Daily life in medieval Japan (1185-1606 CE) was, for most people, the age-old struggle to put food on the table, build a family, stay healthy, and try to enjoy...

Samurai wearing armor, late 1800s.

The Samurai class was officially dissolved over 150 years ago. Nonetheless, the warriors’ elaborate armor is still recognized globally as an iconic emblem of Japanese military strength and virtue. The samurai were an elite group of strictly trained and well-armored soldiers – even the horses were armored.

The social hierarchy of Medieval Japan was a little like Medival Europe's structure, besides for the merchants and artisins at the bottom. In this structure the serfs (peasants) were respected alot...

Most of my generation’s exposure to Japanese culture came heavily mediated by anime and samurai films.