ABSTRACT
The Gempei War, which lasted from 1180 until 1185, is the most celebrated of all the encounters fought between samurai. It was the consummation of the samurai ideal, a fight to the death between two entire clans. In its time the Gempei War produced a handful of the greatest samurai heroes Japan has ever seen, whose exploits were to be recounted and sung for years to come, until they acquired almost mythological status.
