William Dalton (1821–1875) was a Victorian-era British author of adventure stories for youth set in exotic locations such as China, Japan and Peru.[1] He wrote most of his books during a seven-year period between about 1857 to 1864. He was also chief Editor of the London Daily Telegraph for some time.[2]
Dalton was the first among many authors to novelize the true story of William Adams, who was the first Englishman to reach Japan in the 17th century.[1] His "romantic biography" is called Will Adams, the First Englishman in Japan (1861).[1] It is not an accurate history - Dalton never went to Japan, he relied on old sources and fictionalized the story - but it is a reflection of 19th century British stereotypes of Japan, about which little was known in the years immediately after Perry's arrival.[1] Later authors would also novelize the Adams story, the best known is James Clavell's Shōgun (1975) and subsequent 1980 film.[1]
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