Japanese warship San Buena Ventura
Encyclopedia
San Buena Ventura was a 120 ton ship built in Japan
under the direction of the English navigator and adventurer William Adams
for the shogun
Tokugawa Ieyasu
.
The ship was built in 1607, and followed the construction of a smaller 80 ton ship, also by William Adams, which had been used for the charting of the waters around Japan. Tokugawa Ieyasu ordered the second, bigger, ship for travels to other countries.
On 30 September 1609, the Spanish galleon San Francisco with a crew of 373 was wrecked on the coast of Chiba
, Japan (near the present-day town of Onjuku
), and the 317 survivors were received warmly by the Japanese. One of the passengers was the governor of the Philippines
, Rodrigo de Vivero y Velasco
. He had the opportunity to meet the shogun Tokugawa Hidetada
, and the following year his father Tokugawa Ieyasu
, meetings in which the Franciscan
friar Luis Sotelo
, who had been in Japan for a few years, acted as an interpreter.
Ieyasu expressed his desire to expand trade with Nueva España (Mexico
) and Spain
. Rodrigo de Vivero answered that he could readily organize trade on a scale surpassing that of the Dutch, the main rivals of Spain in Asia at the time. He also offered to send to Japan 50 experts in silver mining from Mexico. In exchange, he asked for the protection of Spanish priests in Japan, support for shipwrecked boats on the Japanese coasts, and the expulsion of Dutch merchants from Japan, the last request being rejected by Ieyasu.
In order for the Spanish to return to Mexico, Ieyasu lent them William Adams's ship, which the Spanish called San Buena Ventura. The Shogun also lent them the equivalent of 4,000 ducados for the trip.
Rodrigo de Vivero made it back to Mexico on board the ship in 1610. Twenty-two Japanese were also on board, led by Tanaka Shōsuke
, who became the first recorded Japanese to reach the continent. Luis de Velasco
, the viceroy of Nueva España received the 22 Japanese and expressed his great satisfaction at the treatment the Spanish sailors had received in Japan. He confiscated the San Buena Ventura however, fearing that the Japanese would become expert at trans-oceanic navigation.
The viceroy of Nueva España decided to send an embassy to Japan in the person of the famous explorer Sebastian Vizcaino
.
Vizcaino also had a mission to return the 4,000 ducados and to research "gold and silver islands", supposedly to the east of Japan. He left for Japan on 22 March 1611, and after another shipwreck eventually returned in 1613 onboard the Japanese-built galleon
San Juan Bautista
with the first official Japanese embassy to the Americas and Europe, led by Hasekura Tsunenaga
.
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
under the direction of the English navigator and adventurer William Adams
William Adams (sailor)
William Adams , also known in Japanese as Anjin-sama and Miura Anjin , was an English navigator who travelled to Japan and is believed to be the first Englishman ever to reach that country...
for the shogun
Shogun
A was one of the hereditary military dictators of Japan from 1192 to 1867. In this period, the shoguns, or their shikken regents , were the de facto rulers of Japan though they were nominally appointed by the emperor...
Tokugawa Ieyasu
Tokugawa Ieyasu
was the founder and first shogun of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan , which ruled from the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. Ieyasu seized power in 1600, received appointment as shogun in 1603, abdicated from office in 1605, but...
.
The ship was built in 1607, and followed the construction of a smaller 80 ton ship, also by William Adams, which had been used for the charting of the waters around Japan. Tokugawa Ieyasu ordered the second, bigger, ship for travels to other countries.
Chiba Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kantō region and the Greater Tokyo Area. Its capital is Chiba City.- History :Chiba Prefecture was established on June 15, 1873 with the merger of Kisarazu Prefecture and Inba Prefecture...
, Japan (near the present-day town of Onjuku
Onjuku, Chiba
is a town located in Isumi District, Chiba, Japan. As of 2010, the town has an estimated population of 7,823 and a density of 314 persons per km². The total area is 24.92 km²...
), and the 317 survivors were received warmly by the Japanese. One of the passengers was the governor of the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
, Rodrigo de Vivero y Velasco
Rodrigo de Vivero y Velasco
Rodrigo de Vivero y Velasco was a Spanish colonial officer from New Spain. In 1563 he married Melchora de Aberrucia, who was Alonso Valiente's widow, and thereby disposed the encomienda of Tecamachalco...
