The were members of the
Chōshū han of western
Japan
Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...
who travelled to England in 1863 to study at
University College London
University College London (Trade name, branded as UCL) is a Public university, public research university in London, England. It is a Member institutions of the University of London, member institution of the Federal university, federal Uni ...
. The five students were the first of many successive groups of Japanese students who travelled overseas in the late
Bakumatsu
were the final years of the Edo period when the Tokugawa shogunate Meiji Restoration, ended. Between 1853 and 1867, under foreign diplomatic and military pressure, Japan ended its isolationist foreign policy known as and changed from a Feudali ...
and early
Meiji eras. All five students later rose to prominent positions in Japanese political and civil life.
Background and participants
The Chōshū han, based in what is now known as
Yamaguchi Prefecture
is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located in the Chūgoku region of Honshu. Yamaguchi Prefecture has a population of 1,377,631 (1 February 2018) and has a geographic area of 6,112 Square kilometre, km2 (2,359 Square mile, sq mi). ...
, was eager to acquire better knowledge of the western nations and gain access to military technology in order to strengthen the domain in its struggle to overthrow the
Tokugawa shogunate
The Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868.
The Tokugawa shogunate was established by Tokugawa Ieyasu after victory at the Battle of Sekigahara, ending the civil wars ...
. The decision by Chōshū han elders to sponsor five promising students to study overseas came in the midst of growing domestic political tensions and in the wake of reports from the
First Japanese Embassy to Europe that had returned in January 1863.
Notably, two of the students chosen,
Ito Shunsuke and
Inoue Monta, were students of the intellectual
Yoshida Shōin—who was previously imprisoned by the domain authorities, then executed by the Shogunate in 1859 for attempting to communicate with
Matthew C. Perry
Matthew Calbraith Perry (April 10, 1794 – March 4, 1858) was a United States Navy officer who commanded ships in several wars, including the War of 1812 and the Mexican–American War. He led the Perry Expedition that Bakumatsu, ended Japan' ...
(as well as launching an abortive revolt against
Ii Naosuke). This shift in policy coincided with the rise of their fellow students of Yoshida in Chōshū han administration (
Katsura Kogoro and
Takasugi Shinsaku—leader of the anti-Bakufu
Kiheitai, respectively).
At the time of the students’ departure it was still illegal to leave Japan and travel overseas due to the shogunate's maritime seclusion policy (''
sakoku
is the most common name for the isolationist foreign policy of the Japanese Tokugawa shogunate under which, during the Edo period (from 1603 to 1868), relations and trade between Japan and other countries were severely limited, and almost all ...
'' or, as it was known at the time, ''kaikin''). If they had been caught, they likely would have been put to death.
This policy was only finally abolished in 1866. The students were aware of the risks and wrote to the governing council of their domain to say that if they failed with their intention they "had not the slightest intention of coming back alive".
Voyage to Britain
With the support of Nagasaki-based trader
Thomas Blake Glover, arrangements were made through his local agent, a Mr. Weigal, to secure passage for the five students on one of the many British trading ships calling at the port of Yokohama. Disguised as English sailors, the Chōshū students were put aboard the
Jardine, Matheson & Co. vessel ''Chelswick'' for 1000 ''
ryō
The was a gold currency unit in the shakkanhō system in pre- Meiji Japan. It was eventually replaced with a system based on the '' yen''.
Origins
The ''ryō'' was originally a unit of weight from China, the ''tael.'' It came into use in Ja ...
'' each with the reluctant agreement of the ship's captain, J. S. Gower. In order to pay for the voyage, Inoue had to borrow 5,000 ''
ryō
The was a gold currency unit in the shakkanhō system in pre- Meiji Japan. It was eventually replaced with a system based on the '' yen''.
Origins
The ''ryō'' was originally a unit of weight from China, the ''tael.'' It came into use in Ja ...
'' from the Chōshū han.
Before leaving Japan, the Chōshū students had to cut off their topknots, remove their swords, and change into Western clothes given to them by J. S. Gower.
