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Samurai William: The Englishman Who Opened Japan

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When William Adams and his dying crew arrived in Japan in 1600, after nineteen months at sea, they became the first Englishmen ever to set foot on what was, for them, a completely uncharted, unknown land. The duplicitous Portuguese, who had already set up a trading post there, informed the Japanese that Adams and his men were pirates, and the Japanese imprisoned Adams for six weeks, but they did not crucify him, a common punishment in those days. Tokugawa Ieyasu, the most important ruler of the country, had been impressed, both with Adams's navigational skills and with his frank admission of dislike of the Portuguese and Jesuits, who were undermining the political and military stability of the Ieyasu's domain.

After learning the Japanese language, adopting Japanese customs and dress, and maintaining an unfailingly respectful demeanor, Adams became Ieyasu's interpreter, becoming so valuable to him that he was accorded samurai status and rewarded with a large country estate. Stranded in Japan with no means of escape, Adams became "Japanese." When English ships finally arrived more than ten years later, Adams helped them establish bases and become trusted trading partners, but he never returned "home," living his remaining 23 years in Japan, an honored and much respected man.

In this extremely fast-paced historical narrative, Milton uses primary sources to show how Japan came to be "discovered," what its values and culture were, and why the intrusion of the Europeans and the lure of trade were eventually rebuffed and the country "closed" in 1637. Though he clearly does not agree with the sense of quick justice, the immediate executions, and the brutality carried out by the Japanese in the name of justice, Milton graphically illustrates his admiration and appreciation of their courage and sense of honor, their loyalty and respect for authority, their diligence, their beautifully constructed and aesthetically pleasing gardens, and the grandeur of the palace in Edo (now the Imperial Palace in Tokyo), along with more mundane characteristics, such as their concern for hygiene and bathing and their medical practices (including acupuncture).

He sets up dramatic contrasts with the mores of the Europeans, clearly illustrating the much higher level of "civilization" that existed in Japan without the influence of the west, and it is easy to see why Ieyasu's grandson eventually banned all westerners in order to preserve his own society. Though Samurai William Adams is the real-life role model for James Clavell's Shogun, I found him far more true to life and interesting in this book. Neither romanticized nor idealized, he exists here as a man with flaws, often speaking in his own voice. His life as a seaman and his life in Japan are fascinatingly portrayed, attesting both to Milton's scholarship and his imagination as he recreates successfully the two cultures and societies in which Adams lived two very different lives. Mary Whipple

Samurai William is a very interesting tale about William Adams, an Englishman who had a small, but important, impact on Japanese history. For readers familiar with James Clavell's "Shogun", William Adams is the man that "Anjin-san" is based on.

The main problem I had with this book is Milton's nearly complete absence of Japanese sources. Adams' appearance and involvement in Japanese politics must have provoked rather significant reactions from the leading Japanese leaders of the time, but Milton sadly does not deal with this story from the Japanese side at all. Additionally, in the British edition of this book at least, there are several mistakes regarding the Japanese culture and the language. Most humorously, he refers to "bannermen" as "hamamoto" when he means "hatamoto." A "hamamoto" might best be called a "beachman," which I assume Milton did not intend. Hopefully this type of mistake was caught before the American version was printed. I would imagine many of these mistakes are due to Milton's over-reliance on old European sources and unfamiliarity with the Japanese culture.

Milton is clearly a writer first and a historian second. As such, the line between fact and fiction is somewhat vague at times. Nevertheless, this is a very interesting book. Just remember that it is not always an entirely accurate one.

When I was gathering material to complete my review on Mr. James Clavell's "Shogun" I saw a reference to this book and can't resist the temptation to bought it and read it. After finishing reading it I was amazed by how deeply Mr. Clavell has grasped this exotic environment in his novel.

Mr. Milton has thoroughly researched the contemporary European sources to build this book. He took into account the diary & letters from William Adams (the historical character on which Clavell's book was based), Richard Cock, the chief English Factor at Hirado (Japan), Captain John Saris and other Dutch, Spanish and Portuguese sources. As other reviewers have pointed out, Japanese sources are omitted. This in my opinion, is not a great setback, because the author is telling the story of the hundred year relationship between Europeans and Japanese from the Europeans stand point of view, and he doesn't claim otherwise.

