Introduction
The decomposition of state land tenure led to the weakening of the Japanese state and the strengthening of the economic and political influence of the local feudal nobility, relying on the samurai. The fragmentation of the provinces and the military confrontation between them led to forming a new social and political structure. At the same time, it was this hierarchical model that was the limitation of the authority in Japan. The social consciousness of samurai was focused on creating small decentralized associations and did not allow the creation of large corporations. In the crucible of internecine wars, a new order emerged, which relied on wealth and property as a fundamental social values. It was determined by the independence of the rule of law from formal institutions as a way of political organization. In these new systems, rulers sought and valued their vassals and allies most of all for their military and economic efficiency and personal loyalty, and the ability to keep their vassals under control became the greatest merit.
Analysis
During the period of the feudalization of Japan, centralized state control began to weaken, and the hereditary allotments of soldiers and middle and senior officials began to turn into domains. During the period under review, the texts reflect that relations built on loyalty to the lord of his vassals arose and began to cover both the peasantry and the layers of the provincial bureaucracy, as well as samurai with a multi-level social and legal hierarchy. The leader’s primary duty in such a relationship was to protect his population from outside encroachments on his estate. Since the re-registration of the allotment into the fief required the participation of the governor, they became, as it were, symbolic centers of such commendation relations. The main issues of state activities, such as land distribution, taxes, and military service, were transferred to the provincial level. The new social support for the formation of power by the feudal leaders was the samurai warrior class, who constituted a substantial class of feudally obligated warriors.
Minamoto’s Kamakura bakufu was a complex structure of the highest political power centralized around military commanders. Under the shogun, all the already existing institutions of imperial power were preserved, but their role in governing the country was minimized. The establishment of the bakufu Kamakura led to the gradual transition of civilian powers to a new military administration. Yoritomo empowered local rulers to administer justice themselves, weakening the centralized system of government. He understood that it was necessary to sacrifice part of his power to maintain control over the country. The emperor ruled nominally; the actual ruler was the shogun. The bakufu soon took on all the features of a bureaucratic apparatus, with officers overseeing military affairs and officials controlling everything else. With an unimaginably large number of purely nominal positions and titles, this multilayered power structure was fragile. In the 13th century, the imperial court in Kyoto more than once tried to restore its supreme prerogatives, using the military power of one or another camp of influential feudal houses, but this did not succeed for an extended period
In those hard times, The Kemmu Shikimoku [Kemmu Code] was developed that established several moral and ethical standards that required restraint, the economy of money, piety, and politeness from the inhabitants of the country. Bribery and interference of women and clergy in politics were prohibited. The shogunate pledged to curb crime in Kyoto and ensure a fair trial in the capital and regions. The government also pledged government guarantees to moneylenders and merchants, planning to resume the progressive development of the economy. The document also established the criteria for recruiting for the posts of military governors and those close to the shogun. Code tied together with the new discourse of military rule and state tradition. The established identity of the functions of shugo was officially enshrined in the Articles of Admonition. Thus, the building of power also went hand in hand with the authority of morality.
In Articles of Admonition, Imagawa Sadayo referred to other rules and regulations. He called for teaching and stated that it is impossible to win a single military victory without it. Administrative norms included that it is forbidden to sentence to death a person who has committed a minor crime without a thorough investigation. One could not forgive his favorite who has committed a serious crime, and ignore the good and bad deeds of his vassals and show injustice in the appointment of awards and punishments. It was also unacceptable to think only about one’s own peace of mind, and, when dismissing a person, not to pay him maintenance. If these rules were fixed, it means that there was a practice of violating them. As a zealous Buddhist, the author condemned senseless self-sacrifice, but he also had a deep respect for the warrior’s craft as a member of his class. As a Confucian, he quoted Chinese canons, demanded respect for the family, and emphasized the idea of loyalty and fulfillment of duty to the master. It was in this document that the military ideal was embodied in all its balance.
Asakura Toshikage’s document, The Seventeen-Article Injunction, tells about the ruler’s desire to systematize government structures and expand them as much as possible, without leaving the logic of the feudal structure. The author claimed that it is necessary to “post intelligence agents (metsuke) in both near and distant provinces, even if the world may be at peace.” At the same time, he denied the principle of heredity of positions, urging to hire only by ability and talents. The essential task becomes not to allow the territory of the government to be fragmented. He prohibited the construction of fortresses in the provinces and demanded that all the highest ranks be transferred to Asakura castle. He also ordered to “permit their deputies (daikan) and lower officials (gesu or shitazukasa) to remain in their districts and villages [to measure their estates].” The centrifugal forces of the strengthening province changed the old order based on shared origin, and the natural movement of feudal society to the stage of political fragmentation brought to naught the old social structures that had become unnecessary.
Conclusion
The formation of the feudal system was accompanied by a significant drop in the political significance of the imperial power. All power, authority, and most important functions were transferred to the shogun and shogunate – a new system of government under which the emperor performed purely ceremonial functions. The mainstay of the regime was the military-service feudal hierarchy, primarily the samurai estate, which turned into direct or indirect vassals of the shogun.
Management within the shogunate began to be carried out through shugo, a new local representative system, who were entrusted with police and vassal military affairs, and jito, land representatives to control taxes, including in the fief. Over time, the shugo became military-police governors with judicial rights. At the same time, the shogun was considered the head, concentrating military and police-judicial power. The development of feudal relations inevitably undermined the foundations of the centralized political structure inherent in early statehood. There was a leveling of such basic categories of political culture as kinship with the imperial family and noble origin, a place in the hierarchy of the bureaucratic apparatus.