The Dutch discovery of Japan: the true story behind James Clavell's famous novel Shogun
History, Asian history
Human-narrated audio
Summary
The Netherlands in the early seventeenth century was struggling for its independence from Spain and seething with economic activities. When a fleet of its spice ships tried sailing to the east via the Strait of Magellan instead of through the… Cape of Good Hope, only one reached Japan. Its British pilot, William Adams, managed to befriend the Shogun, and only the Dutch were allowed to trade with Japan for the next 250 years. 2001.