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@strengthisabsolutestrength8215

Жыл бұрын

But I’m confused if samurai armor weights has much or even more than full plate armor then how is it that samurai armor covers less of the body is the metal thicker on samurai armor or what is it?

@WarmPillow-hs6kj

Жыл бұрын

I love Japanese snacks!

@kjt7971

Жыл бұрын

When people attempt to judge the past based on modern conception, I call it, "ad tunc per nunc fallacy"... Basically, it is illogical to judge past actions using modern morality, when at that time there was no moral issue against the activity. Similarly, "Nunc Anno Fallacy" is my term that I've coined for "appeal to modernity".

@kjt7971

Жыл бұрын

@@strengthisabsolutestrength8215 Yes.

@susanmenegus5242

Жыл бұрын

Your from Italy my dad's family is from Northern Italy the town is called cortina theyspoke italic Swiss. I just started watching your show and it's nice to listen to someone that's knowledgeable about history 🇸🇪 🇮🇹

Modern myth spreaders: "Using guns was dishonourable!" Oda Nobunaga: "Losing wars was dishonourable"

@ArkadiBolschek

Жыл бұрын

Not merely dishonourable, it was _cringe_

@badrequest5596

Жыл бұрын

by that logic using both swords at once would have been dishonorable because you had a superior advantage. and yet... myiamoto musashi!

@JensNyborg

Жыл бұрын

@@badrequest5596 Musashi trained. And thought about what he was doing. That's clearly cheating!

@kaltaron1284

Жыл бұрын

@@badrequest5596 Using a sword like a Katana with both hands also has advantages so I don't think that comparison makes much sense.

@kaltaron1284

Жыл бұрын

@@JensNyborg Musashi also had no problem with actually cheating, ahem using psycholigical tactics. Same goes for his opponents who didn't mind attacking many on one if needed.

"Samurai armor had to be sturdy yet flexible enough to allow free movement in the battlefield" Unlike all the non-samurai armor which was meant to be brittle and prohibit movement on the battlefield

@adambielen8996

Жыл бұрын

Don't forget heavy!

@wastedangelematis

Жыл бұрын

Don't forget katana slicing armor, cause katana ...ah yes, BalancE in video games /!\

@MarvinT0606

Жыл бұрын

I think Metatron missed the fact that Samurai armor as far as footwear and leg armor was concerned was reasonably light. For all that armor, you're only wearing a pair of straw sandals and woven protective plates hanging from the waist unlike Europeans who had dedicated leg and foot armor. It's kinda like ancient Roman armor now that I think about it.

@enriquecabrera2137

Жыл бұрын

@@MarvinT0606 and that made it LESS light. Why? Because while the samurai armor was as light at the below the knees for the same weight, western armor had average protection. Meaning that on a weight to protection ratio, the samurai had heavier armor. Seems ridiculous how lightly their legs were armored considering their main discipline was mounted but I guess mounted archers didn't feel they would ever do sustained mounted combat.

@MarvinT0606

Жыл бұрын

@@enriquecabrera2137 it's also possible this was an acceptable trade-off for some measure of comfort especially in long battles. While being top-heavy, Samurai armor placed less weight and less strain on the wearer's legs than European armor. This means in prolonged combat you could recover stamina and mobility faster. Heavier leg armor can hobble a tired warrior and prevents him from having the option of ditching his armor for a quick getaway.

The "guns are dishonorable" myth is pretty funny when you consider the Samurai were at one time some of the best firearms-equipped warriors on the planet during the Sengoku Period.

@kaltaron1284

Жыл бұрын

I honestly love Oda Nobunaga's portrayal in Drifters. If you would suggest to him that guns are dishonourable he would only laugh at you. (If you're lucky, he might feel in the mood for a demonstration.)

@SD78

Жыл бұрын

...and muskets were the primary arm of the Japanese army that invaded Korea. Twice.

@drakecassell1840

Жыл бұрын

@@kaltaron1284 I loved his portrayal in samurai warriors 4 not the newest one but the one before that, he would've definitely laughed at guns being dishonorable.

@EatWave

Жыл бұрын

They went from being the best archers in Japan to the best riflemen. Their forte was ranged combat yet somehow in popular media, they became all about the 'Samurai Sword'.

@kaltaron1284

Жыл бұрын

@@drakecassell1840 Unfortunately I'm not familiar with the Samurai Warriors series. It's on my list to try one day though. What did they change?

Fantastic video. Pop culture over the years has continuously damaged people's idea of the Samurai, so much so that corrections need to continually be made to right the wrongs. I have yet to make a full formal myth-busting video like this but I am extremely glad to see that you have!!!

@metatronyt

Жыл бұрын

Hey there! Thank you for the comment, it’s great having you here! Keep up the great work you are doing

@Sanguicat

Жыл бұрын

Ayo the Shogunate, my homie

@majster5675

Жыл бұрын

Not only Samurai, pop culture is generally presenting very misguiding image of history overall.

@stefanfranke5651

Жыл бұрын

I would view yours anytime! Can't get enough myth-busting.

@MarvinT0606

Жыл бұрын

It's from the mistaken impression that the Samurai are the Japanese equivalent of European knights and their (near-nonexistent) code of honor. They're closer to gang members or the Mafia if you think about it- they live by codes and they serve to make their bosses rich but they're not above backstabbing their own just to get ahead.

Wait so a part of a samurais soul isn't infused into their blade? I have been bamboozled.

