was a

Japanese Christian Christianity in Japan is among the nation's minority religions in terms of individuals who state an explicit affiliation or faith. Between less than 1 percent and 1.5% of the population claims Christian belief or affiliation. Although formally ...

physician who helped Hannah Riddell at Kaishun Hospital, an important Hansen's disease hospital in

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

in prewar days. The medical care and administration were maintained by his devotion for 30 years (1897-1926).

Life

He was born in 1854 in Tsuwano,

Shimane Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūgoku region of Honshu. Shimane Prefecture is the second-least populous prefecture of Japan at 665,205 (February 1, 2021) and has a geographic area of 6,708.26 km2. Shimane Prefecture borders Yamaguc ...

and went up to

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. He was qualified as a doctor and went into private practice in Tsuwano, and then Yamaguchi. He was baptized in 1881. He worked in

Nagasaki is the capital and the largest city of Nagasaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan. It became the sole port used for trade with the Portuguese and Dutch during the 16th through 19th centuries. The Hidden Christian Sites in the ...

and Taniyama,

Kagoshima Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyushu and the Ryukyu Islands. Kagoshima Prefecture has a population of 1,599,779 (1 January 2020) and has a geographic area of 9,187 km2 (3,547 sq mi). Kagoshima Prefecture borders Kumamoto P ...

. In 1897, he was asked to work at the Kaishun Hospital, Kumamoto's first leprosy hospital. He lived in the hospital, and was loved by patients. In 1921, he was awarded a prize for unselfish services by the

Interior Ministry An interior ministry (sometimes called a ministry of internal affairs or ministry of home affairs) is a government department that is responsible for internal affairs. Lists of current ministries of internal affairs Named "ministry" * Ministry ...

of Japan . *Kaishun Hospital was famous for Hannah Riddell, but this was because the hospital had been cared for by a devoted person like Miyake. *Described by one patient as looking like an undistinguished village school master, he had a gentle appearance that was in marked contrast to that of the officials of the state leprosaria, many of whom were former policemen and tended to treat their parents imperiously, as if they were criminals. Most nights, Miyake was called from his bed but he never complained. He did the houseworks for his sick wife, and his modesty and simple dress often caused visitors to mistake him for a servant. Miyake served as a buffer between Hannah Riddell and patients and often sorted out problems when there was a breach of the rules.Hannah Riddell, An Englishwoman in Japan,(1996),

Julia Boyd Julia Boyd is a British non-fiction author. ''The Washington Post'' called ''Travellers in the Third Reich'' "riveting". It was awarded the 2018 Los Angeles Times Book Prize for History. ''The Times'' called ''A Village in the Third Reich'' a "fa ...

, p151, Charles E Tuttles, Tokyo.

References

*''ユーカリの実るを待ちて''(1976) 内田守リデル・ライト記念老人ホーム、熊本。　 *''Yuukari no minoruo machite''(1976),

Mamoru Uchida was an ophthalmologist who worked for leprosy patients at Kyushu Sanatorium (Kikuchi Keifuen Sanatorium), Nagashima Aiseien Sanatorium, and Matsuoka Hoyoen Sanatorium. He taught leprosy patients tanka, in these sanatoriums. Later, he studied s ...

, chapter on Shunsuke Miyake. Riddell-Wright Memorial Home for the Aged. Kumamoto. *''Hannah Riddell, An Englishwoman in Japan''(1996),

, Charles E. Tuttle Company, Tokyo. The author of this book has the title of Lady, and she is called Lady Julia Boyd. A photograph of Miyake wearing kimono and geta is in this book. *''Hannah Riddell''(1937), Jingo Tobimatsu, by Kaishun Hospital, Kumamoto. The author of this book was the manager of Kaishun Hospital for 30 years, during which period, 11 years were shared by Miyake and Tobimatsu. They worked in the same hospital for 11 years. in English.

Footnotes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Miyake Shunsuke Japanese leprologists 1854 births 1926 deaths People from Shimane Prefecture