{"id":33627,"date":"2024-02-27T16:45:50","date_gmt":"2024-02-27T15:45:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.historyextra.com\/?p=261360"},"modified":"2024-02-27T18:11:40","modified_gmt":"2024-02-27T17:11:40","slug":"the-real-john-blackthorne-in-shogun-the-true-story-of-samurai-william-adams-the-first-englishman-in-japan","status":"publish","type":"rss_feed","link":"https:\/\/c01.purpledshub.com\/bbchistory\/rss_feed\/the-real-john-blackthorne-in-shogun-the-true-story-of-samurai-william-adams-the-first-englishman-in-japan\/","title":{"rendered":"The real John Blackthorne in Sh\u014dgun: the true story of samurai William Adams, the first Englishman in Japan"},"content":{"rendered":"

If you look at the life of Western samurai William Adams, you\u2019ll realise that the character of John Blackthorne in feudal Japanese drama Sh\u014dgun is not entirely a work of fiction <\/p>

By Kev Lochun\n \t\t<\/p>

Published: Tuesday, 27 February 2024 at 15:45 PM<\/p>

\n\n

Samurai and skulduggery abound in FX\u2019s showpiece period drama Sh\u014dgun<\/em><\/a>, which transports viewers to the treacherous world of feudal Japan at the dawn of the 17th century.<\/p>\n

The series, streaming on Hulu in the US and Disney+ in the UK, is based on James Clavell\u2019s 1975 historical-fiction novel<\/a> of the same name.<\/p>\n

Much of the story is told from the view of John Blackthorne (played by Cosmo Jarvis), an English navigator who washes up on the shores of Japan in 1600 and finds himself in a land on the brink of civil war.<\/p>\n

But though the plot particulars of Sh\u014dgun<\/em> are a work of imagination, did you know that John Blackthorne is based on a real person?<\/p>\n

Who is the real John Blackthorne?<\/h2>\n
\"Cosmo\n<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>
Cosmo Jarvis as English pilot John Blackthorne in FX\u2019s Sh\u014dgun (Photo courtesy of Disney+)<\/span><\/figcaption><\/div>\n

The character of John Blackthorne in Sh\u014dgun<\/em> is loosely inspired by William Adams. He is the first Englishman believed to have set foot in Japan, and considered one of the few Western samurai.<\/p>\n

Just as Blackthorne makes an ally of the warlord Yoshii Toranaga (Hiroyuki Sanada) in the drama, Adams became a trusted advisor to the real figure who inspired the character of Toranaga, a warlord named Tokugawa Ieyasu.<\/p>\n

Iesyau would come to rely on Adams as a trade and diplomatic advisor after becoming sh\u014dgun, granting him land, the revered title of hatamoto, and a pair of swords to indicate his status as a samurai \u2013 though he was not a warrior.<\/p>\n