Qi Jiguang is one of the most influential General in Chinese History. During his fight with the Pirates (ARRRR) of the coast, he came into contact with the Japanese Sword. LK Chen has reproduced a Ming era saber that fits Qi's specifications.
00:00- opening
00:25-specifications
00:36-introduction
01:18-historical background
01:30-Biography
02:39-State of the military
03:43-The Wokou
04:48-The Portuguese
05:15-General Qi's Method
06:10-Qi and the Japanese Sword
06:44-Two swords, long and short
07:00-Qi Jia Yao Dao and the Wodao
07:20-Yao dao and Shield
08:00-Writings and later career
08:51-End of life and legacy
10:20-Review of Lk Chen Qijia Yao Dao
13:50-Sharpness and Cutting
16:50-conclusion
Blog post on TPLA fighting words: [ Ссылка ]
Here is a great series on the Great Ming Military Blog: [ Ссылка ]
Excellent typology of Dao from Peter Dekker: [ Ссылка ]
Videos:
Zhejiang TV animation of the Tactics of Qi Jiguang: [ Ссылка ]
Further Reading/Selected bibliography:
A look into the many of the issues dealt with here: Brook, Timothy. The Troubled Empire: China in the Yuan and Ming Dynasties. harvard university press pape ed. History of Imperial China. Cambridge, Mass.: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2013, ©2010.
Much the biographical information on Qi cane found here:
Huang, Ray. 1587, a Year of No Significance: The Ming Dynasty in Decline. New Haven: Yale University Press, ©1981.
An English translation of the Korean military treatise:
Kim, Sang H. (Translator) Muye Dobo Tongji: Comprehensive Illustrated Manual of Martial Arts. english language ed. Hartford, CT: Turtle Press, ©2000.
Military history of China:
Lorge, Peter Allan. Chinese Martial Arts: From Antiquity to the Twenty-First Century. New York, NY: Cambridge University Press, 2012.
-War, Politics, and Society in Early Modern China, 900-1795. Warfare and History.
Thoughts on topics of martial arts and history from the foremost expert in the field (Chinese only):
Ma, Mingda馬明達. 無系列Wu Xi Lie. chu ban. ed. Vol. A113-A114, 武學探針Wu Xue Tan Zhen. Taibei Shi: Yi wen chu ban you xian gong si, 2003.
The original (Chinese only):
Qi, Jiguang戚繼光. Wu Shu Xi Lie武術系列. chu ban. ed. Vol. 6, Ji Xiao Xin Shu.績效新書 Tai bei shi: Wu zhou, 2000min 89.
A fascinating investigation of the Japanese Sea lord clans that comprised the backbone of the Wokou:
Shapinsky, Peter D. Michigan Monograph Series in Japanese Studies. Vol. 76, Lords of the Sea: Pirates, Violence, and Commerce in Late Medieval Japan. Ann Arbor: Center for Japanese Studies, The University of Michigan, 2014.
