Samurai swords. Japanese weapons and their types

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:40

The reign of the Tokugawa shogunate from 1603 was associated with the disappearance of the art of wielding a spear. The bloody wars were replaced by the era of technology and the improvement of military competition with swords. The art of swordsmanship, called "kenjutsu", eventually turned into a means of spiritual self-improvement.

The meaning of the samurai sword

Real samurai swords were considered not just weapons of a professional warrior, but also a symbol of the samurai estate, an emblem of honor and valor, courage and masculinity. Since ancient times, weapons have been revered as a sacred gift from the goddess of the Sun to her grandson, who rules on earth. The sword was to be used only to eradicate evil, injustice and protect good. He was part of a Shinto cult. Temples and sacred places were decorated with weapons. In the 8th century, Japanese priests were involved in the production, cleaning, polishing of swords.

The samurai had to keep a warrior's kit with him at all times. Swords were given a place of honor in the house, a niche in the main corner - tokonoma. They were stored on a tachikake or katanakake stand. Going to bed, samuraiput swords at his head at arm's length.

A person could be poor, but have an expensive blade in an excellent frame. The sword was an emblem emphasizing the class position. For the sake of the blade, the samurai had the right to sacrifice his own life and his family.

Japanese Warrior Kit

Japanese warriors always carried two swords with them, indicating that they belonged to the samurai. A set of a warrior (daise) consisted of a long and a short blade. The long samurai sword katana or daito (from 60 to 90 cm) has been the main weapon of the samurai since the 14th century. It was worn on the belt with the point up. The sword was sharpened on one side, had a curved blade and hilt. The masters of combat knew how to kill with lightning speed, in a split second, pulling out the blade and making one stroke. This technique was called "iaijutsu".

A short samurai sword wakizashi (seto or kodachi) twice as short (from 30 to 60 cm) was worn on the belt with the tip up, used less often when fighting in cramped conditions. With the help of wakizashi, the warriors cut off the heads of the killed opponents or, being captured, committed seppuku - suicide. Most often, samurai fought with a katana, although in special schools they taught combat with two swords.

Types of samurai swords

Besides the Daisho set, there were several types of Japanese swords used by warriors.

• Tsurugi, chokuto - the oldest sword used before the 11th century, had straight edges and was sharpened on both sides.
• Ken - a straight ancient blade, sharpened on both sides, used in religiousrituals and rarely used in battle.
• Tati - a large curved sword (point length from 61 cm), used by riders, worn with the point down.
• Nodachi or odachi - an extra-large blade (from 1 m to 1.8 m), which is a type of tachi, was worn behind the back of the rider.
• Tanto - dagger (up to 30 cm long).
• Bamboo swords (shinai) and wooden swords (bokken) were used for training. A training weapon could be used in combat with an unworthy opponent, such as a robber.

Commoners and men of the lower classes had the right to defend themselves with small knives and daggers, as there was a law on the right to carry swords.

Katana sword

Katana is a combat samurai sword included in the standard armament of a warrior along with a small wakizashi blade. It began to be used in the 15th century due to the improvement of tachi. The katana is distinguished by an outward-curved blade, a long straight handle that allows it to be held with one or two hands. The blade has a slight bend and a pointed end, used for cutting and stabbing. The weight of the sword is 1 - 1.5 kg. In terms of strength, flexibility and hardness, the samurai katana sword ranks first among other blades in the world, cuts bones, rifle barrels and iron, surpasses Arab damask steel and European swords.

The blacksmith who forges weapons has never made fittings, for this he had other craftsmen under him. Katana is a constructor assembled as a result of the work of a whole team. Samurai always had several setsaccessories worn for the occasion. The blade has been passed down through the ages from generation to generation, and its appearance could change depending on the circumstances.

Katana history

In 710, the legendary first Japanese swordsman Amakuni used a sword with a curved blade in battle. Forged from dissimilar plates, it had a saber shape. Its form did not change until the 19th century. Since the 12th century, katanas have been considered the swords of aristocrats. Under the rule of the Ashikaga shoguns, the tradition of carrying two swords arose, which became the privilege of the samurai class. A set of samurai swords was part of a military, civil and festive costume. Two blades were worn by all samurai, regardless of rank: from private to shogun. After the revolution, Japanese officials were required to wear European swords, then katanas lost their high status.

Katana Making Secrets

The blade was forged from two types of steel: the core was made of tough steel, and the cutting edge was made of strong steel. The steel was cleaned by repeated folding and welding before forging.

In the manufacture of katana, the choice of metal was important, a special iron ore with impurities of molybdenum and tungsten. The master buried iron bars in a swamp for 8 years. During this time, rust eats away weak spots, then the product is sent to the forge. The gunsmith turned the bars into foil with a heavy hammer. The foil was then repeatedly folded and flattened. Therefore, the finished blade consisted of 50,000 layers of high-strength metal.

Real samurai katanas have always been distinguished by the characteristic line of jamon,resulting from the use of special methods of forging and hardening. The handle of the tsuka sword was wrapped in stingray leather and wrapped with a strip of silk. Souvenir or ceremonial katanas could have handles made of wood or ivory.

