Ieyasu’s likeness for Adams was evident. He paid Adams a very generous living allowance to keep him, “some seventy ducats of silver and more than two pounds of rice each day.” (Milton 112) After emerging victorious over Mitsunari’s forces in the Battle of Sekigahara with the help of “nineteen cannons that Ieyasu had obtained from the De Liefde” (Naito 41), Ieyasu granted and often summoned Adams to meet him frequently. Ieyasu was willing to take in any new knowledge that he could absorb, and was especially interested on the subjects of geography and geometry. Both men’s determination to acquire new knowledge was evident. Adams had completely mastered the language of Japanese in a short period of three years, and successfully became Ieyasu’s official interpreter. By also helping Ieyasu’s concerning matters on foreign relations, Ieyasu rapidly grew a strong sense of trust in his Englishman. Adams was granted an estate in Hemi in Miura, Sagami that was worth 250 koku. In addition, Adams was given a mansion in Edo near Nihonbashi, an extremely lavish “gift” from Ieyasu. Adam’s real “acceptance” into Japanese hearts (at least Ieyasu’s) was clear when he was given the name Miura Anjin. His new name, as people would remember him as, meant “Miura’s pilot.” The fact that Ieyasu had given a name to a foreigner meant that he had locked his trust in the man, and the fact that Adams accepted the name meant that he had respect and pride over his accomplishments so far.
From here, things moved quickly for Adams and his relations with Ieyasu. Realizing that Adams’ was an Englishmen, and knowing the fact that the English were battling the Portuguese/Spanish with the Dutch, Ieyasu used this to get Adams to achieve something that changed Japan; making a ship. Ieyasu, who did not trust or approve of their troubles in Japan, once again connected with Adams with his disliking of the Portuguese. “Due to the accusations of some of the Portuguese in the region Adams came under suspicion of being a pirate…” Adams was clearly not liked by the Portuguese (mainly remaining Jesuit missionaries). Ieyasu, being the smart man he was, knew that Adams’ dislike of the Portuguese would help him to side with him… to accomplish the task of building a ship. Knowing that Adams was a ship’s carpenter in England, he gave the task of building a ship with the De Liefde’s carpenter, Pieter Janszoon. Together, with the help of many Japanese carpenters, Adams built an astonishing 80-ton vessel that Ieyasu was very keen of. Adams’ performance had once again proved helpful, and this strengthened the pairs bond even further.
After his “success” in Japan and his growing bond with Ieyasu, Adams hit a period where he wished to return home. Like any man would feel, he wanted to see his wife and children, whom he had left back in England. Ieyasu, knowing that he could lose Adams forever if he let him go back to England, Ieyasu talked to Adams to convince him to stay in Japan, and that going back to England would not help him move forward and do the great things that he had done in Japan. In time, Adams turned back on his idea to ask for permission to go back to England. He knew that he was happier in Japan, and he knew that Japan was the country that needed him more. Another great factor in Adams decision to stay in Japan was his love for a Japanese woman, Oyuki. Oyuki was the daughter of Magome Kageyu, a senior official, and the daughter of a samurai. Adams was keen for Oyuki, as she was the one who gave him love as he had been separated from his original love, left back in England with his children. Ieyasu was greatly pleased and eased by the fact that Adams was staying put in Japan, so he decided to once again reward the great Adams for his brave and “correct” decision of not leaving Japan for England. Ieyasu, the shogun, declared, “William Adams was dead and that Miura Anjin, a samurai, was born.” Ieyasu believed that this was helping Adams, as this technically made his wife in England a widow, which meant that Adams was “free”. This change from William Adams to Miura Anjin also held another greater meaning. William Adams was a samurai, meaning he was to be looked and treated with the utmost respect. Adams’ change to “samurai” meant that it was ok for him to marry Oyuki, his Japanese love. This could not have been possible if Adams were not a samurai, as a samurai’s daughter can only be married to another samurai. Now that Adams was a samurai, he was worthy of having Oyuki. The two wed soon later, “…and produced a son, Joseph, and a daughter, Susanna.” (Naito 43) This obviously meant that Adams was staying in Japan and that he intended to stay in Japan along wit his new family. This was the best possible outcome for Ieyasu, as this guaranteed the fact that he and Adams could continue their great partnership in helping advance Japan, helping Japan start trade wit the west. Now with Adams ship, and with more to come, Ieyasu had build the “equipment” to trade, and now all he needed was the actual trade to come.
Adam was the “face” of Japan to the west. His turn to a “great” in Japan meant that the Spanish and the Portuguese were put at a real disadvantage. It was only a matter of time before trade would start with the west, due to Adams’ works. The Dutch in 1609 were the first to start trade. Trade with the Dutch was held at Hizen at Hirado. Adams, who was very grateful of the Dutch and their support of England, was very pleased with his accomplishment of starting trade with the west. Being an Englishman, it was obvious that Adam wished to start trade with his motherland, England. In 1611, Adams wrote a letter to the English East India Company saying that a trade involving silk and other fabrics in exchange for gold and silver would be welcome to the Japanese. He stated that, “gold and silver could be obtained from Japan in generous quantities.” (Naito 45) In 1613 John Saris, chief factor for the East India Company arrived in Hirado with a letter from King James I, suggesting that trade between the Japanese and English start immediately. Adams had reached his goal, Japan’s goal of starting trade with the west and improving the nation. He had accomplished what may have seemed impossible, and Ieyasu must have been very pleased that the foreigner he took in with open arms, William Adams, was the one to do so.
