Gaikoku bugyo
Encyclopedia
were the commissioners or "magistrates of foreign affairs" appointed at the end of the Edo era by the Tokugawa shogunate
to oversee trade and diplomatic relations with foreign countries. In essence this was the beginning of the creation of a Ministry of Foreign Affairs
after Japan's long period of isolation (sakoku
).
The office was often held concurrently with that of kanjō-bugyō or the office was held concurrently by those serving the bakufun as governor of one of the great ports (Nagasaki bugyō or Kanagawa bugyō).
The Gaikoku bugyō system ended in 1869 when the new Meiji government was formed; but some of the foundational work of this period proved useful to the nascent Ministry of Foreign Affairs
.
Some 70 Gaikoku bugyō commissioners were named during this significant period.
Hotta succeeded Abe Masahiro
, and in his short years at the post had to address the issue of the Harris Treaty of 1858.
The genesis of the gaikoku-bugyō pre-dates the actual creation of the office.
formed an ad hoc committee of bakufu officials with special knowledge of foreign affairs, and he himself headed this working group. In November 1856, he appointed the members and charged them to come up with recommendations about the terms for opening Japanese ports. The results of their deliberations would become the basis for negotiations which ultimately resulted in the Harris Treaty (the Treaty of Amity and Commerce
between Japan and the United States).
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...
to oversee trade and diplomatic relations with foreign countries. In essence this was the beginning of the creation of a Ministry of Foreign Affairs
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...
after Japan's long period of isolation (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...
).
Historical background
The Gaikoku bugyō system began just prior to the negotiations which resulted in the Harris Treaty. First appointed in August 1858, the gaikoku-bugyō were bakufu officials who were charged with advising the government on foreign affairs and who were tasked with conducting negotiations with foreign diplomats both in Japan and abroad. This was a high ranking office, in status roughly equivalent to that of kanjō-bugyō or expressed differently, the status of this office ranked slightly below that of daimyo. The number of gaikoku bugyō varied, from five in 1858 to a maximum of 13, with wide variations in the numbers of officials who were appointed across the span of years.The office was often held concurrently with that of kanjō-bugyō or the office was held concurrently by those serving the bakufun as governor of one of the great ports (Nagasaki bugyō or Kanagawa bugyō).
The Gaikoku bugyō system ended in 1869 when the new Meiji government was formed; but some of the foundational work of this period proved useful to the nascent Ministry of Foreign Affairs
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...
.
Some 70 Gaikoku bugyō commissioners were named during this significant period.
Hotta succeeded Abe Masahiro
Abe Masahiro
was the chief senior councillor in the Japanese government at the time of the arrival of Commodore Matthew Perry. Against the shogun's wishes, and the wishes of many other government officials, he worked to open Japan to the West, signing the Convention of Kanagawa in 1854, and other unequal...
, and in his short years at the post had to address the issue of the Harris Treaty of 1858.
The genesis of the gaikoku-bugyō pre-dates the actual creation of the office.
Kaibō-gakari
The prefix kaibō-gakari meaning "in charge of maritime defense" was used with the titles of some bakufu officials after 1845. This term was used to designate those who bore a special responsibility for overseeing coastal waters, and by implication, for dealing with matters involving foreigners—for example, kaibō-gakari-ōmetsuke which later came to be superseded by the term gaikoku-gakari.Gaikoku-bōeki-toshirabe-gakari
Rōjū Hotta MasayoshiHotta Masayoshi
was a Japanese daimyo in the Edo period; and he was a prominent figure in the Tokugawa shogunate.-Rōjū:the Shogun's advisor from 1837 to 1843, and again from 1855 to 1858...
formed an ad hoc committee of bakufu officials with special knowledge of foreign affairs, and he himself headed this working group. In November 1856, he appointed the members and charged them to come up with recommendations about the terms for opening Japanese ports. The results of their deliberations would become the basis for negotiations which ultimately resulted in the Harris Treaty (the Treaty of Amity and Commerce
Treaty of Amity and Commerce (United States-Japan)
The , also called Harris Treaty, between the United States and Japan was signed at the Ryōsen-ji in Shimoda on July 29, 1858. It opened the ports of Yokohama and four other Japanese cities to American trade and granted extraterritoriality to foreigners, among other stipulations.-The Treaty:The...
between Japan and the United States).
List of gaikoku bugyō
The numbers of gaikoku bugyō varied throughout the Edo period:-
-
- Iwase Tadanari (1858).
- Tsutsui Masanori (1858).
- Inoue Kiyonao (1858–1859, 1862–1863, 1864).
