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Author: Karl F. Friday
Publisher: Stanford University Press
ISBN: 0804726965
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 282
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Book Description
Tracing the evolution of state military institutions from the seventh through the twelfth centuries, this book challenges much of the received wisdom of Western scholarship on the origins and early development of warriors in Japan. This prelude to the rise of the samurai, who were to become the masters of Japan's medieval and early modern eras, was initiated when the imperial court turned for its police and military protection to hired swords--professional mercenaries largely drawn from the elites of provincial society. By the middle of the tenth century, this provincial military order had been handed a virtual monopoly of Japan's martial resources. Yet it was not until near the end of the twelfth century that these warriors took the first significant steps toward asserting their independence from imperial court control. Why did they not do so earlier? Why did they remain obedient to a court without any other military sources for nearly 300 years? Why did the court put itself in the potentially (and indeed, ultimately) precarious situation of contracting for its military needs with private warriors? These and related questions are the focus of the author's study. Most of the few Western treatments see the origins of the samurai in the incompetence and inactivity of the imperial court that forced residents in the provinces to take up arms themselves. According to this view, a warrior class was spontaneously generated just as one had been in Europe a few centuries earlier, and the Japanese court was doomed to eventually perish by the sword because of its failure to live by it. Instead, the author argues that it was largely court activism that put swords in the hands of rural elites, thatcourt military policy, from the very beginning of the imperial state era, followed a long-term pattern of increasing reliance on the martial skills of the gentry. This policy reflected the court's desire for maximum efficiency in its military institutions, and the policy's succes
Author: Karl F. Friday
Publisher: Stanford University Press
ISBN: 0804726965
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 282
Get Book Here
Book Description
Tracing the evolution of state military institutions from the seventh through the twelfth centuries, this book challenges much of the received wisdom of Western scholarship on the origins and early development of warriors in Japan. This prelude to the rise of the samurai, who were to become the masters of Japan's medieval and early modern eras, was initiated when the imperial court turned for its police and military protection to hired swords--professional mercenaries largely drawn from the elites of provincial society. By the middle of the tenth century, this provincial military order had been handed a virtual monopoly of Japan's martial resources. Yet it was not until near the end of the twelfth century that these warriors took the first significant steps toward asserting their independence from imperial court control. Why did they not do so earlier? Why did they remain obedient to a court without any other military sources for nearly 300 years? Why did the court put itself in the potentially (and indeed, ultimately) precarious situation of contracting for its military needs with private warriors? These and related questions are the focus of the author's study. Most of the few Western treatments see the origins of the samurai in the incompetence and inactivity of the imperial court that forced residents in the provinces to take up arms themselves. According to this view, a warrior class was spontaneously generated just as one had been in Europe a few centuries earlier, and the Japanese court was doomed to eventually perish by the sword because of its failure to live by it. Instead, the author argues that it was largely court activism that put swords in the hands of rural elites, thatcourt military policy, from the very beginning of the imperial state era, followed a long-term pattern of increasing reliance on the martial skills of the gentry. This policy reflected the court's desire for maximum efficiency in its military institutions, and the policy's succes
Author: Alex Bledsoe
Publisher: Tor Books
ISBN: 1466854316
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 941
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Book Description
Alex Bledsoe introduced the world to Eddie LaCrosse, the hard-boiled but soft-hearted detective known as a "sword jockey" who, for twenty-five gold pieces a day, plus expenses, will take on any case short of murder for hire. Like Philip Marlowe in shining armor or Sam Spade with a sword, Eddie goes down his mean medieval streets trying to walk the straight and narrow in a crooked, twisting fantasy world. Over the course of four novels, LaCrosse has encountered dragons, pirates, sea monsters, goddesses, ghosts, and magic, all the while keeping his cool and doing what's right. In this collection you'll receive the complete text of the first four Eddie LaCrosse novels. The Sword-Edged Blonde When a childhood friend, now a king, asks Eddie's help in clearing his queen of a murder charge, Eddie's long-buried past refuses to stay hidden. Burn Me Deadly Someone will go to any lengths, including torture and murder, to locate the last remaining dragon eggs. But dragons aren't real, are they? Dark Jenny A poisoned apple sets off political turmoil that threatens to destroy an entire Camelot-like kingdom, and take Eddie with it. Wake of the Bloody Angel Eddie searches for the vanished pirate Black Edward Tew and his legendary treasure, but even the help of a tough former pirate queen may not be enough to save him from what he finds. Swords Are My Business also includes a sample of the fifth Eddie LaCrosse novel, He Drank, and Saw the Spider. At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.
