Red seal ships
Encyclopedia
-
- For the RCA or RCA Victor record series, see RCA Red Seal RecordsRCA Red Seal RecordsRCA Red Seal Records is a classical music label and is now part of Sony Masterworks.The Red Seal label was begun in 1902 by the Gramophone Company in the United Kingdom and was quickly picked up by its United States affiliate, the Victor Talking Machine Company, and its president, Eldridge R. Johnson...
- For the RCA or RCA Victor record series, see RCA Red Seal Records
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...
ese armed merchant sailing ships bound for Southeast Asian ports with a red-sealed patent issued by the early Tokugawa shogunate
Tokugawa shogunate
The Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the and the , was a feudal regime of Japan established by Tokugawa Ieyasu and ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family. This period is known as the Edo period and gets its name from the capital city, Edo, which is now called Tokyo, after the name was...
in the first half of the 17th century. Between 1600 and 1635, more than 350 Japanese ships went overseas under this permit system.
Origins
Wokou
Wokou , which literally translates as "Japanese pirates" in English, were pirates of varying origins who raided the coastlines of China and Korea from the 13th century onwards...
" pirates who plundered the coast of the Chinese Empire
Late Imperial China
Late Imperial China refers to the period between the end of Mongol rule in 1368 and the establishment of the Republic of China in 1912 and includes the Ming and Qing Dynasties...
. Official trading missions were also sent to China, such as the Tenryūji-bune
Tenryuji-bune
The were two Japanese–Yuan trade ships launched in 1342 in order to procure funds for the construction of Tenryū-ji. They were approved by the Muromachi shogunate, and released to the command of a Hakata merchant named under the condition that he donate 5,000 kanmon to the temple irrespective...
around 1341. Wakō activity was efficiently curbed in the late sixteenth century with the interdiction of piracy by Hideyoshi, and the successful campaigns against pirate activity on the Chinese coast by Ming Dynasty
Ming Dynasty
The Ming Dynasty, also Empire of the Great Ming, was the ruling dynasty of China from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan Dynasty. The Ming, "one of the greatest eras of orderly government and social stability in human history", was the last dynasty in China ruled by ethnic...
generals.
Between the 15th and the 16th century, the main trading intermediary in Eastern Asia was the island kingdom of the Ryūkyū
Ryukyu Kingdom
The Ryūkyū Kingdom was an independent kingdom which ruled most of the Ryukyu Islands from the 15th century to the 19th century. The Kings of Ryūkyū unified Okinawa Island and extended the kingdom to the Amami Islands in modern-day Kagoshima Prefecture, and the Sakishima Islands near Taiwan...
(modern Okinawa), which exchanged Japanese products (silver, swords) and Chinese products for Southeast Asian sappan wood and deer hides. Altogether 150 Ryukian ships are recorded between the kingdom and Southeast Asia, 61 of them for Annam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
(Viet Nam), 10 for Malacca
Malacca
Malacca , dubbed The Historic State or Negeri Bersejarah among locals) is the third smallest Malaysian state, after Perlis and Penang. It is located in the southern region of the Malay Peninsula, on the Straits of Malacca. It borders Negeri Sembilan to the north and the state of Johor to the south...
, 10 for Pattani
Pattani kingdom
Pattani or Sultanate of Pattani was a Malay sultanate that covered approximately the area of the modern Thai provinces of Pattani, Yala, Narathiwat and much of the northern part of modern Malaysia. The King of Patani is believed to have converted to Islam some time during the 11th century...
, 8 for Java etc... Their commerce disappeared around 1570 with the rise of Chinese merchants and the intervention of Portuguese and Spanish ships, and corresponds with the beginnings of the Red Seal system. The Ryūkyū kingdom was finally invaded by Japan in 1609.
