Like the chivalry of medieval Europe, the samurai had their origins in the 8th to 10th centuries AD. For several centuries, the samurai formed an exclusive military caste, dominant on the battlefield, where they fought mainly as armoured horse-archers. Then, with the outbreak of the Onin War in 1467, Japan descended into 150 years of civil war, as rival regional magnates (daimyo) waged a relentless struggle for power.
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