Masuda Takashi
Encyclopedia
Baron , was an entrepreneur in Meiji
, Taishō
and early Shōwa period
Japan
, responsible for transforming Mitsui
into a zaibatsu
through the creation of a general trading company
, Mitsui Bussan
. He also established a newspaper, the , which was later renamed the Nihon Keizai Shimbun
.
, in what is now Niigata Prefecture
. His father was an official in the Tokugawa Bakufu, serving as Hakodate bugyō
, a position which involved in dealing with foreigners and foreign trade as the sakoku
national isolation policy ended in the Bakumatsu period. During this period, the American Consulate General Townsend Harris
was based at Zenpuku-ji
in Azabu
. Takashi served as an interpreter there at the age of 14.
Masuda accompanied Ikeda Nagaoki
in the unsuccessful 1863 Second Japanese Embassy to Europe
to negotiate the cancellation of the open-port status of Yokohama. On his return he studied English
at the Hepburn School (the forerunner of Meiji Gakuin University
).
In 1871, after the Meiji restoration
, Masuda obtained a job at the Ministry of Finance
through his personal connections with Inoue Kaoru
. He served as Master of the Mint
, but resigned in 1873. In 1874, Masuda established the Senshu Kaisha trading company in Yokohama
with Inoue’s support. In 1876, at the age of 29, Masuda was appointed the president of Mitsui Trading Company
(Mitsui Bussan Kaisha) and contributed to the development of the Mitsui zaibatsu
. Mitsui quickly became a dominant player in Japanese exports of silk cloth and thread, cotton, coal, and rice, and in the import of industrial products and weaponry.
Masuda negotiated with the Ministry of Industry to acquire ownership of the Miike coal mine
s at very favorable prices when the government decided to divest itself of industries. This became the subsidiary company, Mitsui Mining Company, in 1889, with Dan Takuma
as president. In 1900, he created the Taiwan Sugar Corporation
, beginning Mitsui’s expansion into Japanese overseas colonies. By the 1910s, Mitsui had developed into Japan’s largest general trading company, accounting for nearly 20% of Japan’s total trade.
Masuda formally retired in 1913, and devoted his energies towards the Japanese tea ceremony
. He had residences in Odawara
and Kamakura
, where he hosted tea ceremonies. In 1918, he was elevated in rank of baron
(danshaku) in the kazoku
peerage system.
Masuda died in 1938, and his grave is at the Buddhist temple of Gokoku-ji
in Tokyo
.
Masuda’s daughter, Uryu Shigeko, accompanied Tsuda Umeko
to the United States
, and along with Tsuda, devoted her life to furthering education for women in Japan. His son, Masuda Tarokagyu, was a noted playwright.
Meiji period
The , also known as the Meiji era, is a Japanese era which extended from September 1868 through July 1912. This period represents the first half of the Empire of Japan.- Meiji Restoration and the emperor :...
, Taishō
Taisho period
The , or Taishō era, is a period in the history of Japan dating from July 30, 1912 to December 25, 1926, coinciding with the reign of the Taishō Emperor. The health of the new emperor was weak, which prompted the shift in political power from the old oligarchic group of elder statesmen to the Diet...
and early Shōwa period
Showa period
The , or Shōwa era, is the period of Japanese history corresponding to the reign of the Shōwa Emperor, Hirohito, from December 25, 1926 through January 7, 1989.The Shōwa period was longer than the reign of any previous Japanese emperor...
Japan
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...
, responsible for transforming Mitsui
Mitsui
is one of the largest corporate conglomerates in Japan and one of the largest publicly traded companies in the world.-History:Founded by Mitsui Takatoshi , who was the fourth son of a shopkeeper in Matsusaka, in what is now today's Mie prefecture...
into a zaibatsu
Zaibatsu
is a Japanese term referring to industrial and financial business conglomerates in the Empire of Japan, whose influence and size allowed for control over significant parts of the Japanese economy from the Meiji period until the end of World War II.-Terminology:...
through the creation of a general trading company
Trading company
Trading companies are businesses working with different kinds of products which are sold for consumer, business or government purposes. Trading companies buy a specialized range of products, maintain a stock or a shop, and deliver products to customers....
, Mitsui Bussan
Mitsui & Co.
Mitsui & Co., also known as Mitsui Bussan, is one of the largest sogo shosha in Japan, and also part of the Mitsui Group. Its business area covers energy, machinery, chemicals, food, textile, logistics, finance, and more.- History :...
