5 historical anime that are as accurate as a textbook (& 5 that take major liberties)

Historical anime is an enjoyable avenue to explore past times by combining incredible stories with real-world events. A few stay close to what history has recorded, and thus give viewers detailed insight that may rival a textbook. These anime recreate actual events, settings, and figures with much care and offer views of other eras.

However, not all historical anime aim for accuracy. Many of them take creative liberties where history is intertwined with fantasy and, at times, other realities or supernatural twists, completely altering the course of the plot from its source.

Such shows get the point across, with people viewing the dramatization of real events as fiction. Here are the five historical anime that are as accurate as a textbook and five that take major liberties.

Disclaimer: This list is ranked in no particular order and contains the writer's opinion and spoilers. Readers' discretion is advised.

Millennium Actress and 4 other historical anime that are as accurate as a textbook

1) Hyouge Mono

Sasuke Furuta as seen in anime (Image via Bee Train)

Hyouge Mono is a historical anime that plunges the viewer into the cultural and political scenario of the Japanese Sengoku period. It traces the life of Furuta Oribe, one of the most well-known tea masters in real life, and portrays how the tea ceremony was relevant at that time.

The aesthetic values of wabi-sabi, the historical figures of Oda Nobunaga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi, and the intricate power struggles going on at that time are superbly rendered in the anime. This puts Hyouge Mono as one of the historical anime that catch up on the cultural-political nuances of Japan's history.

2) Grave of the Fireflies

Setsuko and Seita as seen in anime (Image via Studio Ghibli)

Grave of the Fireflies is one of the historical anime that was as close to the textbook as it could be in its portrayal of civilian World War II casualties in Japan. This film, set during the 1945 Kobe bombings, hit mass consciousness dramatically and realistically, considering the conditions ordinary people, especially children, had to endure during the war.

Its focus on survival and scarcity of resources, along with the emotional factor of war makes it very close to an actual experience many Japanese people experienced during this time. It is hence a historically grounded poignant reflection of what happened after the war.

3) The Rose of Versailles

Oscar François as seen in anime (Image via MAPPA)

The Rose of Versailles is one of the historically accurate anime as it portrays the history of the French Revolution and the lives of its people.

It has an animated series that includes an epic account of the real lives of some of the characters, especially the actual historical figures, such as Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI, and Oscar François de Jarjayes, who is fictional, but whose life reflects the changes going on in the society at that time.

The anime is a faithful representation of the fashion, politics, and social dynamics of 18th-century France, providing a well-researched look at the revolutionary period, while keeping historical integrity intact throughout its narrative.

4) Millennium Actress

Fujiwara Chiyoko as seen in anime (Image via Madhouse)

Millennium Actress uses the life of its heroine, Chiyoko, to interweave history and fiction. The film painstakingly portrays the different periods of Japan in the 20th century, reflects the changes that the society went through, and how those changes brought cultural change.

It includes actual historical events and settings, such as the Japanese occupation of Manchuria and post-war recovery, accurately portraying their impact on the characters and society, making Millennium Actress one of the historical anime with true events.

5) Monster

Johan Liebert as seen in anime (Image via Madhouse)

Monster stands out through careful detailing of life in 1990s Eastern Europe and boils down accurately the sociopolitical context. The anime looks into issues such as the plight of the orphans from the Red-Light district and the tensions involved with Neo-Nazis targeting Turks in Germany.

Such attention to detail in the setting and the dynamics of society makes the anime true to the era it's depicting, placing Monster among the accurate historical anime.

Vinland Saga and 4 other historical anime that take major liberties

1) Samurai Champloo

Mugen as seen in anime (Image via Manglobe)

Set in the Edo period, Samurai Champloo is full of samurai with an interesting twist in terms of anachronism— elements such as hip-hop music and breakdancing— combined with a stylized and contemporary aesthetic approach. Interactions between characters, as well as the general tone of the series, allow for aspects not remotely connected to historical truth.

Interactions between characters combined with the general feel of the series introduce elements far removed from historical accuracy. The mix of traditional themes of samurai in a storyline laden with much modern influence makes the narrative unique, where style and entertainment come before accurate history.

2) Drifters

Shimazu Toyohisa as seen in anime (Image via Hoods Entertainment)

Drifters rediscovers famous historical characters by bringing them to an imaginative landscape where they engage in epic battles against one another in a collection of renowned characters from various eras. Such characters include Oda Nobunaga and Joan of Arc, who sport supernatural powers and are involved in a fiercely competing, divergent-from-reality historical conflict.

The anime uses historical personalities but has a fictional storyline infused with magic and alternate dimensions. This creative approach distorts the actual basis of the historical figures' lives and events, making Drifters one of the historical anime, far removed from accuracy.

3) Baccano!

Dian Isaac as seen in anime (Image via Brain's Base)

Baccano! draws its roots from the 1930s, especially concerning Prohibition-era America and the Italian mafia, but does so with quite frank creative liberties that stretch the bounds of many narrative aspects. It weaves magical components, such as immortality and alchemy, into historical reality to create a relative mess of a tale.

This combination of history with fantastical and supernatural elements moves way from the realm of realism. Therefore, Baccano! is one of the historical anime that grossly deviates from the historical facts.

4) Vinland Saga

Thorfinn as seen in anime (Image via Wit Studio)

Vinland Saga presents a thrilling narrative based on the Viking Age but abuses historical facts. It counts real historical figures such as Leif Erikson and Harald Sigurdsson, but there are also a lot of fictional elements mixed with historical events and a dramatic story.

It dramatizes the Viking raids and battles, adopting fantastic elements and fictional characters that alter the histories. This creativity, in addition to focusing on personal vendettas and epic battles, makes it one of the less strict historical accounts and more of a historical fantasy.

5) Rurouni Kenshin

Kenshin Himura as seen in anime (Image via LIDENFILMS)

Rurouni Kenshin is based on the Meiji Restoration, in the history of Japan. While it does accurately mirror social movements of the period and depictions of a shift in the system of government, overthrowing the Tokugawa shogunate into the power of the Meiji government, it takes considerable creative liberties with the situation.

Many characters in the series, including Kenshin Himura, are purely fictional or are highly distorted from the real-life figures they were based upon.

Additionally, the portrayal of exaggerated martial arts and melodramas mask real history as they play up the events that are taking place, making Rurouni Kenshin one of the historical anime that changes the actual facts.

Final thoughts

Historical anime encompasses a range of stories, from merely a realistic account of what happened in history to simply imagined tales about the past. The take on the situation in Japan in history and its warfare in Millennium Actress and Grave of the Fireflies is realistic.

On the other hand, anime like Samurai Champloo and Drifters blend historical settings with fantasy, changing the factual basis to suit dramatic impact.

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Edited by Ahana Mukhopadhyay