Aoki Shuzo
Encyclopedia
was a diplomat and Foreign Minister
in Meiji period
Japan.
family as son of the Chōshū domain's physician
in what is now part of Sanyō Onoda
in Yamaguchi Prefecture
). He studied western science
and medicine
(rangaku
) at the domain school Meirinkan
in Hagi
, and in Nagasaki, He was then sent by Chōshū domain to Germany
to study western law
in 1868. However, while in Germany, his studies ranged over a very wide area, from western medicine, to politics
, military science
, and economics
. From his surviving notes, he studied how to make beer, paper and paper money, carpets and rugs and techniques of western forestry
management.
Aoki returned to Japan after the Meiji Restoration
, and entered the Foreign Ministry
of new Meiji government in 1873 as First Secretary to the Japanese legations to Germany, Netherlands
and Austria. He then served as Vice Foreign Minister in the 1st Itō administration
and Foreign Minister
in the 1st Yamagata administration
. While Foreign Minister, he strove for the revision the unequal treaties
between the Empire of Japan and the various European powers, particularly the extraterritoriality
clauses, and expressed concern over the eastern expansion of the Russian Empire
into east Asia
.
Aoki married the daughter of a German aristocrat, Elisabeth von Rhade, and they had among others a daughter named Hanna Aoki (Tokyo
, December 16, 1879 – Wissen
, June 24, 1953), who married at Tokyo on December 19, 1904 Alexander Maria Hermann Melchior, Graf von Hatzfeldt zu Trachenberg (Berlin
, [February 10, 1877 – Schloss Schönstein, November 27, 1953) and had an only daughter Hissa Elisabeth Natalie Olga Ilsa Gräfin von Hatzfeldt zu Trachenberg (Pommerswitz, February 26, 1906 – Salzburg
, June 4, 1985), who married at Munich
, April 28, 1927 Maria Erwin Joseph Sidonius Benediktus Franziskus von Sales Petrus Friedrich Ignatius Hubertus Johannes von Nepomuk Felix Maurus Graf von Neipperg (Schwaigern
, January 15, 1897 – Stuttgart-Vaihingen, December 5, 1957), and had issue now extinct in male line.
Aoki was forced to resign as a consequence of the Ōtsu Incident of 1891, but resumed his post as Foreign Minister under the Matsukata
administration.
In 1894, as ambassador to Great Britain
, Aoki worked with Foreign Minister Mutsu Munemitsu
towards the revision of the unequal treaties, successfully concluding the Anglo-Japanese Treaty of Commerce and Navigation
for Japan in London
on July 16, 1894.
Returned to his post as Foreign Minister under the 2nd Yamagata administration, Aoki helped Japan gain recognition as one of the Great Powers by its military support of the European forces during the Boxer Rebellion
.
Aoki was then appointed to the Privy Council
and elevated in title to shishaku (viscount
).
In 1906, he served as ambassador to the United States
.
Aoki died at his country house in Nasu, Tochigi
prefecture in 1914.
Morihisa Aoki, Japanese ambassador to Peru
during the Japanese embassy hostage crisis
was his great grandson.
Minister for Foreign Affairs (Japan)
The of Japan is the Cabinet member responsible for Japanese foreign policy and the chief executive of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.Since the end of the American occupation of Japan, the position has been one of the most powerful in the Cabinet, as Japan's economic interests have long relied on...
in Meiji period
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 :...
Japan.
Biography
Viscount Aoki was born to a samuraiSamurai
is the term for the military nobility of pre-industrial Japan. According to translator William Scott Wilson: "In Chinese, the character 侍 was originally a verb meaning to wait upon or accompany a person in the upper ranks of society, and this is also true of the original term in Japanese, saburau...
family as son of the Chōshū domain's physician
Physician
A physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
in what is now part of Sanyō Onoda
Sanyo-Onoda, Yamaguchi
is a city located in Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan.The city was founded on March 22, 2005, when the city of Onoda merged with the town of Sanyo, from Asa District, to form the new city of Sanyo-Onoda....
in Yamaguchi Prefecture
Yamaguchi Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan in the Chūgoku region on Honshū island. The capital is the city of Yamaguchi, in the center of the prefecture. The largest city, however, is Shimonoseki.- History :...
). He studied western science
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
and medicine
Medicine
Medicine is the science and art of healing. It encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....
(rangaku
Rangaku
Rangaku is a body of knowledge developed by Japan through its contacts with the Dutch enclave of Dejima, which allowed Japan to keep abreast of Western technology and medicine in the period when the country was closed to foreigners, 1641–1853, because of the Tokugawa shogunate’s policy of national...
