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{{Short description|Infantry employed by the samurai class of feudal Japan}}
{{Italic title|reason=[[:Category:Japanese words and phrases]]}}
[[File:Strings for night firing.jpg|thumb|right|250px|''Ashigaru'' wearing armor and ''[[jingasa]]'' firing ''[[Tanegashima (gun)|tanegashima]]'' (Japanese matchlocks)]]

{{nihongo||{{linktext|足軽}}|'''''Ashigaru'''''|"light of foot"}} were peasant infantry employed by the warlords of Japan to supplement the [[samurai]] in their armies. The first known reference to ''ashigaru'' was in the 14th century,<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=8n9A-jWUhHMC&pg=PA99 ''Warriors of Medieval Japan''], Stephen Turnbull, Osprey Publishing, 2007 p.99</ref> but it was during the [[Ashikaga shogunate]] ([[Muromachi period]]) that the use of ''ashigaru'' became prevalent by various warring factions.<ref name=":0">[https://books.google.com/books?id=Bn3OLJa9DFoC&pg=PA59 ''War in the early modern world''], Jeremy Black, Taylor & Francis, 1999 p.59</ref>

==Origins==
Attempts were made in Japan by [[Emperor Tenmu]] (673–686) to have a conscripted national army, but this did not come about, and by the 10th century Japan instead relied on individual landowners to provide men for conflicts and wars.  These horse-owning landowners were the beginnings of the samurai class and the men who worked the land for the landowners became the common foot soldiers during times of war. These foot soldiers could have long ties and loyalty to the landowners which went back many generations.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=39cDtcRORS8C&dq=ashigaru+weapons&pg=PA5 ''Ashigaru 1467–1649'', Stephen Turnbull, Howard Gerrard, Osprey Publishing, 2001 pp.5–6]</ref>

{{quote|Every farmer was basically also a warrior until [[Toyotomi Hideyoshi|Hideyoshi]] confiscated weapons through a nation-wide "sword-hunt" in 1588. Every ashigaru had his first lessons on the mentality of war from the [[biwa hōshi]]. On the other hand, the [[The Tale of the Heike|Heike]] recitations also propagated civic virtues: loyalty, steadfastness in adversity, and pride of family honor.|[[Carl Steenstrup]]<ref>{{cite journal|last=Steenstrup|first=Carl|title=Notes on the Gunki or Military Tales: Contributions to the Study of the Impact of War on Folk Literature in Premodern Japan|journal=Comparative Civilizations Review 4|year=1980|pages=1–28 |url=https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1022&context=ccr |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191109162700/https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1022&context=ccr |archive-date=November 9, 2019}}</ref>}}

Land-owning samurai, together with farmer foot soldiers, fought in many wars and conflicts including the Mongol invasions of Japan in 1274 and 1281. Constant warfare between the 14th and 16th centuries made the hiring of foot soldiers with no particular loyalty necessary at times. Paid only in loot, these [[mercenaries]] were not well-trained and thus could not always be depended upon in battle. These wandering foot soldiers eventually became the ''ashigaru''.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=39cDtcRORS8C&dq=ashigaru+weapons&pg=PA5 ''Ashigaru 1467–1649'', Stephen Turnbull, Howard Gerrard, Osprey Publishing, 2001 p.5–6]</ref>

==Weapons and armor==
[[File:TanegashimaGun.jpg|thumb|A plain undecorated [[tanegashima (gun)|''tanegashima'']]; this type was used by the ashigaru.]]

Ashigaru were commonly armed with ''[[katana]]'', ''[[yari]]'', and ''[[yumi]]''.<ref name=":0" /> Ashigaru armour varied depending on the period, from no armor to heavily armored and could consist of conical hats called ''[[jingasa]]'' made from [[iron]], [[copper]], [[wood]], [[paper]], [[Bamboo textile|bamboo]], or [[leather]],<ref>{{cite book|last=Tanaka|first=Fumon|author-link=Fumon Tanaka|title=Samurai Fighting Arts: The Spirit and the Practice|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sBWasQSsb-UC&pg=PA46|year=2003|publisher=Kodansha International|isbn=978-4-7700-2898-3|page=46}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1=Ratti|first1=Oscar|last2=Westbrook|first2=Adele|title=Secrets of the Samurai; A Survey of the Martial Arts of Feudal Japan|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Z9lmmkvQOpoC&pg=PA219|year=1991|publisher=C. E. Tuttle|isbn=978-0-8048-1684-7|page=219}}</ref>  ''[[dō (armour)|dō]]'' (cuirasses), ''[[kabuto]]'' (helmets), ''[[tatami (Japanese armour)|tatami zukin]]'' (armored hoods), ''[[Sangu (armour)#KoteKote|kote]]'' (armored sleeves), ''[[Sangu (armour)#Suneate|suneate]]'' (greaves), and ''[[Sangu (armour)#haidate|haidate]]'' (cuisses).

