The world of the samurai, the legendary, elite warrior cult of old Japan, has for too long been associated solely with military history and has remained a mystery. In this exciting new book, Stephen Turnbull, the world's leading authority on the samurai, goes beyond the battlefield to paint a picture of the samurai as they really were. The world of the samurai warrior is revealed to be one of great richness, with familiar topics such as the cult of suicide, ritualized revenge, and the lore of the samurai sword, seen in the context of an all-encompassing warrior culture that was expressed through art and poetry as much as through violence.