When the first Europeans started to navigate in the Pacific Ocean
Pacific Ocean
The Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
(see also Nanban trade period), they regularly encountered Japanese ships, such as when the Spanish welcomed in Manila
Manila
Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...
in 1589 a storm-battered Japanese junk bound for Siam, or when the Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
circumnavigator Olivier van Noort
Olivier van Noort
Olivier van Noort was the first Dutchman to circumnavigate the world.Olivier van Noort was born in 1558 in Utrecht. He left Rotterdam on 2 July 1598 with four ships and a plan to attack Spanish possessions in the Pacific and to trade with China and the Spice Islands...
encountered a 110-ton Japanese junk in 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...
in December 1600, and on the same voyage a Red Seal ship with a Portuguese captain off Borneo
Borneo
Borneo is the third largest island in the world and is located north of Java Island, Indonesia, at the geographic centre of Maritime Southeast Asia....
through which they learned about the arrival of 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...
in Japan.
Red Seal system
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...
, first ruler of Tokugawa Japan. Tokugawa issued red-sealed permits to his favourite feudal lords and principal merchants who were interested in foreign trade. By doing so, he was able to control Japanese traders and reduce Japanese piracy in the South Sea. His seal also guaranteed the protection of the ships, since he vowed to pursue any pirate or nation who would violate it.
Besides Japanese traders, 12 European and 11 Chinese residents, including 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...
and Jan Joosten, are known to have received permits. At one point after 1621, Jan Joosten is recorded to have possessed 10 Red Seal Ships for commerce.
Portuguese
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
, Spanish
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...
, Dutch
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
ships and Asian rulers basically protected Japanese red seal ships, since they had diplomatic relations with the Japanese shogun. Only Ming China had nothing to do with this practice, because the Empire officially prohibited Japanese ships from entering Chinese ports. (But Ming officials were not able to stop Chinese smugglers from setting sail to Japan.)
Ship design
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:...
s, but inferior to that of the massive Portuguese carrack
Carrack
A carrack or nau was a three- or four-masted sailing ship developed in 15th century Western Europe for use in the Atlantic Ocean. It had a high rounded stern with large aftcastle, forecastle and bowsprit at the stem. It was first used by the Portuguese , and later by the Spanish, to explore and...
s, which were often over 1,000 tons.
The complement was about 200 people per ship (the average of the fifteen Red Seal ships for which the number of people is known, is 236).
The ships were built in various places. Some of them, built in Nagasaki, combined Western, Japanese and Chinese ship designs. Others were Chinese junks. And once the trade with Southeast Asia became well established, numerous ships were ordered and purchased in Ayutthaya
Ayutthaya (city)
Ayutthaya city is the capital of Ayutthaya province in Thailand. Located in the valley of the Chao Phraya River. The city was founded in 1350 by King U Thong, who went there to escape a smallpox outbreak in Lop Buri and proclaimed it the capital of his kingdom, often referred to as the Ayutthaya...
in Siam, due to the excellence of the construction and the quality of Thai wood.
The ships were managed by rich trading families such as the Sumikura, Araki, Chaya and Sueyoshi, or by individual adventurers such as Suetsugo Heizo, Yamada Nagamasa
Yamada Nagamasa
was a Japanese adventurer who gained considerable influence in Ayutthaya kingdom at the beginning of the 17th century and became the governor of the Nakhon Si Thammarat in southern Thailand....
, 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...
, Jan Joosten or Murayama Toan
Murayama Toan
Murayama Tōan Antonio was a 17th-century Japanese Governor of the city of Nagasaki . He was born in Nagoya from a humble background, and he was a Christian...
. The funds for the purchase of merchandise in Asia were loaned to the managers of the expedition for an interest of 35% to 55% per trip, going as high as 100% in the case of Siam.
Import and export
Japanese merchants mainly exported silverSilver
Silver is a metallic chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal...
, diamond
Diamond
In mineralogy, diamond is an allotrope of carbon, where the carbon atoms are arranged in a variation of the face-centered cubic crystal structure called a diamond lattice. Diamond is less stable than graphite, but the conversion rate from diamond to graphite is negligible at ambient conditions...
s, copper
Copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...
