Samurai William

Anyone curious about the real events that inspired James Clavell's novel Shogun will find them here. This account follows William Adams, an English sailor stranded in Japan, who built a new life there, adopted a Japanese name and rose to a senior position at the court of the ruling shogun, where he served as an adviser and translator.

In 1611, the London East India Company merchants received a letter from Adams that prompted them to send seven men to Japan. Their mission was to locate him and win his friendship, since they believed he could help them tap the country's wealth. The Englishmen, dazzled by a land few Westerners had seen and unprepared for its customs, soon ran into trouble with the shogun.

Over more than ten years, the English and Adams tried to build trade with Japan, but language barriers, plots by Jesuit priests and dangerous Dutch rivals pushed them to the brink of ruin. The book is aimed at general readers interested in early contact between Europe and Japan.