Today I wrote about Shinsengumi Vice-Commander Hijikata Toshizo’s anticipation of a war in Kyoto between Aizu and Satsuma based on the latter’s refusal to support the Bakufu in the imminent war against Choshu in 1866. Katsu Kaishu was tasked with mediating between the two to resolve the problem peacefully.

Okay so I wrote about that. But as is sometimes the case after spending the day (or week or month or year or even decade) writing about this history, which was played out by men of a completely different time, place and culture than my own, I am struck by a sense of amazement and even awe that I am actually able to write about it — especially given that many of my main sources are in antiquated Japanese written by the men who made this history.

[Main sources today include three from Katsu Kaishu, a book of letters written by Hijikata Toshizo and Okita Soj (annotated by Kikuchi Akira), and my own Samurai Revolution.]