The Muromachi bakufu did not adopt the gokenin (samurai retainer) system but the word 'gokenin' was frequently used for those samurai who were immediate followers of the shogun, and was a term used to refer to retainers of some daimyo (feudal lords) during the Warring States period.
室町幕府は御家人制度を採らなかったが、御家人は将軍直参の武士の身分を示す用語としてしばしば用いられ、戦国時代(日本)には転じて一部の戦国大名の家臣を指す言葉となる。