| Scottish Samurai: Thomas Blake Glover, 1838-1911 Main Edition Contributor(s): McKay, Alexander (Author) |
|
 |
ISBN: 085786615X ISBN-13: 9780857866158 Publisher: Canongate Books OUR PRICE: $22.50 Product Type: Paperback Published: February 2012 |
| Additional Information |
| BISAC Categories: - Biography & Autobiography | Historical |
| Dewey: B |
| LCCN: 2016436002 |
| Physical Information: 0.7" H x 5.2" W x 8.3" (0.30 lbs) 226 pages |
| Themes: - Cultural Region - Japanese |
| Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
| Publisher Description: Thomas Glover arrived in Nagasaki in 1859, just as Japan was opening to the West. Within a few years he had played a crucial part in the overthrow of the Tokugawa Shogunate, providing the rebels with war-winning, Scottish-designed warships, and modern arms. Bankruptcy by the age of thirty was barely a setback and he went on to become a pivotal figure in the rapidly expanding Mitsubishi empire, founding shipyards and breweries. As energetic in his love-life as in business and politics, Glover had a string of Japanese mistresses, one of whom inspired Puccini's Madam Butterfly. This 'Scottish Samurai' was to become an adviser to the Japanese government; he also arranged for many Japanese to visit Britain and see the wonders of the industrial revolution, a lesson they enthusiastically absorbed. Today, Glover is regarded as one of the founding fathers of the Japanese economic miracle. |
