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Japan: 'Commodore Perry meeting the Imperial Commissioners at Yokohama'. Lithograph by W.T. Petris, 1856. The Perry Expedition was a U.S. naval and diplomatic expedition to Japan, involving two separate trips to and from Japan by ships of the United States Navy, which took place during 1853–54. The expedition was commanded by Commodore Matthew Calbraith Perry (1794–1858). It resulted in the opening of Japan to American and international trade, and the establishment of diplomatic relations between Japan and the western 'Great Powers'.
The Ryukyu Kingdom (historical English name: Lewchew, Luchu, or Loochoo) was an independent kingdom that ruled most of the Ryukyu Islands from the 15th to the 19th century. The kings of Ryukyu unified Okinawa Island and extended the kingdom to the Amami Islands in modern-day Kagoshima Prefecture, and the Sakishima Islands near Taiwan.<br/><br/> Despite its small size, the kingdom played a central role in the maritime trade networks of medieval East and Southeast Asia.
The Ryukyu Kingdom (historical English name: Lewchew, Luchu, or Loochoo) was an independent kingdom that ruled most of the Ryukyu Islands from the 15th to the 19th century. The kings of Ryukyu unified Okinawa Island and extended the kingdom to the Amami Islands in modern-day Kagoshima Prefecture, and the Sakishima Islands near Taiwan.<br/><br/> Despite its small size, the kingdom played a central role in the maritime trade networks of medieval East and Southeast Asia.
The Ryukyu Kingdom (historical English name: Lewchew, Luchu, or Loochoo) was an independent kingdom that ruled most of the Ryukyu Islands from the 15th to the 19th century. The kings of Ryukyu unified Okinawa Island and extended the kingdom to the Amami Islands in modern-day Kagoshima Prefecture, and the Sakishima Islands near Taiwan.<br/><br/> Despite its small size, the kingdom played a central role in the maritime trade networks of medieval East and Southeast Asia.
The Ryukyu Kingdom (historical English name: Lewchew, Luchu, or Loochoo) was an independent kingdom that ruled most of the Ryukyu Islands from the 15th to the 19th century. The kings of Ryukyu unified Okinawa Island and extended the kingdom to the Amami Islands in modern-day Kagoshima Prefecture, and the Sakishima Islands near Taiwan.<br/><br/> Despite its small size, the kingdom played a central role in the maritime trade networks of medieval East and Southeast Asia.
The Ryukyu Kingdom (historical English name: Lewchew, Luchu, or Loochoo) was an independent kingdom that ruled most of the Ryukyu Islands from the 15th to the 19th century. The kings of Ryukyu unified Okinawa Island and extended the kingdom to the Amami Islands in modern-day Kagoshima Prefecture, and the Sakishima Islands near Taiwan.<br/><br/> Despite its small size, the kingdom played a central role in the maritime trade networks of medieval East and Southeast Asia.
The Ryukyu Kingdom (historical English name: Lewchew, Luchu, or Loochoo) was an independent kingdom that ruled most of the Ryukyu Islands from the 15th to the 19th century. The kings of Ryukyu unified Okinawa Island and extended the kingdom to the Amami Islands in modern-day Kagoshima Prefecture, and the Sakishima Islands near Taiwan.<br/><br/> Despite its small size, the kingdom played a central role in the maritime trade networks of medieval East and Southeast Asia.
The Ryukyu Kingdom (historical English name: Lewchew, Luchu, or Loochoo) was an independent kingdom that ruled most of the Ryukyu Islands from the 15th to the 19th century. The kings of Ryukyu unified Okinawa Island and extended the kingdom to the Amami Islands in modern-day Kagoshima Prefecture, and the Sakishima Islands near Taiwan.<br/><br/> Despite its small size, the kingdom played a central role in the maritime trade networks of medieval East and Southeast Asia.
The Ryukyu Kingdom (historical English name: Lewchew, Luchu, or Loochoo) was an independent kingdom that ruled most of the Ryukyu Islands from the 15th to the 19th century. The kings of Ryukyu unified Okinawa Island and extended the kingdom to the Amami Islands in modern-day Kagoshima Prefecture, and the Sakishima Islands near Taiwan.<br/><br/> Despite its small size, the kingdom played a central role in the maritime trade networks of medieval East and Southeast Asia.
The Ryukyu Kingdom (historical English name: Lewchew, Luchu, or Loochoo) was an independent kingdom that ruled most of the Ryukyu Islands from the 15th to the 19th century. The kings of Ryukyu unified Okinawa Island and extended the kingdom to the Amami Islands in modern-day Kagoshima Prefecture, and the Sakishima Islands near Taiwan.<br/><br/> Despite its small size, the kingdom played a central role in the maritime trade networks of medieval East and Southeast Asia.