Adams was greatly affected by Ieyasu’s death in 1616. His ties with the new shogun Hidetada weakened in his final years, and Adams himself reached the time of his death. On May 16, 1620 he fell ill at Hirado. Adams and his wife Oyuki are buried today at Anjinzuka (Hemi, Yokosuka).
William Adams was the key “factor” to Japan’s opening of trade wit the west during its time of the Sakoku Policy. He opened up Japan’s gates, and brought the nation of isolation and permanent “fear” of the western countries. His strong connection and bond was very crucial to the outcome, as they supported each other in many ways, to bring trade to Japan, and move Japan one step closer to modernization. The result of the beginning of trade with the west signaled Japan’s intentions on becoming a better nation, to become a nation recognized by the other nations in the world. Without William Adams, Japan would not have been the same, and we can be very grateful of him for creating the “spark” for the fire of modernization. William Adams was a very crucial man, who made a vital change in Japan’s history. Without him, Japan would not have been the Japan that we live in now.
Bibliography
Books
1) Milton, Giles. Samurai William The Englishman Who Opened Japan. New York: Penguin (Non-Classics), 2003. Print.
2) Makoto, Naito. Foreigners Who Loved Japan. Tokyo: Bilingual Books, 2009. Print.
Internet Sources
1) "A Brief History of William Adams." The Virtual Times. Web. 22 May 2010. <>.
2) "William Adams the First Englishman in Japan." Art Gallery Artists Sculpture Home Decor Art History and Fine Art Prints. Web. 22 May 2010. <>.
Annotated Bibliography
1) Milton, Giles. Samurai William The Englishman Who Opened Japan. New York: Penguin (Non-Classics), 2003. Print.
Samurai William was written by British writer and journalist Giles Milton. He specializes in areas of history and travel along with exploration. He has written other books such as Big Chief Elizabeth and The Riddle and the Knight. As those titles suggest, Milton has previously mainly written on European History, and not Japanese or Asian History. Although his “lack” of knowledge on Japan may be present, he has traveled to Japan before, where he got the idea to write Samurai William. Milton finds many of histories most interesting and overlooked stories and brings them to life, such as this book, Samurai William. He currently lives in London, where he is a member of the Hakluyt Society, which is dedicated to reprinting the works of explorers and adventurers in scholarly editions. This book was written in 2002, and published a year later, in 2003. It is fair to say that this book is very new, and has the latest information that Milton gathered to write this book. But since this book is already 7 years old, it can be said that there might be one or more “changes” or new information that was not used in the book. This book was published in New York by the famous Penguin Company. A world-famous brand, they only publish works of respected and knowledgeable writers who have accurate, yet interesting books.
The intended audience is for people in their teens and above, while it fair to say that Milton probably wrote this book expecting mainly only European and American readers to read this book. Samurai William uses many quotes and different sources, so it is just the right blend of accurate, yet attractive sources. The book is based on facts, as Milton uses many Primary and Secondary sources to ensure that his book is full of accurate facts. There is a little sense of bias in the book, as it sometimes concentrates or supports the English/Dutch side of the story instead of having neutral feelings especially near the start of this book.
This book was very helpful and much more interesting to read than the few Internet sites about William Adams. This book was filled with lots of information and facts that made me imagine or picture the story better. Exerts from William Adam’s diary were probably the most fascinating facts in the book. Although this book covers many areas of Adams’ life and goes deep into explanation, it is written in a novel-style writing that is intended for readers, rather than just pure facts and information. There are parts in this book that are a little stretched or spiced up, which limits this books value of reliability. All in all, this was the best source I had for writing this paper on William Adams.
“ …stimulating and comfortable.” – The Seattle Times
2) Makoto, Naito. Foreigners Who Loved Japan. Tokyo: Bilingual Books, 2009. Print.
Naito Makoto wrote Foreigners Who Loved Japan. Naito graduated out of Waseda University, where he moved on to become affiliated with several movies. He wrote the script and the storyline for a number of movies. Later he was a Professor at Chuo University and Nihon University, where he mainly concentrated becoming a novel writer and translator. Born in 1936, Naito is clearly an old, yet knowledgeable man with a lot of experience. Foreigners Who Loved Japan was published in 2009, which makes this book only 1 year old. The facts and information in this book are very recent and updated, therefore making this book very accurate in terms of information that is present to us now. Naito Ken, who is another Waseda University graduate, revised this book. The publisher though, Bilingual Books, is fairly minor and unknown, which makes this book slightly unreliable.
This book is clearly for an audience of both English-reading and a Japanese audience, as the book is written in both languages. Naito, a Japanese man, wrote this book in two languages for the obvious reason of wanting to be read by both Japanese and English-reading people. This book, as the title suggests, talks about several foreigners who “loved” Japan. The part on William Adams is just one section of the book. This section basically covers the experiences Adams had in Japan, with a brief overview of his life and adventures in Japan.
This source is “limited” in the sense that there are only a few pages in the book that talk about Adams. There is no real bias in this book, as it simply stated facts and information without a point of view. Foreigners Who Loved Japan is a good book for gathering basic information about William Adams and his life in Japan. It does not go into depth about personal feelings and views about Adams’ life as Miura Anjin.
