This essay details the military career of Francis Festing (1912-76), along with his hobby as a connoisseur of Japanese swords and acts of reconcilliation.

The subject of this essay is Basil William Robinson, who became an expert on Japanese swords and helped to inspire interest in the Japanese sword and associated art and crafts.

Major C.A.L. Yate VC (1872-1914) had extensive dealings with Japan, and absorbed much of its culture and in particular the 'warrior spirit' of the country. This portrait traces his time in Japan, and its influence as a possible factor in his suicide to evade recapture during the First World War.