The Gempei War 1180-85: The Great Samurai Civil War

by Stephen Turnbull, Giuseppe Rava (Illustrator)

Overview

Internationally renowned samurai expert Dr. Stephen Turnbull delves into a pivotal era of Japanese history in this highly illustrated account of the Gempei War, a conflict that defined the age and the ethos of the samurai.

Never before had there been a large-scale clash between two rival samurai families, the Taira and the Minamoto, and never again would the result of a war in Japan be quite so dramatic. Fought to gain control over the emperor, it would end with imperial power being totally eclipsed in favor of the military might of the samurai class and the establishment of the position of shogun—Japan's military dictator. Turnbull examines the events of the five-year-long conflict, revealing the changes that the war inflicted on Japanese culture and how it establishmened many samurai traditions.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781472813848
Publisher:	Bloomsbury USA
Publication date:	07/19/2016
Series:	Campaign , #297
Pages:	96
Product dimensions:	7.10(w) x 9.40(h) x 0.30(d)

About the Author

Stephen Turnbull is widely recognised as the world's leading English language authority on the samurai of Japan. He took his first degree at Cambridge and has two MAs (in Theology and Military History) and a PhD from Leeds University. He is now retired and pursues an active literary career, having now published 85 books. His expertise has helped with numerous projects including films, television and the award-winning strategy game Shogun Total War.

Giuseppe Rava was born in Faenza in 1963, and took an interest in all things military from an early age. Entirely self-taught, Giuseppe has established himself as a leading military history artist, and is inspired by the works of the great military artists, such as Detaille, Meissonier, Röchling, Lady Butler, Ottenfeld and Angus McBride. He lives and works in Italy.

Table of Contents

Introduction

Chronology

Opposing commanders

Opposing armies

Opposing plans

The campaign

Aftermath

The battlefield today

Further reading

Index