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Japanese Yumi Bow

Type Object Region Japan Time 1221–1230

The Japanese yumi is an asymmetric longbow of bamboo, wood, horn, and lacquer over two meters long, the core weapon of samurai mounted and foot arche…

Timeline

  1. 1221Kyoto · KyotoEmperor Go-Toba raised forces against the shogunate; shogunal and imperial troops used massed yumi volleys at Uji, Ōhara, and elsewhere to suppress fortifications and positions. Samurai carried large bows for mounted or foot shooting, and arrow volleys combined with tachi close combat decided the outcome at Kyoto.
  2. 1222–1227Kamakura · KamakuraAfter the Jōkyū War the shogunate strengthened archery examinations for gokenin, setting up archery grounds in Kamakura and the provinces, standardizing draw-weight grades for large bows and fletching equipment. Gokenin were required to keep a yumi and quiver ready as part of levy and stipend obligations.
  3. 1228–1230Kantō provinces · KantōThe shogunate promoted mounted archery drills such as yabusame and inuoumono among Kantō gokenin to strengthen frontier military power. The yumi used both mounted and foot shooting techniques, becoming the basic paradigm of Japanese military archery thereafter.

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