IHOP - The International House of Panacea

[Andsigil]

Originally Posted by Alfirin

Speaking of Japanese things, I'm wondering if another factor might explain the lack of travel. I'm thinking of some system a la the one set up by the Tokogawa shogunate's immediate predecessors, the Toyotomi (specifically Toyotomi Hideyoshi, the first shogun of the line) wherin people werent allowed to leave thier han (fiefdom) without specific permisson from thier local lord. if such a system was in place in parts of ME it would go a long way to explaining a lack of traveling (it is after all hard to engage in casual traveling if it's in fact illegal). I'm not saying no one is allowed to travel (nomadic people like the rangers obviosly do) but those that do may be the exception, not the rule

I never got the impression that there were any internal passports in effect anywhere in ME, except maybe for Mordor or the later years in Numenor. That's the stuff of sordid, modern dictatorships and the Russian Oprichniki.

The Japanese did have another interesting custom called sankin-kotai which was used to control noble families and prevent rebellion.

From wikipedia:

The details changed throughout the twenty-six decades of Tokugawa rule, but generally, the requirement was that the daimyo of every han move periodically between Edo and his han, typically spending alternate years in each place. His wife and heir were required to remain in Edo as hostages. The expenditures necessary to maintain lavish residences in both places, and for the procession to and from Edo, placed financial strains on the daimyo making them unable to wage war. The frequent travel of the daimyos encouraged road building and the construction of inns and facilities along the routes, generating economic activity.