Turnbull, Stephen Essential Histories. War in Japan 1467-1615

Updated and revised, with full-colour maps and all new images throughout, this concise history examines the most violent, turbulent, cruel and exciting chapter in Japanese history, the Age of Warring States, beginning with the Onin War in 1467 and ending with the Osaka War in 1615.

In 1467 the Onin War ushered in a period of unrivalled conflict and rivalry in Japan that came to be called the Age of Warring States. Stephen Turnbull offers a masterly exposition of the wars. He explains what led to Japan's disintegration into warring states after more than a century of peace; the years of fighting that followed; and the period of gradual fusion when the daimyo (great names) strove to reunite Japan under a new Shogun. Peace returned to Japan with the end of the Osaka War in 1615, closing the most violent, turbulent, cruel and exciting chapter in Japanese history. Turnbull draws on his latest research, updating the text to present a richer picture of an age when conflicts were spread far more widely than was hitherto realised, in some cases taking in neighbouring countries. He includes new material covering samurai acting as mercenaries, the expeditions to Korea, Taiwan and Okinawa and the little-known campaigns against the Ainu of Hokkaido.