“The Red Haired Barbarians:” The Dutch in Japan The success of Dutch merchants in Japan illustrates the uniqueness of the Dutch Republic amongst the 17th century European countries. Not only would the Dutch come to dominate trade in Asia, in Japan they would demonstrate a practicality that would enable them to be the singular Western force present in a country that would severely isolate itself from any foreign intrusion. The V.O.C. could indeed be a ruthless cartel in securing trade from
After a long period of isolationism, China and Japan were pressured to open trade and have foreign relations with the West in the nineteenth century. During the late 1800’s the Industrial Revolution created a huge gap between the Western and Eastern powers, which left China and Japan in a military and technological disadvantage (Fruhstuck, Lecture). Initially, China and Japan closed their doors to the West because they were both self sustaining nations, did not like foreign influences, and believed
Throughout the 16th century the Japanese dominated maritime trading. They had many relations including those with the Portuguese, the Spanish and the Dutch empires. Each empire could give the Japanese something that they desired. The relationships differed with each empire but the Japanese still continued to have control throughout each period. The Portuguese were the first to have a relationship with Japan. Their relationship started in 1543 when Portuguese explores landed near the archipelago
Dejima marriages, arranged marriages, and love marriages are the types that come up in the book. Arranged marriages are discussed with the main character by Ogawa Uzaemon, where he describes how his marriage was arranged through his family and a Nakodo or
Similarities and Difference of Japan and Western Europe Both Japan and Europe were politically similar for many reasons: Each strove to maintain a centralized government. For Japan the leader was to be called an emperor or empress who could only be a part of the royal family if they were related to the Shinto sun goddess. As for Europe, the leader was to be called a king or a queen. Like Japan, not just anybody could become royalty. Kings and queens came from a long descent of an Imperial family