The warfare of the [[Sengoku period]] (15th and 16th centuries) required large quantities of armor to be produced for the ever-growing armies of ashigaru. Simple [[munition armour]]<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=8APyY3eIONcC&pg=PA130 ''The Watanabe Art Museum Samurai Armour CollectionVolume I ~ Kabuto & Mengu'', Trevor Absolon P.130]</ref> cuirasses and helmets were mass-produced including [[Commons:Category:Tatami gusoku|''tatami'']] armor which could be folded or were collapsible.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=IQ3FAZG94ZsC&pg=PA29 ''Samurai: The Weapons and Spirit of the Japanese Warrior'', Clive Sinclaire, Globe Pequot, 2004 P.29]</ref> ''Tatami'' armor was made from small rectangular or hexagonal iron plates that were usually connected to each other by mail and sewn to a cloth backing.<ref>{{cite book|last=Bryant|first=Anthony J.|author-link=Anthony J. Bryant|title=Samurai 1550-1600|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TPw7m2qrRloC&pg=PA31|year=1994|publisher=Bloomsbury USA|isbn=978-1-85532-345-2|page=31}}</ref>

In the 16th century the ashigaru were also armed with [[matchlock]]s of the type known as [[Tanegashima (gun)|''tanegashima'']].<ref>{{cite book|last=Turnbull|first=Stephen|author-link=Stephen Turnbull (historian)|title=Ashigaru 1467-1649|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=39cDtcRORS8C&pg=PA17|year=2001|publisher=Bloomsbury USA|isbn=978-1-84176-149-7|pages=17–18}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Bryant|first=Anthony J.|author-link=Anthony J. Bryant|title=The Samurai: Warriors of Medieval Japan, 940-1600|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gruIzQEACAAJ&pg=PA63|year=2010|publisher=Osprey|page=63}}</ref>  Small banners called ''[[sashimono]]'' could be worn on their backs during battle for identification.<ref>{{cite book|last=Turnbull|first=Stephen|author-link=Stephen Turnbull (historian)|title=Ashigaru 1467-1649|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=39cDtcRORS8C&pg=PA5|year=2001|publisher=Bloomsbury USA|isbn=978-1-84176-149-7|page=5}}</ref>

==Service in war==
{{Unreferenced section|date=February 2011}}
[[File:The Ieyasu Parade by sachakun 3.jpg|thumb|right|A group of [[historical reenactment|re-enactors]] dressed as ashigaru for a parade, as part of the re-enactment of the [[Battle of Sekigahara]]]]

In the [[Ōnin War]], ashigaru gained a reputation as unruly troops when they looted and burned Miyako (modern-day [[Kyoto]]). In the following [[Sengoku period]] the aspect of the battle changed from single combat to massed formations.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Cartwright |first=Mark |title=Sengoku Period |url=https://www.worldhistory.org/Sengoku_Period/ |access-date=2023-08-30 |website=World History Encyclopedia |date=28 June 2019 |language=en}}</ref> Therefore, ashigaru became the backbone of many feudal armies and some of them rose to greater prominence.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Ashigaru (Foot Soldiers) {{!}} Search Details |url=https://www.mlit.go.jp/tagengo-db/en/H30-00657.html |access-date=2025-11-14 |website=Japan Tourism Agency,Japan Tourism Agency |language=en}}</ref>

Those who were given control of ashigaru were called {{nihongo||足軽頭|ashigarugashira}}. The most famous of them was [[Toyotomi Hideyoshi]], who also raised many of his warrior followers to samurai status.

