heh. i just have a few random questions about Japan.
1. The Crusades contributed to the breakdown of Europe's feudal system. What brought about the end of the old feudal society in Japan?
2. In medieval Europe, better farming methods caused a spurt of population growth. How did changes in farming affect population growth in Tokugawa society?
3. In Europe, as trade and finance expanded, towns grew and flourished. What caused the growth of towns and cities in Japan?
4. As towns and cities grew, there was a revival of learning and culture. How did culture under the Tokugawa Shogunate compare with the culture of medieval Europe?
5. The development of towns in medieval Europe led to a change in the order of society. How did the social structure of Japan compare with that of medieval Europe?
6. The introduction of the longbow in the Hundreds Years' War marked the end of chivalry and medieval warfare in Europe. What effect did contact with Europeans have on Japanese warfare?
7. In general, what factors do you think spark great changes in society such as those experienced in medieval Europe and in Japan under the Tokugawa shoguns?
I'm not an expert but the contact with Europeans was one of the reaons for the changes in Japan.
They introduced new values, religion and gunpowder.
European-style warfare (with muskets) replaced the traditional Japanese fighting not that quickly. I don't know if there was such a decisive battle as that of Agincourt but it is obvious that a gunpowder-weapon has some advantages. It didn't have the range or precision of a bow but needed only a bit of training while a bowman or swordsman had to train for years.
Try looking in the Total War forums, there is a game called Shogun. Maybe you'll find something interesting there. You can also search for the official forums of Shogun Total War, they know a lot about this stuff.
1. The Crusades contributed to the breakdown of Europe's feudal system. What brought about the end of the old feudal society in Japan?
2. In medieval Europe, better farming methods caused a spurt of population growth. How did changes in farming affect population growth in Tokugawa society?
3. In Europe, as trade and finance expanded, towns grew and flourished. What caused the growth of towns and cities in Japan?
4. As towns and cities grew, there was a revival of learning and culture. How did culture under the Tokugawa Shogunate compare with the culture of medieval Europe?
5. The development of towns in medieval Europe led to a change in the order of society. How did the social structure of Japan compare with that of medieval Europe?
6. The introduction of the longbow in the Hundreds Years' War marked the end of chivalry and medieval warfare in Europe. What effect did contact with Europeans have on Japanese warfare?
7. In general, what factors do you think spark great changes in society such as those experienced in medieval Europe and in Japan under the Tokugawa shoguns?
I've always found it surprising how little reply a thread gets, if the subject is not the 20th century. As for me, I'm just going to comment on the questions.
1. How did the Crusades help the breakdown of the feudal system? Note that there is a very real problem with what you say: the feudal system actually didn't exist, according to mediėvists now, till somewhere around the period of Louis the Holy (who was a crusader, that is true). Also, the feudal system actually made ruling the barons and such easier! It was a professionalisation of rule. Medieval/later history writers however placed the system in a time it didn't really exist, making it start under Charlomagne (or whatever the bloody hell you call Karel De Grote). This is an anachronism.
The feudal system of Japan stayed in existence and isolation, till an American gunboat forced Japan out of its isolationism. After that, the samurai disappeared. With the Meiji Restoration, the Shogun resigned, and the emperor took back his 'rightful' place.
2. In an early period, farming methods did get better in Europe. However, later on (14th century), the population kept increasing, without any real improvements, which led to starvation, hunger, and made Europe and easy prey for the Black Plague. You should always wonder: did farming make a larger population possible, or did a larger population force more farming/better methods?
3. This is a thought of the famous Henri Pirenne: international trade caused cities to grow again. This theory has however been refuted.
4, 5 and 6 seem to be in order, though 'culture' is can always be interpreted in different ways. And whether the longbow changed medieval warfare? Seems a bit simplistic, don't you think? Contact with the Europeans brought the Japanese firearms, which were later banned (the samurai didn't like the weapon, because it enabled peasants to kill them).
7. Modern historians think more in the lines of constant changes in societies, rather than sudden changes. (Columbus discovers America: *poof* Renaissance...)
If this is a task, ask your teacher this for me.
"Do not go gentle into that good night,
Old age should burn and rave at close of day;
Rage, rage against the dying of the light."
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