A Study On The First Japanese Embassy To The United States In 1860

To exchange the Treaty of Amity and Commerce first signed in 1858,the Edo bakufu decided to send a mission to America in 1860,and the ambassadors of the mission traveled on American warship powhatan and Japanese steam corvette Kanrin Maru separately,which is called “the First Japanese Embassy to the United States in 1860”.This mission has been the first one sent by the Japanese government to America since Perry sailed to Japan.The remained diaries of the Japanese embassy reveal the schedule of their journey and whatever new things they saw during the trip,which indicates what these Japanese thought and how they reacted in front of the cultural crush.Meanwhile,newspapers in America reported the welcome to the mission from different cities’ government,and the public either complimented the mission or looked forward to the commercial intercourse between America and Japan.Regrettably,the regiment failed to achieve its intended purpose after returning to Japan under the influence of the Jōi Movement.However,because the ambassador was the first ambassador sent by the Bakufu,it attracted the attention of scholars and had the value of research because there were more doubts before and after the dispatch.To explore the origins of the decision,this thesis tries to analyze the interaction between Japan’s domestic environment and United States involvement in the Far East during the late period of Japan.Moreover,there will also outline the treaty-making process,the discussion of the heir of general.Furthermore,based on the numerous diaries wrote by the famous politicians,like Tamamusi,Fukuzawa Yukichi,this essay will examine the route and the experience of the diplomatic envoy.After all,it will explore the historical influence of the mission by summarizing the rewarding experience and the efforts made by those diplomatic later as well.