The five departed Yokohama on the 27 June 1863, bound for
Shanghai
Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...
where they were sheltered on an
opium
Opium (also known as poppy tears, or Lachryma papaveris) is the dried latex obtained from the seed Capsule (fruit), capsules of the opium poppy ''Papaver somniferum''. Approximately 12 percent of opium is made up of the analgesic alkaloid mor ...
storage ship before dividing into two groups for the extended voyage around the
Cape of Good Hope
The Cape of Good Hope ( ) is a rocky headland on the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula in South Africa.
A List of common misconceptions#Geography, common misconception is that the Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Afri ...
to
London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
.
While Inoue Masaru, Yamao Yōzō and Endō Kinsuke travelled to Europe as passengers on the 915 ton three-masted
tea clipper ''Whiteadder'',
Inoue Kaoru and
Itō Hirobumi
Kazoku, Prince , born , was a Japanese statesman who served as the first prime minister of Japan from 1885 to 1888, and later from 1892 to 1896, in 1898, and from 1900 to 1901. He was a leading member of the ''genrō'', a group of senior state ...
, destined to be two of the greatest Japanese statesmen of the age, were mistakenly assumed to be eager to earn their passage as crew and were put to work as deckhands on a grueling 130 day journey aboard the 525 ton sailing ship ''Pegasus''.
Studies in Britain
''Pegasus'' reached London on 4 November 1863, ''Whiteadder'' arriving three days later on the 7th. The reunited Chōshū students were introduced by
Hugh Matheson, senior partner of
Matheson and Company to Dr.
Alexander Williamson, FRS, Professor of Chemistry at University College, London.
Itō Hirobumi
Kazoku, Prince , born , was a Japanese statesman who served as the first prime minister of Japan from 1885 to 1888, and later from 1892 to 1896, in 1898, and from 1900 to 1901. He was a leading member of the ''genrō'', a group of senior state ...
,
Endō Kinsuke and
Inoue Masaru lodged at the Camden home of Professor Williamson and his family, while
Inoue Kaoru and
Yamao Yōzō lodged at 103 Gower Street with the Coopers adjacent to the university campus.
They all enlisted in University College London, and studied analytical chemistry under the tutorship of Professor Williamson.
Between classes, the five students visited places in London such as the Royal Mint, museums, art galleries, shipbuilding yards, factories and the Bank of England.
Inoue Kaoru and Itō Hirobumi returned after only six months in early April 1864 when they received news via Jardine Matheson's London representatives that the Chōshū clan was engaged in
direct conflict with Western allied powers over control of the strategic
Straits of Shimonoseki. Endo also returned in the later half of 1866 for health reasons. In August 1865, Yamao moved to Glasgow to study the shipyards.
He worked at Napier’s Shipyard on the Clyde by day, and studied at Anderson’s College at night. He returned to Japan in 1868, the same year that the final member of the Choshū Five, Inoue, went back.
150th anniversary celebrations
2013 was the 150th anniversary of the Chōshū Five departing Japan to commence studies at University College London (UCL). There were several commemorative events held in both Japan and the United Kingdom to mark this event. In July, there was a celebration hosted by UCL at the main campus with participation from representatives of the Japan embassy in London.
Visit 150 years later by Japan's Prime Minister
On 1 May 2014 Japan's Prime Minister
Shinzō Abe
Shinzo Abe (21 September 1954 – 8 July 2022) was a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan and President of the Liberal Democratic Party ( LDP) from 2006 to 2007 and again from 2012 to 2020. He was the longest-serving pri ...
paid a courtesy visit to
UCL and the monument of the Chōshū Five there.
Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has thanked UCL for its role in helping to educate students from his country dating back 150 years to the Chōshū Five in the 19th century.
/ref>
See also
* Japanese students in the United Kingdom
* Japan–United Kingdom relations
References
External links
Nagasaki in the Meiji Restoration
- links Thomas Glover and the Chōshū Five
Sources
* Cobbing, Andrew (2010). “Inoue Kaoru (1836–1915): A Controversial Meiji Statesman”. in ''Biographical Portraits''. Leiden: BRILL.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Choshu Five
Japanese expatriates in the United Kingdom
Japan–United Kingdom relations
People associated with University College London
Quintets