, sword
Sword
A sword is a bladed weapon used primarily for cutting or thrusting. The precise definition of the term varies with the historical epoch or the geographical region under consideration...
s and other artifacts, and imported Chinese silk
Silk
Silk is a natural protein fiber, some forms of which can be woven into textiles. The best-known type of silk is obtained from the cocoons of the larvae of the mulberry silkworm Bombyx mori reared in captivity...
as well as some Southeast Asian products (like sugar and deer skins). Pepper
Black pepper
Black pepper is a flowering vine in the family Piperaceae, cultivated for its fruit, which is usually dried and used as a spice and seasoning. The fruit, known as a peppercorn when dried, is approximately in diameter, dark red when fully mature, and, like all drupes, contains a single seed...
and spices were rarely imported into Japan, where people did not eat a great deal of meat due to the local preponderance of adherents to the Buddhist belief system. Southeast Asian ports provided meeting places for Japanese and Chinese ships.
Destinations
Portolan chart
Portolan charts are navigational maps based on realistic descriptions of harbours and coasts. They were first made in the 14th century in Italy, Portugal and Spain...
maps used on the Red Seal ships were drawn on the Portuguese model, with directions in the Japanese language.
Major Southeast Asian ports, including Spanish Manila
Manila
Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...
, Vietnamese Hoi An
Hoi An
Hội An , or rarely Faifo, is a city of Vietnam, on the coast of the South China Sea in the South Central Coast of Vietnam. It is located in Quang Nam province and is home to approximately 120,000 inhabitants...
, Siamese Ayutthaya
Ayutthaya (city)
Ayutthaya city is the capital of Ayutthaya province in Thailand. Located in the valley of the Chao Phraya River. The city was founded in 1350 by King U Thong, who went there to escape a smallpox outbreak in Lop Buri and proclaimed it the capital of his kingdom, often referred to as the Ayutthaya...
, Malay Pattani
Pattani
Pattani may refer to* Pattani Province, in southern Thailand* Pattani , in southern Thailand* Pattani , which includes the above province** Pattani Kingdom, a former semi-independent kingdom...
, welcomed the Japanese merchant ships, and many Japanese settled in these ports, forming small Japanese enclaves.
The Japanese seem to have been feared throughout Asian countries, according to a contemporary, Sir Edward Michelbourne:
- The Japons are not suffered to land in any port in India (Asia) with weapons; being accounted a people so desperate and daring, that they are feared in all places where they come.
A Dutch commander wrote (circa 1615): "they are a rough and a fearless people, lambs in their own country, but well-nigh devils outside of it".
The Philippines
Around 50 Red Seal ships to LuzonLuzon
Luzon is the largest island in the Philippines. It is located in the northernmost region of the archipelago, and is also the name for one of the three primary island groups in the country centered on the Island of Luzon...
in 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...
are recorded between 1604 and 1624 (and only 4 more recorded by 1635). The Japanese had established quite early an enclave at Dilao, a suburb of Manila
Manila
Manila is the capital of the Philippines. It is one of the sixteen cities forming Metro Manila.Manila is located on the eastern shores of Manila Bay and is bordered by Navotas and Caloocan to the north, Quezon City to the northeast, San Juan and Mandaluyong to the east, Makati on the southeast,...
, where they numbered between 300 to 400 in 1593. In 1603, during the Sangley
Sangley
Sangley , is an archaic term used in the Philippines to describe and classify a person of pure Chinese ancestry, while mestizo de sangley was used to refer to a person of mixed Chinese and indigenous ancestry Sangley (Sangleye, Sangley Mestizo, Mestisong Sangley, Mestizo de Sangley or Chinese...
rebellion, they numbered 1,500 and 3,000 in 1606. 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....
was involved in the support of the Dilao enclave between 1600 and 1608.
The Japanese led an abortive rebellion in Dilao against the Spanish in 1606-1607. Their numbers rose again with the interdiction of Christianity by 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...
in 1614, when 300 Japanese Christian refugees under Takayama Ukon settled in the Philippines. They are at the origin of today's 200,000-strong Japanese population in the Philippines.
