History of Japan

Two Portuguese priests disembark upon an anonymous Japanese shore. Under cover of nightfall, they seek to infiltrate those Christian sects driven underground by a ruthless magistracy, and re-establish the foothold of the Church on the isolated island-nation. Soon, however, the priests find themselves drawn into the mire of persecution, and gradually learn the truth behind the ominous disappearance of another Catholic missionary decades earlier…

Late in the 1500s, an aging tea master teaches the way of tea to a headstrong Shogun. Through force of will and courageous fighting, Hideyoshi becomes Japan's most powerful warlord, unifying the country. Rikyu, through the tea ceremony and floral arrangements, tempers his lord, helping Hideyoshi focus on a single flower or be in a simple room where the shape of a cup is of most importance. But other forces fuel Hideyoshi's ambitions: the Portuguese bring a globe and guns, and he believes he can conquer Korea and China. When Rikyu raises doubts about invading China, Hideyoshi demands an apology, and Rikyu himself must find courage in the way of tea.

It became known as the "Typhoon of Steel." Told from the Japanese perspective, this war drama captures the events of World War II's Battle of Okinawa - a massive amphibious assault by U.S. troops that left more than 150,000 Japanese civilians dead. With the Allies wanting to capture Okinawa to stage a full-scale invasion of Japan, the battle raged from March through June 1945 with a ferocity unlike any other.

Japan, the early 30's. The Depression, taxes, boycotts and widespread unemployment contribute to a growing sense of futility and anger; so a group of junior officers decide to wipe out the corrupt elements and ask his majesty to form a new government…
In February, 1936, a group of junior Army officers staged an attempted coup against the Prime Minister and his government. This military drama begins with the violent coup, then jumps forward and backward as it tries to define the loyalties raging in pre-war Japan.

Every major war of the 20th Century has produced heroes of the hour - men who rose above the mediocrity to lead their fellow soldiers to victory, or sometimes defeat.

Today's Japan. Everywhere you look, amazing images fight for your attention. This is the graphic art for which Japan is justly famous. It's an art which has it's roots in one of the most dynamic periods of Japan's past, the age of the woodblock print, or 'Ukiyo-e', an art form whose impact was as revolutionary in Japan as Gutenberg's printed books were in the west. While the paintings of the impressionists Monet, Van Gogh, and Degas are glittering treasures of western culture, their inspiration wasn't western at all. The real source of their new vision was not in France, not even in Europe, but in a country on the other side of the world - Japan! In the bustling capital city of Edo, later to be known as Tokyo, most woodblock prints were things to be admired and then thrown away like comics books or newspapers today. And so discarded prints were sometimes used to pack ceramics for export to America and Europe. This is how Japanese woodblock prints first found their way into the oriental curiosity shops of London and Paris. Initially, they went almost unnoticed among the Asian artifacts flooding into Europe. But when these brightly colored prints were discovered by the art world, exhibitions were quickly organized, and they would rock the foundations of Western Art.

Discover the most cunning stories of deception and sabotage that forever changed the course of history! With each episode telling a strong, specific and factual story, Secrets of War has become an instant classic offering the most historically accurate complete guide in the 20th Century ever produced.

In the centuries since the gun was invented, hundreds of innovators, engineers and inventors have brought their vision together to create what has become one of the most perfectly produced items ever made. TALES OF THE GUN chronicles the long history of firearm design and construction from the first, primitive weapons to today's computer-controlled, high-tech factories. From the gunslingers of the Wild West to the newest technology being developed for tomorrow s super-weapons, guns have etched a place in today s culture for their masterful combination of form, function and beauty.