Author: Roland Green
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
ISBN: 0786963379
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 300
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Book Description
The greatest order of chivalry in the history of Krynn. After a knight has achieved the Order of the Crown, he must then begin his training in the virtues of courage and heroism in order to achieve the Order of the Sword. This is the second tale of Sir Pirvan the Wayward, whose reluctant and inauspicious beginnings bore few clues to his potential as a Knight of the Sword or as a Knight of the Crown, nor as a mentor for another similarly dubious prospect for Krynn's greatest order of chivalry. Roland J. Green is the author of the Starcruiser Shenandoah and Wandor series and numerous Conan novels, and is coauthor (with Jerr Pournelle) of the Jannisaries series. The Warriors series details the exploits of the heroes and villains of the War of the Lance.
Author: Mercedes Lackey
Publisher: Astra Publishing House
ISBN: 1101127260
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 449
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Book Description
Granddaughter of the sorceress Kethry, daughter of a noble house, Kerowyn had been forced to run the family keep since her mother's untimely death. Yet now at last her brother was preparing to wed, and when his bride became the lady of the keep, Kerowyn could return to her true enjoyments - training horses and hunting. But all Kerowyn's hopes and plans were shattered when her anscestral home was attacked, her father slain, her brother wounded, and his fiancee kidnapped. Drive by desperation and the knowledge that a scorcerer had led the journey which would prove but he first step on the road to the fulfillment of her destiny.
Author: Declan Croghan
Publisher: Story Donkey
ISBN: 1739671503
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 368
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Book Description
1066. William The Conqueror takes England. Wrong. That version of history is Norman revisionism and propaganda! The truth is that England did not surrender to The Bastard Duke’s rule. For the next 40 years they fought a war of resistance in the forests and moorlands. This fighting force of proto-guerrillas were called the Silvatici and became the stuff of Norman nightmares. This is their origin story. It follows Edgar The Atheling (the legitimate King of England), Princess Margaret (who becomes Queen of Scotland and Saint Margaret), Kallín of the Rohán ( the young Chieftain of a clan of indigenous mercenaries) and Luna (a ferocious young female warrior). Their adventures take us from the great courts of Normandy, London and York to the wilds of Northumbria and the moorlands which will become the killing fields of the war of resistance to come.
Author: Colin M. Roach
Publisher: Tuttle Publishing
ISBN: 1462915752
Category : Antiques & Collectibles
Languages : en
Pages : 589
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Book Description
With over 300 stunning photographs and woodblock prints along with extensive historical and cultural commentary, Japanese Swords is the ultimate authority on Samurai weaponry. Historically, Japanese warriors considered their swords to be far greater than simple weaponry. Their swords were both lethal tools and divine companions -- social and religious icons. Traditionally worn by the samurai as a sign of social status, the Japanese sword represented the junction between the reigning military class and those whom they ruled. Moreover, the samurai sword was a technological and artistic marvel. Many scholars consider it to be the finest sword ever constructed. In terms of symbolism and historical importance, no other blade comes close to the Japanese sword. With a historical, iconographical, and technological perspective, author Cohn M. Roach provides an in-depth study of these magnificent weapons in Japanese Swords. This richly illustrated sword book weaves the blade's primary influences together, tracking its history and illuminating its progress from infancy to grandeur. By studying the evolution of the Japanese sword from this perspective, we better understand Japan and its warrior archetype. Combining research materials from multiple disciplines, Roach uses his expertise as an educator to guide readers through the sword's rise to greatness in a unique way. This book discusses the history, development, and spiritual symbolism of the sword, as well as the esoteric metallurgical techniques used in making it. It also covers the difficult training practices used by skilled swordsmen. Japanese Swords also includes a companion video content featuring a beautifully-filmed documentary that explores the traditional swordmaker's craft. The video content also contains an introduction to the Japanese sword at a sword shop in Kyoto and a visit to a dojo for a beginner's class in the medieval sword-drawing art called iaido.
