Romulus Hillsborough's Samurai Revolution

Writing on samurai history and Japanese culture, focusing on the samurai revolution, meiji restoration, sakamoto ryoma, katsu kaishu, yoshida shoin, saigo takamori, takasugi shinsaku, shinsengumi, shogun, Tokugawa, bakufu, bushido, seppuku, sword

Romulus Hillsborough's Samurai Revolution

Main menu

Skip to primary content
  • Home
  • Books
    • Samurai Swordsmen: The Definitive History of the Shinsengumi amid the Fall of the Tokugawa Shogunate (1863–1869)
    • Samurai Revolution: The Dawn of Modern Japan Seen Through the Eyes of the Shogun’s Last Samurai
      • Samurai Revolution: Overview
      • Samurai Revolution: Table of Contents
    • Samurai Assassins: “Dark Murder” and the Meiji Restoration, 1853-1868
      • “Samurai Assassins”: Table of Contents
    • The Shogun’s Last Samurai Corps: The Bloody Battles and Intrigues of the Shinsengumi
      • The Shogun’s Last Samurai Corps: Table of Contents
    • Ryoma: Life of a Renaissance Samurai
      • Reviews of Ryoma: Life of a Renaissance Samurai
    • Samurai Tales
  • Author Bio
  • Historical Consulting
  • Shinsengumi
  • Sakamoto Ryōma
  • Katsu Kaishū
  • Contact the Author

Post navigation

← Previous Next →

The Third Book of the Trilogy: The Last Shogun

Posted on April 24, 2026 by Romlus Hillsborough

The third volume of the Samurai Revolution Trilogy focuses on Tokugawa Yoshinobu, the last shogun.

Romulus Hillsborough at the grave of Katsu Kaishū in Tokyo

[At grave of Katsu Kaishū, “the Shogun’s Last Samurai”]

This entry was posted in “Samurai Revolution” by Romlus Hillsborough. Bookmark the permalink.

Search Samurai Revolution

Romulus Hillsborough’s Samurai Revolution Blog

“Samurai Revolution”

  • The Third Book of the Trilogy: The Last Shogun
    posted on April 24, 2026

  • Writing the Third Book of the Samurai Revolution Trilogy
    posted on March 12, 2026

  • From Traitor to Count: Katsu Kaishū on the Rise and Fall of Reputation
    posted on January 3, 2026

  • A Universal and Timeless Passage from Samurai Revolution
    posted on January 1, 2026

  • Revising Samurai Revolution: New Sources and an Enriched Historiography
    posted on December 16, 2025

Interface with History

  • Katsu Kaishū Hall: A small corner of my home where history lives…
    posted on September 10, 2025

  • Katsu Kaishū’s Wife Tami, and Daughters
    posted on May 5, 2019

  • Last Shōgun Tokugawa Yoshinobu Twenty-one Years After Meiji Restoration
    posted on October 23, 2018

  • Takasugi Shinsaku’s House
    posted on July 15, 2015

Japanese Writers

  • Mamoru Matsuoka: A Tribute to a Major Historian of the Meiji Restoration
    posted on May 15, 2020

  • Shiba Ryotaro’s “Junshi”
    posted on December 14, 2017

  • Miyaji Saichirō’s Monumental Works
    posted on December 31, 2016

  • Shiba Ryōtarō’s Masterpiece: “Ryōma ga Yuku”
    posted on December 26, 2015

  • My Favorite Japanese History Writers
    posted on July 8, 2015

Key Japanese Words

  • Key Japanese Words in Romulus Hillsborough’s Books: (7)— Bakumatsu
    posted on October 15, 2025

  • Key Japanese Words in Romulus Hillsborough’s Books: (5)
    posted on June 16, 2016

  • Key Japanese Words in Romulus Hillsborough’s Books: (4)
    posted on June 3, 2016

  • Key Japanese Words in Romulus Hillsborough’s Books: (3)
    posted on May 31, 2016

  • Key Japanese Words in Romulus Hillsborough’s Books: (1)
    posted on May 24, 2016

On Writing

  • The Imperative of Minor Details in Historical Writing
    posted on March 1, 2026

  • Two Masterpieces of Shinsengumi History and Lore
    posted on November 16, 2025

  • Reflections on Writing about a Different Time, Place, and Culture
    posted on November 16, 2025

  • Ryōma Revisited: Fact vs. Fiction in the Life of a “Renaissance Samurai”
    posted on August 4, 2025

  • On “Renaissance Samurai” and a Curious Lack of Online Credit
    posted on July 31, 2025

Samurai Notes: On Major Figures of the Samurai Revolution

  • A Note On Katsu Kaishū: A Samurai of the Highest Moral Character
    posted on February 1, 2020

  • A Note On “Hitokiri Izō”
    posted on November 22, 2019

Shinsengumi

  • Samurai Swordsmen to Be Published in September
    posted on May 30, 2026

  • Samurai Swordsmen: The Definitive History of the Shinsengumi amid the Fall of the Tokugawa Shogunate is now listed on Amazon USA
    posted on May 6, 2026

