Samurai And Knights Similarities

“Feudalism was a political and economical system in Europe from the 9th to about the 15th century.” Japan also had time periods that can be called feudal age including: Heian, Kamakura and Tokugawa. Medieval Japan shared a lot of similarities with medieval Europe, however, there are also many differences. One of the differences is their warriors who played vital roles fighting for their country in both Europe and Japan. In medieval Europe they had knights, and in medieval Japan they had samurais. European knights and Japanese Samurais were different in training, armor, weaponry, true values and codes.

First of all, training methods of knights and samurais were different. Samurai had various training for personal toughness at the battlefield.

Many samurai trained in unarmed combat skills, most commonly in Bujutsu style that is related to Japanese martial arts: Karate, Judo, and Aikido. They also trained with the sword, bow and Japanese spear called Naginata. Not only did they do physical training, but also they studied Chinese, poetry and spiritual discipline. Samurai were frequently encouraged to meditate on Bushido, which prepares themselves for the rigors in the war. European knights also Training to become a knight began in early childhood. Usually at the age of 7, young boys were sent to the castles and lords’ houses or relatives to start knighthood training. “The knighthood training was focused on weapon practice which included enhancing skills in horsemanship, the two-handed sword, battle axe, mace, dagger and lance.” From the age of seven to fourteen these young boys were given the role of a Medieval Page. From fourteen to twenty-one these 'apprentice knights' were referred to as Squires, and finally at around age 21 they became knights.
Furthermore, armor and weaponry between knights and samurai had a lot of differences.

European knights wore armor that is made of metal. Due to the metal armor, their whole body was protected very well, and yet it was too heavy. In addition, it sometimes even limited knight’s vision and breathing ability because of the large protection of the helmet. In contrast, samurai’s armor was very light compared to the knight’s. “Samurai wore armor that is made of leather and steel laced together with silk cords.” Therefore, samurai was able to move quickly and agilely. However, samurai’s armor had less protection for their body, making them more vulnerable than knights. Their weapons had some differences as well. The primary weapons of knights were the long lance and the sword, but they also used poleaxe, dagger, and mace. The sword was always the foundational weapon of knights, whereas, the sword was not the one of the major weapons for samurais. Samurais primarily used the bow and arrow and the Yari that is, “One of the Japanese traditional blades in the form of a

spear.”
In addition, what European knights and Japanese samurai consider as their true values and codes to follow were different.

Samurai's core value is not humiliating myself. They would even rather end their own lives if they had to put up with humiliation. For example, if their daimyo died or if they lost a battle, they committed seppuku “stomach- or abdomen-cutting”, which is a form of Japanese ritual suicide by disembowelment. They did this to die in honor. Furthermore, Samurai had to follow some rules called “Bushido”,which means “The way of the warriors”. The rules include fidelity, politeness, virility, and simplicity. While, knight's core value is not to commit a sin. Knights often believe killing himself is a sin, this is because of influence of Christianity. They would rather suffer being alive than to commit suicide. Knights also had to follow a set of strict rules called Chivalry, which puts emphasis on justice, loyalty, defense, courage, faith, humility, and nobility.

As can be seen above, European knights and Japanese Samurais shared lots of differences including training, armor, weaponry, true values and rules. This is because they both came from different countries, and have different lifestyles, cultures, and religions, which influenced them to develop

differently.