Feudal Japan, Dar-al Islam and the Delhi Sultanate

Feudal Japan Era (1185-1868)

Social: They had a caste system: samurai, peasants, artisans, merchants and untouchables, justified with Confucian ideology.

Political: Properties of a centralized and Tang government. They had an emperor (dynasty), Shogunate with 3 military governments. 

Religion: Buddhism and Confucianism

Intellectual: Painted, poetry, literature was enjoyed

Technological: Mastered in wooden architecture. Used gunpowder weapons.

Economics: They produced lacquerware, pottery and steel. Despite having restrictions on trade, their economy was good.

(Feudal Japan )Role of Women: Women were viewed as being less significant compared to men. Women had fewer rights. Only two women were able to become empress (Empress Meisho and Empress Go-Sakuramachi). When there were female samurai, they received the same training as men, though there were rarely female samurai. Geisha women entertained men during meals and other events. They were respected for their skills and wealth, and geishas in training are called maikos. Women in the lower class often had more freedom than women in the higher class, as they didn’t have to undergo forced marriages (arranged marriage in the upper class was mainly for alliances). Women in the lower class had to serve their husbands, look after their family, animals and crops, and perform household tasks.

Dar al-Islam

Cause and effect of the Crusades: The Crusades started with the collapse of Byzantium, from internal conflict and economic troubles. The fall of Byzantium also showed that Christianity wasn’t the dominant religion, with Islam becoming popular in terms of it’s military might and unity. After the fall of Byzantium, Muslim began capturing Christian states, including Jerusalem, which launched the First Crusade. Muslims and Christians began fighting in warfare, trying to prove their superiority over the other. In 1095, the Pope called all Christians to fight a “holy Crusade” against the Muslim rulers of Palestine. He wanted to free Palestine from the Muslims. Overall, the Muslims won and the Christians won. After the Crusades, the Pope and kings of western Europe became more powerful, and Europeans began trading with the Middle East. Increased trade led to increased cultural diffusion, with the two cultures adapting ideas from the other.

(Dar al-Islam) Role of women: Women were known as honorable individuals, not property, and had more rights than women often did in other lands. They could inherit land, divorce their husbands if they wanted and participate in business activities. Women were commonly under the dominance of close men relatives, and men were able to decide a woman’s social life, while also respecting them.

Importance of the Battle of the Tours: The battle was fought on October 10th, 732 AD, in France, between the Franks and the Islamic army. The Franks defeated the Muslims. The Battle of Tours stopped the Islamic conquests and allowed Christianity to be the dominant faith in Europe. During this period, Islam was overseeing and taking over the remains of the Persian and Roman Empires, which were formally Christian.