@7_Svarog_7

Жыл бұрын

Me too bro XD

@SuperDiablo101

Жыл бұрын

Yes and I also hate to tell you this...but the katana can't cut through a fighter jet fuselage either sorry bud 🤣😭

@sasshiro

Жыл бұрын

Lol yeah the problem is the West over-mysticizes everything Eastern. Doesn’t help that Japanese video game/anime and other related industry media has also encouraged this angle, or presents it in a way it’s badly localized as overly mystical. The “sword is one’s soul” was always metaphorical, not meant to be taken literally. 🙄

@sasshiro

Жыл бұрын

Lol yeah the problem is the West over-mysticizes everything Eastern. Doesn’t help that Japanese video game/anime and other related industry media has also encouraged this angle, or presents it in a way it’s badly localized as overly mystical. The “sword is one’s soul” was always metaphorical, not meant to be taken literally. 🙄

@mikepette4422

Жыл бұрын

i'm still getting over there were no turtles with swords.

the 'dishonorable gun' myth is the one that bothers me the most, because it takes away one of the most interesting things of the samurai and the japanese in general : In terms of gunpowder tactics, this is one of the areas they actually WERE better than many of their european contemporaries. This idea that they somehow looked down on guns does a huge disservice to people like Oda Nabunaga and Tokugawa Ieyasu, who were some of the cleverest generals of their day.

@64standardtrickyness

Жыл бұрын

Yeah only stupid people believe that. In general once all out war breaks out all notions of honor basically go out the window.

@Ttegegg

Жыл бұрын

I imagine that movie really ingrained that idea. I think there where ultra conservative, Japanese samurai that used a gun along with a kantana. Lead by like one of three great nobles I think

@patrickstewart3446

Жыл бұрын

Nobunaga had more guns than any king in Europe. 😁

@henrikaugustsson4041

Жыл бұрын

Also I noticed watching old Japanese movies depicting the sengoku period, all of the infantry use guns. You don’t even see archers in those movies. 🤣

@ChadKakashi

Жыл бұрын

Is it Oda or Ōda Nobunaga?

3:00 I *felt* that bit about weight distribution with body armor. Back when I was in the Navy I would often stand armed guard duty, which would require me to wear a bulletproof vest. Even a simple breastplate made out of modern Kevlar will absolutely KILL your shoulders if you don't strap it on correctly to make your torso and hips carry the weight.

@teedepefanio4974

Жыл бұрын

Gotta love roving patrol... Fair winds, shipmate.. ~GM-G

@jamoecw

Жыл бұрын

in the expeditionary units we wear them for 14-18 hours at a time. after a few weeks if you put the cummerbund too low (the lower you put it the tighter you can get the armor) you end up with indigestion. hopping down far enough if you didn't tighten up your armor you can really hurt your back. people just don't understand how important it is to wear the armor correctly. those that have had to wear it know it isn't all about weight.

@travispaskiewicz2663

Жыл бұрын

I remember my basic combat instructors telling us the waist strap on our ruck pack was useless, that we should never use it and weren't allowed to use it around him. I didn't use it until I hit the fleet, and I realized I had spent 3 months in crippling back and shoulder pain for no reason.

@jamoecw

Жыл бұрын

@@travispaskiewicz2663 depending on how you pack your pack he could be right. a rucksack is a bit different than a plate carrier with level 4 plates. that being said, it was his job to make sure you did pack your pack correctly. if you haven't built up your back over years or decades of hard labor then not using the stuff the help transfer load from your back to your hips is pretty important for even light stuff, since that wears you down over time.

@SheyD78

Жыл бұрын

@@travispaskiewicz2663 That's just crazy. I used to go on hiking camps and using the waist band on my backpack was essential given the weight of it. (Still probably less than yours I'd imagine)

Pop culture "samurai" fans : "SaMuRaI DoN't UsE GuNs CoZ HoNoR!!!111" Oda Nobunaga : Haha 3k guns go brrr

@sasshiro

Жыл бұрын

Bruh, that part in Last Samurai made me rage quit the movie for a sec.

@manusiabumi7673

Жыл бұрын

@@sasshiro tbh i only know about the misconception because of channels like Metatron etc, my first exposure to samurai is from videogames like Samurai Warriors, Kessen 3, and Sengoku Basara and in those games it's very common for samurai to be using guns, so the notion of samurai using guns has always come off to me as something obvious and i was kinda surprised the first time i heard of the misconception

I've often posited that this idea that Samurai wouldn't retreat is actually born out of the fanatical way Imperial Japan fought at the end of WW2 and the way they acted. Almost like Japan invented this idea of it being dishonorable to retreat for the samurai, so that their soldiers, who they were claiming had a kind of continuity with those same samurai, would act accordingly. This "no retreat, no surrender" attitude was noticed by their western foes and years later both Japan, in their depictions in anime and whatnot, and "the west", believe it to be true.

@MarvinT0606

Жыл бұрын

Chalk it up to historical distortion during the Edo and Meiji periods and the Chinese Whisper effect

@kaltaron1284

Жыл бұрын

There were of course famous last stands and fights to the death. Guess why they got famous and were pretty much mystified. They were rare and exceptional. Usually the losing force at some point broke formation and fled. Some people got killed and/or captured, some escaped. Usually the leaders were killed in some way and the levy went back to the fields. You're right about Imperial Japan trying to use those myths and traditions to make their soldiers more fanatical. I'm not sure the rank-and-file really bought into it that much but as long as your leadership is on board down low enough that matters little.

@just_radical

Жыл бұрын

Yeah almost all of the personality traits associated with the Samurai are the result of Bureaucrats in the Edo Period hyping themselves up by talking about how badass their ancestors were and how they are the heirs to their legacy and then writers in the Meiji period looking at that and being like "Yes, but what if we fused that with Nationalism to convince our people they are superior to all others in the world."

@mnk9073

Жыл бұрын

@@MarvinT0606 The Edo and Meiji are to Japan what the Victorians are to Europe, 99% of misconceptions, myths and flat out lies about the medieval age can be traced right to their door step.