The Ryukyu Kingdom (historical English name: Lewchew, Luchu, or Loochoo) was an independent kingdom that ruled most of the Ryukyu Islands from the 15th to the 19th century. The kings of Ryukyu unified Okinawa Island and extended the kingdom to the Amami Islands in modern-day Kagoshima Prefecture, and the Sakishima Islands near Taiwan.<br/><br/> Despite its small size, the kingdom played a central role in the maritime trade networks of medieval East and Southeast Asia.
The Ryukyu Kingdom (historical English name: Lewchew, Luchu, or Loochoo) was an independent kingdom that ruled most of the Ryukyu Islands from the 15th to the 19th century. The kings of Ryukyu unified Okinawa Island and extended the kingdom to the Amami Islands in modern-day Kagoshima Prefecture, and the Sakishima Islands near Taiwan.<br/><br/> Despite its small size, the kingdom played a central role in the maritime trade networks of medieval East and Southeast Asia.
The Ryukyu Kingdom (historical English name: Lewchew, Luchu, or Loochoo) was an independent kingdom that ruled most of the Ryukyu Islands from the 15th to the 19th century. The kings of Ryukyu unified Okinawa Island and extended the kingdom to the Amami Islands in modern-day Kagoshima Prefecture, and the Sakishima Islands near Taiwan.<br/><br/> Despite its small size, the kingdom played a central role in the maritime trade networks of medieval East and Southeast Asia.
The Perry Expedition was a U.S. naval and diplomatic expedition to Japan, involving two separate trips to and from Japan by ships of the United States Navy, which took place during 1853–54. The expedition was commanded by Commodore Matthew Calbraith Perry. It resulted in the opening of Japan to American and international trade, and the establishment of diplomatic relations between Japan and the western 'Great Powers'.<br/><br/> Matthew Calbraith Perry (1794–1858) was a senior-ranking officer in the navy of the United States of America, who was assigned the command of a U.S.N. expedition to the 'far east' in 1853. The goals of this expedition included exploration, surveying, and the establishment of diplomatic relations and negotiation of trade agreements with various nations of the region; opening contact with the government of Japan was considered a top priority of the expedition, and was one of the key reasons for its inception.<br/><br/> The Tokugawa shogunate had virtually isolated Japan from Western countries, and severely restricted contact with even near-neighbors such as China, since the early-mid 1600s; a policy known as Sakoku. It had resisted, sometimes by force, attempts by Americans and Europeans to establish business and diplomatic ties.<br/><br/> On July 8, 1853, Perry sailed into an officially hostile, but militarily unprepared, Japan with four warships. He led a U.S. mission which sought to begin diplomatic and trade relations, and to ensure the safety of Americans shipwrecked in Japan. Perry intimidated the Japanese by threatening to bombard their cities. He presented Japanese officials with a letter from U.S. President Millard Fillmore to the Emperor of Japan, proposing peace and friendship; at the time, the complex political relationship between the Emperor and the shogunate was not well understood by western governments.
The Perry Expedition was a U.S. naval and diplomatic expedition to Japan, involving two separate trips to and from Japan by ships of the United States Navy, which took place during 1853–54. The expedition was commanded by Commodore Matthew Calbraith Perry. It resulted in the opening of Japan to American and international trade, and the establishment of diplomatic relations between Japan and the western 'Great Powers'.<br/><br/> Matthew Calbraith Perry (1794–1858) was a senior-ranking officer in the navy of the United States of America, who was assigned the command of a U.S.N. expedition to the "far east" in 1853. The goals of this expedition included exploration, surveying, and the establishment of diplomatic relations and negotiation of trade agreements with various nations of the region; opening contact with the government of Japan was considered a top priority of the expedition, and was one of the key reasons for its inception.<br/><br/> The Tokugawa shogunate had virtually isolated Japan from Western countries, and severely restricted contact with even near-neighbors such as China, since the early-mid 1600s; a policy known as Sakoku. It had resisted, sometimes by force, attempts by Americans and Europeans to establish business and diplomatic ties.<br/><br/> On July 8, 1853, Perry sailed into an officially hostile, but militarily unprepared, Japan with four warships. He led a U.S. mission which sought to begin diplomatic and trade relations, and to ensure the safety of Americans shipwrecked in Japan. Perry intimidated the Japanese by threatening to bombard their cities. He presented Japanese officials with a letter from U.S. President Millard Fillmore to the Emperor of Japan, proposing peace and friendship; at the time, the complex political relationship between the Emperor and the shogunate was not well understood by western governments.
A Japanese print showing three men, believed to be Commander Anan, age 54; Perry, age 49; and Captain Henry Adams, age 59, who opened up Japan to the west. The text being read may be President Fillmore's letter to the Emperor of Japan.