the Tokugawa shogunate's eighty thousand guards
Historical term for the collective body of hatamoto and lower-ranking direct vassals of the Tokugawa shogunate, often cited as numbering around 80,000. Used in discussions of Edo-period military organization.
See also: 旗本
The hatamoto hachiman-ki formed the core of the Edo shogunate's military strength.
旗本 refers to an individual direct retainer of the shogun, while 旗本八万騎 refers to the entire group of such retainers collectively.
Compound of 旗本 (hatamoto, 'direct retainer of the shogun') + 八万 (80,000) + 騎 (counter for mounted warriors). The number 80,000 is a traditional estimate of the total number of hatamoto and their lower-ranking vassals.