Honor Codes: How Warriors Should Live While Also Keeping Subject To Society

“They don’t make them like they used to.” Have you ever noticed yourself murmuring this phrase when you’re frustrated at something, just wishing that things could be like they used to be? A common feeling, it’s responsible for distorting the realities of our collective past and making us think that everything ‘then’ was a lot nicer, a lot simpler, and maybe just plain better. However, this idealistic history we often revere towards, is almost always false and fictionalized. Because of our natural reverence towards the past, our perception of the way we see things gets distorted and often makes things more appealing than they are. This essay intends to separate fact from fiction, realism from idealism, etc. and hopefully shed light on the mystique of history’s most distinguishable warriors and the codes that kept them in check.

Any prosperous culture, if they want to persist and fend off invaders, must develop a martial force that is capable of militaristic warfare against a hostile civilization. Because of their unique specialization in warfare and killing, these forces often became “numb” to killing and crimes against humanity, often making them scourges to the benevolence and progression of society. In order to keep these forces in check, these cultures had to implement a code of conduct, or an “honor code”, that would be insinuated into the values and core beliefs of these warriors, which they would adhere to and live by. As a result, these warriors would become subject to society and be accepted as members of society. Two exemplary models that portray this are the knights in Medieval Europe and the Samurai in Feudal Japan. These honor codes dictated how these warriors should live while also keeping them under control.

To understand how societal control was enacted onto these specific military castes via honor codes, you must understand the capabilities and implications of these unique warrior classes.

When we think about knights, we conceive this idealized depiction in our head of some noble heroic warrior, who is always brave in battle and whose gallantry was unsurpassed. To understand more about the reality of knights, we must understand what a knight is. Knights were mercenaries who were compensated by bishops, lords, and kings to protect land and territory, wage war against enemies, and collect taxes from people. Knights were extremely popular during the time span of the 12th century to the 15th century but were also utilized during the time span of the Crusades. Most knights came from elite backgrounds and were heavily armored in chainmail links on horseback.

However, despite our romanticized depiction of knights and their chivalrous behavior, they were often the opposite of what we modernly perceive of them. Simply put, knights were cold-blooded killers for hire. After successful missions, they would often pillage nearby villages and do horrendous acts against the villagers. They would take advantage of their power and status to steal valuables from villagers, kill innocent peasants, violate women, and burn whole villages. Because knights were high enough on the caste system, they could get away with any horrendous act and justify it through means of their occupation. Because of this, The Dark Ages was one of the most deadliest time periods in all of human history, arguably. As Batty states in The Spirit and Influences of Chivalry, “Crime of all sorts was never so rife, honour was never so disregarded, nor war conducted so brutally.” (Batty 136). During the Medieval Age, knights were also commonly thought of as harbingers of death and ultimate destruction (See Photo 1). In the artwork Knight, Death and the Devil, the main subject depicted is a knight in armor alongside some sort of demon (possibly the devil) after a major battle where almost all had perished. The artist shows how close the demon and knight are to each other, meaning that knights and demons are similar and coexist with each other. These warriors had become so violent and aggressive, due to the unique nature of their profession, they had become scourges to the benevolence of society. Quite interestingly enough, despite having no direct correlation with the Medieval knights, another military class in Japan was also becoming increasingly popular, and more so, aggressive.

Halfway across the world, during the same time period, another caste of specialized warriors capable of dealing death was becoming prominent: the Samurai. These katana-wielding warriors became an integral part of Japan’s development, especially with the early feudal system implemented. A Samurai would serve a “daimyo”, or master, with absolute loyalty, even at the indication of death. In fact, the word Samurai means, ‘those who serve.’ Samurai were employed by their feudal lords (daimyo) to defend their territories against rivals, fight enemies identified by the government, and battle with hostile tribes and bandits. They were also utilized by the government during conquest and military campaigns. Samurai were regarded highly and were placed in the fourth level of the feudal system, following the daimyo class.

Similar to the knights in Medieval Europe, the Samurai were also becoming increasingly aggressive and violent to their fellow people, due to their occupation. Because of their insensitive nature toward killing and human life, the Samurai had often abused their social status and committed crimes against humanity for personal benefit. They would commit all kinds of horrendous acts, such as robbing, killing, burning, etc. Not only that, Samurai were the only social class allowed to carry weapons on their person, and that power was often abused. Samurai could kill an innocent bystander based on the accusation of disrespect. Samurai could also perform “tsujigiri’, which is a practice where a Samurai tests their new weapon’s effectiveness, by attacking a human opponent. Because of the elevation and emphasis placed on their occupation, the Samurai had become insensitive and had become the very thing they swore to destroy, similar to the Medieval knights.