. He also established a newspaper, the , which was later renamed the Nihon Keizai Shimbun
Nihon Keizai Shimbun
is one of the largest media corporations in Japan. Nikkei specializes in publishing financial, business and industry news. Its main news publications include:* Nihon Keizai Shimbun , a leading economic newspaper....
.
Biography
Masuda was born on Sado IslandSado, Niigata
is a city located on Sado Island in Niigata Prefecture, in the Chūbu region of Japan. Since 2004, the city has comprised the entire island, although not all of its total area of 855.26 km2 is urbanized...
, in what is now Niigata Prefecture
Niigata Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Honshū on the coast of the Sea of Japan. The capital is the city of Niigata. The name "Niigata" literally means "new lagoon".- History :...
. His father was an official in the Tokugawa Bakufu, serving as Hakodate bugyō
Hakodate bugyo
were officials of the Tokugawa shogunate in Edo period Japan. Appointments to this prominent office were usually fudai daimyō, but this was amongst the senior administrative posts open to those who were not daimyō...
, a position which involved in dealing with foreigners and foreign trade as the sakoku
Sakoku
was the foreign relations policy of Japan under which no foreigner could enter nor could any Japanese leave the country on penalty of death. The policy was enacted by the Tokugawa shogunate under Tokugawa Iemitsu through a number of edicts and policies from 1633–39 and remained in effect until...
national isolation policy ended in the Bakumatsu period. During this period, the American Consulate General Townsend Harris
Townsend Harris
Townsend Harris was a successful New York City merchant and minor politician, and the first United States Consul General to Japan...
was based at Zenpuku-ji
Zenpuku-ji
Zenpuku-ji , also known as Azabu-san , is a Jōdo Shinshū temple located in the Azabu district of Tokyo, Japan. It is one of the oldest Tokyo temples, after Asakusa.Founded by Kūkai in 824, Zenpuku-ji was originally a Shingon temple...
in Azabu
Azabu
is an area within Minato in Tokyo, Japan, built on a marshy area of foothills south of central Tokyo. Its coverage roughly corresponds to that of the former Azabu Ward, presently consisting of nine official districts: Azabu-Jūban, Azabudai, Azabu-Nagasakachō, Azabu-Mamianachō, Nishi-Azabu,...
. Takashi served as an interpreter there at the age of 14.
Masuda accompanied Ikeda Nagaoki
Ikeda Nagaoki
, formally "Ikeda Chikugo no kami Nagaoki", was the governor of small villages of Ibara, Bitchū Province , Japan, during the end of the Tokugawa shogunate....
in the unsuccessful 1863 Second Japanese Embassy to Europe
Second Japanese Embassy to Europe (1863)
The Second Japanese Embassy to Europe , also called the Ikeda Mission, was sent on December 29 1863 by the Tokugawa shogunate. The head of the mission was Ikeda Nagaoki, governor of small villages of Ibara, Bitchū Province...
to negotiate the cancellation of the open-port status of Yokohama. On his return he studied English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
at the Hepburn School (the forerunner of Meiji Gakuin University
Meiji Gakuin University
is one of the Christian universities in Tokyo and Yokohama which was established in 1863. The Reverend Dr. James Curtis Hepburn was one of the founders and the first president...
).
In 1871, after the Meiji restoration
Meiji Restoration
The , also known as the Meiji Ishin, Revolution, Reform or Renewal, was a chain of events that restored imperial rule to Japan in 1868...
, Masuda obtained a job at the Ministry of Finance
Ministry of Finance (Japan)
The ' is one of cabinet-level ministries of the Japanese government. The ministry was once named Ōkura-shō . The Ministry is headed by the Minister of Finance , who is a member of the Cabinet and is typically chosen from members of the Diet by the Prime Minister.The Ministry's origin was back in...
through his personal connections with Inoue Kaoru
Inoue Kaoru
Count , GCMG was a member of the Meiji oligarchy during the Meiji period Empire of Japan. As one of the senior statesman in Japan during that period, he had a tremendous influence on the selection of the nation's leaders and formation of its policies.-Early years:...
. He served as Master of the Mint
Japan Mint
The is an Incorporated Administrative Agency of the Japanese government. This agency has its Head office in Osaka with branches in Tokyo and Hiroshima.-History:...
