was a younger brother of the Japanese Shogun Tokugawa Yoshinobu

Tokugawa Yoshinobu

was the 15th and last shogun of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan. He was part of a movement which aimed to reform the aging shogunate, but was ultimately unsuccessful...

. He was born in Komagome, 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...

, as the 18th son of Tokugawa Nariaki

Tokugawa Nariaki

Tokugawa Nariaki was a prominent Japanese daimyo who ruled the Mito domain and contributed to the rise of nationalism and the Meiji restoration.- Clan leader :...

. Initially lord of Aizu

Aizu

is an area comprising the westernmost third of Fukushima Prefecture in Japan. The principal city of the area is Aizuwakamatsu.During the Edo period, Aizu was a feudal domain known as and part of Mutsu Province.-History:...

, he became lord of Shimizu

Shimizu

Shimizu is the 20th most common Japanese surname.People named "Shimizu:*Ai Shimizu *Asuka Yūki, born 'Arisa Shimizu', prolific Japanese AV idol*Bukō Shimizu, photographer*Hiroshi Shimizu...

 before his departure for France

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

.

Biography

Tokugawa Akitake led the Japanese delegation to the 1867 World Fair

Exposition Universelle (1867)

The Exposition Universelle of 1867 was a World Exposition held in Paris, France, in 1867.-Conception:In 1864, Emperor Napoleon III decreed that an international exposition should be held in Paris in 1867. A commission was appointed with Prince Jerome Napoleon as president, under whose direction...

 in Paris

Paris

Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...

, where Japan had its own pavilion. He was designated as special emissary to France and head of the Japanese delegation to the Paris exhibition on November 28, 1866. The mission left 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...

 on January 11, 1867, and reached Paris

Paris

Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...

 two months later. The fair aroused considerable interest in Japan, and allowed many visitors to come in contact with Japanese art and techniques.

Tokugawa Akitake stayed in France to pursue studies, but had to return to Japan with 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...

 in 1868. Upon his return, he became Lord of the Mito Clan.

In 1876, Tokugawa Akitake went to the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, as the emissary in charge of the Japanese exhibition at the 1876 World Fair

Centennial Exposition

The Centennial International Exhibition of 1876, the first official World's Fair in the United States, was held in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from May 10 to November 10, 1876, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence in Philadelphia. It was officially...

 in Philadelphia. He then went to France again for studies. He would return to Japan in 1881, where he served Emperor Meiji

Emperor Meiji

The or was the 122nd emperor of Japan according to the traditional order of succession, reigning from 3 February 1867 until his death...

.

External links

• The 1867 Japanese mission to Europe (Japanese)