Samurai William: The Adventurer Who Unlocked Japan
Author(s): Giles Milton
On an ordinary winterâs day in London, 1611, a mysterious letter arrived at the offices of the East India Trading Company. It had taken some seven years for the letter to make its tortuous way to England and the merchants there were astounded by its contents⦠William Adams, an Englishman, had been one of only twenty-four survivors of a fleet of ships bound for Asia, and he had washed up in the forbidden land of Japan. The traders in London were even more astonished to learn that, rather than be horrified by the strange customs, Adams had fallen in love with the barbaric splendour of the country â and had decided to settle. He had forged a close friendship with the ruthless Shogun Ieyasu, taken a Japanese wife and sired a new, mixed-blood family. Adamsâ letter was the spark that fired up the merchants in London to plan a new expedition to the Far East, with designs to trade with the Japanese and use Adamsâ contacts there to forge new commercial links. Samurai William illuminates a world whose horizons were rapidly expanding â eastwards. Giles Milton is a writer and journalist. He has contributed articles for most of the British national newspapers as well as many foreign publications and specialises in the history of travel and exploration. In the course of his researches, he has travelled extensively in Europe and the Middle East. Paperback (B-Format)
Product Information
'Anyone who enjoyed Shogun ... will love this' -- Lancashire Evening Post 20030201 'Samurai William is a great read and fairly romps along' -- What's On 20020823 'Told with Stevensonian gusto ... A revelation' -- Jane Gardam, Spectator 20021101 'A page-turner of a book... an accessible, well-crafted piece of popularised history.' -- Allan Spence, The Scotsman 20020608 'Giles Milton has once again shown himself to be a master of historical narrative... a gripping tale of Jacobean derring-do, a fizzing, real-life, Boys' Own adventure underpinned by genuine scholarship.' -- Katie Hickman, The Sunday Times 20020608 'Giles Milton again expertly navigating the eastern seas' -- Economist 20020629 'Milton has brought the era to life, conveying nuances of character and the values of the time.' -- The Sunday Times 20020629 'The thoroughness and intelligence of his research underpins the lively confidence with which he deploys it.' -- The Times Literary Supplement 20020629 'Fascinating detail ... Milton is good at portraying eccentric characters and the Englishmen's shock at the periodic brutality of the Japanese.' -- The Times Literary Supplement 20020801
Giles Milton is a writer and journalist. He has contributed articles for most of the British national newspapers as well as many foreign publications and specialises in the history of travel and exploration. In the course of his researches, he has travelled extensively in Europe, the Middle East, the Americas and South East Asia.
General Fields
- :
- : Hodder & Stoughton
- : Sceptre
- : 0.31
- : 03 February 2003
- : 198mm X 129mm X 27mm
- : United Kingdom
- : books
Special Fields
- : Giles Milton
- : Paperback
- : English
- : 952.024092
- : 416
- : B Format