Swords, Japanese

Without doubt the most famous of edged weapons few weapons have the mystic and reputation of Japanese swords. The ability of the weapon to cut through iron armour to kill a foe has been well documented and few weapons have had such a high cultural status for such a long period of history. Although in most countries with a military tradition the sword has been elevated to a symbol of justice and social status nowhere is this higher than in Japan. The sword has been described as the soul of the Samurai, with the samurais spiritual development being via Kendo or the way of the sword. not only a weapon the Japanese sword is regarded as a form of art if not the highest form of art and many sword masters are also skilled artists as skill in one discipline is supposed to promote understanding of the other.

To follow the history of the Japanese sword takes 1500 years and is in many ways the story of the perfection of steel. Key to the creation of the sword are the separate tasks of Swordsmith and polisher each a very different craftsman. The smith prepares the steel by repeatedly heating and quenching and re-fusing the pieces to get the required purity and carbon content. A prepared billet is next heated in a charcoal furnace beaten out and folded then welded back on itself until it is composed of a large number of wielded layers. The Shingane or core steel has low carbon content and is folded only a few times for strength, while the skin steel or hadagane may be folded as many as fifteen times giving it a higher carbon content and dispersing the carbon throughout the layers. This wielded piece is then beaten into its blade shape with the hadagane folded around the shingane. the final heat treatment involves covering the blade with a mixture of ingredients including various clays and ashes with a thin layer along the blade edge and a thicker layer across the rest of the blade , it is then heated and quenched in water.

This process gives the sword a central tough steel core a hard surface to deflect blows and a sharp edge that will retain its sharpness even after use against armour. The full effect is clear after polishing when the sword will have a grain due to the layer effect. Different schools of sword making can be identified by the grain pattern. the extreme hardness of the edge can be identified by a line of bright crystalline steel reaching from the tang to the point, this is the hamon or badge of the blade since the swordsmith can be identified by it.

During the Kofun and Nara periods of Japanese history (300-794AD) Japanese swords were mainly imported from China and Korea and blades varied in size to the massive 31inch/80cm blades that have been found and many are still preserved in temple collections. These are known as Chokuto blades and had various cross sectional shapes and an even width along the blade.These were straight bladed weapons which slowly developed into the traditional curved blade.

The Heian period (794-1185AD) saw the development of classical Japanese culture and a break from Chinese culture. The military guards and armed gentlemen became the Samurai class and the Sohei or warrior monks became a major military and political force.It is in this period that the sword became seen as an object of art as well as an instrument of war. the top part of the blade gained a shallow curve this was the Tachi, and mounted samurai carried this weapon slung edge downwards from his belt. This meant that when it was drawn from horseback the scabbard could be turned across the body to avoid touching the horses head. The weapon could be used to cut or thrust and be used one or two handed for greater power.

The Kamakura period (1185-1392) saw slender refined blades at first but by the end of this warlike period the blades had become sturdier. Blade curve became deeper to increase cutting power. In 1232 the Hojo government published a detailed legal code about the duties of samurai and banded non samurai from carrying swords. In 1274 the first Mongol invasion under Kubilai Khan grandson of Genghis Khan the samurai faced an organised army little interested in heroic duels and with tough leather armour that their swords so good at cutting iron armour had little effect on. Luckily for the Japanese a Typhoon scattered the Mongol fleet and ended the invasion but this event shook Japanese military thought. Seven years later the Mongols returned by the Japanese had learned the value of longer weapons and long blade spears (yari) and glaive like naginata appeared, the demand for weapons greatly increased. during the battles with the Mongols many swords were broken and crudely re-made on the battlefield, swords became longer and curved throughout their length.

The Yoshino or Namboku Cho period (1333-1393) saw a period of civil war following the destruction of the Mongol invasions and swords of this period reached 40ins/100cms blade length making them suitable for foot soldiers fighting cavalry, they were often carried across the back and became known as seoi tachi or back swords, some had disposable scabbards made of paper or straw.

The Muromachi period and the Age of Wars (1392-1477) saw re-establishment of links with China and long periods of civil war. This period saw the rise of the conscripted spearman or Ashigaru and a change in Japanese warfare, many swords were mass produced and of poor quality. A 24in/60cm weapon wielded in one hand became popular the uchigatana or hitting sword. During this period the wearing of two swords became popular, the daisho. The Katana or long sword and the Wakizashi or companion sword. The pair were worn outdoors with the shorter Wakizashi being worn indoors and kept at the bedside at night. In 1543 the first matchlock guns arrived in Japan marking the beginning of the end of the swords dominance.

The Edo period (1603-1867) saw the end of the old sword traditions and the rise of new Shinto sword traditions. Rigid controls on feudal lords helped curb revolts, the merchants thrived and many samurai lived in poverty. During this period many unemployed samurai gave up their swords and became tutors of kendo or took other jobs, others became bandits or lived to duel and die in violent deaths. Laws started to restrict swords to a certain length and again commoners were forbidden to carry them first in 1623 and then samurai retainers were forbidden to carry long swords in 1640. In 1798 wearing a wakizashi over 21ins/55cm was forbidden. Poorer samurai meant few could afford good swords and many had poor quality weapons. By 1867 wearing swords in public was banned and swordsmiths became few and far between.

How to cite this article: Dugdale-Pointon, TDP. (28 July 2001), Swords, Japanese, http://www.historyofwar.org/articles/weapons_swords_japan.html


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