Siam (Thailand)
Around 56 Red Seal ships to Siam are recorded between 1604 and 1635. The Japanese community in Siam seems to have been in the hundreds, as described by Padre Antonio Francisco Cardim, who recounted having administered sacrament to around 400 Japanese Christians in 1627 in the Thai capital of Ayuthaya
Ayutthaya Province
Phra Nakhon Si Ayutthaya is one of the central provinces of Thailand. Neighboring provinces are Ang Thong, Lop Buri, Saraburi, Pathum Thani, Nonthaburi, Nakhon Pathom and Suphan Buri....
("a 400 japoes christaos") (Ishii Yoneo, Multicultural Japan).
In December 1605, John Davis
John Davis (English explorer)
John Davis , was one of the chief English navigators and explorers under Elizabeth I, especially in Polar regions and in the Far East.-Early life:...
, the famous English explorer, was killed by Japanese pirates off the coast of Siam, thus becoming the first Englishman to be killed by a Japanese.
The colony was active in trade, particularly in the export of deer-hide and sappan wood to Japan in exchange for Japanese silver and Japanese handicrafts (swords, lacquered boxes, high-quality papers). They were noted by the Dutch for challenging the trade monopoly of the Dutch East India Company
Dutch East India Company
The Dutch East India Company was a chartered company established in 1602, when the States-General of the Netherlands granted it a 21-year monopoly to carry out colonial activities in Asia...
(VOC), as their strong position with the King of Siam typically allowed them to buy at least 50% of the total production, leaving small quantities of a lesser quality to other traders.
A Japanese adventurer, Yamada Nagamasa
Yamada Nagamasa
was a Japanese adventurer who gained considerable influence in Ayutthaya kingdom at the beginning of the 17th century and became the governor of the Nakhon Si Thammarat in southern Thailand....
, became very influential and ruled part of the kingdom of Siam (Thailand) during that period. The colony also had an important military role in Thailand.
Macau
Although prohibited by China from touching Chinese soil, Japanese sailors from Red Seal ships transited through MacauMacau
Macau , also spelled Macao , is, along with Hong Kong, one of the two special administrative regions of the People's Republic of China...
in some numbers. In November 1608, a fight between about 100 Japanese samurai, wielding katana
Katana
A Japanese sword, or , is one of the traditional bladed weapons of Japan. There are several types of Japanese swords, according to size, field of application and method of manufacture.-Description:...
and musket
Musket
A musket is a muzzle-loaded, smooth bore long gun, fired from the shoulder. Muskets were designed for use by infantry. A soldier armed with a musket had the designation musketman or musketeer....
s, and Portuguese
Portuguese people
The Portuguese are a nation and ethnic group native to the country of Portugal, in the west of the Iberian peninsula of south-west Europe. Their language is Portuguese, and Roman Catholicism is the predominant religion....
soldiers under the acting governor and Captain of the Japan voyage André Pessoa led to a fight in which 50 Japanese lost their lives. The remaining 50 were released by the authorities after having to sign an affidavit
Affidavit
An affidavit is a written sworn statement of fact voluntarily made by an affiant or deponent under an oath or affirmation administered by a person authorized to do so by law. Such statement is witnessed as to the authenticity of the affiant's signature by a taker of oaths, such as a notary public...
blaming themselves for the incident. Ieyasu prohibited visits to Macau by Japanese nationals in 1609:
- Since it is an undoubted fact that the going of Japanese in ships to Macau is prejudicial to that place, this practice will be strictly prohibited for the future. (July 25, 1609, Ieyasu Shuinjo, remitted to Mateo Leitão)
Indonesia
Maluku Islands
The Maluku Islands are an archipelago that is part of Indonesia, and part of the larger Maritime Southeast Asia region. Tectonically they are located on the Halmahera Plate within the Molucca Sea Collision Zone...
