Samurai Colours

>
> --- russcat9 wrote:
>
> > In the 16thC the Shimazu were known to equip their
> > warriors with black
> > armour, much like the Ii and Sanada? with red.
>
> Not the Sanada, as far as I know. The Ii took the
> idea, I believe, from the troops of Yamagata
> Masakage--I could be wrong on the name. The Ii then
> made the wearing of uniform armor their thing.
>
> > When did this sort of thing start? Does anyone
> > really know?
>
> Essentially, when the Yamagata and Ii started doing
> it. Prior to that, it was mainly only a concern to
> equip your men with whatever you could--buying
> matching sets of armor gets expensive. Earlier in the
> 16th cent daimyo would mark the armor they issued to
> their ashigaru with their mon; that was probably the
> beginning.
>
> > Is it conceivable that a Shimazu daimyo of the 14thC
> > might have
> > equipped his men with black armour, if similar
> > things were occurring
> > in the 16thC?
>
> Conceivable? I suppose. Not likely--at that point,
> it'd be enough just to make sure they all had armor of
> some sort. Usually the retainer himself was
> responsible for his own armor.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> __________________________________
> Do you Yahoo!?
> The all-new My Yahoo! - Get yours free!
> http://my.yahoo.com

>
> --- russcat9 wrote:
>
> > Hi Nate
> >
> > You're spot on I think - unlike my original post!
> >
> > Cheers
> > Paul
>
> Amazing. I can remember that, but I can't remember to
> bring home toilet paper from the store. I suppose
> that's why my wife gets frustrated. *sigh*
>
> It's important to keep in mind that it was a feudal
> master-retainer relationship. I would take you into my
> service, give you land or a stipend, etc. In return,
> you'd provide military service--and that included
> providing your own equipment, horse, weapons, armor,
> and sub-retainers (your attendants, etc., depending on
> your station) and their equipment. Since it's all
> coming out of different pockets, it's highly unlikely
> I would be able to tell all my retainers "You must all
> be the same". You could standardize your band of 5
> guys or so, but at that time, why? Even the sashimono
> didn't really come into being prior to the end of the
> Onin War, when armies got bigger and bigger and needed
> clearer ways of identifying. Uniforms seem natural to
> us today, but even in European armies, you didn't
> really see uniforms until the late 17th/early 18th
> centuries.
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> __________________________________
> Do you Yahoo!?
> Yahoo! Mail - You care about security. So do we.
> http://promotions.yahoo.com/new_mail