Historical anime either tries to be decently accurate or just uses history as a cool costume set and goes wild. *Rurouni Kenshin* is a classic, mixing Meiji-era Japan with samurai drama and stylized action. It's usually more "inspired by" than educational, but the settings make everything feel grounded.
Prefer anime? Best Historical anime
In the American Old West, the world's greatest race is about to begin. Thousands line up in San Diego to travel over six thousand kilometers for a chance to win the grand prize of fifty million dollars. With the era of the horse reaching its end, contestants are allowed to use...
In 16th-century Japan, Shinmen Takezou is a wild, rough young man in both his appearance and his actions. His aggressive nature has won him the collective reproach and fear of his village, leading him and his best friend, Matahachi Honiden, to run away in search of something...
Thorfinn, son of one of the Vikings' greatest warriors, is among the finest fighters in the merry band of mercenaries run by the cunning Askeladd, an impressive feat for a person his age. However, Thorfinn is not part of the group for the plunder it entails—instead, for having...
Born the crown prince of a prosperous kingdom, Xie Lian was renowned for his beauty, strength, and purity. His years of dedication and noble deeds allowed him to ascend to godhood. But those who rise, can also fall...and fall he does, cast from the Heavens again and again and...
During the Warring States period in China, Xin and Piao are two brother-like youngsters who dream of becoming Great Generals, despite their low status as orphaned slaves. One day, they encounter a man of nobility, who gives Piao an opportunity to undertake an important duty...
As the 20th century approaches its end, people all over the world are anxious that the world is changing. And probably not for the better. Kenji Endou is a normal convenience store manager who is just trying to get by. But when he learns that one of his old friends going by the...
Plaguing every corner, rumors of the deceased Wei Wuxian never end. Able to control the dead, Wei Wuxian left an epochal dent in the cultivation world, still both feared and revered 13 years later. But when he awakens in the body of a bullied young man who sacrificed his soul to...
A young traveling merchant, Kraft Lawrence, has become accustomed to days of roaming and trading with few companions. Or so it was until one peculiar day when the trader finds a young, naked, wolf-like girl asleep in his wagon. The beautiful girl, calling herself Holo, claims...
On a cold and silent day, a man and a woman meet. He is Aleksander, a police officer, and she is Emma, a young, blind woman who has fled her home in search of independence. As it happens, Aleksander's station needs someone to take calls. They make an unlikely pair—a small,...
Mushi: the most basic forms of life in the world. They exist without any goals or purposes aside from simply "being." They are beyond the shackles of the words good and evil. Mushi can exist in countless forms and are capable of mimicking things from the natural world such as...
In a certain imperial court, it has been a few months since a 17-year-old girl known as Maomao was kidnapped and forced to work as a low-level servant at the emperor's palace. Still, she manages to retain her curious and pragmatic spirit, planning to work until her years of...
Saichi Sugimoto is feared as the "Immortal Sugimoto" for his savagery on the battlefield during the Russo-Japanese war, but he is by no means a war hero. Sugimoto has been left to fend for himself after his release from the army for nearly killing a superior officer. Braving the...
Ittou Ogami has very little left to live for. Though once the Shogunate's chief executioner, his name is left in ruins after being framed for treason by the treacherous Yagyuu Clan, seeking to steal his position of power. His misfortune does not end here, however; they culminate...
During the Edo period, Japan is suddenly invaded by alien creatures known as the Amanto. Despite the samurai's attempts to combat the extraterrestrial menace, the Shogun soon realizes that their efforts are futile and decides to surrender. This marks the beginning of an uneasy...
Japanese-American Kevin Yamagata now authors the renowned detective comic book "Billy Bat" after serving in the Allied Forces in World War II. But as his series becomes a massive hit, Kevin discovers that his famed character, Billy Bat, already existed before within a Japanese...
From time immemorial to the age of space colonization, there is one legend that has stayed unchanged in every history book—the tale of the immortal bird Phoenix. A being whose blood is said to grant eternal life or wisdom, the radiant figure ensures the continuation of sentient...
It is the 19th century in a tribal town near the Caspian Sea, Central Asia. People lead simple lives along the Silk Road, believing in various customs and traditions as they have for many years. Amir Halgal is a beautiful 20-year-old woman skilled in archery, hunting, and...
Ten years have passed since the end of Bakumatsu, an era of war that saw the uprising of citizens against the Tokugawa shogunate. The revolutionaries wanted to create a time of peace, and a thriving country free from oppression. The new age of Meiji has come, but peace has not...
Six minors (16 or 17 years) answering to the nicknames of Joe, Mario, Suppon, Baremoto, Heitai and Kyabetsu are put into a reformatory for offences such as aggravated assault, swindle, flight, etc. Their stay in hell begins immediately. Accommodated by a doctor paedophile, they...
Shortly after astrology predicts destruction to befall the Tang Dynasty, a coup d'état led by the crown prince Li's very own brother kills him and his wife and sons. Li's daughter, princess Yongning, manages to escape, but is soon declared dead alongside her family. Full of...
There once lived a vampire known as Vanitas, hated by his own kind for being born under a full blue moon, as most arise on the night of a crimson one. Afraid and alone, he created the Book of Vanitas, a cursed grimoire that would one day take his vengeance on all vampires; this...
In the late 19th century, the British Empire has become a global power. Due to the strict class stratification, the average citizen has little chance of successfully rising up to the top, where the despicable nobility rules over them all. William James Moriarty, the second son...
"If the life that you had regained, was one that I had breathed back into you... Is it too much to hope for you to love me back with that life?" The year is 1926, in Japan-occupied Joseon. 17-year-old Soo-a is an illiterate handmaiden working for the household of a prominent...
Manji is an infamous swordsman in feudal Japan who is known as the "Hundred Man Killer," as he has killed one hundred innocent men. However, there is something far more frightening than his ominous reputation: the fact that he is immortal. This is the handiwork of...
The eve of the French Revolution, 1772— The eldest brother of the Sanson family, Charles-Henri, has grown as an executioner, while his sister, Marie-Joseph, has been living freely in Versailles. But one day, Marie-Joseph's first love, a man named Alain, is killed by...
JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Part 7–Steel Ball Run holds the #1 spot right now with a 9.34 on MAL. In the American Old West, the world's greatest race is about to begin.
MyAnimePulse tracks over 2,681 historical manga. This list pulls the 25 highest-rated ones — from finished classics to ongoing series.
New to historical manga? JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: Part 7–Steel Ball Run, Vagabond, and Vinland Saga are the easiest recommendations. All three are highly rated and accessible for first-time readers.
