Toyama-ryu
Encyclopedia
is Battōjutsu which refer to a combination of Iaijutsu
, kata
, and tameshigiri
created by the Imperial Japanese Army
. It is based on Gunto Soho forms developed in 1925 at the Rikugun Toyama Gakko, or "Toyama Army Academy" in Toyama, Tokyo, Japan. The original training and forms were established by a committee. Swordsmen involved in developing this military system included Morinaga Kiyoshi Nakayama Hakudo
and Sasaburo Takano.
Today, separate lines of Toyama-ryū are primarily located in the Kantō,Tokai & Kansai region.
, officers in the Japanese army were required to carry Western-style sabres. However, this caused problems during battles against rebels in Satsuma
(now Kagoshima Prefecture
), since soldiers equipped with single-shot rifles and sabres were frequently overwhelmed by samurai
who knew Jigen-ryū
(示現流）and could charge much faster than the non-Samurai soldiers could cope with.
During the Russo-Japanese war
(1904-05), the Cossack cavalries frequently charged against the Japanese infantrymen and again it was extremely difficult for the Japanese to defend themselves using sabres once their enemy reached them.
The Japanese studied the First World War with great enthusiasm, hoping to learn more about fighting modern warfare. They discovered that much fighting was still occurring at close quarters in trench warfare
, often with heavy swung weapons like entrenching tools. This likely prompted the Japanese to tighten up their close quarter combat training. The katana
was therefore readopted as the Japanese could access domestic sword masters more easily than European ones. was also developed at this time, being based on the use of sōjutsu
(spear) techniques. This later became the rarely practiced sport of jūkendō
, after the war ended.
Thus, Japanese army officers were later issued new swords shaped more like katana
. However, not all officers had sufficient background in kenjutsu
to deploy these weapons in combat. Consequently, in 1925, a simplified form of sword technique was devised that emphasized the most essential points of drawing and cutting. For instance, the army iai-battō
kata differ from those of many koryū
sword schools in that all techniques are practised from a standing position. (Koryū schools included a number of techniques executed from seiza
.) Also, this modern ryū
has a strong emphasis on tameshigiri
, or "test-cutting."
At the end of World War II
, the Toyama Military Academy became the U.S. Army's Camp Zama
. Nonetheless, the military iai system was revived after 1952. By the 1970s, three separate organizations represented Toyama-ryū Iaido
: in Hokkaidō
, the Greater Japan Toyama Ryu Iaido Federation (established by Yamaguchi Yuuki); in Kansai
(Kyoto-Osaka area), the Toyama Ryu Iaido Association (established by Morinaga Kiyoshi); and the All Japan Toyama Ryu Iaido Federation (established by Nakamura Taizaburo). Each of these organizations was autonomous and retained its own set of forms; the Hokkaido branch even included sword versus bayonet
exercises. Today, there are also at least half a dozen active instructors of Toyama-ryū outside Japan, many of whom are in California
, though there are also schools in Poland and Australia.
The adoption of the katana
by the Westernised Japanese army was also part of a Nationalist trend in Japan. During the 1920s Japan went through a phase of Militant Nationalism that lasted until defeat in the Second World War. By adopting the katana
, the traditional sword of the Samurai
the Japanese were allying themselves with the Samurai military tradition. Adopting the Katana also served to calm discontent among the more politicized sections of the army who had been outraged at mechanization (another lesson learned from World War I
) which had de-emphasized the role of infantry and cavalry.
Iaijutsu
, the art of drawing the Japanese sword. One of Japanese martial disciplines in education of the classical warrior .-Etymology:"Iaijutsu" was known before the Tokugawa period but it is unclear exactly when the term "iaijutsu" first came into use, or when exactly drawing the katana from its...
, kata
Kata
is a Japanese word describing detailed choreographed patterns of movements practised either solo or in pairs. The term form is used for the corresponding concept in non-Japanese martial arts in general....
, and tameshigiri
Tameshigiri
Tameshigiri is the Japanese art of target test cutting. The kanji literally mean "test cut"...
created by the Imperial Japanese Army
Imperial Japanese Army
-Foundation:During the Meiji Restoration, the military forces loyal to the Emperor were samurai drawn primarily from the loyalist feudal domains of Satsuma and Chōshū...
. It is based on Gunto Soho forms developed in 1925 at the Rikugun Toyama Gakko, or "Toyama Army Academy" in Toyama, Tokyo, Japan. The original training and forms were established by a committee. Swordsmen involved in developing this military system included Morinaga Kiyoshi Nakayama Hakudo
Nakayama Hakudo
, also known as Nakayama Hiromichi, was a Japanese martial artist and founder of the iaidō style Musō Shinden-ryū. He is the only person to have received both jūdan and hanshi ranks in kendō, iaidō, and jōdō from the All Japan Kendo Federation...
and Sasaburo Takano.
