Photo By Petty Officer 1st Class Tyler Fraser | 190519-N-HH215-1177 SHIMODA, Japan (May 19, 2019) – Sailors assigned to the U.S....... read more read more
For nearly 50 years, Sailors with the Yokosuka Naval Base have traditionally participated in the Black Ship Festival in Shimoda, Shizuoka prefecture, with a flurry of events such as ceremonies, parades, band performances, and fireworks. The U.S. Navy’s ship stationed at Yokosuka with its crew has also routinely made a port visit during the Festival for celebration. Every year more than 200,000 tourists enjoy and celebrate the 3-day event.
Shimoda has a long history with the U.S., which goes back to the mid-1800s, when the U.S. approached Japan with a view to developing diplomatic relations with Japan. This year’s Festival from May 17 (Fri) through 19 (Sun) also marks the 170th anniversary since the opening of its port to the U.S. in 1854. Having the Black Ship Festival in the offing, it may be appropriate to look into the history of Shimoda and its relationship with the U.S.
On July 8, 1853, a fleet of 4 ships with the U.S. Navy’s East India Squadron, at the helm of Commodore Matthew Perry, arrived off the coast of Uraga Bay, near Edo, the present-day Tokyo, with the United States sidewheel steam frigate Susquehanna as the flagship. Their primary purpose was to establish diplomatic relations with Japan, and if possible, to gain trading permission from Japan which had been closed — or limited to Dejima in Nagasaki with Dutch and Chinese — from foreign contacts for over 220 years. Also, among the objectives was, to secure protection and material provision for American ships from Japan, such as food and water, when the whaling in the West Pacific and its robust industry were most active in history.
On the first visit of 1853, Perry’s attempt was not successful; He could only deliver a letter of credence from President Millard Fillmore along with the one by Perry himself both addressed to the Japanese Emperor through the officials with the governance and administration organization of the Edo Bakufu. Fillmore’s letter was written in a friendly and respectful manner and asked for “friendship, commerce, a supply of coal and provisions, and protection for our shipwrecked people.”
Perry’s one is more intent or forceful. He said in his letter that:
“As the United States and Japan are becoming every day nearer and nearer to each other, the President desires to live in peace and friendship with your imperial majesty but no friendship can long exist unless Japan ceases to act towards Americans as if they were her enemies.”
He also stated that he had brought just a fleet of four smaller ships as an evidence to show their friendly intentions, but should it be necessary, they would “return to Edo in the ensuing spring with a much larger force.”
When Perry handed over the letters to Japanese representative officials, he made a promise of his return the next year, as he mentioned in his letter, giving Japan several months to consider a possible agreement.
It was a significant challenge to Japan’s isolationist policies, and the Japanese leadership recognized that Perry’s modern and well-armed ships represented a threat they could not match militarily. Japan was then put to the test to find a path to navigate through pressures from outside to open the country while updating their own domestic systems without losing sovereignty.
Perry’s arrival was merely the beginning.
On February 13, 1854, Perry came back with a larger fleet of 6 ships — which later became 9 ships — to Japan. Through a month-long negotiation, deliberate preparation of Perry, and mutual discussions, the two countries reached the conclusion of the Convention of Kanagawa at a special building for “internal discussion” constructed for this occasion in Yokohama, March 31.
The main points of the Convention were as follows:
— Mutual peace (Hence it is also called the Japan-U.S. Treaty of Peace and Amity)
— Opening ports of Shimoda and Hakodate for the use of American ships
— Support for shipwrecked crews of the U.S. vessels
— Opening of an American consulate at Shimoda
By the establishment of the Convention, Japan put an end to its foreign policy of isolation which had long been seen as impenetrable, and Shimoda was opened for trade along with Hakodate in Hokkaido.
The reasons why Shimoda and Hakodate, among the other candidates such as Kanagawa (Yokohama), Uraga, Nagasaki, and Matsumae, were selected are not given in records, however, in the light of their locations on open seas, it was beneficial for the both countries politically and economically.