) at the domain school Meirinkan
Meirinkan
was a han school located in the Chōshū Domain of Japan. The school was one of the three major educational institutions in Japan, along with the Kōdōkan in Mito Domain and Shizutani School in Okayama Domain.- History :...
in Hagi
Hagi, Yamaguchi
is a city located in Yamaguchi, Japan and was incorporated as a city on July 1, 1932. Formerly part of Abu District.On March 6, 2005, the former city of Hagi merged with the towns of Susa and Tamagawa, and the villages of Asahi, Fukue, Kawakami and Mutsumi to form the new city of Hagi.Iwami Airport...
, and in Nagasaki, He was then sent by Chōshū domain to Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
to study western law
Western law
Western law refers to the legal traditions of Western culture. Western culture has an idea of the importance of law which has its roots in both Roman law and the Bible...
in 1868. However, while in Germany, his studies ranged over a very wide area, from western medicine, to politics
Politics
Politics is a process by which groups of people make collective decisions. The term is generally applied to the art or science of running governmental or state affairs, including behavior within civil governments, but also applies to institutions, fields, and special interest groups such as the...
, military science
Military science
Military science is the process of translating national defence policy to produce military capability by employing military scientists, including theorists, researchers, experimental scientists, applied scientists, designers, engineers, test technicians, and military personnel responsible for...
, and economics
Economics
Economics is the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The term economics comes from the Ancient Greek from + , hence "rules of the house"...
. From his surviving notes, he studied how to make beer, paper and paper money, carpets and rugs and techniques of western forestry
Forestry
Forestry is the interdisciplinary profession embracing the science, art, and craft of creating, managing, using, and conserving forests and associated resources in a sustainable manner to meet desired goals, needs, and values for human benefit. Forestry is practiced in plantations and natural stands...
management.
Aoki returned to Japan 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...
, and entered the Foreign Ministry
Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Japan)
The is a cabinet level ministry of Japan responsible for the country's foreign relations.The ministry is due to the second term of the third article of the National Government Organization Act , and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Establishment Act establishes the ministry...
of new Meiji government in 1873 as First Secretary to the Japanese legations to Germany, Netherlands
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...
and Austria. He then served as Vice Foreign Minister in the 1st Itō administration
Ito Hirobumi
Prince was a samurai of Chōshū domain, Japanese statesman, four time Prime Minister of Japan , genrō and Resident-General of Korea. Itō was assassinated by An Jung-geun, a Korean nationalist who was against the annexation of Korea by the Japanese Empire...
and Foreign Minister
Minister for Foreign Affairs (Japan)
The of Japan is the Cabinet member responsible for Japanese foreign policy and the chief executive of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.Since the end of the American occupation of Japan, the position has been one of the most powerful in the Cabinet, as Japan's economic interests have long relied on...
in the 1st Yamagata administration
Yamagata Aritomo
Field Marshal Prince , also known as Yamagata Kyōsuke, was a field marshal in the Imperial Japanese Army and twice Prime Minister of Japan. He is considered one of the architects of the military and political foundations of early modern Japan. Yamagata Aritomo can be seen as the father of Japanese...
. While Foreign Minister, he strove for the revision the unequal treaties
Unequal Treaties
“Unequal treaty” is a term used in specific reference to a number of treaties imposed by Western powers, during the 19th and early 20th centuries, on Qing Dynasty China and late Tokugawa Japan...
between the Empire of Japan and the various European powers, particularly the extraterritoriality
Extraterritoriality
Extraterritoriality is the state of being exempt from the jurisdiction of local law, usually as the result of diplomatic negotiations. Extraterritoriality can also be applied to physical places, such as military bases of foreign countries, or offices of the United Nations...
clauses, and expressed concern over the eastern expansion of the Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
into east Asia
East Asia
East Asia or Eastern Asia is a subregion of Asia that can be defined in either geographical or cultural terms...
.
Aoki married the daughter of a German aristocrat, Elisabeth von Rhade, and they had among others a daughter named Hanna Aoki (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...
, December 16, 1879 – Wissen
Wissen
Wissen is a town in the district of Altenkirchen, in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is situated on the river Sieg, approximately 12 km northeast of Altenkirchen.Wissen is the seat of the Verbandsgemeinde Wissen....