@markhorton3994

Жыл бұрын

@@kaltaron1284 In all cultures and times an army could find itself surrounded and outnumbered. Then they have to choose between going down fighting and surrender. For Samurai that usually meant supuku. Occasionally a last stand did have a purpose. Thermopolae and the Alamo were defended to the last man's fall so that later a larger force could win. The Niños Heroes held Chapultapec Castle to their deaths to give the Mexican army a chance to retreat. I am sure that Metatron can give Japanese examples. Normally a general later considered good avoided getting trapped.

I think it’s movies like the last Samurai that give people the impression that the Samurai never used guns. When in fact in the satsuma rebellion which that movie is based on the rebelling Samurai did use guns, it’s just that they were massively outnumbered and outgunned by the new Japanese army.

@huntclanhunt9697

Жыл бұрын

Didn't they also run out of ammo?

@adambielen8996

Жыл бұрын

@@huntclanhunt9697 Yes they did. And that was when they did their charge, because it was all they could do at that point.

@mitonaarea5856

Жыл бұрын

Well then people are dumb because it was obvious that the movie wasn't supposed to be historically accurate

@Likexner

Жыл бұрын

I love that movie but it definitely contributed a lot to this stupid myth.

@Likexner

Жыл бұрын

@@mitonaarea5856 Yes but when people only see historically inaccurate things, they inevitably base their ideas on them.

I found this channel one day when I was researching about Japanese armors for accurate depictions of samurais during the Mongol invasions. Thanks for these amazing videos, Metatron, and for raising my standards when it comes to historical accuracy and research in general.

@metatronyt

Жыл бұрын

My very pleasure!

The katana being such a major symbol of samurai reminds me of how cruciform swords (arming swords and longswords) were such a major symbol of knights. While not all cruciform swords were only used by knights, it was sometimes used to identify someone as a knight. And the fact that both types of swords were back up weapons and they were the most convenient weapons to carry outside of the battlefield is amazing to me.

@mrkiky

Жыл бұрын

It just means that both cultures figured out that a long pointy stick is better on the battlefield but that a shorter sharp metal pointy stick is just about the best thing you can conveniently carry around. But they did come up with totally different designs for them.

@TheFirstManticore

11 ай бұрын

According to Luke 22: 36, Jesus, on the night before he was arrested, told his disciples to buy swords if they didn't have any. And two of them did have swords already. And these were civilians, not soldiers.

@nikoraasu6929

5 ай бұрын

that's not how that fragment should be interpreted though @@TheFirstManticore

I never tire to share this anecdote. I remember a guy writing that the samurai didn't use shields because the Japanese are a short people, so to avoid arrows, they mostly ducked and dodged. In completely unrelated news, ancient Greeks were short and treated their exceptionally heavy and large shields like weebs think all sengoku saurai treated their katanas.

@Vlad_Tepes_III

Жыл бұрын

The ancient Greeks were short? Also, the shield obsession was exclusive to Sparta, iirc.

@adambielen8996

Жыл бұрын

@@Vlad_Tepes_III Nope, all the city states had Hoplites. And there were plenty of warlike states. The Hoplon is a critical piece of kit for that style of fighting.

@AnotherDuck

Жыл бұрын

So they treated their shields as counterweights to swing their swords more energetically? Much like in modern films?

@chillax319

Жыл бұрын

@@Vlad_Tepes_III People in the past generally were of shorter stature than nowadays. But it also depends on the ethnicity. Scandinavians probably weren't much shorter than nowadays(I don't know that so I can be wrong) but majority of asians isn't tall even now.

@DarkSol16

Жыл бұрын

That is hilarious. I'm just imagining a really short guy joining a medieval army and the officer just says 'you're a short fella, so you won't need a shield. You can just duck and you'd be too low for an arrow to hit ya.'

"Clunky" is so extremely subjective it's hard to take seriously. One could easily look at the big ass shoulder armor or elaborate helmet decorations on Samurai designs and come to the conclusion that Samurai Armor is the clunkier of the two. And of course both sets of armor tend to look far more form fitting when covered by surcoat/jinbaori.

@brijekavervix7340

Жыл бұрын

And what does it even mean? 'Heavy' or making 'clunk-clunk' noises when you move? ;)

I'd actually like to see you do a bit more about feudal Japan. I often get *massively* turned off by most people who talk about Japan because it's one of those few cultures that attract hyper-biased, supremacist cringe, for whatever reason; but you have to be one of the most grounded people I've seen talk about these subjects. You're simultaneously passionate about multiple eras and cultures, and that means you're not inclined to play these supremacist games where someone throws one culture under the bus to show the superiority of another Would you consider doing some deeper videos showing the general progression of weapons, armour, and perhaps tactics and strategy over the centuries. I'm very good with the European equivalents, but I don't really have a great timeline of what was going on in Japan

@n8pls543

Жыл бұрын

The nice thing about the Metatron is that he tends to tackle... well, quite a few of those hyper-biased ones: Romans, and to a certain extent the Greeks. There's quite a lot of history and varied cultures to appreciate without acting like one civilization that was good at certain things was automatically great at everything.

@johnapple6646

Жыл бұрын

Weebs ruin everything smh

ooooo you know I had to comment on this! The idea of samurai not using guns is my biggest pet peeve, that and their weapons being light. Hand cannons were imported from China very early on, even before European style firearms. Meaning gun powder has always been interesting to the samurai. They even had catapults that fired gun powder bombs.

@Sanguicat

Жыл бұрын

Big fan of your work, my brother in Christ! Great to see you here

@JapanatWar

Жыл бұрын

@@Sanguicat Thank you! Should be coming out with a load of new contend soon btw!