Because these two specialized military castes had become so aggressively hostile, holding no regard to human life and benevolence, these cultures had to implement a “code of conduct” or an honor code, that would regulate the power of these warriors and ensure they would contribute to the benevolence of society, rather than detract the worth of thus said society. Over hundreds of years, these orally transmitted codes would soon develop and collate over time and become known as the Code of Chivalry and the Code of Bushido.

As knights became increasingly popular as a means of militaristic force, they became increasingly aggressive and would commit horrendous crimes when on duty. Because of the rampant and unpredictable nature of knights, an honor code was developed that showed how knights must live and adhere by. This code even went past the boundaries of combat and introduced traits that would be regarded as chivalrous, such as courage, courtesy, and gallantry towards women. Knights had to promise to protect the weak and defenseless, obey those in authority, always speak the truth. Knights were obliged to follow these rules and adhere to these values, otherwise, terrible things would happen to him and his reputation. As Batty explains in Spirit and Influences of Chivalry, “To utter a falsehood was an offence of which the infamy was never to be effaced.” (Batty 127) They had to display great amounts of bravery, courtesy, honor, etc. at all times. A knight was expected to have not only the strength and skills to face combat in the violent era of the Middle Ages, but was also expected to tone down this aggressive side with a chivalrous one. These sacred oaths of combat were combined with the ideals of chivalry, with strict rules of etiquette and codes of conduct towards women. These values of chivalrous conduct were especially emphasized during swears and oaths in knighthood ceremonies. This code was so integral to the very structure and status of knights, that it was adopted everywhere and everyone knew the entirety of the code. This code of chivalry radically changed the way people viewed knights and their reputation. This code had turned knights from despised bloodthirsty killers to admirable defenders with large amounts of rapport, who would protect the weak and defenseless, always speak the truth, and conduct chivalrous behavior.

Another warrior class, halfway around the world, was also undergoing the same process as the medieval knights. A series of laws and values were beginning to collate together and form a single code of conduct, which all Samurai would live by. This code of conduct would later be written and known as the Code of Bushido. The Bushido Code was originally a series of unwritten codes that were orally transmitted from an earlier period, when samurai were horsemen and archers. The roots of Bushido are directly correlated with religions that were flourishing during that time period, such as Zen-Buddhism, Confucianism, and Shintoism. The word “bushi” directly translates to warrior. “do” translates to way. Therefore, when both are combined together, you get the word “Bushido”, which means “way of the warrior”. The core values of the Bushido Code include justice, courage, benevolence, politeness, veracity, honor, and loyalty. The Bushido Code guided Samurai in life and death, emphasized loyalty to their lord and country, and stressed honor and other core values. The Code of Bushido guided the Samurai to a more peaceful sustainability and a better future. The Bushido promoted mindfulness and peace at all levels. It discouraged the regular killings performed on innocent bystanders and many other things. Because of this, the Samurai were no longer randomly killing peasants for meaningless reasons, but were encouraged to highlight their virtues through purposeful gracious killing. As Ikegami explains in Shame and the Samurai: Institutions, Trustworthiness, and Autonomy in the Elite Honor Culture, “They had a highly developed sense of honor and glory, combined with self-esteem, dignity, and moral autonomy demonstrated through violence.” (Ikegami 1361) This quote explains how the Code of Bushido had created a warrior that would display their honor and integrity, by fighting for their country, daimyo, and people, rather than killing and plundering their own people. As a result, the status and reputation amongst this social class abruptly turned for the better. Similarly, as we view them now, Samurai became honorable warriors who were on the path for honor and peace, harboring skills both in the art of war and peace.

Any successful civilization, if they want to survive and fend off invaders, must develop a martial force that is capable of militaristic warfare against a hostile civilization. Because of their unique specialization in warfare and killing, these forces often became “numb” to killing and crimes against humanity, often making them scourges to the wellbeing and progression of society. In order to keep these forces in line, these cultures implemented codes of conduct, or an “honor code”, that would be insinuated into the values and core beliefs of these warriors, which they must adhere to and live by. As a result, these warriors would become subject to society and be accepted as members of society. Two exemplary models that portray this are the knights in Medieval Europe and the Samurai in Feudal Japan. These honor codes dictated how these warriors should live while also keeping subject to society.