The amazement and shock, that such a different culture generated on these seamen and merchants is shown in their own words. In one hand the higher cultural level, reflected in the cleanness, sophistication and demeanor of the Japanese, seduce them. In the other hand the harsh justices applied: deaths for minor and major faults, without appellation or mercy, appall them.
The spicy language used by William Adams and his fellow merchants is shown, with minor standardization in order to render it intelligibly for modern readers, recreating their environment and mindset. The book is very entreatingly and provides a colorful sight of that historical period and place.
Enjoy this reading!
Reviewed by Max Yofre.

I agree with the previous reviewer. There is a distinct lack of Japanese sources and some careless errors with Japan-related words, places, etc. It would have been very interesting to see how members of the court, etc. took to this Englishman entering their ranks.

Also, the book basically skips from Adams being washed up on shore to him becoming a member of the court. I don't know if it's because Adams neglected his diary for a period or what, but it would have been fascinating to find out just how Adams learned Japanese, made his connections, etc. Further, the author obviously has a soft spot for Adams. Whenever somebody doubts or disagrees with Adams, the author finds some vindication for the protaganist to prove that the other party was in error.

That said, the book was a good read. The writing flowed and the insight into the English/Dutch involved in the East Asia trade was interesting.

Personally, I think this book suffers a bit of a personality disorder. The title is deceptive with Samurai William himself occasionally sidelined for what are probably more interesting developments that occured in Japan and the Orient at the time.

I think Milton realised that, had he simply concentrated on his main subject, he wouldn't have much of a read. This is because the sources of info on Samurai William are fairly sparse. In order to develop the book into something readable a lot of other detail is included.

Not to say that this isn't interesting. It is. We get to hear about various Europeans experiencing an extremely interesting period of Japanese history and get a pretty clear picture of the time.

So, if you are a serious student of history focussed on William himself, this book is likely to disappoint. If however, as I am, you are a lover of Japanese history, you will benefit from a read of this.

Going native in Japan

According to the book's title, this is the story of the British sailor William Adams, who landed in Japan in 1600 and stayed there until his death in 1620. He became a trusted consultant to the shogun and Emperor Ieyasu who admired his seafaring skills of navigation and also shipbuilding.

Williams was, by no means, the first European in Japan. Preceding him by about half a century were Spaniards and Portuguese. Mostly, they were Jesuits and Franciscans bent on converting the local population to the Catholic faith. Soon further English and Dutch traders arrived, and the continuous conflict between Catholics and Protestants was ready to begin.

Both the British and the Dutch established a Factory, to control trade and get rich quickly. The start capital for the British enterprise was supplied by the East India Company under Sir Thomas Smythe. Richard Cocks ran the Factory. He hired Adams for his invaluable connections to the Japanese `court. More than once Adams saved the future of the company and the lives of some of the English.

Milton shows us the surprise of the Westerners at the high culture of Japan. He describes that culture in quite some detail so that the British experience can be judged correctly in comparison with the home country. Milton also gives us most interesting details on the trading of the day and the miscalculation that happened too often. Not surprisingly he mentions the trade in nutmeg, a link to one of his previous books.

The Factory was completely mismanaged and had to close on Dec. 24, 1623. At the same time the grandson of shogun Ieyasu started a campaigns against all foreigners, throwing them out of the country and effectively closing the door on Japan for the next 200 years.

Samurai William, who left a wife and daughter behind in England , started a new life with a Japanese family. He certainly was unique in being the only Westerner to achieve and maintain such influence over the emperor of Japan.By rights he is famous to this day. But Milton gives us the story of the English settlement and trading post, rather neglecting the story of William Adams. Also, he insists on constantly using the original English language of the time - even when it is not at all necessary to give flavor to the narrative. This gets to be very irritating.

Giles Milton seems to be making a good career out of gutsy little histories related to Britain's Tudor and Stuart trading history, and he does them very well. This latest offering is the well known but little examined history of British trading in Japan. I say well known - but really only in its most skeleton of detail - until now. William Adams, who was wrecked on the shores of Japan in the very eary seventeenth century has been written about at least in passing in a number of other histories before - and turned into a historical fiction for James Clavells' novel. However a full blown history, in a historical context has been a long time coming.

Milton's great talent is for his blending of period documents within the text of the book, to bring the past directly to us in all its archaic, but usually very clear details. Its fascinating reading and provides a light, humourous tone to the book which at times could get very bogged down in minutiae.

