There were two basic groups in Japanese society, the nobles and the peasants. The peasants made up most of the population at 88%. The other 18% was nobles. Japanese feudalism was almost identical to European feudalism with the only exception being that in Europe farmers were at the bottom while in Japan merchants were.
The Fujiwara
The emperors power began to demolish in the 800s. By 850, the Fujiwara family was in charge. They ruled for about 300. The outside clans envied the Fujiwara.