The Samurai sword was a crucial component in Japan’s arsenal; there was nothing more important. However, things changed with the arrival of the Portuguese traders in 1543. The Portuguese were not interested in invading Japan, but rather in trading for exotic spices, textiles and other Asian goods. These traders brought something very interesting to trade, something the Japanese samurais had never seen before, and something that would change the role of the samurai sword forever. This new item was of course the gun.
This was a confusing time in Japan’s history. The emperor had lost control of Japan, because the emperorship was completely bankrupt, therefore making the shogunate a completely useless office. Therefore, powerful landowners and warlords called “daimyo” were battling amongst each other to become the new, albeit unofficial, ruler of Japan. Each daimyo had a personal army of samurai warriors, whose main weapon was a samurai sword. When these new traders arrived with firearms, many daimyo jumped on the opportunity to have the upper hand in battle.
A particularly rich and powerful lord gave his personal swordsmith a gun to replicate. However, as his clan had been crafting the samurai katana sword for generations, he was completely baffled by this new technology. Rather than letting his master down, and more importantly, bringing shame to his family, the swordsmith traded his most beautiful daughter to the Europeans for lessons in gunsmithery. Soon, the practice of gunsmithing was widespread across the land.
Oda Nobunaga, a minor samurai lord was one of the first to recognize the value of the gun over the handmade samurai sword, and because of this, quickly took over almost all of Japan and was the defacto ruler of the island nation until his death. Ironically, Nobunaga died as the result of a close-range gunshot wound. His reign effectively ceased the usage of a samurai weapons on the battlefield and brought Japan into a new age.
After Nobunaga’s murder, he was succeeded by one of his most trusted generals, Toyotomi Hideyoshi. This powerful samurai lord managed to unite all of Japan, and even tried his luck at invading Korea. This was an unsuccessful military campaign, but it relied on both firearms and the samurai sword.
Upon his return to Japan, he ordered the construction of Osaka castle, one of the world’s largest buildings at the time. The holds of the castle were filled with the spoils of war; gold, silver, and other riches beyond belief. Even though Japan was built on the might of the samurai sword, it became even more powerful with the addition of firearms, as was evident with the massive riches amassed by Hideyoshi’s army.
This was the first time in hundreds of year’s that foreigners visited Japanese soil, and this time it proved a wise decision. Although the samurai sword started to become obsolete, the government banned firearms shortly after this period, which is discussed in another article.