Today, separate lines of Toyama-ryū are primarily located in the Kantō,Tokai & Kansai region.
Background
After the Meiji RestorationMeiji Restoration
The , also known as the Meiji Ishin, Revolution, Reform or Renewal, was a chain of events that restored imperial rule to Japan in 1868...
, officers in the Japanese army were required to carry Western-style sabres. However, this caused problems during battles against rebels in Satsuma
Satsuma Province
was an old province of Japan that is now the western half of Kagoshima Prefecture on the island of Kyūshū. Its abbreviation is Sasshū .During the Sengoku Period, Satsuma was a fief of the Shimazu daimyo, who ruled much of southern Kyūshū from their castle at Kagoshima city.In 1871, with the...
(now Kagoshima Prefecture
Kagoshima Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyushu. The capital is the city of Kagoshima.- Geography :Kagoshima Prefecture is located at the southwest tip of Kyushu and includes a chain of islands stretching further to the southwest for a few hundred kilometers...
), since soldiers equipped with single-shot rifles and sabres were frequently overwhelmed by samurai
Samurai
is the term for the military nobility of pre-industrial Japan. According to translator William Scott Wilson: "In Chinese, the character 侍 was originally a verb meaning to wait upon or accompany a person in the upper ranks of society, and this is also true of the original term in Japanese, saburau...
who knew Jigen-ryū
Jigen-ryu
Jigen-ryū is a traditional school of Japanese martial arts founded in the late 16th century by Togo Chui in Satsuma Province, now Kagoshima prefecture, Kyushu, Japan. It focuses mainly on the art of swordsmanship...
(示現流）and could charge much faster than the non-Samurai soldiers could cope with.
During the Russo-Japanese war
Russo-Japanese War
The Russo-Japanese War was "the first great war of the 20th century." It grew out of rival imperial ambitions of the Russian Empire and Japanese Empire over Manchuria and Korea...
(1904-05), the Cossack cavalries frequently charged against the Japanese infantrymen and again it was extremely difficult for the Japanese to defend themselves using sabres once their enemy reached them.
The Japanese studied the First World War with great enthusiasm, hoping to learn more about fighting modern warfare. They discovered that much fighting was still occurring at close quarters in trench warfare
Trench warfare
Trench warfare is a form of occupied fighting lines, consisting largely of trenches, in which troops are largely immune to the enemy's small arms fire and are substantially sheltered from artillery...
, often with heavy swung weapons like entrenching tools. This likely prompted the Japanese to tighten up their close quarter combat training. The katana
Katana
A Japanese sword, or , is one of the traditional bladed weapons of Japan. There are several types of Japanese swords, according to size, field of application and method of manufacture.-Description:...
was therefore readopted as the Japanese could access domestic sword masters more easily than European ones. was also developed at this time, being based on the use of sōjutsu
Sojutsu
, meaning "art of the spear" is the Japanese martial art of fighting with the Japanese .-Origins:Although the spear had a profound role in early Japanese mythology, where the islands of Japan themselves were said to be created by salt water dripping from the tip of a spear, as a weapon the first...
(spear) techniques. This later became the rarely practiced sport of jūkendō
Jukendo
is the Japanese martial art of bayonet fighting, and has been likened to kendo . Jukendo techniques are based on sojutsu or bayonet techniques from the 17th century, when firearms were introduced to Japan....
, after the war ended.
Thus, Japanese army officers were later issued new swords shaped more like katana
Katana
A Japanese sword, or , is one of the traditional bladed weapons of Japan. There are several types of Japanese swords, according to size, field of application and method of manufacture.-Description:...
. However, not all officers had sufficient background in kenjutsu
Kenjutsu
, meaning "the method, or technique, of the sword." This is opposed to kendo, which means the way of the sword. Kenjutsu is the umbrella term for all traditional schools of Japanese swordsmanship, in particular those that predate the Meiji Restoration...
to deploy these weapons in combat. Consequently, in 1925, a simplified form of sword technique was devised that emphasized the most essential points of drawing and cutting. For instance, the army iai-battō
Battojutsu
is a Japanese term meaning techniques for engaging a sword. It is often used interchangeably with the terms iaijutsu, battōdō, or iaidō, although each term does have nuances in the Japanese language and different schools of Japanese martial arts may use them to differentiate between techniques...
kata differ from those of many koryū
Koryu
is a Japanese word that is used in association with the ancient Japanese martial arts. This word literally translates as "old school" or "traditional school"...
sword schools in that all techniques are practised from a standing position. (Koryū schools included a number of techniques executed from seiza
Seiza
Seiza is the Japanese term for the traditional formal way of sitting in Japan.- Form :To sit seiza-style, one first kneels on the floor, folding one's legs underneath one's thighs, while resting the buttocks on the heels...
