The Japanese ashigaru (足軽) were conscripted foot-soldiers of medieval Japan. During the Muromachi period, ashigaru were employed by the shogun as his personal army. Infantry of the Royal Irish Rifles during the Battle of the Somme in World War I. Infantry are soldiers who fight primarily on foot with small arms in organized military units, though they may be transported to the battlefield by horses, ships, automobiles, skis, or other means. ... The Muromachi period (Japanese: 室町時代, Muromachi-jidai, also known as the Muromachi era, the Muromachi bakufu, the Ashikaga era, the Ashikaga period, or the Ashikaga bakufu) is a division of Japanese history running from approximately 1336 to 1573. ... Minamoto no Yoritomo, the first shogun of the Kamakura shogunate Shōgun )   is supreme general of the samurai,a military rank and historical title in Japan. ...

Origins

Their root is believed to be that of shimobe (下部), who served by the side of government officials during Heian period. Ashigaru (literally "light-foot", but the word most likely stems from "light armored") were the lowest-class warriors, either the low-class buke (warrior class) or commoners who had joined or been impressed to the daimyo's army. The following text needs to be harmonized with text in the article History of Japan#Heian Period. ... Daimyo Matsudaira Katamori visits the residence of a retainer. ...

At first the ashigaru were mercenaries or adventurers who were paid only in loot, but eventually some of them became part of local armies as retained warriors. Those who were given control of ashigaru were called ashigarugashira (足軽頭), (literally "ashigaru head"), and were provided with an annual stipend of 200 to 500 koku. A mercenary, is a person who takes part in an armed conflict and is motivated to take part in the hostilities essentially by the desire for private gain and, in fact, is promised, by or on behalf of a Party to the conflict, material compensation substantially in excess of that... A koku ) is a unit of volume in Japan, equal to ten cubic shaku. ...

Usual equipment and Armament

The ashigaru were foot soldiers—the cavalry was the territory of the samurai. They might have been armed with katana or just with spears (yari) unless they served as handlers of catapults. In the 1500s, they were also armed with arquebuses. As battles became more complex and forces larger, ashigaru were rigorously trained so that they would hold their ranks in the face of enemy fire. Their armour consisted of conical hats (jingasa) made of lacquered hardened leather, breastplates and occasionally greaves protecting the legs. Some also donned small banners on their back during battle for identification purposes, called sashimono. They needed to bring provisions for themselves until reaching local gathering points and from this point on, were provided provisions from daimyo's warehouses.^{[citation needed]} French Republican Guard - May 8, 2005 celebrations Cavalry (from French cavalerie) were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback in combat. ... Japanese samurai in armour, 1860s. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... several yari, including one hafted with a simple crossbar straight yari head with saya Jumonji yari head use of yari in mock combat Yari (槍) is the Japanese term for spear, or more specifically, the straight-headed spear. ... Replica catapult at Château des Baux, France For the device used to launch aircraft from ships, see Aircraft catapult. ... The decade of years from 1500 to 1509, inclusive. ... Japanese arquebus of the Edo era (teppo) The arquebus (sometimes spelled harquebus, harkbus[1] or hackbut; possibly related to German Hakenbuechse or Dutch Haakbus) was a primitive firearm used in the 15th to 17th centuries. ... An illustration depicting a typical sashimono, worn with battle gear Sashimono (指物, 差物, 挿物) were small banners worn by Japanese medieval soldiers for identification during battles. ...

