it was these same Sogdian traders that then made their way to the ocean and upon boats out to the Japanese islands is unknown, but it is not hard imagining crates being transferred from merchant to merchant, east, to the Korean Peninsula, and eventually across the sea. The overland route from Sogdia is one of the more well-known—and well-worn—routes on what we modernly know as the Silk Road, and it's very much worth taking the time here to give a brief history of how this conduit between Western Asia/Europe and Eastern Asia developed over the centuries.  One of the main crossroads of this area is the Tarim Basin, the area that, today, forms much of Western China, with the Tianshan mountains in the north and the Kunlun Mountains, on the edge of the Tibetan plateau, to the south.  In between is a large desert, the Taklamakan desert, which may have once been a vast inland sea.  Even by the Han dynasty, a vast saltwater body known as the Puchang Sea existed in its easternmost regions.  Comparable to some of the largest of the Great Lakes, and fed by glacial run-off, the lake eventually dwindled to become the salt-marshes around Lop Nur.  And yet, researchers still find prominent boat burials out in what otherwise seems to be the middle of the desert. Around the Tarim basin were various cultures, often centered on oases at the base of the mountains.  Runoff from melting ice and snow in the mountains meant a regular supply of water, and by following the mountains one could navigate from watering hole to watering hole, creating a natural roadway through the arid lands.  In the middle of the Basin, however, is the great Taklamakan desert, and even during the Han dynasty it was a formidable and almost unpassable wasteland.  One could wander the sands for days or weeks with no water and no indication of direction other than the punishing sun overhead.  It is hardly a nice place and remains largely unpopulated, even today. While there were various cultures and city-states around the oasis towns, the first major power that we know held sway, at least over the northern route, were the Xiongnu.  Based in the area of modern Mongolia, the Xiongnu swept down during the Qin and early Han dynasties, displacing or conquering various people. An early exploration of the Tarim basin and its surroundings was conducted by the Han dynasty diplomat, Zhang Qian.  Zhang Qian secretly entered Xiongnu territory with the goal of reaching the Yuezhi—a nomadic group that had been one of those displaced by the Xiongnu.  The Yuezhi had been kicked out of their lands in the Gansu region and moved all the way to the Ferghana valley, in modern Tajikistan, a part of the region known as Transoxiana.  Although Zhang Qian was captured and spent 10 years in service to the Xiongnu, he never forgot his mission and eventually made his way to the Yuezhi.  By that time, however, the Yuezhi had settled in to their new life, and they weren't looking for revenge. While Zhang Qian's news may have been somewhat disappointing for the Han court, what was perhaps more important was the intelligence he brought back concerning the routes through the Tarim basin, and the various people there, as well as lands beyond.  The Han dynasty continued to assert itself in the area they called the “Western Regions”, and General Ban Chao would eventually be sent to defeat the Xiongnu and loosen their hold in the region, opening up the area all the way to modern Kashgar.  Ban Chao would even send an emissary, Gan Ying, to try to make the journey all the way to the Roman empire, known to the Han court as “Daqin”, using the name of the former Qin dynasty as a sign of respect for what they had heard.  However, Gan Ying only made it as far as the land of Anxi—the name given to Parthia—where he was told that to make it to Rome, or Daqin, would require crossing the ocean on a voyage that could take months or even years.  Hearing this, Gan Ying decided to turn back and report on what he knew. Of course if he actually made it to the Persian Gulf—or even to the Black Sea, as some claim—Gan Ying would have been much closer to Rome than the accounts lead us to believe. It is generally thought that he was being deliberately mislead by Parthian merchants who felt they might be cut out if Rome and the Han Dynasty formed more direct relations.  Silks from East Asia, along with other products, were already a lucrative opportunity for middlemen across the trade routes, and nobody wanted to be cut out of that position if they could help it. That said, the Parthians and, following them the Sassanid Persians, continued to maintain relationships with dynasties at the other end of what we know as the Silk Road, at least when they could.  The Sassanid Persians, when they came to power, were known to the various northern and southern dynasties as Bosi—possibly pronounced something like Puasie, at the time, no doubt their attempt to render the term “Parsi”.  We know of numerous missions in both directions between various dynasties, and Sassanian coins are regularly found the south of modern China. And so we can see that even in the first and second centuries, Eurasia was much more connected than one might otherwise believe.  Goods would travel from oasis town to oasis town, and be sold in markets, where they might just be picked up by another merchant.  Starting in the fourth century, the Sogdian merchants began to really make their own presence known along these trade routes.  They would set up enclaves in various towns, and merchants would travel from Sogdian enclave to Sogdian enclave with letters of recommendation, as well as personal letters for members of the community, setting up their own early postal service.  This allowed the Sogdian traders to coordinate activities and kept them abreast of the latest news.     I'm not sure we have a clear indication how long this trip would take.  Theoretically, one could travel from Kashgar to Xi'an and back in well under a year, if one were properly motivated and provisioned—it is roughly 4,000 kilometers, and travel would have likely been broken up with long stays to rest and refresh at the various towns along the way. I've personally had the opportunity to travel from Kashgar to Turpan, though granted it was in the comfort of an air conditioned bus.  Still, having seen the modern conditions, the trip would be grueling, but not impossible back in the day, and if the profits were lucrative enough, then why not do it—it is not dissimilar to the adventurers from Europe in the 16th century who went out to sea to find their own fortunes.  And so the glass bowl likely made its way through the markets of the Tarim basin, to the markets of various capitals in the Yellow River or Yangzi regions—depending on who was in charge in any given year—and eventually made its way to the Korean peninsula and from there to a ship across the Korean strait. Of course, those ships weren't simply holding a single glass vessel.  Likely they were laden with a wide variety of goods.  Some things, such as fabric, incense, and other more biodegradable products would not be as likely to remain, and even glass breaks and oxidizes, and metal rusts away.  Furthermore, many of the goods had likely been picked over by the time any shipments arrived in the islands, making things such as these glass bowls even more rare and scarce. Still, this bowl, whether it belonged to Ankan or not, tells us a story.  It is the story of a much larger world, well beyond the Japanese archipelago, and one that will be encroaching more and more as we continue to explore this period.  Because it wasn't just physical goods that were being transported along the Silk Road.  The travelers also carried with them news and new ideas.  One of these ideas was a series of teachings that came out of India and arrived in China during the Han dynasty, known as Buddhism.  It would take until the 6th century, but Buddhism would eventually make its way to Japan, the end of the Silk Road. But that is for another episode.  For now, I think we'll close out our story of Ankan and his glass bowl.  I hope you've enjoyed this little diversion, and from here we'll continue on with our narrative as we edge closer and closer to the formal introduction of Buddhism and the era known as the Asuka Period. Until then, thank you for listening and for all of your support.  If you like what we are doing, tell your friends and feel free to rate us wherever you listen to podcasts.  If you feel the need to do more, and want to help us keep this going, we have information about how you can donate on Patreon or through our KoFi site, ko-fi.com/sengokudaimyo, or find the links over at our main website, SengokuDaimyo.com/Podcast, where we will have some more discussion on topics from this episode. Also, feel free to Tweet at us at @SengokuPodcast, or reach out to our Sengoku Daimyo Facebook page.  You can also email us at the.sengoku.daimyo@gmail.com.  And that's all for now.  Thank you again, and I'll see you next episode on Sengoku Daimyo's Chronicles of Japan.