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  • Essay / Shimabara Rebellion during the Tokugawa Shogunate period

    Over the years, Japan has experienced many changes that revolve around the development of their society and culture. Rather than a rebellion or a sudden spark of new popular interest, each event in 17th-century Japan led to its modern form. Although each event may be important, what stands out most is the amount of documentation of historical facts involving religion. Religion is an important factor in everyone's culture, even in that of most countries. For decades, religion has been considered a power that has had great influence in a person's life. This is a huge number to increase hope and faith in humanity – perhaps more than any man on earth who has ever had the chance to govern. Such influences can be seen in sacred literature such as the Bible or even in the “rules” that individuals follow in their daily lives. Despite this decline in modern times, where more and more people have adopted a more scientific view or are atheists, the impact of religion in terms of fighting for the right to practice one's beliefs has continued for many years. generations to come. An example of such a notable struggle for the faith is the short but infamous Shimabara Rebellion of 1637–1638, which “remains one of the most controversial events in modern Japanese history” (Farias 2016). This rebellion had a huge impact in Tokugawa Japan, based on the oppression of Christians, unjust taxes and debts imposed on local peasants and ronin. Additionally, this research paper focuses on the Shimabara Rebellion, starting with its origin, events, and ending, including the aftermath that correlates with what makes modern Japan what it is today . Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why violent video games should not be banned”? Get an original essay To begin, before explaining the course of the rebellion, it is important to discuss life in the Tokugawa era, because it is the key to why this infamous historical event occurred and requires greater understanding. During this period, from 1603 to 1869, Japan was ruled by a series of shoguns known as the Tokugawa shogunate, descendants of Tokugawa Ieyasu. These shogunates were supreme military leaders appointed by the emperor and played an important role in generalizing the country's rules. That said, there came a time when the Tokugawa shogunate also got rid of incompetent Daimyo by entrusting them to commit suicide. These incompetent Daimyos were killed due to their leniency and flexibility in collecting taxes from the peasants, unlike the government, which angered the shogunate. As this continued, times seemed to change and after the death of the former Daimyo, his son became regent for exploiting the peasant class for his own personal gain. Due to this sudden change, difficulties begin to form and this will immediately trigger the talks on the Sakoku Law of 1635, where all relations and trade between Japan and other countries are limited, immigration is low or non-existent and the Japanese prohibited from leaving Japan. country. With this act, there was a sudden limitation of religion, especially Christianity, as it became a threat to the members of the Tokugawa shogunate. Under these circumstances, this would begin one of Japan's most notable rights battles, also known as Shimabara. Rebellion (島原の乱 Shimabara no ran). The rebellion ofShimabara remains a popular historiographical debate to the present day. Some believe that the Japanese Christian population in these far-flung provinces revolted in order to overthrow a government whose policies included the persecution, torture, and execution of Christians. Others claim that "economic oppression forced peasants to revolt against irresponsible daimyos, or local lords, with the Christian element overemphasized in historical records." However, this rebellion, which began in the fall of 1637, had no particular cause. That said, it is important to note that the two causes mentioned only reflect half of the nature of the rebellion. In truth, the rebellion was the last resort for desperate people, driven by economic suffering and united by a common culture, Christianity. The difficulties that followed the persecution pushed the peasants to rebellion and to Christianity, which helped to bind the classes together (farmers, ronin, etc.). As mentioned, in the early 1600s, the Christian faith was considered a crime. In 1619, there were hundreds of executions in Kyoto following those in Nagasaki in 1622. Those who practiced the faith were imprisoned, burned alive, beheaded and many other gruesome methods aimed at instilling fear in others and to denounce the attitude towards Christians. It became a tactic to scare the Japanese who adapted the tenets of Christianity. Indeed, there appeared in this rebellion a figure of the highest importance who could be considered a tragic hero for his ability to instill hope and his desire to defend the right to practice this faith. This infamous figure was named Amakusa Shirō and, at the age of sixteen, was able to lead the Shimabara Rebellion in hopes of bringing down the few members of the shogunate. Along with Shimabara's 30,000 rebellious peasants, the rebels advanced and settled in the abandoned Hara Castle at the tip of the peninsula in 1638, about two months after the uprising began. Once settled, they "resisted the overwhelming forces of the Tokugawa until they were pushed to the brink by hunger and eventual massacre." This was done after the rebels tried to ensure the miscalculated attempts and orders of the Bakufu (military government), which brought them back to their lowest state. After many attempts and the will to maintain their fortress, it came to an end. This was because the rebel forces, although maintaining a well-coordinated defense against the attackers, had no logistical support, leading to the fall of Hara Castle. An important point to make regarding the castle's defeat is that there were other factors than the lack of support for the rebels. One factor that could be considered one of the important causes is that one of the rebel soldiers, Yamada Umenosaku, betrayed Shiro and hid information about strained supplies. As a result, the number of rebels falling ill and suffering from malnutrition was much faster. Another factor that brought Hara Castle to an end was the "use of ninjas for espionage and subversion." These Ninja tactics were extremely fatal to the rebels because they contained a set of skills that provided uses for them. On January 4, 1638, a small group of Koga ninjas arrived at the castle and began their espionage and subversion which lasted over two weeks. Through this they were able to gather intelligence on defenses and provisions. In fact, they played a large part in depriving the castle of resources to survive, and with the help of the traitor Yamada, it was an easy tactic and a downfall. Moreover, with the help of these..