Service in war

In the Ōnin War, ashigaru gained a reputation as unruly troops when they looted and burned Miyako (modern-day Kyoto). In the following Sengoku period the aspect of the battle changed from samurai's man-to-man fight to ashigaru's group combat. Therefore, ashigaru became the main force of battles and some of them rose to greater prominence. The most famous of them was Toyotomi Hideyoshi, who also raised many of his warrior followers to samurai status. Yamauchi Katsutoyo was one of such samurai and later daimyo who rose from ashigaru. Marker at location of outbreak of ÅŒnin War The ÅŒnin War (応仁の乱 ÅŒnin no Ran) was a civil war from 1467 to 1477 during the Muromachi period in Japan. ... Kyoto )   is a city in the central part of the island of HonshÅ«, Japan. ... “Sengoku” redirects here. ... Toyotomi Hideyoshi (Shinjitai (modern Japanese) writing: ; KyÅ«jitai (historical) writing: 豐臣秀吉; born Hiyoshi-maru ; coming of age (Genpuku) as Kinoshita Tōkichirō and later made Hashiba and martial nobility in the style of Hashiba Chikuzen no Kami Hideyoshi ;February 2, 1536 or March 26, 1537 – September 18, 1598), was a Sengoku... Yamauchi Katsutoyo (山内 一豊 1545 – November 1, 1605) was a military commander and the founding daimyo of the Tosa han. ...

New weapons and new tactics

Ashigaru formed the backbone of samurai armies in the later periods. The real change for the ashigaru began in mid 16th century with the introduction of guns from foreign traders, such as the Portuguese. Almost immediately local daimyo started to equip their ashigaru with the new weapon that required little training to use proficiently, as compared to the Japanese longbow which took many years to learn. (15th century - 16th century - 17th century - more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 16th century was that century which lasted from 1501 to 1600. ... Daimyo Matsudaira Katamori visits the residence of a retainer. ... Yumi (弓, ゆみ) is the Japanese term for bows (which includes the longbow, Daikyu and the shortbow, hankyu) used in the practice of Kyudo (弓道, Japanese archery). ...

The advantage of the new powerful ranged weapon proved decisive to samurai warfare. This was demonstrated at the Battle of Nagashino in 1575, where carefully positioned ashigaru with muskets thwarted Takeda's repeated heavy cavalry charges against the Oda clan's defensive lines and broke the back of the Takeda war machine. Combatants forces of Takeda Katsuyori forces of Oda Nobunaga Commanders Takeda Katsuyori, Anayama Nobukimi, Takeda Nobukado, Takeda Nobutoyo Oda Nobunaga, Tokugawa Ieyasu, Okudaira Sadamasa Strength 15,000 38,000 Casualties 10,000 dead, incl. ... Year 1575 was a common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. ... A musket is a muzzle-loaded, smooth-bore long gun. ... This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... The Oda clan crest The Oda clan is a daimyo family descended from Taira no Sukemori. ...

After the battle, the ashigarus' role in the armies were cemented as a very powerful complement to the samurai. The advantage was used in the two invasions of Korea in 1592 and 1597 against the Koreans and later the Chinese. Though the ratio of the guns (muskets) and the bows was 2:1 at the first invasion the ratio became 4:1 at the second invasion since the guns were very effective .^[1] Korea (Korean: 한국 or 조선, see below) is a geographic area, civilization, and former state situated on the Korean Peninsula in East Asia. ... Events January 30 - The death of Pope Innocent IX during the previous year had left the Papal throne vacant. ... Events 17 January - A court case in Guildford recorded evidence that a certain plot of land was used for playing “kreckett” (i. ...

Discontinuation of conscription

Following the rise of the Tokugawa Shogunate the conscription of ashigaru fell into disuse. Since ashigaru's change to the professional soldier was advanced after Oda Nobunaga, the ashigaru separated from the farmer gradually. When entering Edo period, the ashigaru's position as the lower class samurai was fixed and the use of conscripts was abandoned for over two hundred years in Japan. The Tokugawa shogunate or Tokugawa bakufu (徳川幕府) (also known as the Edo bakufu) was a feudal military dictatorship of Japan established in 1603 by Tokugawa Ieyasu and ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family until 1868. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... The following text needs to be harmonized with text in the article History of Japan#Edo Period. ...

References

1. ^ "War history of Japan: Chousen-eki (日本戦史 朝鮮役, War history of Japan: Chousen-eki^?)"(1924) Staff headquarters of Imperial Japanese Army /ISBN 4-19-890265-8