), possibly because of the remoteness and because of the direct Dutch involvement there, Japanese samurai were recruited by the Dutch in the area. They distinguished themselves in the capture of the Banda Islands
Banda Islands
The Banda Islands are a volcanic group of ten small volcanic islands in the Banda Sea, about south of Seram Island and about east of Java, and are part of the Indonesian province of Maluku. The main town and administrative centre is Bandanaira, located on the island of the same name. They rise...
from the English and the defense of Batavia, until the practice of hiring Japanese mercenaries was prohibited by the Shogun in 1621. In 1618, Coen
Jan Pieterszoon Coen
Jan Pieterszoon Coen was a officer of the Dutch East India Company in the early seventeenth century, holding two terms as its Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies....
, the Dutch governor of Java, requested 25 Japanese Samurai to be sent to him from Japan. In 1620, the Dutch record that 90 Japanese samurai were recruited from the islands surrounding Java, in order to reinforce the fort of Batavia.
In 1623, during the Amboyna massacre
Amboyna massacre
The Amboyna massacre was the 1623 torture and execution on Ambon Island , of twenty men, ten of whom were in the service of the British East India Company, by agents of the Dutch East India Company, on accusations of treason...
, 9 Japanese mercenaries were recorded to have been with the 10 English traders of the British East India Company
British East India Company
The East India Company was an early English joint-stock company that was formed initially for pursuing trade with the East Indies, but that ended up trading mainly with the Indian subcontinent and China...
factory. They were tortured and killed by Dutch forces from the neighbouring factory. This event was partly the cause for the advent of the Anglo-Dutch Wars
Anglo-Dutch Wars
The Anglo–Dutch Wars were a series of wars fought between the English and the Dutch in the 17th and 18th centuries for control over the seas and trade routes. The first war took place during the English Interregnum, and was fought between the Commonwealth of England and the Dutch Republic...
.
India
Tenjiku Tokubei
Tenjiku Tokubei was a Japanese adventurer and writer of the early 17th century. He traveled to Southeast and South Asia, hence his "Tenjiku" nickname....
is related to have travelled to Siam as well as India onboard a Red Seal ship with Jan Joosten. Upon his return to Japan, Tokubei wrote an essay titled "Tenjiku Tōkai Monogatari" (Relations of travels to India) on his adventures in foreign countries, which became very popular in Japan. He is sometimes referred to as the Marco Polo
Marco Polo
Marco Polo was a Venetian merchant traveler from the Venetian Republic whose travels are recorded in Il Milione, a book which did much to introduce Europeans to Central Asia and China. He learned about trading whilst his father and uncle, Niccolò and Maffeo, travelled through Asia and apparently...
of Japan.
Other destinations
Other major destinations included CochinchinaCochinchina
Cochinchina is a region encompassing the southern third of Vietnam whose principal city is Saigon. It was a French colony from 1862 to 1954. The later state of South Vietnam was created in 1954 by combining Cochinchina with southern Annam. In Vietnamese, the region is called Nam Bộ...
(74 ships), Cambodia
Cambodia
Cambodia , officially known as the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia...
(44 ships), Taiwan
Taiwan
Taiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
(35 ships), and Annam in Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
(14 ships).
Relative importance
The 350 Red Seal ships recorded between 1604 and 1634, averaging about 10 ships per year, have to be compared to the single Portuguese carrackCarrack
A carrack or nau was a three- or four-masted sailing ship developed in 15th century Western Europe for use in the Atlantic Ocean. It had a high rounded stern with large aftcastle, forecastle and bowsprit at the stem. It was first used by the Portuguese , and later by the Spanish, to explore and...
visiting Nagasaki from Macau
Macau
Macau , also spelled Macao , is, along with Hong Kong, one of the two special administrative regions of the People's Republic of China...
every year, although the carrack was large in tonnage (between 2 to 3 times a single Red Seal ship), and has a rich cargo of silk directly obtained from China.
Also in comparison, the English factory in Hirado only received four ships from England in the space of 10 years (during its existence between 1613 and 1623), with generally non-valuable cargo. To survive, the factory actually had to resort to trade between Japan and Southeast Asia under the Red Seal system, organizing seven expeditions, four of which were handled by William Adams.
