E. Contact between Europe and Japan

Contact Between Europe and Japan

Europeans began coming to Japan in the 16th century, during the Warring States period before the Tokugawa Shogunate. Despite the severe disorder in the country, the Japanese welcomed traders and missionaries, from Portugal and, later, other European countries. These new-comers introduced fascinating new technologies and ideas. Within a century, how-ever, the aggressive Europeans had worn out their welcome.

Portugal Sends Ships, Merchants, and Technology to Japan

The Japanese first encountered Europeans in 1543, when shipwrecked Portuguese sailors washed up on the shores of southern Japan. Portuguese merchants soon followed. They hoped to involve themselves in Japan’s trade with China and Southeast Asia. The Portuguese brought clocks, eyeglasses, tobacco, firearms, and other unfamiliar items from Europe. Japanese merchants, eager to expand their markets, were happy to receive the newcomers and their goods. The daimyo, too, welcomed the strangers. They were particularly interested in the Portuguese muskets and cannons, because every daimyo sought an advantage over his rivals. One of these warlords listened intently to a Japanese observer’s description of a musket:

PRIMARY SOURCE:

“In their hands they carried something two or three feet long, straight on the outside with a passage inside, and made of a heavy substance. . . . This thing with one blow can smash a mountain of silver and a wall of iron. If one sought to do mischief in another man’s domain and he was touched by it, he would lose his life instantly.”

ANONYMOUS JAPANESE WRITER, quoted in Sources of Japanese Tradition (1958)

The Japanese purchased weapons from the Portuguese and soon began their own production. Firearms forever changed the time-honored tradition of the Japanese warrior, whose principal weapon had been the sword. Some daimyo recruited and trained corps of peasants to use muskets. Many samurai, who retained the sword as their principal weapon, would lose their lives to musket fire in future combat. The cannon also had a huge impact on warfare and life in Japan. Daimyo had to build fortified castles to withstand the destructive force of cannonballs. The castles attracted merchants, artisans,and others to surrounding lands. Many of these lands were to grow into the town and cities of modern Japan, including Edo (Tokyo), Osaka, Himeji, and Nagoya.