. He had the opportunity to meet the shogun Tokugawa Hidetada
Tokugawa Hidetada
was the second shogun of the Tokugawa dynasty, who ruled from 1605 until his abdication in 1623. He was the third son of Tokugawa Ieyasu, the first shogun of the Tokugawa shogunate.-Early life :...
, and the following year his father Tokugawa Ieyasu
Tokugawa Ieyasu
was the founder and first shogun of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan , which ruled from the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. Ieyasu seized power in 1600, received appointment as shogun in 1603, abdicated from office in 1605, but...
, meetings in which the Franciscan
Franciscan
Most Franciscans are members of Roman Catholic religious orders founded by Saint Francis of Assisi. Besides Roman Catholic communities, there are also Old Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, ecumenical and Non-denominational Franciscan communities....
friar Luis Sotelo
Luis Sotelo
Blessed Luis Sotelo was a Franciscan friar who died as a martyr in Japan, in 1624, and was beatified by Pope Pius IX in 1867....
, who had been in Japan for a few years, acted as an interpreter.
Ieyasu expressed his desire to expand trade with Nueva España (Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
) and Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
. Rodrigo de Vivero answered that he could readily organize trade on a scale surpassing that of the Dutch, the main rivals of Spain in Asia at the time. He also offered to send to Japan 50 experts in silver mining from Mexico. In exchange, he asked for the protection of Spanish priests in Japan, support for shipwrecked boats on the Japanese coasts, and the expulsion of Dutch merchants from Japan, the last request being rejected by Ieyasu.
In order for the Spanish to return to Mexico, Ieyasu lent them William Adams's ship, which the Spanish called San Buena Ventura. The Shogun also lent them the equivalent of 4,000 ducados for the trip.
Rodrigo de Vivero made it back to Mexico on board the ship in 1610. Twenty-two Japanese were also on board, led by Tanaka Shōsuke
Tanaka Shosuke
Tanaka Shōsuke was an important Japanese technician and trader in metals from Kyoto during the beginning of the 17th century.According to Japanese archives he was a representative of the great Osaka merchant Gotō Shōsaburō...
, who became the first recorded Japanese to reach the continent. Luis de Velasco
Luis de Velasco, marqués de Salinas
Luis de Velasco, marqués de Salinas , Spanish nobleman, son of the second viceroy of New Spain, and himself the eighth viceroy. He governed from January 27, 1590 to November 4, 1595, and again from July 2, 1607 to June 10, 1611...
, the viceroy of Nueva España received the 22 Japanese and expressed his great satisfaction at the treatment the Spanish sailors had received in Japan. He confiscated the San Buena Ventura however, fearing that the Japanese would become expert at trans-oceanic navigation.
The viceroy of Nueva España decided to send an embassy to Japan in the person of the famous explorer Sebastian Vizcaino
Sebastián Vizcaíno
Sebastián Vizcaíno was a Spanish soldier, entrepreneur, explorer, and diplomat whose varied roles took him to New Spain, the Philippines, the Baja California peninsula, the California coast and Japan.-Early career:...
.
Vizcaino also had a mission to return the 4,000 ducados and to research "gold and silver islands", supposedly to the east of Japan. He left for Japan on 22 March 1611, and after another shipwreck eventually returned in 1613 onboard the Japanese-built galleon
Galleon
A galleon was a large, multi-decked sailing ship used primarily by European states from the 16th to 18th centuries. Whether used for war or commerce, they were generally armed with the demi-culverin type of cannon.-Etymology:...
San Juan Bautista
Japanese warship San Juan Bautista
San Juan Bautista was one of Japan's first Japanese-built Western-style sail warships. She crossed the Pacific in 1614. She was of the Spanish galleon type, known in Japan as Nanban-Sen San Juan Bautista (“St. John the Baptist”) (originally called Date Maru, 伊達丸 in Japanese) was one of Japan's...
with the first official Japanese embassy to the Americas and Europe, led by Hasekura Tsunenaga
Hasekura Tsunenaga
Hasekura Rokuemon Tsunenaga or was a Japanese samurai and retainer of Date Masamune, the daimyo of Sendai....
.