hidden europe 46

The bridge to Dejima Island

by Nicky Gardner

Picture above: Isaac Titsingh’s plan of the Dutch trading post on Dejima Island drawn up in 1824–1825 (the original is held by the Koninklijke Bibliotheek in Den Haag).

Summary

For 200 years, Japan was largely closed to outside influences. But it was not completely isolated, for a small island in Nagasaki Harbour was occupied by Dutch traders. The island was linked by a bridge to the mainland. Cabbages and chocolate, billiards and badminton were all introduced to Japan over that bridge.

The Russian writer Ivan Goncharov arrived in Nagasaki in 1853 full of expectation. “Here at last was the goal of our ten-month voyage,” he wrote. Goncharov was excited at seeing Japan, a country which had for over 200 years had scant contact with outsiders. Goncharov saw Japan as a “locked casket without a key.” The Russian was intrigued by the manner in which, as he put it, the Japanese “had stubbornly Beyond Europe rejected the friendship, religion and commerce of foreigners, and laughed at our attempts to enlighten them.”

The frigate Pallada approached Nagasaki flying the St Andrew’s cross — for in tsarist times the saltire was the naval ensign of Imperial Russia (and it is used again today by the Russian Federation). Appreciative that the isolated Japanese might not have a comprehensive appreciation of ensigns favoured by foreign navies, the captain of the Pallada had the good sense to run a piece of white canvas up the fore topmast bearing the message (in Japanese) ‘Vessel of the Russian Empire’.

Japan intrigued Goncharov in many ways. He was struck by the beauty of the landscape but surprised by the interpreters supplied by the Japanese. For, apart from their native Japanese, the interpreters spoke just one European language: Dutch. Goncharov’s experience is echoed by other writers who visited Japan in the mid-nineteenth century, a period when the stringent seclusion policy which had prevailed for over 200 years was slowly being relaxed. Here was a country where such few contacts with the West as there were relied entirely on the Dutch language.

Related article

An Essex backwater: Discovering Harwich

The old town of Harwich, a port in the county of Essex on England's North Sea coast, is tucked away on the end of a peninsula. Maritime connections have shaped the development of Harwich. It's a place for sea breezes, rock oysters and watching the ferries come and go.

Related article

At the water's edge: Germany's Wadden Sea

Within just a few centuries, the geography of the Frisian region has been reshaped by storms and tides. Paul Scraton is a regular writer for hidden europe; here he explores Germany’s Wadden Sea coastline. It’s a tale that shows the power of the sea.

Related article

Editorial hidden europe 53

Globalisation is easy to understand. The sharing economy is less so. What at one moment seems to be altruism shades quickly into greed. Connecting “I want” with “I have” seems like a smart idea, but it raises tensions. Uber tussles with the taxi lobby. But often the demarcation lines are more complicated.