Author: Rogue Planet Press
Publisher: Lulu.com
ISBN: 1326318047
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 157
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Book Description
Swords against Cthulhu, an anthology of sword and sorcery/Cthulhu Mythos crossovers. Mighty thewed barbarians battle alien wizardry and cosmic terror in a blind, unreasoning universe where only the strong survive... The Cthulhu Mythos is best known as a horror genre, but its influence was felt on the work of seminal sword and sorcery writers Robert E Howard and Clark Ashton Smith, and its pessimistic tone has continued to predominate in the genre to this day. However mighty the hero, the forces of chaos, the blasphemous powers of an insouciant universe, are stronger-or are they? All a doomed swordsman can do is face the outer darkness, blade in hand, a song of defiance on his lips, and hope to die fighting... Including stories by Damir Salkovic, Mark Sims, Sergio Palumbo and many more!
Author: C.A. Szarek
Publisher: C.A. Szarek
ISBN: 1941151000
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 301
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Book Description
For generations, the Ryhans, ruling family of the Province of Greenwald have been keepers of a sword rumored to possess enough magic to defeat kings. Lord Varthan, a former archduke and betrayer of the king, covets the sword and invades Greenwald. Lady Ceralda Ryhan, daughter of the murdered duke, gains the sword and flees, trusting only her white wolf, Trikser—magically bonded to her. Cera needs nothing more to aid in her fight. Jorrin Aldern, half elfin and half human, left his home in the mountains of Aramour to find his human father who disappeared twenty turns before, but finds Cera with Varthan and his shades on her tail instead. His dual heritage and empathic magic will tempt Cera in ways she never thought she’d desire. But can he convince her trust and love can pave the path to redemption or will the epic battle end in tragedy and evil conquer them all?
Author: Christopher Paolini
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 177488299X
Category : Young Adult Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 656
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Book Description
Master storyteller and internationally bestselling author Christopher Paolini returns to the World of Eragon in this stunning epic fantasy set a year after the events of the Inheritance Cycle. Join Dragon Rider—and fan favorite—Murtagh and his dragon as they confront a perilous new enemy! “Christopher Paolini is a true rarity.” —The Washington Post The world is no longer safe for the Dragon Rider Murtagh and his dragon, Thorn. An evil king has been toppled, and they are left to face the consequences of the reluctant role they played in his reign of terror. Now they are hated and alone, exiled to the outskirts of society. Throughout the land, hushed voices whisper of brittle ground and a faint scent of brimstone in the air—and Murtagh senses that something wicked lurks in the shadows of Alagaësia. So begins an epic journey into lands both familiar and untraveled, where Murtagh and Thorn must use every weapon in their arsenal, from brains to brawn, to find and outwit a mysterious witch. A witch who is much more than she seems. In this gripping novel starring one of the most popular characters from Christopher Paolini’s blockbuster Inheritance Cycle, a Dragon Rider must discover what he stands for in a world that has abandoned him. Murtagh is the perfect book to enter the World of Eragon for the first time . . . or to joyfully return.
Author: James Aitcheson
Publisher: Sourcebooks, Inc.
ISBN: 1402287682
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 485
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Book Description
Enter into a ruthless, formidable world, where violent warriors seek honor in holy places and holy men seek glory in dark deeds. As the two opposing forces battle for conquest, the fate of England hangs in the balance January, 1069: Less than three years after the Battle of Hastings in 1066 and the death of the usurper, Harold Godwineson, two thousand Normans march in the depths of winter to subdue the troublesome province of Northumbria. Tancred a Dinant,a loyal and ambitious knight, is among them, hungry for battle, honor, silver, and land. But at Durham, the Normans are ambushed in the streets by English rebels, and Tancred's revered lord Robert de Commines is slain. Badly wounded, Tancred barely escapes with his own life. Bitterly determined to seek vengeance for his lord's murder, the dauntless knight quickly becomes entrenched in secret dealings between a powerful Norman magnate and a shadow from the past. As the Norman and English armies prepare to clash, Tancred uncovers a cunning plot that harks back to the day of Hastings itself. If successful, it threatens to destroy the entire conquest—and change the course of history. The Conquest Series: Sworn Sword (Book 1) The Splintered Kingdom (Book 2) Knights of the Hawk (Book 3)