  • Just before Sannan Keisuké’s Seppuku
    posted on May 1, 2026

  • Just before the Ikédaya Incident
    posted on April 4, 2026

  • Samurai Swordsmen Listed on the Publisher’s Website
    posted on February 6, 2026

The Ryoma Phenomenon

  • The Ryōma Phenomenon (9) – My Five Favorite Books About Ryōma
    posted on September 28, 2016

  • The Ryōma Phenomenon (6) – Katsu Kaishū and Sakamoto Ryōma: The Meeting That Changed Japan
    posted on August 30, 2016

  • The Ryoma Phenomenon (5) – “You Gotta Have Big Dreams!”
    posted on August 18, 2016

  • The Ryoma Phenomenon (4) – A Nation Still Inspired
    posted on August 16, 2016

  • The Ryōma Phenomenon (3) – The Statue at Katsurahama
    posted on August 10, 2016

Thinking Beyond History: Why the Samurai Ethos Still Matters

  • Saigō Takamori’s “kindness, gentility and modesty”
    posted on November 12, 2025

  • “Revere Heaven, love mankind” (敬天愛人): Saigō Takamori’s Words of Wisdom
    posted on November 12, 2025

  • Giri: Is It Alive in Japanese Society Today?
    posted on November 8, 2025

  • “Without war there can be no true letters, and without letters there can be no true war”
    posted on November 1, 2025

  • Words of Wisdom from the “Shogun’s Last Samurai”
    posted on September 30, 2018

Archives

  • May 2026 (3)
  • April 2026 (2)
  • March 2026 (2)
  • February 2026 (1)
  • January 2026 (2)
  • December 2025 (1)
  • November 2025 (13)
  • October 2025 (4)
  • September 2025 (4)
  • August 2025 (2)
  • July 2025 (2)
  • June 2025 (1)
  • March 2022 (1)
  • October 2021 (1)
  • August 2020 (1)
  • June 2020 (1)
  • May 2020 (1)
  • April 2020 (1)
  • February 2020 (1)
  • January 2020 (1)
  • November 2019 (4)
  • August 2019 (2)
  • June 2019 (3)
  • May 2019 (1)
  • February 2019 (5)
  • January 2019 (7)
  • December 2018 (5)
  • November 2018 (5)
  • October 2018 (8)
  • September 2018 (1)
  • August 2018 (4)
  • July 2018 (2)
  • June 2018 (3)
  • May 2018 (2)
  • April 2018 (4)
  • February 2018 (5)
  • January 2018 (5)
  • December 2017 (5)
  • November 2017 (1)
  • October 2017 (3)
  • August 2017 (6)
  • June 2017 (1)
  • May 2017 (4)
  • April 2017 (3)
  • March 2017 (6)
  • February 2017 (1)
  • January 2017 (2)
  • December 2016 (4)
  • October 2016 (3)
  • September 2016 (2)
  • August 2016 (7)
  • July 2016 (1)
  • June 2016 (2)
  • May 2016 (2)
  • December 2015 (3)
  • November 2015 (2)
  • October 2015 (5)
  • September 2015 (4)
  • August 2015 (8)
  • July 2015 (5)
  • February 2015 (1)
  • July 2014 (1)
  • January 2014 (1)
  • July 2013 (1)

Quick Links

  • “Samurai Assassins”: Table of Contents
  • Historical Consulting
  • Kaishū-Ryōma Relationship
  • Katsu Kaishū
  • Sakamoto Ryōma
  • Samurai Assassins: “Dark Murder” and the Meiji Restoration, 1853-1868
  • Samurai Swordsmen: The Definitive History of the Shinsengumi amid the Fall of the Tokugawa Shogunate (1863–1869)
  • Shinsengumi
  • The Samurai Revolution at the Dawn of Modern Japan
  • Books at a Glance
  • The Shogun’s Last Samurai Corps: The Bloody Battles and Intrigues of the Shinsengumi
  • Ryoma: Life of a Renaissance Samurai
  • Samurai Tales
  • Samurai Revolution: The Dawn of Modern Japan Seen Through the Eyes of the Shogun’s Last Samurai

Pages

  • Romulus Hillsborough — Four Decades with the Samurai
  • Contact Romulus Hillsborough
  • Samurai Assassins: “Dark Murder” and the Meiji Restoration, 1853-1868
  • “Samurai Assassins”: Table of Contents
  • Shinsengumi
  • Historical Consulting
  • Kaishū-Ryōma Relationship
  • Sakamoto Ryōma
  • Katsu Kaishū
  • Samurai Swordsmen: The Definitive History of the Shinsengumi amid the Fall of the Tokugawa Shogunate (1863–1869)
Facebook Goodreads Amazon
Copyright©2014
All rights reserved.