.) Also, this modern ryū
Ryu (school)
A Ryū , or ryūha , is a Japanese word referring to a school of thought in any discipline...
has a strong emphasis on tameshigiri
Tameshigiri
Tameshigiri is the Japanese art of target test cutting. The kanji literally mean "test cut"...
, or "test-cutting."
At the end of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the Toyama Military Academy became the U.S. Army's Camp Zama
Camp Zama
is a United States Army post located in the cities of Zama and Sagamihara, in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, about southwest of Tokyo.Camp Zama is home to the U.S. Army Japan /I Corps , the U.S. Army Japan Aviation Detachment "Ninjas" , the 500th Military Intelligence Brigade, the Japan Engineer...
. Nonetheless, the military iai system was revived after 1952. By the 1970s, three separate organizations represented Toyama-ryū Iaido
Iaido
is a modern Japanese martial art associated with the smooth, controlled movements of drawing the sword from its scabbard, striking or cutting an opponent, removing blood from the blade, and then replacing the sword in the scabbard...
: in Hokkaidō
Hokkaido
, formerly known as Ezo, Yezo, Yeso, or Yesso, is Japan's second largest island; it is also the largest and northernmost of Japan's 47 prefectural-level subdivisions. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaido from Honshu, although the two islands are connected by the underwater railway Seikan Tunnel...
, the Greater Japan Toyama Ryu Iaido Federation (established by Yamaguchi Yuuki); in Kansai
Kansai
The or the lies in the southern-central region of Japan's main island Honshū. The region includes the prefectures of Mie, Nara, Wakayama, Kyoto, Osaka, Hyōgo, and Shiga. Depending on who makes the distinction, Fukui, Tokushima and even Tottori Prefecture are also included...
(Kyoto-Osaka area), the Toyama Ryu Iaido Association (established by Morinaga Kiyoshi); and the All Japan Toyama Ryu Iaido Federation (established by Nakamura Taizaburo). Each of these organizations was autonomous and retained its own set of forms; the Hokkaido branch even included sword versus bayonet
Bayonet
A bayonet is a knife, dagger, sword, or spike-shaped weapon designed to fit in, on, over or underneath the muzzle of a rifle, musket or similar weapon, effectively turning the gun into a spear...
exercises. Today, there are also at least half a dozen active instructors of Toyama-ryū outside Japan, many of whom are in California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, though there are also schools in Poland and Australia.
The adoption of the katana
Katana
A Japanese sword, or , is one of the traditional bladed weapons of Japan. There are several types of Japanese swords, according to size, field of application and method of manufacture.-Description:...
by the Westernised Japanese army was also part of a Nationalist trend in Japan. During the 1920s Japan went through a phase of Militant Nationalism that lasted until defeat in the Second World War. By adopting the katana
Katana
A Japanese sword, or , is one of the traditional bladed weapons of Japan. There are several types of Japanese swords, according to size, field of application and method of manufacture.-Description:...
, the traditional sword of the Samurai
Samurai
is the term for the military nobility of pre-industrial Japan. According to translator William Scott Wilson: "In Chinese, the character 侍 was originally a verb meaning to wait upon or accompany a person in the upper ranks of society, and this is also true of the original term in Japanese, saburau...
the Japanese were allying themselves with the Samurai military tradition. Adopting the Katana also served to calm discontent among the more politicized sections of the army who had been outraged at mechanization (another lesson learned from World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
) which had de-emphasized the role of infantry and cavalry.
External links
- International Batto-Do Confederation Santa Ana, California. Formed by Nakamura Taizaburo and Fumio Demura. Affiliated with the All Japan Toyama Ryu Iaido Federation.
- http://www.toyamaryu-usa.com
- http://www.toyamaryu.net/
- Fukuoka branch official site
- SeiDoKan Dojo Australia established 2001 by Nakamura Taizaburo Hanshi 10th dan
- Kenshinkan Dojo (Guy Power Sensei's Dojo in the San Francisco Bay Area, California, USA)
- Nakamura Taizaburo with Guy H. Power. "Essential Principles of Toyama Ryu Iaido," Dragon Times, 2000.
- Kokusai Toyama Ryū Renmei (overseen by Obata Toshishiro, Honbucho)