@Sanguicat

Жыл бұрын

@@JapanatWar That's great! I'm excited to watch them when they come out :)

@gibsonflyingv2820

Жыл бұрын

Hand cannons were not imported early, that's false. The fire lance, which you are referring to was brought to Japan around the 14th century yet it never caught on.

@JapanatWar

Жыл бұрын

@@gibsonflyingv2820 I have an entire video on my channel with pictures of a bronze hand cannon dated before that time. Unless you’re saying that Japan doesn’t know their history, cause it’s owned by a museum there

I find curious that apparently, on melee combat, the samurai mostly used two handed pole-weapons, akin to late medieval knights. That explains the almost lack of light, one handed-weapons being actively used in the front lines (including shields). However, while late knights used those weapons because of how good armor eventually became (shields becoming mostly pointless, gaps protected), as far as I understand, even the latest samurai armor level of protection would be somewhere akin to 13th-14th century knight armor (as far as coverage, they had bullet proof armor it seems), when there were still shields and the prevalence of polearms would be overkill?

@MarvinT0606

Жыл бұрын

One difference though: medieval knights used the lance as an expendable weapon for the cavalry charge. They switched to their side-weapon (sword or mace) when it breaks. Samurai though used their spears as their main weapon and drew their swords only when necessary.

@wolf310ii

Жыл бұрын

@@MarvinT0606 Switching to the side weapon when the lance breaks is the same as useing the sword only when necessary. Dont confuse lances for jousting, wich are made to break spectacular for a good show, with lances made for war.

@Ackalan

Жыл бұрын

@@wolf310ii Lances of war also broke and/or got stuck quite frequently, that's why the riders would go and grab a new one from a prepared stack.

@wolf310ii

Жыл бұрын

@@Ackalan Yes, but what MarvinT wrote sound like knights would break the lance on purpose to switch to the side weapon asap

@MarvinT0606

Жыл бұрын

@@wolf310ii knights expected it to break on impact. If it didn't break, they'd lose momentum and be vulnerable to attack from any nearby infantry. Knights needed the momentum from a charge to force a breakthrough in order to break an enemy force and/or create a gap for their infantry to exploit.

It's always refreshing to see you talk about samurai history . Can we get a dedicated video about the bows that samurai used ? I think it's an important part of samurai arsenal that do not get enough recognition .

@markhorton3994

Жыл бұрын

The Japanese Yumi was originally the primary weapon of the Samurai. It was a longbow offset to be usable while mounted. Despite modern claims based on light draw sports bows the war Yumi was almost as powerful as the English war bow. There is a lot of information available on KZread about modern archery included mounted.

@jonajo9757

Жыл бұрын

@@markhorton3994 Usually that information is poor research where people compare a modern daikyu to a historical one. There's one example of an early Edo period bow based on a Sengoku model. It weighed in at about 89kg (or 198lbs.)

@Vlad_Tepes_III

Жыл бұрын

@@jonajo9757 I apologize for the nitpick and I mean no offence, but "weighed in" is inaccurate and misleading terminology, the phrasing "has a draw weight of" conveys the meaning better. Also, 198lbs? That's...a lot...

@jonajo9757

Жыл бұрын

@@Vlad_Tepes_III I'm aware, and I just really don't think of it much because y'know. Anyways yeah, that's a lot of draw weight. Here's the video showing it. kzread.info/dash/bejne/pIRsxppqmt23esY.html This video features reenactors using warbows draw about 110lbs. Somewhere at 5:18, that's when they measure the draw weight of the aforementioned bow.

@tranbachuyen6655

Жыл бұрын

@@markhorton3994 most inferior bow in asia ever

I really appreciate these sort of videos that separate myth and truth (or at least what we know of the truth). For me personally, I've found a new respect and admiration for both Samurai and Knights (as they are so often compared) as I learned more about them in a more historic context in contrast to the myths. So big thank you for doing these vids, I hope it reaches a lot of people, historically correct (or more correct) understandings are amazing in and of themselves. Maybe Katana did not cut through stone as some say and while that sucks, knowing how Samurai thrived to be professional and always seek the best methods and weapons to achieve their goals is just as cool for me. Not having godlike powers and still kicking ass? Cool as hell if you ask me.

0:24 1.Medival Artist are Always high and you cant Tell me otherweise. 2. That could also be Interpreted to the Message: the horses get along and the human is a fool because they kill eachother.

I’m so curious about paper and bamboo armor. I can imagine an entire phone book on your chest could do something but there’s no way they’d wear something that thick

@rufinator

Жыл бұрын

The paper used in paper armor was very different from todays paper… it was more like a cloth made with wood fiber. My thoughts from an amature perspective is that it was more like a European gambeson… thought I’m sure both Metetron and Shadiversity will want to choke me out for that interpretation

It'd be cool to do this video for other soldiers like Ancient greeks and Medieval Knights.

I knew all of these! I'm a crafter so I look into a bunch of things to figure out what I want to make. Like the paper armor of the ashigaru. I guess I didn't know about the breastplate, but I did know they have a hat that was hardened paper or sometimes leather.

Okay how about Templar Myths You Thought Were True?

Learning about Japan's first attempted invasion of Korea from extra credits, I find it odd how while the Japanese distribute massive amounts of guns to their troops they didn't mount cannons on their ships

@ReizePrimus

Жыл бұрын

Cannons like the ones used in European naval and field artillery required reinforcement to fire relatively accurately, and if on ships, prevent the ship from toppling over or cracking the deck. I believe they did not do so because the hull designs of Japanese ships were not made to account for that and would just break under constant firing of cannons.

