Hannah Riddell
Encyclopedia
Hannah Riddell was an English woman who devoted her life to the salvation of Hansen's disease patients in Japan
.
In 1877, her family moved to Mumbles
, in South Wales and Hannah and her mother started a private school for young gentlemen and young ladies. The school was a success for some time, but in 1889, it went into bancruptcy. Hannah's next job was as a superintendent for the YMWCA
, a church organization, in Liverpool
. In 1890, she was selected by the Church Missionary Society (CMS) as a missionary to Japan. She arrived in Japan in 1891 at the age of 35 and was transferred to Kumamoto, Kyūshū
.
At Honmyoji, the most popular temple in Kumamoto, she witnessed miserable leprosy patients begging for mercy and made up her mind to dedicate her life to the salvation of Hansen's disease patients.
She was also a highly adept socialiser, creating a close circle of supporters such as Grace Nott, one of the five missionaries who came to Japan with Hannah, and Professors Honda and Kanazawa. Founding a hospital was an extremely difficult task, but Kaishun Hospital, (the English name is the Kumamoto Hospital of the Resurrection of Hope) was opened on 12 November 1895. Negotiations with the CMS were laborious, but finally in 1900, Hannah won the hospital at the expense her quitting the CMS and devoting her life to fund-raising for the hospital. Professors Honda and Kanazawa helped with obtaining the land for the hospital.
in 1904 brought a great economic crisis. English people, accustomed to various wars during the long history of Europe, immediately stopped sending money to Japan, fearing trouble because of the fleet of Russian warships approaching Japan.
In 1924, a Japanese-style church building was completed within the campus of Kaishun Hospital. It was characterized by a long front wheelchair ramp, imported from England.
She came back to Japan in June 1948. She died in 1950. The ashes of Riddell and Wright were laid in the hospital ground.
. An effective therapy was discovered in 1941 by Faget, 9 years after Riddell's death. Traditionally Japan and Japanese leprologists at that time adopted a segregation policy, but Riddell's thinking was unique. She firmly believed that the only way to stamp out leprosy in Japan was by segregation of the sexes, and she insisted on it as long as she lived. She was against male and female patients even becoming friendly. Kensuke Mitsuda, a noted leprologist, commented that Riddell believed that what ended leprosy in England in the Middle Ages
was the legal abolition of cohabitation of the sexes. The patients at the Kaishun Hospital accepted her segregation, but they could visit their families when indicated.
Leprosy in 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...
.
Early life and her determination
Hannah Riddell was born in 1855 in Barnet, north of London in a complex family. Her father was an officer of the army who was engaged in the training of ex-soldiers at that time. The details of Hannah's education are not known.In 1877, her family moved to Mumbles
Mumbles
Mumbles or The Mumbles is an area and community in Swansea, Wales which takes its name from the adjacent headland stretching into Swansea Bay...
, in South Wales and Hannah and her mother started a private school for young gentlemen and young ladies. The school was a success for some time, but in 1889, it went into bancruptcy. Hannah's next job was as a superintendent for the YMWCA
YMCA
The Young Men's Christian Association is a worldwide organization of more than 45 million members from 125 national federations affiliated through the World Alliance of YMCAs...
, a church organization, in Liverpool
Liverpool
Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough of Merseyside, England, along the eastern side of the Mersey Estuary. It was founded as a borough in 1207 and was granted city status in 1880...
. In 1890, she was selected by the Church Missionary Society (CMS) as a missionary to Japan. She arrived in Japan in 1891 at the age of 35 and was transferred to Kumamoto, Kyūshū
Kyushu
is the third largest island of Japan and most southwesterly of its four main islands. Its alternate ancient names include , , and . The historical regional name is referred to Kyushu and its surrounding islands....
.
At Honmyoji, the most popular temple in Kumamoto, she witnessed miserable leprosy patients begging for mercy and made up her mind to dedicate her life to the salvation of Hansen's disease patients.
