The ''Asian Saga'' is a series of six novels written by
James Clavell
James Clavell (born Charles Edmund Dumaresq Clavell; 10 October 1921 – 7 September 1994) was a British and American writer, screenwriter, director, and World War II veteran and prisoner of war. Clavell is best known for his ''Asian Saga'' nov ...
between 1962 and 1993. The novels all centre on
Europe
Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...
ans in Asia, and together explore the impact on East and West of the meeting of these two distinct civilizations.
Overview
The name ''Asian Saga'' was first applied to the series after ''Shōgun'' had been published. The purpose of the ''Asian Saga'' was, according to Clavell—descendant of a family long in service to the
British Empire
The British Empire comprised the dominions, Crown colony, colonies, protectorates, League of Nations mandate, mandates, and other Dependent territory, territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It bega ...
, and who was a
prisoner of war
A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610.
Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...
of the Japanese during the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
—to tell "the story of the Anglo-Saxon in Asia".
Ordered by publication date:
# ''
King Rat'' (1962)
# ''
Tai-Pan
A taipan (,Andrew J. Moody, "Transmission Languages and Source Languages of Chinese Borrowings in English", ''American Speech'', Vol. 71, No. 4 (Winter, 1996), pp. 414–415. literally "top class"汉英词典 — ''A Chinese-English Dictionary ...
'' (1966)
# ''
Shōgun
, officially , was the title of the military rulers of Japan during most of the period spanning from 1185 to 1868. Nominally appointed by the Emperor, shoguns were usually the de facto rulers of the country, except during parts of the Kamak ...
'' (1975)
# ''
Noble House'' (1981)
# ''
Whirlwind
A whirlwind is a phenomenon in which a vortex of wind (a vertically oriented rotating column of air) forms due to instabilities and turbulence created by heating and flow ( current) gradients. Whirlwinds can vary in size and last from a cou ...
'' (1986)
# ''
Gai-Jin
''Gai-Jin'' (Japanese for "foreigner") is a 1993 novel by James Clavell, chronologically the third book in his ''Asian Saga'', although it was the last to be published. Taking place about 20 years after the events of ''Tai-Pan'', it chronicle ...
'' (1993)
Ordered by internal chronology:
# ''
Shōgun
, officially , was the title of the military rulers of Japan during most of the period spanning from 1185 to 1868. Nominally appointed by the Emperor, shoguns were usually the de facto rulers of the country, except during parts of the Kamak ...
:'' set in feudal
Japan
Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
, 1600. 1152 pages.
# ''
Tai-Pan
A taipan (,Andrew J. Moody, "Transmission Languages and Source Languages of Chinese Borrowings in English", ''American Speech'', Vol. 71, No. 4 (Winter, 1996), pp. 414–415. literally "top class"汉英词典 — ''A Chinese-English Dictionary ...
:'' set in
Hong Kong
Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...
, 1841. 727 pages.
# ''
Gai-Jin
''Gai-Jin'' (Japanese for "foreigner") is a 1993 novel by James Clavell, chronologically the third book in his ''Asian Saga'', although it was the last to be published. Taking place about 20 years after the events of ''Tai-Pan'', it chronicle ...
:'' set in
Japan
Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
, 1862. 1126 pages.
# ''
King Rat:'' set in a
Japan
Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
ese
POW
POW is "prisoner of war", a person, whether civilian or combatant, who is held in custody by an enemy power during or immediately after an armed conflict.
POW or pow may also refer to:
Music
* P.O.W (Bullet for My Valentine song), "P.O.W" (Bull ...
camp,
Singapore
Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...
, 1945. 400 pages.
# ''
Noble House:'' set in
Hong Kong
Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...
, 1963. 1171 pages.
# ''
Whirlwind
A whirlwind is a phenomenon in which a vortex of wind (a vertically oriented rotating column of air) forms due to instabilities and turbulence created by heating and flow ( current) gradients. Whirlwinds can vary in size and last from a cou ...
