William Adams (samurai)

For other uses, see William Adams (disambiguation).

William Adams
William Adams before Shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu
Born(1564-09-24)24 September 1564
Gillingham, Kent, Kingdom of England
Died16 May 1620(1620-05-16) (aged 55)
Hirado, Nagasaki Prefecture, Edo shogunate
Resting placeWilliam Adams Memorial Park, Sakigata Hill, Hirado, Nagasaki Prefecture, Japan
NationalityEnglish
Other namesMiura Anjin (三浦按針)
CitizenshipJapanese
OccupationNavigator
Known for
  • First Englishman to travel to Japan
  • Amongst the first known Western Hatamoto
  • One of the first Englishmen to travel to Thailand
    Third Englishman to travel to Vietnam
Term1600–1620
SuccessorJoseph Adams
Spouses
Mary Hyn
​
(m. 1589)​
Oyuki
​
(m. 1613)​
[1][2]
ChildrenJohn Adams (son)
Deliverance Adams (daughter)
Joseph Adams (son)
Susanna Adams (daughter)[1][2]

William Adams (Japanese: ウィリアム・アダムス, Hepburn: Uwiriamu Adamusu, historical kana orthography: ウヰリアム・アダムス; 24 September 1564 – 16 May 1620), better known in Japan as Miura Anjin (三浦按針, 'the pilot of Miura'), was an English navigator who, in 1600, became the first Englishman to reach Japan. He was recognized as one of the most influential foreigners in Japan during the early 17th century.[3]

He arrived in Japan as one of the few survivors of the ship De Liefde [nl][4] under the leadership of Jacob Quaeckernaeck. It was the only vessel to reach Japan from a five-ship expedition launched by a company of Rotterdam merchants[4] (a voorcompagnie, or predecessor of the Dutch East India Company).[5]

Soon after his arrival in Japan, Adams and his second mate Jan Joosten became advisors to shōgun Tokugawa Ieyasu, and each was appointed as hatamoto.[a][7] Under Tokugawa's authority, Adams directed the construction of Western-style ships. He was later part of the envoy that gave permission to the Netherlands to build factories in Japan. He became highly involved in Japan's red seal trade, chartering and serving as captain of four expeditions to Southeast Asia.[citation needed]

Adams promoted a policy of religious intolerance, aimed particularly at Catholics, which would later become a centuries-long policy of religious persecution, primarily against Europeans and Christians of any denomination, but ultimately including Japanese converts as well.[8][9][10] He also influenced Japan's isolationist policy, which barred the entry and exit of people from the nation and blocked trade with foreign countries.[11]

For more than a decade, the Tokugawa authorities did not allow Adams and Joosten to leave Japan. Although eventually given permission to return home to England, Adams decided to stay in Japan, where he died at the age of 55. His Japan-born children, Joseph and Susanna, were likely expelled to Batavia[12] in 1635 when Tokugawa Iemitsu closed Japan to foreign trade; they disappear from historical records at that time.[11]

  1. ^ a b Cite error: The named reference oyuki-wife was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ a b "William Adams – from Gillingham to Japan". British Library. 16 May 2016. Archived from the original on 24 March 2018.
  3. ^ William Adams and Early English Enterprise in Japan, by Anthony Farrington and Derek Massarella.
  4. ^ a b "VOC Knowledge Center – Rotterdam Chamber". VOC-Kenniscentrum (in Dutch).
  5. ^ Fergusson, Niall. The Ascent of Money (2009 ed.). London: Penguin Books. p. 129.
  6. ^ Henry Smith (1980, p. 7)
  7. ^ アレキサンダー・ベネット. (2018). JAPAN The Ultimate SAMURAI Guide: an Insider Looks at the Japanese Martial Arts and Surviving in the Land of Bushido and Zen. Chāruzuītatorushuppan. ISBN 978-4-8053-1375-6. OCLC 1038661169.
  8. ^ Ward, Haruko Nawata (10 March 2015). Japan and Europe: the Christian Century, 1549-1650 (Report). Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/obo/9780195399301-0286.
  9. ^ Kouamé, Nathalie (2020), Meyer, Éric P.; Viguier, Anne (eds.), "Sûden's Anti‑Christian Edict (The) (1614)", Encyclopédie des historiographies : Afriques, Amériques, Asies : Volume 1 : sources et genres historiques (Tome 1 et Tome 2), TransAireS, Paris: Presses de l'Inalco, ISBN 978-2-85831-345-7, retrieved 6 March 2024
  10. ^ Rausch, Franklin (3 March 2014). Violence against Catholics in East Asia: Japan, China, and Korea from the Late Sixteenth Century to the Early Twentieth Century. Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199935420.013.002.
  11. ^ a b Teague, Anthony Graham. "William Adams". Sogang University. Archived from the original on 15 September 2015. Retrieved 13 June 2016. Brother Anthony of Taizé
  12. ^ Hiromi Rogers (2016, p. 266)


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