The Japanese Shogun was very defiant of Spain, and Spain very reluctant to divert shipping resources between distant territories, so that besides the few shipwrecks of the Manila galleon on the Japanese coast, only about one Spanish ship was dispatched to Japan every year for trade. They had a small base in Uraga
Uraga
is a subdivision of the city of Yokosuka, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. It is located on the south eastern side of the Miura Peninsula, at the northern end of the Uraga Channel, at the entrance of Tokyo Bay.-History:...
, where William Adams was put in charge of selling the cargo on several occasions.
Only Chinese shipping seems to have been quite important during the last years of the Ming dynasty
Ming Dynasty
The Ming Dynasty, also Empire of the Great Ming, was the ruling dynasty of China from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan Dynasty. The Ming, "one of the greatest eras of orderly government and social stability in human history", was the last dynasty in China ruled by ethnic...
. Richard Cocks
Richard Cocks
Richard Cocks was the head of the British East India Company trading post in Hirado, Japan, between 1613 and 1623, from its creation, and lasting to its closure due to bankruptcy....
, head of the English factory in Hirado, reported that 60 to 70 Chinese junks visited Nagasaki in 1614, sailed by Fukienese
Fujian
' , formerly romanised as Fukien or Huguing or Foukien, is a province on the southeast coast of mainland China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, and Guangdong to the south. Taiwan lies to the east, across the Taiwan Strait...
smugglers.
In 1612, overall, Padre Valentim de Carvalho
Valentim de Carvalho
Valentim de Carvalho is a Portuguese record label founded in 1914.-History:The company started selling phonograph, musical instruments and music since its 1914 foundation at the Rua da Assunção, Lisbon.It distributes EMI in Portugal since 1920....
, head of the Jesuit mission, stated that the annual "Great Ship" from Macau brought 1,300 quintals of silk, whereas 5,000 quintals were brought in Red Seal ships and ships from China and Manila.
End of the system
In 1635, the Tokugawa shogunate, fearful of ChristianChristian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
influence, prohibited Japanese nationals from overseas travel, thus ending the period of red-seal trade. This measure was tacitly approved of by Europeans, especially the Dutch East India Company
Dutch East India Company
The Dutch East India Company was a chartered company established in 1602, when the States-General of the Netherlands granted it a 21-year monopoly to carry out colonial activities in Asia...
, who saw their competition reduced.
Timeline
- 1543 - Portuguese sailors (among them possibly Fernão Mendes PintoFernão Mendes PintoFernão Mendes Pinto was a Portuguese explorer and writer. His exploits are known through the posthumous publication of his memoir Pilgrimage in 1614, an autobiographical work whose truthfulness is nearly impossible to assess...
) arrive in TanegashimaTanegashimais an island lying to the south of Kyushu, in southern Japan, and is part of Kagoshima Prefecture. The island is the second largest of the Ōsumi Islands....
and transmit the arquebusArquebusThe arquebus , or "hook tube", is an early muzzle-loaded firearm used in the 15th to 17th centuries. The word was originally modeled on the German hakenbüchse; this produced haquebute...
. - 1570 - Japanese pirates occupy parts of TaiwanTaiwanTaiwan , also known, especially in the past, as Formosa , is the largest island of the same-named island group of East Asia in the western Pacific Ocean and located off the southeastern coast of mainland China. The island forms over 99% of the current territory of the Republic of China following...
, from where they prey on China. - 1571 - Establishment of the port of Nagasaki for trade with the PortugueseNagasakiis the capital and the largest city of Nagasaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan. Nagasaki was founded by the Portuguese in the second half of the 16th century on the site of a small fishing village, formerly part of Nishisonogi District...
, under the supervision of Gaspar Vilela and Tristão Vaz da VeigaGovernor of MacauThe Governor of Macau was a Portuguese colonial official who headed the colony of Macau, before 1623 called Captain-major . The post was replaced on December 20, 1999 upon the transfer of administration to the People's Republic of China by the office of the Chief Executive of the Macau Special...
