Season 5· 1185 AD - 1868 AD

Whispers of the SamuraiThe story of the samurai, blade by blade

For seven centuries, Japan's warriors ruled the land: from the first battles at sea through the age of war to the last stand against modern rifles. Discover the people, places and ideals behind the legend.

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Chapter 01

Honor, steel and silence

Cherry blossoms fall in perfect beauty, but steel remains eternal.

We take you to the land of the rising sun: From the fog-shrouded castles of the shoguns to the deadly duel at dawn. Honor here is not a currency, but a law written in blood. Do you hear the whispering of the wind? Draw your sword. The path begins now.

Chapter 02

Six ages of the sword

A mounted samurai draws his bow at full gallop as dust swirls in the morning light

The rise of the samurai

In the Genpei War, the Taira and Minamoto clans fought for power, decided in 1185 at the sea battle of Dan-no-ura. Afterwards a shogun ruled for the first time, and the samurai became Japan's ruling class.

Samurai board a burning Mongol warship in a storm as waves crash against the hull

The Mongol invasions

In 1274 and 1281, Kublai Khan's empire invaded Japan. Twice, typhoons shattered the huge fleets off the coast. The Japanese called them kamikaze, the "divine wind".

Samurai cavalry with colorful back banners charge across a dusty field in golden evening light

The age of warring states

For over a century, Japan's lords waged war on each other. Warlords like Oda Nobunaga, Takeda Shingen and Uesugi Kenshin fought for the whole country, and the first firearms changed warfare forever.

Osaka Castle burns at dusk as samurai with banners stand on its walls

Sekigahara and the peace of Edo

With victory at Sekigahara in 1600 and the fall of Osaka in 1615, Tokugawa Ieyasu united Japan. Around 250 years of peace followed, in which samurai turned from warriors into officials.

Masterless samurai storm the gate of a mansion with drawn swords in falling snow at dawn

Sword and soul

In 1702, 47 masterless samurai avenged their lord, knowing it would cost them their lives. Their story became a legend of loyalty, honor and the katana as the warrior's soul.

Samurai with swords charge up a hillside through cannon smoke at red sunset as rifle fire flashes in the distance

The end of the samurai

In 1853, American warships forced Japan to open up. With the Meiji Restoration, the samurai lost their privileges, and in 1877 Saigō Takamori fell in the last great samurai uprising.

Chapter 03

These and many more duels await you

A mounted samurai commander raises a war fan bearing a red sun as warriors with banners charge across a dusty field — A commander signals the attack

Mount Fuji glows red at dawn above a village of thatched huts as samurai and villagers walk along the river — Red Fuji above the fishing village

Mounted samurai charge through the mud toward a palisaded castle gate as defenders fire arrows from the ramparts — Samurai storm the castle gate

A thatched teahouse stands in a Japanese garden with a pond, red bridge, stone lanterns, cherry blossoms and maple trees — A teahouse in a tranquil garden

Oda Nobunaga stands with a fan in a burning temple hall, a short sword laid out on a mat before him — Oda Nobunaga in the burning Honnō-ji

Autumn leaves drift across the wooden terrace of Kiyomizu-dera with Kyoto spread out below in the evening light — Autumn at Kiyomizu-dera in Kyoto

A masked ninja with a sword crouches behind a paper sliding door, a lantern-lit corridor stretching out behind him — A ninja lurks behind the sliding door

The white Himeji Castle rises above a town of cherry blossoms and misty hills in the soft morning light — Himeji Castle in cherry blossom season

An elderly martial arts master leaps into the air on a beach at sunset, with sailing boats anchored behind him — An old master trains on the beach

A Shinto priest stands at a torii with a sacred rope in the forest, flanked by mossy fox statues and stone lanterns — A priest prays at an Inari shrine in the forest

Snow-capped Mount Fuji erupts behind a Japanese village as residents flee down the street through falling ash — Mount Fuji erupts as the village flees

Samurai and women in kimonos gather at food stalls on a rain-soaked Edo street beneath hundreds of glowing paper lanterns — A lively evening in the streets of Edo

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Chapter 04

What's inside the season

10h+of playtime

205lessonseach with its own collectible card

The whole picture · 205 entries across five categories

36 people49 places50 events35 ideas35 objects

Chapter 05

Who were the samurai? What you need to know

The samurai were Japan's warrior class. For around seven centuries they shaped the country's politics, warfare and culture, from the 12th century until their abolition in the 1870s.

Who were the samurai?

Originally, samurai were armed retainers serving noble lords. With the first shogunate from 1192, they became the ruling class. Their main weapons were at first the bow on horseback, and later the sword.

What is a katana?

The katana is the curved long sword of the samurai. It was forged from special steel, folded several times and hardened so that the edge became extremely hard while the back stayed flexible. To many samurai it was more than a weapon.

What is bushido?

Bushido, the "way of the warrior", stands for ideals such as loyalty, courage and honor. The term only became widely known around 1900, mainly through Nitobe Inazō's book. Earlier samurai did not follow a single written code.

What was the Sengoku period?

From the late 15th century, Japan broke apart into rival domains that fought each other for over a hundred years. Warlords such as Oda Nobunaga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi gradually unified the country, until Tokugawa Ieyasu won at Sekigahara in 1600.

What happened in the Edo period?

Under the Tokugawa shoguns, Japan enjoyed around 250 years of peace from 1603 to 1868. The country largely closed itself off, and many samurai now worked as administrators rather than warriors.

How did the age of the samurai end?

After American warships arrived in 1853, Japan opened up. With the Meiji Restoration of 1868 the country modernized rapidly, and in 1876 samurai were banned from carrying swords. In 1877, the Satsuma Rebellion, the last great uprising, failed.

In HistoryBytes, you experience the world of the samurai in short episodes: the people, places, events, ideas and objects of the era. Piece by piece, you build the whole picture, from the Genpei War to the last stand.