:'' set in
Iran
Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...
, 1979. 1147 pages (Abridged with some rewritten parts as ''Escape'', 598 pages)
Four of the six books—''Tai-Pan'', ''Gai-Jin'', ''Noble House'', and ''Whirlwind''—follow the dealings of the great trading company Struan's, the Noble House of Asia (based on
Jardine Matheson Holdings Limited
Jardine Matheson Holdings Limited (also known as Jardines) is a Hong Kong–based, Bermuda-domiciled British multinational conglomerate. It has a primary listing on the London Stock Exchange and secondary listings on the Singapore Exchange ...
), its founder
Dirk Struan
Dirk Lochlin Struan (1797–1841) is the fictional main character of James Clavell's 1966 novel '' Tai-Pan''. The title comes from a Cantonese term that Clavell loosely translates as "supreme leader", and Struan is the Tai-pan or head of his own ...
, and his various descendants. ''Gai-Jin'' provides the major link between the ''Shōgun'' and Struan's storylines.
Some of the characters make appearances in multiple books, and many characters from one book are referred to in later books. For example, two characters from ''King Rat'' (Robin Grey and Peter Marlowe) reappear in ''Noble House,'' and
Robert Armstrong Robert Armstrong may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
*Robert Armstrong (actor) (1890–1973), film actor
*Robert Armstrong (cartoonist) (born 1950), American underground comics artist and musician, coined the term "couch potato"
Fictional charac ...
is a major character in both ''
Noble House'' and ''
Whirlwind
A whirlwind is a phenomenon in which a vortex of wind (a vertically oriented rotating column of air) forms due to instabilities and turbulence created by heating and flow ( current) gradients. Whirlwinds can vary in size and last from a cou ...
.'' As a tie-in, Linc Bartlett's (''Noble House'') namesake ancestor appears in Clavell's film ''
Walk Like a Dragon
''Walk Like a Dragon'' is a 1960 American Western film directed by James Clavell, written by James Clavell and Daniel Mainwaring, and starring Jack Lord, Nobu McCarthy, James Shigeta, Mel Tormé, Josephine Hutchinson, Rodolfo Acosta and Be ...
'' (1960).
There are dozens of characters throughout the series, with very complex family relationships and a great deal of history that is hinted at but never described in detail. For instance, Peter Marlowe is almost certainly a descendant of Lt. John Marlowe, the captain who married Malcolm Struan and Angelique Richaud against the wishes of Tess Struan, as Clavell refers often to Peter Marlowe's family's long history of naval service. Clavell peppers the entire Asian Saga with these genealogical
Easter eggs
Easter eggs, also called Paschal eggs, are eggs that are Egg decorating, decorated for the Christian holiday of Easter, which celebrates the resurrection of Jesus. As such, Easter eggs are commonly used during the season of Eastertide (Easter ...
.
After publishing ''Whirlwind,'' Clavell wrote a shorter version of the story which focused on two characters from the book. Titled ''Escape: The Love Story from Whirlwind,'' the book is generally not considered an official part of the Asian Saga; nonetheless, some reviewers said it helped flesh out several aspects of the original novel.
In 1980, Clavell stated that, beyond ''Noble House,'' future entries in the series would include ''Nippon,'' set in 1970s Japan, and ''China,'' set in the present and future. When he died in 1994 after the publication of ''Gai-Jin'', it was reported that he had been planning several more entries in the ''Asian Saga'' series.
Plot
List of tai-pans of Struan's
* 1st tai-pan:
Dirk Struan
Dirk Lochlin Struan (1797–1841) is the fictional main character of James Clavell's 1966 novel '' Tai-Pan''. The title comes from a Cantonese term that Clavell loosely translates as "supreme leader", and Struan is the Tai-pan or head of his own ...
, 1828–1841
* 2nd tai-pan: Culum Struan, 1841–1862
* 3rd tai-pan: Sir Lochlin Struan, 1862–1873??
