LAW AND JUSTICE IN KOYO GUNKAN
The article studies the views on law and justice held by samurai during the period of Warring States, and to that end analysese Koyo Gunkan, a source that can with some reservations be labeled a military narrative ( gunki ). According to this source, a daimyo’s fair adjudication implies taking into account the merits of a vassal or his clan. The samurai expected that their loyalty would be taken into account, and the daimyo’s judgment would not be based only on the letter of the law or the custom. An overly abundant lawmaking by daimyo is condemned, and it is implied that a “good” law would have an effect only if the daimyo who accepted it was virtuous. The ideal lawmaker and judge, represented in Koyo Gunkan by Takeda Shingen, is opposed by his son Katsuyori, whose shortcomings, along with the blasphemy of his entourage, led to a wrongful trial and disregard for the laws in Takeda house.