Feudal Japan VS Feudal Europe

You might have wondered what the difference between Japan and Europe was during the feudal age.

In feudal Europe, most countries had kings who were feared and served by the people of the land. They commanded vast armies and held control over their land by giving land to their supporters. In feudal Japan, the samurai commanded the forces of the emperor's armies, and they were given money and land for their services.

In feudal Europe, many of the countries were in the Catholic Church, and were commanded in religion by the pope. In feudal Japan, the people were in the religions Shinto and Buddhism.

When European knights were captured, they would wait for their leaders to ransom them back, but Japanese samurai stabbed themselves so that they would not be captured because that was seen as a dishonor.

Knights in medieval Europe were very similar to the samurai and believed in honor, loyalty, and bravery. Both knights and samurai had a code of honor. For the Japanese it was called the code of Bushido, and for the knights it was called the Code of Chivalry. While in feudal Japan, women could become samurai, in feudal Europe, women were seen as not fit to fight. The samurai valued arts, while knights did not put any emphasis on arts.