From the 10th century onwards the great monastic foundations of Nara and Mount Hiei maintained large armies of warlike monks, a practice that was later followed by other institutions. The tempestuous political rivalries that developed between the different orders of monks, and even factions within the same orders, ensured that these Buddhist temples and monasteries had to be securely sited and robustly defended. This title recreates these enormous fortified monasteries and shrines as they would have appeared at the time, tracing their development from the 10th century through to the Sengoku Jidai and the rise of the power of the shogunate under Tokugawa leyasu.

Author Biography

Stephen Turnbull is the world's leading English language authority on medieval Japan and the samurai. He has travelled extensively in the far east, particularly in Japan and Korea and is the author of 'The Samurai - The World of the Warrior' and Men-at-Arms 86: 'Samurai Armies 1550-1615', Campaign 69: 'Nagashino 1575' and Warrior 64: 'Ninja AD 1460-1650'. Peter Dennis was born in 1950 and, having been inspired by contemporary magazines such as 'Look and Learn', studied illustration at Liverpool Art College. He has since contributed to hundreds of books, covering a range of hstorical subjects. He is a keen wargamer and modelmaker.