, but resigned in 1873. In 1874, Masuda established the Senshu Kaisha trading company in Yokohama
Yokohama
is the capital city of Kanagawa Prefecture and the second largest city in Japan by population after Tokyo and most populous municipality of Japan. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of Tokyo, in the Kantō region of the main island of Honshu...
with Inoue’s support. In 1876, at the age of 29, Masuda was appointed the president of Mitsui Trading Company
Mitsui & Co.
Mitsui & Co., also known as Mitsui Bussan, is one of the largest sogo shosha in Japan, and also part of the Mitsui Group. Its business area covers energy, machinery, chemicals, food, textile, logistics, finance, and more.- History :...
(Mitsui Bussan Kaisha) and contributed to the development of the Mitsui zaibatsu
Zaibatsu
is a Japanese term referring to industrial and financial business conglomerates in the Empire of Japan, whose influence and size allowed for control over significant parts of the Japanese economy from the Meiji period until the end of World War II.-Terminology:...
. Mitsui quickly became a dominant player in Japanese exports of silk cloth and thread, cotton, coal, and rice, and in the import of industrial products and weaponry.
Masuda negotiated with the Ministry of Industry to acquire ownership of the Miike coal mine
Miike coal mine
, also known as the , was a coal mine located in the area of Ōmuta, Fukuoka and Arao, Kumamoto, Japan. Mining began in the Edo Period and the mine was nationalised in 1872. The Mitsui zaibatsu took control in 1899....
s at very favorable prices when the government decided to divest itself of industries. This became the subsidiary company, Mitsui Mining Company, in 1889, with Dan Takuma
Dan Takuma
was a Japanese businessman who was Director-General of Mitsui, one of the leading Japanese zaibatsu . He was a graduate of Massachusetts Institute of Technology and was married to the younger sister of statesman Kaneko Kentarō....
as president. In 1900, he created the Taiwan Sugar Corporation
Taiwan Sugar Corporation
Taiwan Sugar Corporation or Taisugar is a state-run enterprise in Tainan City, Taiwan.The corporation was created in 1946, following Kuomintang's entrance to Taiwan, by merging all sugar companies in Taiwan...
, beginning Mitsui’s expansion into Japanese overseas colonies. By the 1910s, Mitsui had developed into Japan’s largest general trading company, accounting for nearly 20% of Japan’s total trade.
Masuda formally retired in 1913, and devoted his energies towards the Japanese tea ceremony
Japanese tea ceremony
The Japanese tea ceremony, also called the Way of Tea, is a Japanese cultural activity involving the ceremonial preparation and presentation of matcha, powdered green tea. In Japanese, it is called . The manner in which it is performed, or the art of its performance, is called...
. He had residences in Odawara
Odawara, Kanagawa
is a city located in western Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. As of 2010, the city had an estimated population of 198,466 with a population density of 1,740 persons per km² . The total area was .-Geography:...
and Kamakura
Kamakura, Kanagawa
is a city located in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, about south-south-west of Tokyo. It used to be also called .Although Kamakura proper is today rather small, it is often described in history books as a former de facto capital of Japan as the seat of the Shogunate and of the Regency during the...
, where he hosted tea ceremonies. In 1918, he was elevated in rank of baron
Baron
Baron is a title of nobility. The word baron comes from Old French baron, itself from Old High German and Latin baro meaning " man, warrior"; it merged with cognate Old English beorn meaning "nobleman"...
(danshaku) in the kazoku
Kazoku
The was the hereditary peerage of the Empire of Japan that existed between 1869 and 1947.-Origins:Following the Meiji Restoration of 1868, the ancient court nobility of Kyoto regained some of its lost status...
peerage system.
Masuda died in 1938, and his grave is at the Buddhist temple of Gokoku-ji
Gokoku-ji
is a Shingon Buddhist temple in Tokyo's Bunkyō.-History:This Buddhist temple was established by the fifth shogun Tokugawa, Tsunayoshi, who dedicated it to his mother...
in Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
.
Masuda’s daughter, Uryu Shigeko, accompanied Tsuda Umeko
Tsuda Umeko
was an Japanese educator, feminist and pioneer in education for women in Meiji period Japan. Originally named , with mume or ume referring to the Japanese plum, she went by the name Ume Tsuda while studying in the United States before changing her name to Umeko in 1902.- Early life :Tsuda Umeko...
to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, and along with Tsuda, devoted her life to furthering education for women in Japan. His son, Masuda Tarokagyu, was a noted playwright.