Kamikaze : History's Greatest Naval Disaster

Description

After finally achieving what had eluded even his grandfather Genghis Khan - the conquest of China - and inheriting the world's largest navy, Khubilai Khan set his sights on Japan. He commanded an immense armada, the largest fleet the world had ever seen and his success seemed assured. The Japanese were vastly outnumbered and facing certain death, but they prayed to their gods for survival and the very next day Khan's entire armada were destroyed by a 'divine wind', the kamikaze. The legend of the kamikaze has endured for centuries, and was revived as a Japanese national legend during the Second World War, culminating in the suicide bombers they sent to attack the Allies but the truth has remained a mystery. Only now, after decades of painstaking research and underwater excavation can leading marine archaeologist James Delgado reveal the truth of what really happened to Khubilia Khan's fleet. Review: This is history at its best - the world's greatest naval disaster brought to vivid life by a rare combination of personal experience and rigorous scholarship. Terrific ... a fascinating adventure tale packed with insights into a maritime empire about which most Westerners know almost nothing. Through brilliant and painstaking research Delgado has brought Khubilai Khan's lost fleet to the surface, showing for the first time the true nature of the doomed adventure. One finishes the book ready to strap on mask and tanks to dive for the buried remains of the shops that still hold more Mongol secrets Times Literary Supplement Delgado has long been my favourite author on maritime history Literary Review James Delgado does a splendid job as a cultural historian in showing how the legend of a brave but doomed defence, supported by the intervention of the gods, shaped national identity over seven centuries Tablet Delgado's knowledge of water and his archaeological passion for retrieving what history has scattered across sea beds from San Francisco to Vietnam Literary Review Dredging not only the sea but also historical records, Delgado tells us something new - some of it speculative but most of it richly authentic - about a great nautical adventure The Times First published 2009.

Promotion info

The true story of history's greatest naval disaster - the destruction of Khubilai Khan's immense armada, the largest fleet the world had ever seen, by a legendary act of divine intervention: the kamikaze.

Reviews

This is history at its best - the world's greatest naval disaster brought to vivid life by a rare combination of personal experience and rigorous scholarship. Terrific ... a fascinating adventure tale packed with insights into a maritime empire about which most Westerners know almost nothing. Through brilliant and painstaking research Delgado has brought Khubilai Khan's lost fleet to the surface, showing for the first time the true nature of the doomed adventure. One finishes the book ready to strap on mask and tanks to dive for the buried remains of the shops that still hold more Mongol secrets Times Literary Supplement Delgado has long been my favourite author on maritime history Literary Review James Delgado does a splendid job as a cultural historian in showing how the legend of a brave but doomed defence, supported by the intervention of the gods, shaped national identity over seven centuries Tablet Delgado's knowledge of water and his archaeological passion for retrieving what history has scattered across sea beds from San Francisco to Vietnam Literary Review Dredging not only the sea but also historical records, Delgado tells us something new - some of it speculative but most of it richly authentic - about a great nautical adventure The Times

Author description

The President of the Institute of Nautical Archaeology, James Delgado is a marine archaeologist who has led and investigated shipwreck expeditions around the world. The author or editor of thirty books, when not travelling the world for the INA in quest of lost ships, he lives on the waterfront in Vancouver.