Shogun Iemitsu War And Romance In 17th Century Tokugawa Japan

Rising from the fragrant, soothing water, Hideo allowed the liquid to stream down his face. His long hair trailed down his well-muscled neck in a satisfying weighty mass. Wiping his eyes and completely relaxed, Hideo looked first at the swords on the stand nearest him and then fell into a reverie. His earliest childhood memory was not of his beloved mother but of his fathers swords. The ritual was invariable. Before his father would kiss his mother, before his father would greet or dandle him, the man who had had the courage and audacity to marry the daughter of one of the Dictator Odas concubines removed his sandals with great care and walked to the black lacquer, double sword stand and, employing ever greater care, first removed the long sword from his sash and then the shorter sword. Each was positioned with incredible accuracy so that the handle and guard were outside of the cradle formed by the arms of the stand. The long sword was always placed above the shorter one. Their graceful curves, shining black lacquer scabbards, and silk-wrapped grips fascinated Hideo. They were so intimately associated with his fathera kindly but serious man of few words. Shogun Iemitsu chronicles a day in the life of two young samurai, Hideo and Kobiyashi, as they attend a festival, fall in love, and put down a rebellion against the Tokugawa government that changes their lives forever. Shogun Iemitsu is based entirely on historical events, and it is filled with breathtaking details of life under the Shoguns. A must-read for anyone who enjoyed James Clavell's Shogun. Shogun Iemitsu will thrill beyond your wildest expectations!

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An entertaining reference to popular Japanese TV shows, from the publisher of The Anime Encyclopedia.

The acclaimed historian demonstrates a link between climate change and social unrest across the globe during the mid-17th century. Revolutions, droughts, famines, invasions, wars, regicides, government collapses—the calamities of the mid-seventeenth century were unprecedented in both frequency and severity. The effects of what historians call the "General Crisis" extended from England to Japan and from the Russian Empire to sub-Saharan Africa and the Americas. In this meticulously researched volume, historian Geoffrey Parker presents the firsthand testimony of men and women who experienced the many political, economic, and social crises that occurred between 1618 to the late 1680s. He also incorporates the scientific evidence of climate change during this period into the narrative, offering a strikingly new understanding of the General Crisis. Changes in weather patterns, especially longer winters and cooler and wetter summers, disrupted growing seasons and destroyed harvests. This in turn brought hunger, malnutrition, and disease; and as material conditions worsened, wars, rebellions, and revolutions rocked the world.

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Tsunayoshi (1646–1709), the fifth Tokugawa shogun, is one of the most notorious figures in Japanese history. Viewed by many as a tyrant, his policies were deemed eccentric, extreme, and unorthodox. His Laws of Compassion, which made the maltreatment of dogs an offense punishable by death, earned him the nickname Dog Shogun, by which he is still popularly known today. However, Tsunayoshi’s rule coincides with the famed Genroku era, a period of unprecedented cultural growth and prosperity that Japan would not experience again until the mid-twentieth century. It was under Tsunayoshi that for the first time in Japanese history considerable numbers of ordinary townspeople were in a financial position to acquire an education and enjoy many of the amusements previously reserved for the ruling elite. Based on a masterful re-examination of primary sources, this exciting new work by a senior scholar of the Tokugawa period maintains that Tsunayoshi’s notoriety stems largely from the work of samurai historians and officials who saw their privileges challenged by a ruler sympathetic to commoners. Beatrice Bodart-Bailey’s insightful analysis of Tsunayoshi’s background sheds new light on his personality and the policies associated with his shogunate. Tsunayoshi was the fourth son of Tokugawa Iemitsu (1604–1651) and left largely in the care of his mother, the daughter of a greengrocer. Under her influence, Bodart-Bailey argues, the future ruler rebelled against the values of his class. As evidence she cites the fact that, as shogun, Tsunayoshi not only decreed the registration of dogs, which were kept in large numbers by samurai and posed a threat to the populace, but also the registration of pregnant women and young children to prevent infanticide. He decreed, moreover, that officials take on the onerous tasks of finding homes for abandoned children and caring for sick travelers. In the eyes of his detractors, Tsunayoshi’s interest in Confucian and Buddhist studies and his other intellectual pursuits were merely distractions for a dilettante. Bodart-Bailey counters that view by pointing out that one of Japan’s most important political philosophers, Ogyû Sorai, learned his craft under the fifth shogun. Sorai not only praised Tsunayoshi’s government, but his writings constitute the theoretical framework for many of the ruler’s controversial policies. Another salutary aspect of Tsunayoshi’s leadership that Bodart-Bailey brings to light is his role in preventing the famines and riots that would have undoubtedly taken place following the worst earthquake and tsunami as well as the most violent eruption of Mount Fuji in history—all of which occurred during the final years of Tsunayoshi's shogunate. The Dog Shogun is a thoroughly revisionist work of Japanese political history that touches on many social, intellectual, and economic developments as well. As such it promises to become a standard text on late-seventeenth and early-eighteenth-century Japan.

Volume two of The Arts of Japan presents a comprehensive overview of Japanese art in late medieval to modern times.

This unique encyclopedia showcases the contribution of gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and queer people to music, dance, and musical theater.

The kosode or narrow-sleeved robe is the predecessor of the modern kimono. This book features kosode from Japan's most prestigious collections, many appearing for the first time in the West.

"Heroes of the kabuki stage" is written for kabuki lovers and collectors of kabuki woodblock prints, eager to know more about the interesting images on their prints. This lavishly illustrated book has no precedent in a Western language outside Japan. The introduction to this form of theatrical art is placed in the historical and social context of Tokugawa and Meiji Japan between 1603 and 1912. Many of the conventions in the theatre are explained and practically all aspects of kabuki are investigated. The evolution of the playhouse itself, the fascinating interaction between actors and audiences, as well as the development of plays are discussed. There is no other theatre tradition with such elaborate costumes, make-up and variety of acting styles, and these aspects are explained in detail. A brief historical outline of actor prints and their designers, from both Edo (present-day Tokyo) and Osaka, is also included. A large section of the book is dedicated to retelling the 36 popular kabuki plays that are still performed today. Many theatre pieces have their origin in the Nô and puppet theatre traditions: all sources are mentioned in the short introduction to each retelling, which also include{s} detailed notes and references as well as gossip and anecdotes from the world of the theatre. The main scenes of each play and the actors in their leading roles are illustrated by woodblock prints, produced over a period of more than a century. The bibliography provides an up-to-date list of books and articles in Western languages about kabuki. Heroes of the kabuki stage is unique for its extensive index on roles, actors, playwrights, subjects and attributes, which will enable the reader and print collector to find his way in the spectacular world of kabuki.

Chronicle of man's past, from prehistory to the present day, by 36 eminent historians. Brief history of each country presented separately.