Essentially this is a clash of cultures - that of the insulated Japanese who did not wish to have contact withe the outside world, the British who essentially did not choose to understand the Japanese culture or the types of goods which they valued, and the Jesuits who had insinuated their way into the Japanese court and were very anti-British.

William Adams provided a junction for all three parties, but it was a narrow line he was forced to take and his negotiations and diplomacy against the competing interests was often taken in bad part or very often ignored.

But Adams is only part of the story, Giles Milton is very good at building up a picture of the time and creating a living history in which British trading with Japan is explored in all its details and all its main characters.

I don't think this is his best book so far - Big Chief Elizabeth (which examines the history of America's first colony) has my vote for best - however this book is a great demonstration of how these small histories are best written. If you like this then try Big Chief Elizabeth and Nathaniel's Nutmeg (about the South East Asian Spice trade in Nutmeg) all set in the same approximate period.

A superb, readable history loosely organized around William Adams, the real Anjin-Sama. Adams' achievements were extraordinary; Clavell didn't have to stretch all that much to create the Blackthorn character in Shogun. The incredible voyage across the two oceans, and then surviving against all odds to achieve prominence and nobility status as a foreigner in medieval Japan are riveting accounts.

Writing with great lucidity, Milton relies a lot on personal and British East India company correspondence to paint this portrait of not only Williams, but of the budding efforts of the English to participate in Asian commerce. Thus, we read not only about Adams, but about an failed ocean adventure above Russian seeking a route through the ice packs, tromping through Siam in search of rare woods, tension with the Spanish, tensions with the Dutch, and about the tight-fisted prudes back in the London office disapproving of their factors whoring their way across Asia. A cast of characters --some funny, some diabolical, many mediocre-- flesh out Milton's portrait of early English commercial efforts. Milton also gives us some interesting insight into the cultur of and politics of Japan at the time of Tokugawa Ieyasu's assention to the Shogunate. A lot of attention is given not just to commerce, but to the inextricably linked issue of religion. Missionaries' efforts in Japan make for a fascinating and unique read, since Japan was so much more sophisticated than either the those the Europeans typically missioned to, as well as the Europeans themselves.

The communication gap between the Japanese and the Europeans, and William's ability to overcome it, bears careful attention. The few pages about Ieyasu's brilliant defeat Osaka castle is fascinating by itself.

I read the hardcover version, which had a wonderful rough cut on the edge, which may make some prefer that over the paperback.

A most interesting book, although the title is a bit misleading. While the book does spend a good bit of time on the story of William Adams, an English seaman who found himself marooned in Japan, it is really more a straightforward account of the attempts by the English and the Dutch to open Japan to trade.

The rivalries between the two nations, and between the Protestant English and Dutch and the Catholic priests who were already in Japan, make up a good bit of the book. (When Adams arrived in Japan, he was in quite a bit of danger from the Jesuits, who feared that through him the shogun would discover that, contrary to what they had led him to believe, there was not "one Christian faith".) The alliances shifted, and often those of both nations who were tending to trade in the Far East, were caught up in events happening far away, as their countries made war or peace on each other thousands of miles away.

Then, Japan enters the period of sakoku, closed country, and it will be a two centuries before it is again open to the West.

There is a good deal of reliance on primary sources, though I could wish that the end notes were more specific. But this isn't a scholarly work, so I suppose I should be glad that we are given end notes at all!

Milton presents an easy-to-read account of early European ventures in Japan. The key figure which holds this book together is William Adams (of Shogun fame). Adams is an English pilot who finds himself in Japan after a particularly perilous journey. Being a stranger in a strange land, he faces many difficulties, but through luck and skill in adaptation, he becomes someone of importance in his new home country. Years later, a group of Englishmen from the East India Company come to set up a factory (trading post).

Even though the title of this book is Samurai William, it would be more accurate to describe this book as a history of the East India Company trading post in Japan. Throughout most of this book, Adams appears only as a supporting character.

This book is useful for it's descriptions of Japan in the early 1600's. It's interesting to read about the reations the English and the Japanese had to each other. For example, the English reacted to the violence and strict justice in Japanese society, and the Japanese reacted to the uncleanliness of the English. It's definitely worth reading.