This 1861 Japanese version of the American Revolution is incredibly awesome, especially George Washington punching a tiger

Take a break from politics Twitter for a sec and check out this thread from author and historian Nick Kapur on how Japan described the American Revolution in one of its history books from 1861:

These images, and the entire rest of the book, are available online courtesy of the Waseda University Library… 16/https://t.co/OF1gSsavko

— Nick Kapur (@nick_kapur) November 14, 2018

It starts out with George Washington as an archer, which is but a small peek into what lies ahead:

A thread of images from a Japanese illustrated history of America from 1861.

Here is George Washington (with bow and arrow) pictured alongside the Goddess of America. 1/ pic.twitter.com/LoF54y54bL

— Nick Kapur (@nick_kapur) November 14, 2018

And we have a slight detour to fill in the backstory of America:

Here is Christopher Columbus (seated at center) reporting his discovery of America to Queen Isabella of Spain.

So far, kinda normal, but wait for it…. 2/ pic.twitter.com/j0NzhnxBaA

— Nick Kapur (@nick_kapur) November 14, 2018

But the actions starts right up:

Now it's the American Revolution. Here is George Washington defending his wife "Carol" from a British official named "Asura" (same characters as the Buddhist deity). 3/ pic.twitter.com/JXD6Cj0xOE

— Nick Kapur (@nick_kapur) November 14, 2018

Here’s John Adams battling a snake:

And here is Washington's "second-in-command" John Adams battling an enormous snake. 4/ pic.twitter.com/ksEq9OW7g7

— Nick Kapur (@nick_kapur) November 14, 2018

Best buds John Adams and Ben Franklin must have had a falling out, because John Adams fires an arrow at Ben and then rides away like a cowardly little bitch. Of course Ben Franklin is a total badass, so he just stands there and lets the arrow fly by without even flinching. 8/ pic.twitter.com/w79i2Zy3De

— Nick Kapur (@nick_kapur) November 14, 2018

The action takes a small break while Adams has a picnic with his mom…

During a calmer moment, John Adams is just chillin' in the countryside, having a quiet picnic with his elderly mother… 9/ pic.twitter.com/r4Yh5sfFZa

— Nick Kapur (@nick_kapur) November 14, 2018

…that is until the freaking snake returns to EAT HIS MOM:

But then! While John Adams is too obsessed with the food and drink, a huge snake comes along and *eats* his mom!

Maybe the snake was a child of that other snake John Adams killed, or maybe it was sent by Ben Franklin as part of their feud? 10/ pic.twitter.com/8xJvnktbQL

— Nick Kapur (@nick_kapur) November 14, 2018

General Washington in action:

Here is Washington leading his army from behind in a carriage. The American flag has no stars, only stripes, and the author seems very impressed that the carriage has not one but TWO horses. 11/ pic.twitter.com/25rCDZ2QLT

— Nick Kapur (@nick_kapur) November 14, 2018

But we’re not done with John Adams, who asks this fairy for help getting revenge on the snake:

Meanwhile, John Adams wants to get revenge on the snake that ate his Mom, so he goes to ask a magical mountain fairy for help! 12/ pic.twitter.com/UaxxN5BJPI

— Nick Kapur (@nick_kapur) November 14, 2018

And the fairy sends Adams this eagle to help kill the snake:

The mountain fairy does Adams a solid, and summons a gigantic eagle! 13/ pic.twitter.com/Yqg4M3TlL8

— Nick Kapur (@nick_kapur) November 14, 2018

Teamwork:

Together, John Adams and the eagle kill the enormous snake that ate his Mom. The power of teamwork!!! 14/ pic.twitter.com/Nf2tndEZvu

— Nick Kapur (@nick_kapur) November 14, 2018

More on this fantastic version of American history here:

This 1861 book was by author Kanagaki Robun (仮名垣魯文) and artist Utagawa Yoshitora (歌川芳虎).

The title is "Osanaetoki Bankokubanashi" (童絵解万国噺) and it was based on 2 other second-hand sources, "Kaikoku Zushi" (海国図志) and "Amerika Ittōshi" (亜墨利加一統志). 15/ pic.twitter.com/0jFLyCshF3

— Nick Kapur (@nick_kapur) November 14, 2018

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