, June 24, 1953), who married at Tokyo on December 19, 1904 Alexander Maria Hermann Melchior, Graf von Hatzfeldt zu Trachenberg (Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, [February 10, 1877 – Schloss Schönstein, November 27, 1953) and had an only daughter Hissa Elisabeth Natalie Olga Ilsa Gräfin von Hatzfeldt zu Trachenberg (Pommerswitz, February 26, 1906 – Salzburg
Salzburg
-Population development:In 1935, the population significantly increased when Salzburg absorbed adjacent municipalities. After World War II, numerous refugees found a new home in the city. New residential space was created for American soldiers of the postwar Occupation, and could be used for...
, June 4, 1985), who married at Munich
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
, April 28, 1927 Maria Erwin Joseph Sidonius Benediktus Franziskus von Sales Petrus Friedrich Ignatius Hubertus Johannes von Nepomuk Felix Maurus Graf von Neipperg (Schwaigern
Schwaigern
Schwaigern is a town in the district of Heilbronn, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated 12 km west of Heilbronn.-Neighbouring municipalities:...
, January 15, 1897 – Stuttgart-Vaihingen, December 5, 1957), and had issue now extinct in male line.
Aoki was forced to resign as a consequence of the Ōtsu Incident of 1891, but resumed his post as Foreign Minister under the Matsukata
Matsukata Masayoshi
Prince was a Japanese politician and the 4th and 6th Prime Minister of Japan.-Early life:...
administration.
In 1894, as ambassador to Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
, Aoki worked with Foreign Minister Mutsu Munemitsu
Mutsu Munemitsu
Count was a statesman and diplomat in Meiji period Japan.-Early life:Mutsu Munemitsu was born in Wakayama domain, Kii Province as the sixth son of Date Munehiro, a samurai retainer of the Kii Tokugawa clan...
towards the revision of the unequal treaties, successfully concluding the Anglo-Japanese Treaty of Commerce and Navigation
Anglo-Japanese Treaty of Commerce and Navigation
The signed by Britain and Japan, on July 16, 1894, was a breakthrough agreement; it heralded the end of the unequal treaties and the system of extraterritoriality in Japan. The treaty came into force on July 17, 1899....
for Japan in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
on July 16, 1894.
Returned to his post as Foreign Minister under the 2nd Yamagata administration, Aoki helped Japan gain recognition as one of the Great Powers by its military support of the European forces during the Boxer Rebellion
Boxer Rebellion
The Boxer Rebellion, also called the Boxer Uprising by some historians or the Righteous Harmony Society Movement in northern China, was a proto-nationalist movement by the "Righteous Harmony Society" , or "Righteous Fists of Harmony" or "Society of Righteous and Harmonious Fists" , in China between...
.
Aoki was then appointed to the Privy Council
Privy Council (Japan)
was an advisory council to the Emperor of Japan that operated from 1888 to 1947.-Functions:Modeled in part upon the Privy Council of the United Kingdom, this body advised the throne on matters of grave importance including:...
and elevated in title to shishaku (viscount
Viscount
A viscount or viscountess is a member of the European nobility whose comital title ranks usually, as in the British peerage, above a baron, below an earl or a count .-Etymology:...
).
In 1906, he served as ambassador to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Aoki died at his country house in Nasu, Tochigi
Nasu, Tochigi
is a town located in Nasu District, Tochigi, Japan.As of April 1, 2008, the town has an estimated population of 26,629 and a density of 71.5 persons per km². The total area is 372.31 km².Nasu Imperial Villa is located there.-External links:*...
prefecture in 1914.
Morihisa Aoki, Japanese ambassador to Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
during the Japanese embassy hostage crisis
Japanese embassy hostage crisis
The Japanese embassy hostage crisis began on 17 December 1996 in Lima, Peru, when 14 members of the Túpac Amaru Revolutionary Movement took hostage hundreds of high-level diplomats, government and military officials and business executives who were attending a party at the official residence of...
was his great grandson.
Honors
- Order of the Sacred TreasureOrder of the Sacred TreasureThe is a Japanese Order, established on January 4, 1888 by Emperor Meiji of Japan as the Order of Meiji. It is awarded in eight classes . It is generally awarded for long and/or meritorious service and considered to be the lowest of the Japanese orders of merit...
, 1st class (1890) - Order of the Rising SunOrder of the Rising SunThe is a Japanese order, established in 1875 by Emperor Meiji of Japan. The Order was the first national decoration awarded by the Japanese Government, created on April 10, 1875 by decree of the Council of State. The badge features rays of sunlight from the rising sun...
, 1st class (1894) - Order of the Rising Sun, Grand Cordon (1914)