* 4th tai-pan: Dirk Dunross, 1873–1894
* 5th tai-pan: Sir Lochlin Struan, 1894–1908 (see notes)
* 6th tai-pan: Ross Lechie Struan, 1908–1915
* 7th tai-pan: Sir Ross Struan, 1915–19?? (see notes)
* 8th tai-pan: Colin Dunross, 19??–1949
* 9th tai-pan: Alastair Struan, 1949–1960
* 10th tai-pan: Ian Dunross, 1960–1970
* 11th tai-pan: David MacStruan, 1970–1975 (see notes)
* 12th tai-pan: Linbar Struan, 1975–19?
* 5th tai-pan (in name only): Kelly O'Gorman, 1894–1915 (see notes)
The half coins of Jin-qua
In 1841, when Struan's was on the brink of collapse, Dirk Struan received a loan of silver from the merchant
Jin-qua
''Tai-Pan'' is a 1966 novel written by James Clavell about European and American traders who move into Hong Kong in 1842 following the end of the First Opium War. It is the second book in Clavell's ''Asian Saga'', and the first to include the ...
in exchange for a series of favors. Among these were four bronze coins, split in half, four halves given to Dirk Struan, the other four halves kept by Jin-qua. Anyone who brought a half coin to the
tai-pan
A taipan (,Andrew J. Moody, "Transmission Languages and Source Languages of Chinese Borrowings in English", ''American Speech'', Vol. 71, No. 4 (Winter, 1996), pp. 414–415. literally "top class"汉英词典 — ''A Chinese-English Dictionary ...
of the Noble House would be granted whatever he asked, whether legal or illegal. All future tai-pans must swear to keep this bargain, before learning the details, if they were to become tai-pan. This served as repayment to the loan of silver.
Of the four coins, one was kept by Jin-qua, passed down through his family. One given to the warlord Wu Fang Choi. One given to Gordon Chen, and passed down through his family, and one given out in secret.
The first coin was brought to Dirk Struan in 1841 by Wu Fang Choi.
The second coin was brought in 1894 by Chiang Wu-tah. He asked that the Noble House give aid and sanctuary to
Sun Yat-sen
Sun Yat-senUsually known as Sun Zhongshan () in Chinese; also known by Names of Sun Yat-sen, several other names. (; 12 November 186612 March 1925) was a Chinese physician, revolutionary, statesman, and political philosopher who founded the Republ ...
and to assist him to overthrow the
Manchu
The Manchus (; ) are a Tungusic peoples, Tungusic East Asian people, East Asian ethnic group native to Manchuria in Northeast Asia. They are an officially recognized Ethnic minorities in China, ethnic minority in China and the people from wh ...
dynasty. This is recounted in ''Noble House'', chapter 60. In the movie however, the second coin is stated to have been returned to Hag Struan in 1911.
The story of the third coin is a major plot line in ''Noble House''. The coin is owned by Struan's trusted
compradore
A comprador or compradore () is a "person who acts as an agent for foreign organizations engaged in investment, trade, or economic or political exploitation." An example of a comprador would be a native manager for a European business house in Eas ...
Phillip Chen, handed down to him from his grandfather Gordon Chen. However, his son John Chen learns the secret of the coin, steals it, and bargains it and its secret away to American businessman Lincoln Bartlett. Before Bartlett takes possession of the coin, John Chen is kidnapped and murdered. When Phillip Chen enlists his underworld cousin Four Finger Wu to help locate John, Wu discovers the coin in the possession of one of the kidnappers, and takes it for his own, knowing its secret. When Wu dies, his son Profitable Choy takes over the coin and begs the favours from Ian Dunross.
The fate of the fourth coin is not addressed in the saga. However, it is speculated in ''Noble House'' that it was given to May-may (Dirk Struan's mistress) and passed down to their descendant Sir Shih-teh "Shitee" T'Chung.