==Introduction to firearms and new tactics==
{{refimprove section|date=February 2011}}
[[File:Lacquered boxes against rain.jpg|thumb|upright|Edo period print of ''ashigaru'' wearing [[Mino (straw cape)|''mino'']] (straw raincoats) in the rain while firing [[Tanegashima (Japanese matchlock)|tanegashima]] (Japanese matchlocks)]]
Ashigaru formed the backbone of samurai armies in the later periods. The real change for the ashigaru began in 1543 with the introduction of matchlock firearms by the Portuguese. Almost immediately local ''[[daimyō]]s'' started to equip their ashigaru with the new weapon, which required little training to use proficiently, as compared with the longbow, which took many years to learn. As battles became more complex and forces larger, ashigaru were rigorously trained so that they would hold their ranks in the face of enemy fire.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Guns in Early Modern Japan {{!}} Search Details |url=https://www.mlit.go.jp/tagengo-db/en/R4-00195,html |access-date=2025-11-14 |website=Japan Tourism Agency,Japan Tourism Agency |language=en}}</ref>

The advantage of the matchlock guns proved decisive to samurai warfare. This was demonstrated at the [[Battle of Nagashino]] in 1575, where carefully positioned ashigaru gunners of the Oda and Tokugawa clans thwarted the [[Takeda clan]]'s repeated heavy cavalry charges against the [[Oda clan]]'s defensive lines and broke the back of the Takeda war machine.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Battle of Nagashino {{!}} Significance & Description {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/event/Battle-of-Nagashino |access-date=2025-11-14 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en}}</ref>

After the battle, the ashigaru's role in the armies was cemented as a very powerful complement to the samurai. The advantage was used in the two invasions of [[Korea]] in 1592 and 1597 against the Koreans and later the [[Ming dynasty|Ming-dynasty Chinese]]. Though the ratio of guns (matchlocks) to bows was 2:1 during the first invasion, the ratio became 4:1 in the second invasion since the guns proved highly effective.<ref>"{{nihongo|War history of Japan: Chousen-eki|日本戦史　朝鮮役}}" (1924) Staff headquarters of Imperial Japanese Army /{{ISBN|4-19-890265-8}}</ref>

==Discontinuation of conscription==
Following the rise of the [[Tokugawa shogunate]], the conscription of ashigaru fell into disuse. Since ashigarus' change to the professional soldier was advanced after [[Oda Nobunaga]], the ashigaru gradually separated from the farmer.

When entering the [[Edo period]], the ashigaru's position was fixed and the use of conscripts was abandoned for over two hundred years in Japan. Ashigaru were considered to be the lowest rung of the samurai class in some han (domains), but not in others.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=y__vstXjs30C&pg=PA88 ''Samurai Armies 1467–1649''], Stephen Turnbull, Osprey Publishing, 2008, {{ISBN|9781846033513}}. p. 88.</ref>

==Gallery==
<gallery>
File:Hara-ate dou.JPG| Edo-period single-piece breastplate [[Commons:Category:Hara-ate Dou (dō)|''hara-ate dō'']]. Lacquered iron plates with cloth back strap.
File:Ashigaru jingasa.JPG| Edo-period ''[[jingasa]]''
File:Zunari kabuto.JPG|Edo-period ''[[Kabuto]]'' helmet of the [[Commons:Category:Zunari kabuto|''zunari'']] style, plain with no front crest holder
File:Karuta zukin.JPG|Edo-period [[Commons:Category:Karuta zukin|''karuta zukin'']], an armored hood from with iron cards and mail
File:Hara-ate karuta tatami dou.JPG|Edo-period [[Commons:Category:Karuta tatami dou (dō)|''karuta tatami dō'']] in the [[Commons:Category:Hara-ate Dou (dō)|''hara-ate'']] style
File:Kikko tatami dou.JPG|Edo-period [[Commons:Category:Kikko tatami dou (dō)|''kikko tatami dō'']]. A collapsible cuirass made with small hexagonal iron plates.
File:Iron jingasa.JPG|Edo-period iron ''[[jingasa]]'', eight iron plates riveted together
</gallery>

==See also==
* [[Infantry]]

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

==External links==
{{commons category|Ashigaru}}
{{Japanese (samurai) weapons, armour and equipment}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Japanese historical terms]]
[[Category:Japanese warriors]]
[[Category:Military history of feudal Japan]]
[[Category:Military units and formations of the Middle Ages]]
[[Category:Infantry]]