@FalconWindblader

Жыл бұрын

While the Portuguese taught the Japanese how to make guns, they didn't throw in even the idea of making shipboard guns after all. besides, naval warfare is only common when you have to constantly fight other countries coming from across the ocean. few Japanese wars were ever fought at sea due to the fact that for most part of Japanese history, they fought only themselves. there simply wasn't much need to fight other ships throughout most of their history.

@christianweibrecht6555

Жыл бұрын

@@FalconWindblader I imagine the imjin war would not have been a humiliating defeat for Japan if they had cannons on their warships

The timing of this video is perfect. I'm developing a Fantasy Samurai RPG campaign. Thank you for clearing up these myths.

@absyahwa7698

Жыл бұрын

Any update?

I never believed any of those, but I'm old enough to remember when Websters dictionary still said that "samurai" was pronounced like "SAM-yoo-rye," and these seem to be ideas that spread after samurai became more prominent in mainstream western pop culture. A fun myth that I did hear back in the day was that karate was based on techniques developed to defeat samurai by punching or kicking through their bamboo armor. How's your blood pressure after reading that?

@Manco65

Жыл бұрын

🤣😂🤣😂

@FalconWindblader

Жыл бұрын

Wood armor, kinda plausible under certain circumstances. BAMBOO armor, okay, that's just stupid...

@kaltaron1284

Жыл бұрын

Only the bit about punching through armour and it being made of bamboo is stupid. OK, that's quite a lot of stupidity actually.

@waterbeauty85

Жыл бұрын

@@kaltaron1284 Yeah. The bamboo armour myth and the fact that it's apparently still a common enough belief to make it onto Metatron's list is frustrating.

@ChadKakashi

Жыл бұрын

@@waterbeauty85 For Honor might’ve helped that one.

Big ups to Megatron smashing my childhood in one click.😁

I hadn't actually heard of a few of these myths (namely the bamboo armour one) and I have to admit when you brought up the myth that the Samurai practiced Judo and Karate I was thinking to myself "yeah that sounds about right, they would probably learn some form of unarmed combat" not realising that those two disciplines where created much later. Also I have Sabaton's song "Shiroyama" to thank for my knowledge of the Samurai using guns, albeit due to a comment on the video for it. I'd also like to know where the myth of ninjas and samurai being opposed to each other comes from, anyone with any knowledge of the wartime periods of Japan (or who had played Total War Shogun) would know that that's complete BS.

@kaltaron1284

Жыл бұрын

Funnily enough Karate was developed on Ryuukyuu/Okinawa to defeat the Samurai without weapons after Japan had taken over there.

@FalconWindblader

Жыл бұрын

They would have practiced some kinda JuJUTSU (precursor to what would become Judo) & then some kind of standing unarmed combat forms just in case. karate is DEFINITELY out of the question, as it's an Okinawan invention & for most part of Japanese history, Okinawa, or rather, Ryukyu, was a separate country altogether.

@Legion2210

Жыл бұрын

For some reason the modern reinterpretaitions of the Oda conflict with Iga and Koga are to blame for the samurai fighting ninja tropes and also the hidden ninja village tropes. Since the people of those areas defended themselves with what can only be described as guerilla tactics against the much larger force attacking them, loads of myths about invisible worriors using trickery to come out top, operating from villages impossible to find are created. Combine that with a newfound apreciation of the shinobi texts containing examples of techniques to conduct succsessful espionage and sneaking around. Mixing different myths grounded in reality together to create that perfect stealth worrior hybrid.

@kaltaron1284

Жыл бұрын

@@Legion2210 Good point. Of course those people like to forget that Oda had his own Shinobi.

Gah dayum! My homie, my brother in Christ, Metatron, delivering us a banging episode. I am so happy about this information

@metatronyt

Жыл бұрын

Thanks!

You definitely know your stuff! I’m always impressed with your knowledge and insight. I wish other creators would be as credible as you.

Amazing video. I have to say, you're sense of humor is really coming through well. You had me cracking up the whole time

Thanks, Metatron. As usual, you are well spoken and well reasoned. I appreciate you clearing up myths about how ninja and samurai are or are not related. I did not know most of what you covered regarding how they could be related or one in the same. Now, it makes sense. Thanks again!

There's so much I love about this video. I love all the armor and history facts. I even love the sponsor but, I'd watch those reviews in a video on its own, no matter who's chanel it's made on.

Metatron I love the insight you give into the subjects you dive into. Much of what you have said I have "learned" in the past but could not recall sources from in order to "prove" in discussions. I love your presentations and the depths that you reach in your explanations.

Cool and interesting, as usual! Thanks a lot for your work mate, keep doing what you're doing!!

Hey there. I love seeing your passion for the subject. The samurai, like the paladin of old stories (ref. Chanson de Roland) fills a particular storytelling niche. A people will believe what they want to believe, sometimes losing the point of the story in the process. Thank you for the fun video & the very tasty looking snacks! :)

Interesting, never thought of the Katana quite that way. So it was kind of the equivalent of an officer's sidearm, like a M1911 (for a WW2 US officer) or a Type 14 Nambu (in the WW2 Japanese context) as far as symbolic badges of rank are concerned. In an actual combat context I suspect a better comparison would be (in the US/NATO context) a tanker's ( closest thing to Medieval Japanese heavy cavalry I can think of) submachine gun (for the US, an M3 "Grease Gun" up until the 90s, I think the Brits still used the Sterling for that) or carbine (i.e. the M1 or M2 carbine) and the wakizashi would be a pistol equivalent. The Eastern Bloc equivalent might be a Krinkov (AKS-74U) and a Makarov pistol.

@kaltaron1284

Жыл бұрын

The Imperial Japanese Army even issued cheaply mass-produced swords to their officers. Those weren't really that great but hey.

