The Completion of National Seclusion and the Status System

The Edo shogunate restricted relations with foreign countries and completed its policy of national seclusion. At the same time, it strictly fixed the status system of warriors, farmers, artisans, and merchants, creating the foundation for about 260 years of stability.

Basic Knowledge

Steps toward the completion of national seclusion (sakoku):
1612: Edict Prohibiting Christianity (directly governed lands) — Ieyasu banned Christianity.
1614: Edict Prohibiting Christianity (nationwide) — The ban was extended nationwide. Takayama Ukon and others were exiled to Manila.
1616: Ports of call for ships other than Chinese ships limited to Hirado and Nagasaki.
1623: English trading post closed(after losing the trade competition with the Dutch).
1624: Spanish ships prohibited from visiting Japan.
1633: Overseas travel prohibited for ships other than licensed vermilion-seal ships(First Seclusion Edict).
1635: Overseas travel and return to Japan by Japanese people completely prohibited(Third Seclusion Edict); sankin-kotai formally written into the Laws for the Military Houses.
1637-1638: Shimabara-Amakusa Rebellion — A major rebellion of Christians and farmers led by Amakusa Shiro Tokisada (about 37,000 people). They held out at Hara Castle but were suppressed by an army of 120,000 shogunate troops.
1639: Portuguese ships prohibited from visiting Japan(Fifth Seclusion Edict).
1641: Dutch trading post moved from Hirado to Dejima in Nagasaki — national seclusion completed.
Foreign relations after national seclusion (Four Gateways):
① Nagasaki — trade with the Dutch and Chinese (directly governed by the shogunate)
② Tsushima (the So clan) — relations with Korea (Joseon Korea). Korean missions were sent to Edo
③ Satsuma (the Shimazu clan) — conquered the Ryukyu Kingdom in 1609; a relationship of dual subordination
④ Matsumae (the Matsumae clan) — trade with the Ainu; Shakushain's War in 1669
Status System (warriors, farmers, artisans, and merchants):
・Warriors (about 7%) — permitted to bear surnames and wear swords; ruling class
・Farmers (about 85%) — collective responsibility through the five-household group system; paid taxes in rice
・Townspeople (artisans and merchants)(about 7%) — lived in cities
・Eta and hinin — discriminated-against people (until the Emancipation Edict in the Meiji period)

Further Study (Background and Effects)

The purposes of national seclusion were:
① Complete elimination of Christianity (the shogunate judged that believers' faith threatened its rule)
② Preventing daimyo from becoming wealthy and powerful through monopolizing trade (the shogunate prohibited western daimyo from conducting independent trade and monopolized the profits)
③ Preventing trouble caused by trade with southern barbarians.
National seclusion was not complete “closure,” but a system in which the shogunate monopolistically managed trade. Information about world affairs arrived from the Dutch trading post through the “Dutch Reports,” and cultural exchange also occurred through Korean missions(which came to Japan each time a new shogun took office, 12 times in total).
The Shimabara-Amakusa Rebellion was the decisive event leading to stricter seclusion. Oppression, famine, and persecution of Christians overlapped, and the rebels under Amakusa Shiro (Masuda Tokisada) held Hara Castle for four months. The shogunate mobilized a huge army of 120,000 and finally suppressed them. After this, the shogunate strictly enforced fumie(forcing people to step on images of Christ) and religious registration(the temple-registration system, registering everyone with a Buddhist temple).
The core of the status system was the “house” and the “village.” For warriors, continuing the family line was the highest duty; farmers were tied to their villages and forced to bear collective responsibility through the five-household groups. This reduced social mobility and maintained stability for about 260 years, but it also became a cause of the major changes required during the Meiji Restoration.

Points of Caution (Easily Confused)

① Distinguish the edicts prohibiting Christianity (1612-1614, Ieyasu and Hidetada) from the Edict Expelling Christian Missionaries (1587, Hideyoshi). ② The word “national seclusion” did not exist in the Edo period; it was created in the 19th century from a translation of Kaempfer's The History of Japan. At the time, Japan maintained active foreign relations through the Four Gateways. ③ Shimabara-Amakusa Rebellion (1637-1638)=rebellion of Christians and farmers; leader was Amakusa Shiro Tokisada. ④ Distinguish Korean missions(via Tsushima) from Ryukyu missions (missions of congratulations and thanks, via Satsuma). Both were diplomatic missions that came to Edo.

Practice

1. Give the year in which national seclusion was completed and the event that completed it (what was moved from where to where).
2. Give the name of the major rebellion of Christians and farmers that occurred in Kyushu in 1637-1638, and the name of its leader.
3. What were the Four Gateways of the national seclusion system? Give the four places.