- Nagai NaoyukiNagai Naoyuki, also known as or , was a Japanese samurai and Tokugawa retainer during the Bakumatsu and Meiji periods.-Early life:Nagai Naoyuki, or as he was first known, , was born in the Nukada district of the Okutono Domain by a concubine to . Noritada, while head of a collateral branch of the Tokugawa, was...
(1858–1859, 1865–1867). - Mizuno Tadanori (1858–1859, 1861–1862).
- Hori Toshihiro (1858–1860)
- Watanabe Takatsuna (1859)
- Matsudaira YasuhideMatsudaira Yasuhide' was a Japanese daimyo of the late Edo period, who ruled the Tanakura and then Kawagoe Domains. He served as gaikoku bugyō and rōjū in the Tokugawa administration.-Biography:...
(1859–1860, 1861–1863) - Takemoto Masao (1859–1862, 1863–1864).
- Sakai TadayukiSakai Tadayukiwas a Japanese daimyo of the mid to late Edo period, who ruled the Obama Domain.The Sakai were identified as one of the fudai or insider daimyō clans which were hereditary vassals or allies of the Tokugawa clan, in contrast with the tozama or outsider clans.-Sakai clan genealogy:Tadayuki was part...
(1859–1860) - Mizoguchi Naokiyo (1859–1860)
- Shinmi Masaoki (1859–1862)
- Matsudaira Yasunao (1860, 1861–1863).
- Oguri Tadamasa (1860–1861).
- Takeuchi Yasunori (1861–1864).
- Okubo Ichio (1861–1862).
- Abe Masatō (1862–1863).
- Kawaji Toshiaki (1863).
- Ikeda Nagaaki (1863–1864).
- Kawazu Sukekuni (1863–1864).
- Shibata TakenakaShibata Takenakawas an emissary for Japan who visited France in 1865 to help prepare for the construction of the Yokosuka arsenal with French support.On behalf of the Shogunate, Shibata requested both the United Kingdom and France to send a military mission for training in Western warfare...
(1863–1868). - Sasaki Akinori (1864)
- Tsuchiya MasanaoTsuchiya Masanao, was a daimyo in Japan during the Edo period. Masanao's daimyō family was descended from Minamoto Yasuuji . The descendants of Tsuchiya lived successively at Kururi in Kazusa province; after 1669 at Tsuchiura in Hitachi province; after 1681 at Tanaka in Suruga province; and then, after 1688,...
(1864) - Kinoshita Toshiyoshi (1865–1866)
- Kurimoto Joun (1865–1866, 1866–1867).
- Yamaguchi Naoki (1865–1866, 1867)
- Asagara Masahiro (1865–1867)
- Gōhara Isaburo (1866)
- Hirayama Seisei (1866–1868).
- Narushima RyuhokuNarushima RyuhokuNarushima Ryūhoku was a Japanese author and scholar who lived from 1837-1884. He was born in Asakusa, and his given name was Korehiro . The Narushima family were okujusha , or Confucian tutors to the Tokugawa shoguns, who were also involved the editing of Tokugawa jikki Narushima Ryūhoku (成島柳北)...
(1866). - Koide Hidezane (1866–1867)
- Tsukahara Masayoshi (1866–1867)
- Mukōyama Ippaku (1866–1868)
- Ishikawa Toshimasa (1867–1868)
- Hiraoka Jun (1867–1868)
- Narishima Hiroshi (1868)
-
See also
- BugyōBugyo', often translated as "commissioner" or "magistrate" or "governor," was a title assigned to government officers in pre-modern Japan; other terms would be added to the title to describe more specifically a given commissioner's tasks or jurisdiction....
- Late Tokugawa shogunateLate Tokugawa shogunate, literally "end of the curtain", are the final years of the Edo period when the Tokugawa shogunate came to an end. It is characterized by major events occurring between 1853 and 1867 during which Japan ended its isolationist foreign policy known as sakoku and transitioned from a feudal shogunate...
- Hayashi AkiraHayashi Akirawas a Edo period scholar-diplomat serving the Tokugawa Shogunate in a variety of roles similar to those performed by serial Hayashi clan neo-Confucianists since the time of Tokugawa Ieyasu...
- Foreign relations of Imperial ChinaForeign relations of Imperial ChinaImperial China had a long tradition of foreign relations. From the Qin Dynasty until the Qing Dynasty, the Culture of China had an impact upon neighboring and distant countries, while gradually being transformed by outside influences as well....
- Hua-Yi distinctionHua-Yi distinctionThe distinction between Hua and Yi is an ancient Chinese conception that differentiated a culturally defined "China" from cultural or ethnic outsiders...