@ironhead2008

Жыл бұрын

@@kaltaron1284 Yeah, but by then they were believing their own propaganda (which is where at least some of the myths detailed come from). Also, some of those "mass produced" swords were actually family heirlooms outfitted to the military standard (fittings, sheath, etc). Your average G.I. or Marine wouldn't know the difference unless he took the handle off. It's readily apparent then.

@kaltaron1284

Жыл бұрын

@@ironhead2008 That's true. Similar to how many (some?) Tachi were shorted to serve as Katana when they fell out of practice.

@tommeakin1732

Жыл бұрын

This is nothing unique to the katana. I think it's safe to say it's the case for most swords throughout history. Most swords are sidearms, or can be worn conveniently as one. The only thing that perhaps stands out about the katana is that there were legal restrictions on who could use them, which created more of an association with the classes who could use them

@FalconWindblader

Жыл бұрын

Very good katana that could stand the test of battle were actually few & far between, as only shit wealthy lords could afford them. swords issued to the likes of ashigaru had ALWAYS been cheap shit that either bent or broke often when used for their intended purposes. if swords were indeed drawn in a battlefield en masse back then, chances were you'd find shit tons of them littered around, bent or broken, after the battle was over, & the surviving soldiers wouldn't even bother sheathing their blades, as they too, were more often than not, bent or broken.

Man so awesome! I always love watching your videos! I've learned a thing or two about samurai before I found you here on KZread, but now I've been fortunate to learn way more just by watching your videos. Much respect from San Antonio TX!

As always big thanks for great video! Greetings from Mexico!

The content is awesome, but my favorite part was getting to see you and your wife trying your treat’s!💕 She is so sweet & it’s always a treat to see her!

@metatronyt

Жыл бұрын

Thank you from me and her!

Thanks for debunking a lot of samurai stuff that I found questionable. Most especially the part where samurai hated the use of firearms which I found so weird. Whether you’re samurai or not, if there are guys with all sorts of weapons coming at you, and all you have is a firearm, YOU USE IT. It’s common sense! Edit nearly 1 year later: The katana as a last-resort weapon reminds me of today's soldiers where pistols are mostly used as a sidearm or last-resort weapon for soldiers carrying standard rifles.

Very enlightening. Knew most of this already, but still very educational. Bravo!

I appreciate the regular uploads recently bro fr!

I feel that the mythos of swords in general (including Japanese swords, such as the Katana) are actually a result of both firearms and "peaceful" periods of the 15th-19th Centuries. With armor being less relevant due to either an increase in firearms or decrease in battlefields, duels became more common. What did nobles (of multiple cultures including Europe and Japan) have on hand? Swords! Thus, for upwards of 300 years, "honorable duels" used swords. Writers of those periods writing about personal defense wrote about sword dueling because if you were writing about warfare and combat, you'd be writing about massed formations of pikes and muskets or cannons for siege warfare. Since nobles were always dueling each other with swords, in fiction, these became the weapon of choice in general. The irony being the shear number of historical figures who were real or mythologized (may have existed but generations of story-telling exaggerated them and their feats) that never used swords. So many carried pole-arms, bows, lances, etc. The problem was that people saw the descendants of feudal knights or samurai dueling with swords and just assumed THAT had always been the weapon of choice. Movies, dime novels, manga, and anime haven't helped either. I was once asked by a friend who would win; a Knight in full armor with a long sword or a Samurai in full armor with a katana. My response? The one that didn't pass out first. They would probably bash each other with the swords pointlessly if stupid, or resort to grappling if they weren't.

Granted it was a few years ago, but last time I was there the Victoria and Albert museum has some decent examples of heavy Japanese armour.

@brittakriep2938

Жыл бұрын

A number of years ago, i visited ,Grünes Gewölbe' Museum in Dresden / Germany. The dynasty of former saxon Kings/ Electors was known for wealth and collecting expensive things. The ,Grünes Gewölbe' is basicly former ,treasure chamber'. There was a ,Katana' produced arround 1700 by saxon court jewellry maker Johannes Dinglinger. He didn' t knew, from what material the handle / grip was made, so he made the handle from glass like material, we germans call ,Emaile'.

Thank you, Metatron! The true facts are much appreciated!!

Great video. Will you do videos going over the myths about knights as well as other warriors?

This might be a bit of a nerd thing, but the Ninja Turtles I was brought up with had more of a Samurai like theme. They constantly referenced Bushido and their philosophy on honor. They were Ninjas because they fought where and when civilians wouldn't see them and so they were good at sneaking around, but they never attached anyone who didn't know they were there. I would say they were Samurai Mutant Ninja Turtles.

@badfoody

Жыл бұрын

but they did everything in stealth so Ninja

@Liliquan

Жыл бұрын

That’s one way of interpreting it. Bushido is more like strict guidelines for warrior servants. Which is what samurai were. Servants, loyal their masters. Much like dogs. Bushido might be thought of as an ancient doggy training manual.

@deutschesvaterlandfankanal

Жыл бұрын

Samurai CAN Be Ninja,and the MOST RELIABLE AND LOYAL are USED as NINJA

A lot of these, I was taught in very early childhood, but learned better in high school. I studied Japanese in high school, and I had a trip to japan which included some time living with a family descended from samurai. Those two facts contributed to a lot - though not all - of my corrections about these myths. A few, I'd learned the truth about before my age hit double digits though, I was lucky to have pretty good teachers even at a young age.

Thank you very much ! It's really cool video !

Your hair is amazing! lol Great video and awesome information as always.

I know this is a stupid question but, did the samurai ever use a double edged sword?

@dojimanoryu4969

Жыл бұрын

Yes, before the samurai era, warriors used two kind of straight swords:one single-edged called chokuto and a double edged version called tsurugi.

