The mysteries of feudal Japan are explored in Japan: Memoirs of a Secret Empire, originally presented on PBS as part of its acclaimed Empires series. The period of 16th-19th century Japan was an eventful renaissance dominated by the rise of the Tokugawa Shogunate, a 250-year dynasty that begins in Part 1 ("The Way of the Samurai") under the leadership of Tokugawa Ieyasu, and sees the arrival of Portuguese merchants and European Christian missionaries, but endures despite uneasy alliances and eventual war between opposing daimyo warlords. Part 2 ("The Will of the Shogun") finds Ieyasu successfully establishing a lasting peace based on samurai codes of ethics and obedience, but the harsher rule of his grandson Iemitsu results in the expulsion of foreigners, leading to the Shimabara rebellion of 1637 and the start of Japan's 200-year prohibition of foreign visitors. Part 3 ("The Return of the Barbarians") chronicles the rise of the thriving metropolis of Edo (which would eventually become Tokyo) and the 18th-century re-opening of Japan's borders, including the 1853 arrival of American Commodore Matthew C. Perry with his demands that Japan open trade relations with the United States or face possible warfare. Thus ended the Tokugawa Shogunate, leading to the era of modern Japan. All of these events are recounted in rich detail by narrator Richard Chamberlain (Shogun) and visualized through elaborate recreations and Edo-period artworks. An excellent primer on pre-contemporary Japanese history, this is highly recommended. Aud: H, C, P. (J. Shannon)
Japan: Memoirs of a Secret Empire
(2004) 2 videocassettes or 1 disc. 160 min. VHS or DVD: $24.98 ($54.95 w/PPR). PBS Video. Color cover. Closed captioned. ISBN: 1-4157-0099-0 (dvd). Volume 19, Issue 5
Japan: Memoirs of a Secret Empire
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