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Social Structure Of Edo Japan

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Japan is an island country in East Asia along the Pacific Ocean with a population of about 127 million and an approximate 146 square mile area. It 's biggest religions are Shintoism and Buddhism. It 's biggest city is Tokyo which used to be known as Edo Japan in the 1600s.
Edo Japan rose about in the early 1600s after the death of Hideyoshi. It was a time of peace, stability and economic growth. The military (shogunate) were primarily in control and the shogun was Tokugawa Ieyashu. He established peace over Japan with his military prowess and a strong central government. There were eight classes in this system : Emperor , Court Nobility , Shogun , Daimyo , Samurai , Peasants , Craftsmen , and Merchants. The highest two were figureheads …show more content…

The highest two positions in reality had little power and influence. They were merely figureheads for the citizens. The shogun , daimyo , and samurai really held all the power. The Peasants were seen as nothing more than simple farmers whose job it was to provide food for the empire. They had very little rights one of the most notable being that they could pursue a higher position if enrolled in the army. Craftsmen provided the empire with everything they could make using Japan 's own resources. What they could not provide was given as the task of the merchants. Their jobs were seen as evil since it interfered with Edo Japan 's self-supporting system and also that fear of foreign influence. The military was headed overall by the shogun , strategized from afar by the daimyo , and , on the battlefield , headed by the samurai. Peasants could join the army at first as foot soldiers and could later on even become samurai. Being a Samurai would later prove fatal for although the economy grew , their wages did not and they could no longer support their lifestyle.
Economic growth started to happen. The fact that citizens were not allowed to use weapons meant more people could farm which in turn produced more food and healthier people. Population started to increase which meant work started to increase. This increased trade as …show more content…

Edo had went from swampy wetlands and a couple hundred people to a flourishing community and a couple hundred thousand. City Life in early Japan varied among the social classes. Lower classes became educated and now had more options for their trade professions. Merchants particularly moved up on the social ladder due to the Samurai’s dependence on them. Samurai followed a strict code that gave them a set level of status which meant less freedom. They were not allowed to farm , trade , or engage in the market. With the rising prices in the evolving economy samurai had to rely on merchants to trade their rice for profit and give them enough to get by on. Merchants began to abuse their power and offered to lend money to the samurai as payment in advance for the next shipment of rice. This put the samurai in debt to greedy up and coming merchants and this plus their social expectations like the expectation to dress well , and live lavishly ruined

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