Medieval Japan: islands, shoguns and samurai, compared with feudal Europe

Grade 7 Social Studies Worksheet - Building Confidence

Circle the best answer.

1. Read this first

   Use this

   Who held power (cards A to D; summaries in our words). Card A, a chart of ranks: the emperor kept the throne and title in Kyoto but had little real power. The shogun was the top military leader; Minamoto Yoritomo took the title in 1192. The samurai were warriors, bound to their lord by loyalty, who also ran local government and managed the countryside. Card B, the bakufu: the shogun's government was called the bakufu, which means tent government, a name that recalls a military camp. It ran the country from Kamakura. The Kamakura period lasted from 1185 to 1333. Card C, two kinds of records: nobles at the emperor's court in Kyoto kept diaries, and officials of the shogunate kept their own chronicle of its deeds. Card D, a map note: Japan is a country of islands, and Kamakura lies on the eastern coast of the main island, a long way from the court in Kyoto.

2. 1.

   Card C says shogunate officials kept their own chronicle. Ari asks whose view that chronicle will most likely give, and why.

   • A farmer's view, since farmers in the countryside kept the records of local government
   • A foreign visitor's view, since outsiders came to Kamakura and recorded what they saw
   • The shogunate's own view, since its officials wrote about their own government's deeds
   • The emperor's court, since officials in Kyoto kept the chronicle of the shogun's deeds
3. 2.

   Court nobles and shogunate officials each kept records. How might they describe Yoritomo's rise differently, Bo asks?

   • Their records cannot be compared, since one group kept diaries and the other a chronicle
   • Court nobles may stress the emperor's court, while shogunate officials may stress the shogun's deeds
   • They would agree on each detail, since both groups described the same man in their records of the time
   • Court nobles wrote about farming and shogunate officials wrote about trade with other lands
4. 3.

   Card B says the Kamakura period lasted from 1185 to 1333. How many years did it last, Esme asks?

   • 158 years, since 1333 minus 1185 is 158 after regrouping the tens
   • 1,480 years, since 1333 minus 1185 is 1,480 in this case
   • 841 years, counted from 1185 to the year 2026 and not to 1333
   • 148 years, since 1333 minus 1185 is 148
5. 4.

   A student writes, "The emperor ruled Japan from 1185." Which card challenges that most directly, Jun asks?

   • Card C, which says diaries and chronicles were kept, so the emperor must have lost his title
   • Card A, which says the emperor kept the title but had little real power
   • Card D, which says Japan is a country of islands with Kamakura on the coast
   • Card B, which says the Kamakura period lasted from 1185 to 1333
6. 5.

   Card B says bakufu means tent government, a name that recalls a military camp. What does the name suggest, Luz asks?

   • The shogun's government traveled the countryside, where it met farmers in village tents
   • The shogun's government was run by traveling merchants who set up tents in each market
   • The shogun's government was run by a military leader, like an army camp's headquarters
   • The shogun's government was run from the emperor's palace, where it met in large tents
7. 6.

   The Kamakura period began in 1185 (card B), and Yoritomo took the title of shogun in 1192 (card A). How many years later was that, Milo asks?

   • 148 years later, the full length of the Kamakura period
   • 7 years later, since 1192 minus 1185 is 7
   • 70 years later, since 1192 minus 1185 is 70 in this case
   • 77 years later, since 1192 minus 1185 is 77 when the tens are counted
8. 7.

   Why might officials of the shogunate keep a chronicle of their government's deeds, Pia asks?

   • To teach farmers in the countryside to read, so they could follow the shogun's rules
   • To hide the shogunate's deeds from the court, so that nobles in Kyoto knew nothing
   • To help historians in the 2000s write textbooks about the Kamakura period for their students
   • To keep a record of the government's deeds that also showed the shogunate in a good light
9. 8.

   How might a samurai in the countryside and a noble in Kyoto each see the shogun, Ren asks?

   • The samurai would dislike the shogun and the noble would admire him, since samurai ran the farms
   • The samurai may see a lord who rewards loyal service, while the noble may see a court rival
   • Both would see the same leader, since each belonged to the ruling class of Japan
   • The samurai would see a trader and the noble would see a farmer in the same leader
10. 9.

    Which change does card A describe as warriors gained power, Tala asks?

    • Kyoto was left empty, since the court nobles moved to Kamakura with the shogun
    • Court nobles took over local government from the samurai across the country
    • The emperor gave up his title, so the shogun became emperor of Japan in 1192
    • Samurai, not court nobles, ran local government and managed the countryside
11. 10.

    Which new source would best show how farmers felt about samurai managing the countryside, Zee asks?

    • Village records or petitions written by farmers or on their behalf
    • The shogunate's chronicle of its government's deeds in Kamakura
    • No source could show it, since farmers rarely wrote, so nothing survives about their feelings
    • A modern book that repeats card A in new words for readers today