The Kaishun Hospital under preparation
Hannah was politically shrewd enough to sense where authority and power existed, and successfully approached influential people such as leaders of CMS, university professors, industrialists, statesmen, ad influential people such as leaders of CMS, university professors, industrialists, statesmen, and ultimately the Imperial family of Japan.She was also a highly adept socialiser, creating a close circle of supporters such as Grace Nott, one of the five missionaries who came to Japan with Hannah, and Professors Honda and Kanazawa. Founding a hospital was an extremely difficult task, but Kaishun Hospital, (the English name is the Kumamoto Hospital of the Resurrection of Hope) was opened on 12 November 1895. Negotiations with the CMS were laborious, but finally in 1900, Hannah won the hospital at the expense her quitting the CMS and devoting her life to fund-raising for the hospital. Professors Honda and Kanazawa helped with obtaining the land for the hospital.
A great economic crisis
Hannah Riddell was not the first foreigner in this field. Father Testevuide, a French Catholic missionary, built the first Hansen's disease hospital in Gotemba, Shizuoka, in 1889. But the greatness of Hannah Riddell lay in how she managed to run the hospital. Naturally she staged fund raising mainly from her mother country, England. Unfortunately, the start of the Russo-Japanese WarRusso-Japanese War
The Russo-Japanese War was "the first great war of the 20th century." It grew out of rival imperial ambitions of the Russian Empire and Japanese Empire over Manchuria and Korea...
in 1904 brought a great economic crisis. English people, accustomed to various wars during the long history of Europe, immediately stopped sending money to Japan, fearing trouble because of the fleet of Russian warships approaching Japan.
A historic meeting at the Banker's Club in 1905
Marquis Okuma donated many cherry and maple trees for the decoration of the hospital. In 1905, he and Viscount Shibusawa, influenced by the eagerness of Riddell, invited many officials and prominent persons to the Banker's Club in Tokyo, in order to listen to Riddell's appeal. At the meeting, Prof. Kanazawa spoke for Riddell to the effect that Kaishun Hospital was a good hospital worth supporting, since Riddell was independent of CMS. As the direct effect of the meeting, Riddell's crisis was avoided, and later Japan's first leprosy prevention law was promulgated in 1907. In 1914, Riddell wrote in a long letter to Marquis Okuma, "I think the expenses of the Government policy would not cost more than a single gun-boat and the yearly expenses could well be met by a tax of about one sen (one hundredth of one yen) on every person in the land. The gain to Japan and to the humanity would be immeasurable."Missionary work concerning Kusatsu, Okinawa and Kumamoto
Riddell was interested in missionary work independent of CMS. She sent missionaries to Kusatsu, a hot spring resort where Hansen's disease patients gathered. Later, Mary Conwall-Leigh, another Englishwoman, did substantial missionary work there. To Okinawa, she sent Keisai Aoki, who was a patient and Christian. Notwithstanding great difficulties, he succeeded in building a shelter, leading to the establishment of Okinawa Airakuen Leprosy Sanatorium.In 1924, a Japanese-style church building was completed within the campus of Kaishun Hospital. It was characterized by a long front wheelchair ramp, imported from England.
Japan's first Hansen's Disease research laboratory
In 1918, Riddell established the first scientific Hansen's disease research laboratory in Japan.Ada Wright
Ada Wright, Hannah Riddell's niece, came to Japan in 1896 and joined Riddell. After Riddell's death in 1923, Wright became the director of Kaishun Hospital.The closing of the hospital
In 1940, relations between Japan and England became unfriendly. In September, Secretary Jingo Tobimatsu was detained in the police station and Ada was questioned for the possession of a short-wave radio. On 3 February 1941, the closure of the hospital was suddenly declared, and patients were transferred to the Kyushu Sanatorium (Kikuchi Keifuen). In April Ada Wright escaped to Australia.She came back to Japan in June 1948. She died in 1950. The ashes of Riddell and Wright were laid in the hospital ground.
