The Tokugawa Bakufu, also known as the Edo Bakufu, was the last period in which traditional Japan was controlled by a military dictatorship. The reason it was also called the Edo period was because the shogun established Edo as the new capital of Japan. This shogunate was started by a samurai called Tokugawa Ieyasu in 1603 and ended in 1867. The structure of the Japanese shogunate follows the following order: Shogun – Daimyo – Samurai – Peasants – Artisans – Merchants. The shogun was at the top of feudal society with the highest social hierarchy. They had the highest military and civil authority. Under the shogun there were daimyos who were people who could own some of the shogun's land. Their role was to maintain the law of the time, as well as collect taxes and help people in armed activities. Samurai were warrior administrators who inherited this position from their parents. Each samurai carried two swords and the right to kill anyone below their rank. During the Tokugawa shogunate, however, there were no more wars and the samurai acquired new skills that included reading, writing and accounting. The lower levels consisted of peasants, the main workers. Their masters calculated only enough rice for the farmers to survive. The peasants would be divided into three subcategories: farmers, artisans and traders. Farmers were superior to other subcategories of farmers because they produce the food source that all other classes need. These farmers were part of the honored class but were subjected to heavy tax pressure. During Iemitsu's reign, he made a law that all farmers should not eat the rice they grew as it had to be handed over to the daimyo and returned in rations. Artisans are people who work in their own specialization... middle of paper... the feudal structure was unjust. The shogun had full power over the land and people and had the power to make distorted laws that only benefited the shogun. In the Tokugawa shogunate, the shogun limited the power of the daimyos as previously stated, so that no one could take his place as shogun. What should be allowed is that even the shogun has a limit on power so that the structure of feudal society remains the same. But all other ranks would be considered fair. In conclusion, society in traditional Japan was out of balance with everyone except the shogun. Tokugawa Ieyasu aimed for the unification of Japan and succeeded by defeating his rivals at the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600. The rewards for winning this battle earned him the loyalty of all the daimyos of Japan. Having become shogun, he unified Japan by moving the capital to Edo, which later became modern Tokyo.