@broccolijjb2997

Жыл бұрын

Not really, however there was one famous double-edged tachi named Kogarasumaru.

Honor is a funny word we don't understand clearly, honor for a servant of the lord would be the same as discipline that some people in the army constantly talk about, let me explain, when you have a role in society you have to commit to that, in the power structure of feudal societies one is above everyone, if they don't follow that rule they are not honorable (bandits, rebels, escaped prisoners), is all about being the best servant to your lord, and in exchange the lord protects you from other people, the lord gives you a title, if you are a good servant (follow all orders) you are honorable and you deserve a raise and your family gets a better role in society, if you don't respect the rules and don't follow the orders of your lord you are going to get killed and your family is going to die without any honor. Seppuku was a way to pay for the mistakes you made and avoid your family getting killed, or degraded to lower servants, if you think about it a little bit further Seppuku wasn't about you killing yourself to get more honor in the afterlife, it was about protecting your family (and the Shogun used this to control families so they don't try to gain power).

Thank you so much for your content.

Another great video! Thanks!

15:31 This is also fueled by a perversion of the samurai code for the sake of propaganda by the Imperial Japanese army in WW2 where. Their recruits were ordered to either come back victorious or not to come back at all, which led to fanaticism. Which was so horrifying to the US soldiers who witnessed it that they just projected that onto all of Japanese history. Not helped by Japans portrayal of the Samurai in their own pop culture furthering this myth.

@wolf310ii

Жыл бұрын

In WW2 the japanes army simply didnt had the option to retreat in most cases

Nice yari at 4:05! Your referencing of o-yoroi made me think of yoroi-dōshi aka the armor-piercing class of swords and daggers. Many of the daggers (or tanto) are every bit as thick and spike-like as any European rondel or bollock dagger. You should do a video about it!

Great video! You are spot-on regarding the myths. I’m reading “Samurai Arms, Armour & the Tactics of Warfare, the Collected Scrolls of Natori-Ryu.” Tactical retreat is definitely part of the battle plan. The West’s impression of samurai honor code and battle philosophy is shallow at best.

😂🤣 this video cracked me up. I've learned enough over the years watching your channel and others to know all those claims were false. In relation to the honor stuff it never made sense to me as a kid, I used to think if they were honor this honor that did they hold back their warriors in battle to.ensure both sides have equal numbers? 🤣 Thank God I know they wouldn't have given a crap if they outnumbered their enemies.

@kaltaron1284

Жыл бұрын

That idea reminds me of the Clans in Battletech if you know that one.

Bel video fra

@metatronyt

Жыл бұрын

Grazie

I knew some of these things before I started watching your channel, but I've been watching for a long time so I knew all of these misconceptions, but I still learned a little, like the paper part. Didn't know that.

Samurai wearing Light Armor could stem from most depiction of Samurai having their clothes visible on their chest when wearing their armor, however there are literally different kind of armor with the heaviest one imo is the Nanban Armor. When looking at a Knight, they will be encased in at least Chainmail which is fully armored.

@eagle162

Жыл бұрын

It likely just comes from typical idea that the East prefer lights armor,Nanban armor was not the heaviest the thing about that armor it was done for fashion reasons, plate armor was already develop in Japan before contact with the West. Knight's armor differed a lot.

Japanese armour and swords may not be the best, but they are one of the most beautiful in the world. Also, werent they more customed in mounted archery before the warring states period, and the o yoroi if im not mistaken is much more suitable for archery and skirmishin. better choice is still european full plate though, that or a nokia brick.

"Samurai were honorable" bruh, Samurai literally killed innocent bystanders for practice, you call that honor?

@jnewgot

10 ай бұрын

most honor codes have nothing to do with not doing that.

@atom8248

4 ай бұрын

The prevalence of crossroads-killing is hugely overstated. It was illegal to randomly kill townspeople (obviously) and the only historical example I could find (the Yoshiwara spree killing) ended with the perpetrator, who was actually a rather high ranking samurai, being executed. That's not to say that it didn't happen, especially in the lawless sengoku era, but still specific clans had their own rules and I doubt they often included "kill anyone you want as long as they're not a samurai". Logically speaking, if you killed some random townsman or farmer and it turned out that he was a skilled worker for a higher ranking samurai in your clan (or even worse, your lord), how do you think it would turn out for you? Many samurai also weren't soldiers (especially in the edo period) and had equivalents to modern day jobs like police, firefighter, accountant, bodyguard etc. I can't imagine that they were inherently more psychopathic just because they were part of the samurai caste.

Out of topic: I love your wife's smile. You're a lucky guy, or may I say, you both are lucky for have each other. It warms my heart.

Excellent as always.

Ah, yes, the Katana, the sword that never breaks only shatters, the blade that slashes steel and spacetime continuum. The weapon of mass destruction where a single samurai could with single strike split stones and mountains. The weapon so powerful that it had to be outlawed otherwise Samurai would never be defeated by lowly standing army in western style with Gatling guns, canons and numerical advantage. Also you are wrong, Metatron, Samurai never retreated they just advanced in the opposite direction. They never worried about stabbing people in the back as the blade also cuts the front of the person so it's alright.

Great video and I am a little bit pissed off, because I haven't seen your uploads for half a year (only the egyptian one and I am waiting to see a kopesh history story). I only come across this on your homepage after I have seen Shad's KZread struggling video. Keep up the great work I will visit you more often ;)

Thank you for doing this video. New Iaido students will often state these facts so this video is something to show them to save training time!

Thank you for the video! I enjoyed it and found it enlightening. ps. I noticed some Warhammer fantasy stuff in the background. Do you play it? Were your armies empire and bretonnia? Mine is the high elves.

