Kyoto—founded in the year 794 and capital of Japan for fully half that nation's recorded history—sits firmly in the center of Lucas Peyton Thomas's compelling, vivid history of Japan. Here, in vibrant detail, are the stories of the rise and fall of Japan's aristocracy, of the days of the shoguns and samurai, of life in its palaces and moated castles, of a country that once sought to rule China but chose to isolate itself for more than 200 years. Mysterious Japan—a nation known to the West only after the travels of Marco Polo—is unveiled in this engaging book.