Landscape History

During Japan's Warring States period, centuries of strife had left the country divided and leaderless. Those who filled the power vacuum were the daimyo, warlords who ruled over the clans and provinces of Japan. Serving their daimyo, the samurai were the ultimate warriors at a time when military prowess won out over hereditary power and position. The nature of warfare itself changed-romantic ideas of mounted duels and battlefield decorum became as rare as aristocratic samurai leaders. Marching in to replace them were the common foot soldiers, the ashigaru, armed with pikes and matchlock rifles. The Samurai Warrior examines the fighting men of this key period in Japanese history. Divided into six chapters, the book describes the unification under the Tokugawa bakufu, the major battles of the era, the weapons and armour used, the social structure of Japanese society, myths about the samurai, and finally the decline of the samurai amidst the modernization of the Meiji period. Including more than 200 photographs, illustrations, paintings, and maps, The Samurai Warrior is a colourful, accessible study of Japan's famous but often misunderstood warrior elite.

In just 11 years, Alexander the Great's armies marched 22,000 miles (35,000 km), subjugated Asia Minor, the Levant, and Egypt, conquered the mighty Persian Empire, and invaded India. By the age of thirty, he had created one of the largest empires of the ancient world. And even after he died in 323 BCE, aged 32 and undefeated in battle, his legacy remained in the form of a Hellenized Asia and the Seleucid Empire. Divided into eight chapters, In the Footsteps of Alexander traces the physical and historical journey of the man who conquered Asia and was declared a god-king. Chapter one examines the Macedonian background and Alexander's rise to power; chapters two and three explore the invasion of Asia Minor and his first encounters with Persian armies at the battles of Granicus (334) and Issus (333); chapter four looks at the siege of Tyre (332) and the great victory over Persian king Darius at Gaugamela (331); chapters five and six follow Alexander's conquest of the outer reaches of the Persian Empire, from the battle of the Persian Gates (330) to the invasion of India and the battle of Hydaspes (326); while chapter seven examines the new cities he founded across Asia, including Alexandria, Antioch, and Kandahar; finally, chapter eight considers his death and legacy. Including more than 200 photographs, illustrations, paintings, and maps, In the Footsteps of Alexander is a colourful, accessible examination of one of history's greatest military leaders.