Perry himself visited Shimoda April 18 and following a survey in Hakodate, returned to Shimada June 7, 1854. During his stay there, he demonstrated military drills, had his men conduct cultural, natural, and geographical research, and met with Japanese officials at a succession of daily conferences to work on the details of the Convention. At that time, the Buddhist monastery, Gyokusen-ji Temple, was designated as a graveyard for the Sailors and Marines lost during Perry’s Expedition under the “additional regulations,” established June 17, 1854.
Perry left Shimoda June 25, concluding negotiations with Japan.
In 1856, Townsend Harris, consul general to Japan, opened the first U.S. Consulate in the premises of the Gyokusen-ji Temple.
Harris was instrumental in negotiating the Shimoda Treaty, supplements to the Kanagawa Convention, on June 17, 1857. The Treaty was subsequently exchanged with the Japanese commissioners in Shimoda at the Ryousen-ji Temple, June 20. The Treaty included further details on the U.S. activities within Japan.
The year of 1858 saw a conclusion of the more extensive Treaty of Amity and Commerce between the United States and the Empire of Japan, which activated Japan’s trade with western countries for the next years to come. The Treaty is also called the Harris Treaty, in honor of his success in and contribution to the commercial treaty of Japan.
Following the establishment of the Treaty came the opening of Yokohama, and Shimoda fulfilled its role as a trading port in 1859.
As mentioned, Shimoda’s Gyokusen-ji Temple is also known for 5 foreign graves of the 5 fallen U.S. military service members while serving the Perry Expedition.
About 50 years ago, in this Temple, an effort by CFAY’s Sailors helped cultivate, promote and deepen the friendship with Shimoda. CFAY’s weekly newspaper “Seahawk” of May 23, 1975 carried a story of this episode, which may stand as an eloquent testimony of a close and intimate bond between Shimoda and Yokosuka’s Navy.
When the 1974 Izu Peninsula earthquake occurred on May 9, a small town of Kakizaki, where the Temple is located, it caused heavy damage throughout the area — 30 people died, 102 people were injured, 134 houses were completely destroyed, and 5 houses were completely burnt down.
The foreign graves were no exception. In the following year, Shimoda City asked the U.S. Navy for help in repairing them. Even though the tombstones still stood, the surrounding patio had given way, and the base of each stone sank allowing it to lean forward. The stones were also cracked badly. They had stood that way until Shimoda City reached the Navy for about one year.
On being notified of the news, Capt. Henry T. Dietrich Jr., CFAY’s 20th commanding officer turned to Lt. Cmdr. Alexander C. Gunn, staff civil engineer. Gunn, along with Senior Chief Kenneth G. Hall, went to Shimoda for a survey;which determined that while it could be tricky they could be restored.
Under the oversight by Capt. C. Courtright, commanding officer, the Public Works Center, Yokosuka, Gunn was tapped to spearhead a team of 5 Seabees later in April, 1975, to do the task. “So these stones, built in memory of Americans by Americans, would be repaired by Americans 120 later,” the story says.
The job, however, was not an easy one. It took much care in handling the 120-year-old stones, and the graveyard was located at the top of a small hill with only access being a small narrow flight of steps, which made the task a lot harder. Limited amount of working space was another obstacle. Moreover, they had to take apart each memorial stone by stone, consisting of 13 pieces, weighing from 200 to 400 pounds. After that cement was poured to reinforce the slab at the base of each tombstone to fill the gap and when the slab dried, the stones were put back together. A fresh new patio was poured around the stones.
“Because of the age and historical value, it was kind of like an archaeological job instead of construction,” one of Seabees was quoted as saying. Thanks to hard work and meticulous care, the job was finished on May 10, precisely on the same day the earthquake occurred one year before.
Every year at Shimoda’s Black Ship Festival, Sailors visit and honor the history, tradition and legacy of the U.S.-Japan relationship at Gyokusen-ji Temple during the Black Ship Festival in Shimoda.
| Date Taken: | 05.17.2024 |
| Date Posted: | 05.17.2024 03:37 |
| Story ID: | 471507 |
| Location: | YOKOSUKA, KANAGAWA, JP |
| Web Views: | 121 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, A Story of Shimoda, Convention of Kanagawa and CFAY’s Foreign Graveyard Restoration in 1975, by Ryo Isobe, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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