Amazing video , and also I really enjoyed watching the sponsored part to

Great video, one thing though. At 3:05 you say the armor hung completely on the shoulders, but if you watch "Let's ask Shogo" s video of getting dressed in that kind of armor you find out that the sash they used to affixed the katana to the waist was strapped thight after the armor had been lifted a bit, to make the weight rest on the waist.

One of my favorite episodes. Very fun and educational 😊👍🏻

i love the shots of you in the armour. pure fire

That Total War quote was gold😂 Metafrog have you played Total War Warhammer III?

I really like that you record your own footage demonstrating the armor in person. It's, you know, both different from the norm and informative. It also makes you look like a huge dork, so that's amusing. But seriously, I approve. Very surprised to hear how many samurai there were.

I knew almost all, not that they were many, and that in almost all thanks to you for teaching me over time. :)

Let me just say that the more I've watched you over the years the more I love your content. You're a legend, man. Many blessings to you and everyone you know. Btw you should continue to get snacks from different countries with your wife. That was great! Cheers, man! 🍷🤘🏻

13:07 That's fine but have you ever thought of this one? "Middle aged genetically modified Samurai Tortoises" Thought of that one seven years ago.

I always find it amazing how much what people WANT to believe overshadows FACTS.

Very informative video especially with the misconception of samurai shunning firearms. One question I have is to what extent were the castles considered in Japanese planning for defense of the main islands in the event of operation Downfall occured?

Very enlightening. Thank you... there is much content here that i had no idea about... what are your thoughts on hara-gei(hara-ki, center energy)? Its an advanced martial arts concept regarding the control of energy that surrounds all of us, yet centers on each of us. I'm curious about the truth of its history. Takamatsu spoke of it to his scribes, yet only taught it to a few of his students. Musashi supposedly never taught it, but he certainly described it in metaphors in the Go Rin No Sho... Why is it that the greatest fighters, preachers, wisemen and scholars all speak in metaphors? Yet you, speaking more languages than all of them, have no problem with breaking the barriers between us and forgotten truths... My respect to you for the time you spend, enlightening the world. Blessed be, mi fratello.. ☯️⚔☯️

Thanks to you, I already knew all of these! (besides the paper)

I remember reading James Clavel's "Shogun" as a teenager and just being totally in love with the book and its portrayal of the samurai. They seemed super brutal, and it was kinda awesome. I've always wondered how much of it was historically accurate. I thought it was based/inspired by a true story for some reason. It's been so long, I can't remember.

14:09 Miyamoto Musashi even said you can't just learn to use the sword alone, you also need to learn all the other aspects of martial arts

First, I was suprised that some people would believe in part of this things (e.g. samurai didn't use guns), but I also didn't knew everything (samurai could be shinobi is my favourite new info). Thanks for expanding my knowledge :)

I'll be honest: I didn't know one thing: that there were SO many Samurai. Thanks to your channel and some others, I've known other myths to be wrong for quite some time now.

Waaaa, Warhammer fantasy miniatures in background!! Cool!! 😃 I like you even more now! 😊

Paper armor is similar to gambeson (made of linen and/or wool) or linothorax (made of linen) - they are all armor made of various cloth fibers. IIRC, Mythbusters did a test of some possible versions of medieval Chinese paper armor used by some troops in hotter & humid regions, and it turned out to be pretty effective and was even resistant against flintlock pistols.

One of my fellow students at my Daito-Ryu Aikijujutsu dojo brought some dorayaki from Japan (he lived and taught there with his wife for several years) and they're amazing. That was my first time trying anything with red bean in it and I've had a perpetual craving for it ever since. This all happened about 5-6 years ago now.

>honor meant bringing power to your lord that reminds me of Shad's video on the myths about European knights and chivalry and one of his many important points was that while the specifics of what constituted "chivalry" and "honour" varied depending on area and time, the one thing that was relatively constant was...the loyalty to your lord. When you think about it it is not really that surprising, as loyalty to your own is universally valued throughout the planet and through the millennia among all kinds of human societies, from ancient tribes through religions and cultures up to modern political parties, prison gangs and even popculture fandoms. It's just that very often the much more easily perceptible differences like language, cuisine and physical appearance obscure the fact that ultimately that which unites us outnumbers substantially that which divides us.

Great presentation and I learned a lot and there were no big surprises about what I learned. I have seen little in the last 500 years or so of Japanese history that impresses me over them having any concept of honor other than as you say being of wealth, power, and someone else's land. You rank right up there with Ian of forgotten weapons relative to your museum like knowledge. What is most impressive about the Japanese rulers is that they never allowed westerners to take over Japan as was the case in most other parts of asia. They kicked them all out and when Admiral Perry came by, realized very quickly that they better get some modern weapons and reform & modernize their Country ASAP.

Very nice video really fun to get the facts straight, but I cant help that during the as section only the mic is sharp

You mentioned Ninjas often kept diaries, are there any (mostly) complete and translated version available anywhere to read? I feel like it would be absolutely fascinating to read

Hi metatron I don’t know the best way to do this but I was wondering if you could make a video about the ‘mud flood theory’ I would love to hear, what I see as an expert’s view compared to these other channels that discuss it

I love the video! Quick Japanese language question. When you gave the impression of a cavalryman reacting to bring shot at, you said "Nani kore". Shouldn't it be "Nani are" or "Nani sore"? Since you are describing something distant from the speaker?

You should do a video on sumo wrestling the practicality and how strong they really are and how effective they would be in a fight like shugoki in for honor who is way bigger and stronger but still thought it would be a cool idea since I got into sumo recently.

I had that premier lemon fanta a couple weeks ago when I was in Shinjuku, it was nice, but even better as a fanta highball