Katana Proficiency

The sword's long hilt allows for efficient maneuvering. To hold the katana, a grip is used, the end of the handle of which must be held in the middle of the left palm, and with the right hand, squeeze the handle near the guard. The synchronous swing of both hands made it possible for the warrior to get a wide swing amplitude without spending a lot of strength. The blows were applied vertically to the sword or hands of the enemy. This allows you to remove the opponent's weapon from the trajectory of the attack in order to hit him with the next swing.

Ancient Japanese weapons

Several varieties of Japanese weapons are of the auxiliary or secondary type.

• Yumi or o-yumi - combat bows (from 180 to 220 cm), which are the oldest weapons in Japan. Bows have been used in combat and in religious ceremonies since ancient times. In the 16th century, they were supplanted by muskets brought from Portugal.
• Yari - a spear (length 5 m), a weapon popular in the era of civil strife, used by infantry to throw the enemy off the horse.
• Bo - a military fighting pole, related to sporting weapons these days. There are many variants of the pole, depending on the length (from 30 cm to 3 m), thickness and section (round, hexagonal, etc.).
• Yoroi-doshi was considered a dagger of mercy, resembled a stiletto and was used to finish off opponents wounded in battle.
• Kozuka or kotsuka- a military knife, fixed in the sheath of a combat sword, was often used for household purposes.
• Tessen or dansen utiwa - the commander's battle fan. The fan was equipped with sharpened steel spokes, could be used in attack, as a battle ax and as a shield.
• Jitte - fighting iron club, fork with two teeth. It was used in the Tokugawa era as a police weapon. Using jitte, police intercepted samurai swords in battles with violent warriors.
• Naginata is a Japanese halberd, a weapon of warrior monks, a two-meter pole with a small flat blade at the end. In ancient times, it was used by foot soldiers to attack enemy horses. In the 17th century, it began to be used in samurai families as a female weapon for self-defense.
• Kaiken is a combat dagger for aristocratic women. Used for self-defense, as well as dishonored girls for suicide.

During the internecine civil wars in Japan, firearms, flint-lock guns (teppo), were made, which were considered unworthy with the coming to power of the Tokugawa. From the 16th century, cannons also appeared in the Japanese troops, but the bow and sword continued to occupy the main place in the armament of the samurai.

Katana-kaji

Swords in Japan have always been made by people of the ruling class, often samurai relatives or courtiers. With the growing demand for swords, the feudal lords began to patronize blacksmiths (katana-kaji). Making a samurai sword required careful preparation. Forging swords resembledliturgical ceremony and was filled with religious activities to protect the wearer from evil forces.

Before getting down to business, the blacksmith kept a fast, refrained from bad thoughts and deeds, and performed a ritual of cleansing the body. The forge was carefully cleaned and decorated with sime - ritual attributes woven from rice straw. Each forge had an altar for prayers and for moral preparation for work. If necessary, the master dressed in kuge - ceremonial clothes. Honor did not allow an experienced craftsman to make low-quality weapons. Sometimes a blacksmith would destroy a sword that he could spend several years on because of a single flaw. Work on one sword could last from 1 to 15 years.

Japanese sword production technology

Remelted metal obtained from magnetic ironstone was used as weapon steel. Samurai swords, considered the best in the Far East, were as durable as Damascus. In the 17th century, metal from Europe began to be used in the manufacture of Japanese swords.

A Japanese blacksmith formed a blade from a huge number of iron layers, the thinnest strips with different carbon content. The strips were welded together during melting and forging. Forging, drawing, repeated folding and new forging of metal strips made it possible to obtain a thin bar.

Thus, the blade consisted of many fused thin layers of multi-carbon steel. The combination of low-carbon and high-carbon metals gave the sword a special hardness and toughness. At the next stage, the blacksmithpolished the blade on several stones and hardened. It was not uncommon for Japanese samurai swords to be made over several years.

Murder at the crossroads

The quality of the blade and the skill of the samurai were usually tested in battle. A good sword made it possible to cut three corpses laid on top of each other. It was believed that the new samurai swords must be tried on a person. Tsuji-giri (kill at the crossroads) - the name of the rite of trial of a new sword. The victims of the samurai were beggars, peasants, travelers and just passersby, whose number soon numbered in the thousands. The authorities put patrols and guards on the streets, but the guards did not perform their duties well.

Samurai, who did not want to kill the innocent, preferred another way - tameshi-giri. By paying the executioner, it was possible to give him the blade, which he tried during the execution of the condemned.

What is the secret to the sharpness of the katana?

A real katana sword can self-sharpen as a result of the orderly movement of molecules. By simply placing the blade on a special stand, the warrior, after a certain period of time, again received a sharp blade. The sword was polished in stages, through ten grinding wheels, reducing the grit. Then the master polished the blade with charcoal dust.

At the last stage, the sword was hardened in liquid clay, as a result of this procedure, a matte thinnest strip (yakiba) appeared on the blade. Famous masters left a signature on the tail of the blade. After forging and hardening, the sword was polished for half a month. When the katana had a mirror shine,the work was considered completed.

Conclusion

A real samurai sword, the price of which is fabulous, as a rule, is the handiwork of an ancient master. Such tools are difficult to find, as they are passed down in families as a relic. The most expensive katana have mei - the brand of the master and the year of manufacture on the shank. Symbolic forging was applied to many swords, drawings from Chinese mythology that drive away evil spirits. The scabbard for the sword was also decorated with ornaments.