Adaptations
As of 2024, four installments of the ''Asian Saga'' have been adapted for film or television:
* ''
King Rat'' (1965), starring
George Segal
George Segal Jr. (February 13, 1934 – March 23, 2021) was an American actor. He became popular in the 1960s and 1970s for playing both dramatic and comedic roles. After first rising to prominence with roles in acclaimed films such as '' Ship o ...
, was nominated for two
Academy Awards
The Academy Awards, commonly known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit in film. They are presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) in the United States in recognition of excellence in ...
for Art Direction and Black and White Cinematography.
* ''
Shōgun
, officially , was the title of the military rulers of Japan during most of the period spanning from 1185 to 1868. Nominally appointed by the Emperor, shoguns were usually the de facto rulers of the country, except during parts of the Kamak ...
'' (1980), was adapted by
NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...
as a television miniseries starring
Richard Chamberlain
George Richard Chamberlain (March 31, 1934 – March 29, 2025) was an American actor and singer who became a teen idol in the title role of the television show '' Dr. Kildare'' (1961–1966). He subsequently earned the title "King of the Mini- ...
,
Toshiro Mifune
was a Japanese actor and producer. The recipient of numerous awards and accolades over a lengthy career, he is widely considered one of the greatest actors of all time. He often played hypermasculine characters and was noted for his commandin ...
, and
Yoko Shimada
was a Japanese actress, best known to Western audiences for her portrayal of Mariko in the 1980 miniseries ''Shōgun''.
''Shogun'' miniseries
Shimada was the only female member of ''Shōgun''s massive cast of Japanese actors shown speaking En ...
; the production was one of the highest rated programs of its kind ever broadcast.
** The nine-hour miniseries was nominated for 14
Emmy Award
The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award categor ...
s, winning three including Best Limited Series.
[
] It also won three
Golden Globe Awards
The Golden Globe Awards are awards presented for excellence in both international film and television. It is an annual Awards ceremony, award ceremony held since 1944 to honor artists and professionals and their work. The ceremony is normally ...
.
[
** A two-hour version received a theatrical release in 1981.
* '']Tai-Pan
A taipan (,Andrew J. Moody, "Transmission Languages and Source Languages of Chinese Borrowings in English", ''American Speech'', Vol. 71, No. 4 (Winter, 1996), pp. 414–415. literally "top class"汉英词典 — ''A Chinese-English Dictionary ...
'' (1986), released as a theatrical film starring Bryan Brown
Bryan Neathway Brown AM (born 23 June 1947) is an Australian actor. He has performed in over eighty film and television projects since the late 1970s, both in his native Australia and abroad. Notable films include '' Breaker Morant'' (1980), ...
and Joan Chen
Joan Chen (simplified Chinese; 陈冲; born April 26, 1961) is an American actress and film director. She made her film debut in the Chinese film ''Youth'' (1977) before starring in the film (1979). She came to the attention of American audien ...
, was a critical and box office failure.
* '' Noble House'' (1988) was adapted as a TV miniseries starring Pierce Brosnan
Pierce Brendan Brosnan (born 16 May 1953) is an Irish actor and film producer. He was the fifth actor to play the fictional secret agent Portrayal of James Bond in film, James Bond in the List of James Bond films, James Bond film series, starri ...
and was a ratings success. It updated the timeframe of the novel from the 1960s to the 1980s and took many liberties with key points of the novel (for example, Ian Dunross became a bachelor who had a romance with Casey Tcholok).
*''Shōgun
, officially , was the title of the military rulers of Japan during most of the period spanning from 1185 to 1868. Nominally appointed by the Emperor, shoguns were usually the de facto rulers of the country, except during parts of the Kamak ...
'' (2024): The channel FX has released a series on its Hulu platform.
Although there were press reports in the mid-1990s that a miniseries adaptation of ''Gai-Jin'' was planned, no production eventuated.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Asian Saga
Book series introduced in 1962
Historical novels by series