In the last J-List post I talked about the three “unifiers” of modern Japan, who are credited with moving the country from a land of warring fiefs to a single unified nation. These are basically the only three Japanese historical names you need to know, so I thought I’d talk more about them. (All three men have become pop culture icons, so depending on what video games you play you may already know them.) The first was Oda Nobunaga, a fierce warlord who united most of the country under his rule by 1582. He loved rare things from the West, like wooden chairs and kompeito star candies. When Nobunaga died at the hands of a traitorous underling, he was succeeded by his lieutenant, Toyotomi Hideyoshi. Hideyoshi was one of the most unique individuals in Japan’s history because he was a commoner (probably a farmer) who attained the status of a powerful samurai lord through hard work and good fortune, eventually becoming the de facto ruler of Japan. The third and final unifier was Tokugawa Ieyasu, who can only be compared with Augustus Caesar in the scale of his success as a statesman. He won the title of shogun, moved his capital to Edo (present-day Tokyo) and laid the groundwork for 267 years of enforced peace during which many aspects of modern Japanese culture were able to grow and emerge.
Hideyoshi is one of the most amazing men in Japan’s history.