The Riddell's determination story and its significance
- Riddell wrote a poignant scene which was the impetus for building her hospital. "It was a perfectly beautiful day, the sky absolutely blue, and as we came to the approach of the temple there was a long avenue of cherry trees in full blossom against the perfectly blue sky. The beauty of this scene was most impressive; never to be forgotten, and the next moment, the horror of all the suffering people lying prostate beneath those beautiful trees, praying their never-ending "Namu-myo-ho-rengekyo" simply broke one's heart. As we walked through the avenue everyone seemed to be showing the worst wounds they had, and begging for help."
- Riddell herself wrote "Honmyoji, First Saw Lepers " on the 3 April part of a prayer book "Daily Light". And Tobimatsu wrote that it was on 3 April 1890(apparent mistake) Including the day of her visit and the weather, there were contradictions in this story. However, Julia Boyd concluded in her book that "She(Hannah) would have considered such methods entirely justified if they achieved her objective of stirring the public conscience and winning support for the relief of lepers.
The 100th-year anniversary
In 1995, the centenary of the Kaishun Hospital was celebrated at Kumamoto, and the stories of Hannah Riddell and Ada Wright were recalled. Lady Boyd thoroughly studied the records of Hannah Riddell left in England and wrote Hannah Riddell, An English Woman in Japan which corrected some of the myths about Hannah Riddell.Riddell's sex segregation policy of leprosy patients
Hansen's disease is a chronic disease caused by mycobacterium lepraeMycobacterium leprae
Mycobacterium leprae, also known as Hansen’s coccus spirilly, mostly found in warm tropical countries, is a bacterium that causes leprosy . It is an intracellular, pleomorphic, acid-fast bacterium. M. leprae is an aerobic bacillus surrounded by the characteristic waxy coating unique to mycobacteria...
. An effective therapy was discovered in 1941 by Faget, 9 years after Riddell's death. Traditionally Japan and Japanese leprologists at that time adopted a segregation policy, but Riddell's thinking was unique. She firmly believed that the only way to stamp out leprosy in Japan was by segregation of the sexes, and she insisted on it as long as she lived. She was against male and female patients even becoming friendly. Kensuke Mitsuda, a noted leprologist, commented that Riddell believed that what ended leprosy in England in the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
was the legal abolition of cohabitation of the sexes. The patients at the Kaishun Hospital accepted her segregation, but they could visit their families when indicated.
Soichi Iwashita's comments on Riddell
Soichi Iwashita, the director of Fukusei Hospital, the first leprosy hospital in Japan, established by French Catholic Missionary Father Testevuide, met Hannah in April 1931 and wrote the following comments concerning her:- I do not know how Riddell herself thinks, but observing her life story, I must admit a great mission has been achieved, regardless of whether she was aware or not. God selected Riddell and awakened the consciousness of people of Japan concerning leprosy problems. It is true that Fukusei Hospital was built earlier than Kaishun Hospital. However, our leaders had been too patient concerning small matters. Riddell moved great personalities, and visited Interior Minister every time she went to Tokyo. These people might be reluctant to meet her. Riddell was great enough to face them, and any doors were open to her since she was politically shrewd. She did not forget to use her abilities for her ideals.
- Suppose a Japanese, with the same ideas as Riddell's in mind, wanted to meet the Interior Minister of Japan. It is 100 % certain that he will be left unattended out of the office.
See also
- History of Kumamoto PrefectureHistory of Kumamoto PrefectureThe outline of the history of Kumamoto Prefecture is described herein. Kumamoto Prefecture is an eastern half of Hinokuni , corresponding to the Higo Province as called in days gone by. Exceptions are the part of Kuma gun or Kuma Districts of Japan which had once been included in Sagara Domain and...
Leprosy in Japan
Leprosy in Japan
As of 2009, 2600 former leprosy patients were living in 13 national sanatoriums and two private hospitals in Japan. Their mean age is 80. There were no newly diagnosed Japanese leprosy patients in 2005, but one in 2006, and one in 2007.- Ancient and Medieval Ages :...