. - 1577 - First Japanese ships travel to CochinchinaCochinchinaCochinchina is a region encompassing the southern third of Vietnam whose principal city is Saigon. It was a French colony from 1862 to 1954. The later state of South Vietnam was created in 1954 by combining Cochinchina with southern Annam. In Vietnamese, the region is called Nam Bộ...
(Southern Viet Nam). - 1588 - Interdiction of wakōWokouWokou , which literally translates as "Japanese pirates" in English, were pirates of varying origins who raided the coastlines of China and Korea from the 13th century onwards...
piracy by Hideyoshi. - 1592 - First recorded mention of Red Seal ships.
- 1600 - William AdamsWilliam 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...
reaches Japan in April.
- - Olivier van NoortOlivier van NoortOlivier van Noort was the first Dutchman to circumnavigate the world.Olivier van Noort was born in 1558 in Utrecht. He left Rotterdam on 2 July 1598 with four ships and a plan to attack Spanish possessions in the Pacific and to trade with China and the Spice Islands...
encounters a 110 tons Japanese junk in the PhilippinesPhilippinesThe 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...
in December.- 1604 - First known Red Seal permit.
- 1609 - The DutchNetherlandsThe Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
open a trading factory in Hirado. - 1613 - EnglandEnglandEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
opens a trading factory in Hirado.
- - Hasekura TsunenagaHasekura TsunenagaHasekura Rokuemon Tsunenaga or was a Japanese samurai and retainer of Date Masamune, the daimyo of Sendai....
leaves for his embassy to EuropeEuropeEurope is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. He returns in 1620.- 1614 - Expulsion of the Jesuits from Japan.
- - William AdamsWilliam 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...
starts engaging in Red Seal trade to Southeast Asia.- 1615 - Japanese Jesuits start to proselytise in IndochinaIndochinaThe Indochinese peninsula, is a region in Southeast Asia. It lies roughly southwest of China, and east of India. The name has its origins in the French, Indochine, as a combination of the names of "China" and "India", and was adopted when French colonizers in Vietnam began expanding their territory...
. - 1621 - Jan Joosten manages 10 Red Seal ships.
- 1623 - Yamada NagamasaYamada Nagamasawas a Japanese adventurer who gained considerable influence in Ayutthaya kingdom at the beginning of the 17th century and became the governor of the Nakhon Si Thammarat in southern Thailand....
sails from Siam to Japan, with an Ambassador of the Siamese king Sontam. He returns to Siam in 1626.
- 1615 - Japanese Jesuits start to proselytise in Indochina
- - Jan Joosten sinks in the South China SeaSouth China SeaThe South China Sea is a marginal sea that is part of the Pacific Ocean, encompassing an area from the Singapore and Malacca Straits to the Strait of Taiwan of around...
.- 1624 - Japanese Jesuits start to proselytise in Siam.
- - Interruption of relations with SpainSpainSpain , 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...
.- 1628 - Death of Yamada NagamasaYamada Nagamasawas a Japanese adventurer who gained considerable influence in Ayutthaya kingdom at the beginning of the 17th century and became the governor of the Nakhon Si Thammarat in southern Thailand....
in Siam.
- 1628 - Death of Yamada Nagamasa
- - Destruction of Takagi Sakuemon's (高木作右衛門) Red Seal ship in Ayutthaya by a Spanish warship.
- - Destruction of the Japanese settlement in AyutthayaAyutthaya (city)Ayutthaya city is the capital of Ayutthaya province in Thailand. Located in the valley of the Chao Phraya River. The city was founded in 1350 by King U Thong, who went there to escape a smallpox outbreak in Lop Buri and proclaimed it the capital of his kingdom, often referred to as the Ayutthaya...
by Siamese forces.- 1633 - Re-establishment of the Japanese settlement in Ayutthaya (300-400 Japanese), with returnees from Indo-China.
- 1634 - Travel of Yamada Yahei (山田弥兵衛) from Japan to Indo-China and Siam.
- 1636 - Introduction of the SakokuSakokuwas 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...
policy and interdiction of foreign travel or return from foreign countries for Japanese nationals.