 Bronze Reliefs Opening Japan for Commerce - Commodore Matthew Perry - 1854 |
| Out of mistrust of missionaries and foreign traders, Japan had been by its own choice a hermit country, cut off from the outside world for more than two centuries. Foreigners were not welcome and Japanese could not leave their country. Sailors, including Americans, who were shipwrecked on Japan's shores were often mistreated or killed. U. S. government concern prompted the mission of Commodore Matthew C. Perry and with his sail and steam-powered ``Black Ships.'' Perry was ordered to open diplomatic and trade relations with Japan and ensure the safety of shipwrecked American sailors. He sailed into Tokyo Bay on July 8, 1853, to lay the groundwork for a return visit the following year.
Considering that the Japanese had fired on the ships of other nations attempting such visits, Perry evidently impressed the Japanese with his show of force and dignity. It was a mission that demanded exceptional diplomacy. The commodore's philosophy was to adopt two extremes ``. . . by an exhibition of great pomp, when it could properly be displayed, and by avoiding it, when such pomp would be inconsistent with the spirit of our institutions.'' When Perry made his second visit, in March 1854, the Japanese signed a treaty which opened for American trade the ports of Hakodate and Shimoda. Today in Shimoda, the Japanese and the U. S. Seventh Fleet annually celebrate the Black Ship Festival. Sculptor: Leo C. Irrera
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©2007 United States Navy Memorial - Design: bdalexander.com - Hosted & Maintained: System Planning Corporation - Webmaster