Samurai were the hereditary military nobility and officer caste of medieval and early-modern Japan from the late 12th century until their abolition in the 1870s. They were the well-paid retainers of the daimyo, the great feudal landholders. They had high prestige and special and they cultivated the bushido codes of martial virtues, indifference to pain, and unflinching loyalty, engaging in many local battles. Since their abolition, their memory and weaponry remain prominent in Japanese popular culture.