Japanese Castles 1540-1640

Description

The landscape of 16th- and 17th-century Japan was dominated by the graceful and imposing castles constructed by the powerful 'daimyo' of the period. In this the most turbulent era in Japanese history, these militarily sophisticated structures provided strongholds for the consolidation and control of territory, and inevitably they became the focus for many of the great sieges of Japanese history: Nagashino (1575), Kitanosho (1583), Odawara (1590), Fushimi (1600), Osaka (1615) and Hara (1638), the last of the battles that brought an end to a period of intense civil war. This title traces their development from the earliest timber stockades to the immense structures that dominated the great centres of Osaka and Edo.

Stephen Turnbull is the world's leading English language authority on medieval Japan and the samurai. He has travelled extensively in the far east, particularly in Japan and Korea and is the author of 'The Samurai - A Military History' and numerous Osprey books including Men-at-Arms 86: 'Samurai Armies 1550-1615', Campaign 69: 'Nagashino 1575' and Warrior 29: 'Ashigaru 1467-1649'. Peter Dennis was born in 1950 and, having been inspired by contemporary magazines such as 'Look and Learn', studied illustration at Liverpool Art College. He has since contributed to hundreds of books, predominantly on hstorical subjects. He is a keen wargamer and modelmaker, and this is his first title for Osprey.