60 徳川家光
家康は慶長八年二月、将軍に任ぜられ、そして同じく十年四月、之を秀忠に譲りまし
た。秀忠は将軍職にある事十九年、元和九年七月、之を家光に譲りました。家光は、秀
忠の長男であります。然し秀忠の子と云うよりは、むしろ家康の孫と云う方が、本人の
自覚の上でも、世間の受取方でも、遥かに適切であったでしょう。
（中略）
家光の時に起こった重大事は、島原の乱です。之を重大だと云いますのは、その結果
、寛永十六年に鎖国令が布かれ、海外との交通が遮断されてしまったからです。一体我
が国の名が、西洋に知られたのは、蒙古襲来の昔に遡ります。即ちイタリア人マルコ･ポ
ーロ（Marco Polo 1254-1324）が元（げん）の国王に仕えていて日本を知り、その著書
の中に、ジパング（Zipang）と云う名で日本を紹介し、それは金銀の豊富な島だと云っ
たところから、西洋人の探検熱を煽り、それが本で、やがてコロンブス（Columbus
1506年没）のアメリカ発見（西暦一四九二年）となったと云われている程ですが、西洋
人が我が国へ現れたのは、かなり遅れて、天文十二年（西暦一五四三年）ポルトガル人
が種子島に漂着したのを初めとします。それより後は、商人も来れば、宣教師も来、一
方には鉄砲を伝えて戦術の革新を促し、他方にはキリスト教をひろめて、数多くの信者
を獲得しました。
始めて我が国にキリスト教を伝えたのは、フランシスコ･ザヴィエル（Francisco de
Xavier 1506-1552）でした。ゼスイット派の創立者の一人で、天文十八年鹿児島へ上陸
し、四十日あまりの勉強によって日本語を覚え、説教を始めました。山口で布教し、更
に京都へ上りましたが、その旅行は裸足で歩き、旅人の荷物を担って馬の後から走るな
ど、非常な苦労を厭わなかったので、感動して信者となる者も段々ありましたが、二年
後に日本を去り、翌年（天文二十一年）広東（かんとん）付近の島で亡くなりました。
四十六歳でした。このザヴィエルを最初として、その後多くの宣教師が来て布教しまし
た。それらの宣教師の報告には、当時の日本の有様や、日本人の性質がくわしく書かれ
ています。ザヴィエルの手紙には、「日本人程、窃盗を嫌う人民は、世界に無い」とあ
ります。他の宣教師の報告をまとめたものには、日本人は父母を尊び、もし親不孝する
者あれば、必ず神罰を蒙ると信じている事、日本人は名誉を重んじ、貪欲を嫌う事、勇
気があって忍耐力が強く、災害にかかっても悲しまず、危難に直面しても恐れず、喜ん
でも怒っても、それを顔色には現さない事、多言を賎しんで言葉数が少ない事などを、
日本人の特性として認めています。
ザヴィエルの来た天文十八年から天正十五年まで、四十年近い間に、いわゆる南蛮人
（南洋を経由してくる西洋人）の往来が多く、貿易の盛んである共に、キリスト教もひ
ろまって、信者が多数に上りました。殊に九州では、大友や有馬などの大名が熱心に之
を信じ、中央にも高山、細川、小西等の大名に信者が出てきました。天正十五年の九州
征伐に当たって、之に気がついた秀吉は、キリスト教を禁止し、宣教師を国外に追放す
るに至った事、前に述べた通りです。然し禁止したのは布教だけで、貿易は盛んの行っ
ていましたので、実際には信者は段々と増加してゆきました。家康は貿易を盛んにしよ
うとする方針であった為に、キリスト教に対しては初めは寛大でしたが、そのうちにポ
ルトガル人には政治的野心があると聞いて、之を警戒し、慶長十七年には京都の教会を
破却し、布教を禁じました。秀忠の代には、貿易港を長崎と平戸との二つに限り、キリ
スト教徒は之を弾圧する事にしました。
この弾圧に対して反発したのが、寛永十四年（西暦一六三七年）島原の乱でした。（
中略）
島原の乱の結果として重大でありますのは、之に懲りて幕府は鎖国の方針をますます
強く固めた事です。ポルトガル人は長崎の出島より追放せられ、再び入国する事は許さ
れなくなりました。そしてキリスト教に関係のない支那人と、カソリック教には反対で
あり、貿易以外には手を出さない和蘭人とだけには、これまで通りに貿易を許し、そし
て和蘭人の商館を平戸から長崎へ移しました。平戸はそれまで三十三年の間、和蘭との
貿易が行われていた重要な港でしたが、寛永十八年にその重要性を長崎に譲ったのでし
た。
和蘭と支那とを例外として、それ以外の外国人の日本に来る事を許さず、日本人の海
外に出掛ける事を許さなくなった結果、海外に発展する事も出来なければ、世界の情勢
にも暗くなりました。駿河の人山田長政が元和･寛永の頃、暹羅（シャム、今のタイ）国
において、国王をたすけて武功を立て、重く用いられたり、明国の末、まさに亡びよう
としてしきりに我が国の救援を求めたりした事など、すべて海外の事には目を閉じて、
一切関係しない方針を執り、ただ権現様の威光を仰ぎつつ、国内の治安を保つに汲々と
していたのが徳川幕府で、その体制は三代家光の時に完成し、その後五代綱吉の華麗な
る元禄時代、八代吉宗の緊縮を主とする享保時代など、多少の変化を経過しながら幕末
に至り、将軍にして十五代、年月にして二百六十余年の徳川時代を終わったのでした。
（以下略）
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60 Tokugawa Iemitsu
Ieyasu became shougun in the 2nd month of the 8th year of Keichou (1603), and
passed the office on to Hidetada in the 4th month of the 10th year of Keichou
(1605). Hidetada held the office for nineteen years, until the 7th month of the
9th year of Genna (1623), when he turned it over to Iemitsu. Iemitsu was the
oldest son of Hidetada. In his own mind, and in the public eye as well he was
more suited for the position as he was the grandson of Ieyasu, not just because
he was Hidetada's son.
(an omission)
The most important event that took place during Iemitsu's tenure was the
Shimabara Rebellion. The "important" here was the outcome. In the 16th year of
Kan'ei (1639), the Expulsion Edict, closing the nation to all foreign
intercourse, was enacted.
We must retrace history to the Mongol Invasion to the time when the name
"Japan" became known in the West. That is, to the Italian traveler Marco Polo
(1254-1324), who visited the Mongol empire of China and learned of Japan. Since
introducing Japan in his book under the name "Zipang," saying it was an island
with abundant gold and silver, he incited great interest in Japan among
Western people, so much so thst Christopher Columbus' (d. 1506) discovery of
America in 1492 was based on that interest.
The first appearance in Japan by a foreigner was actually rather late - in the
12th year of Tenbun (1543) - when some Protuguese came ashore on the island of
Tanegashima. Traders and missionaries came, and with them came the matchlock
arquebus which brought with it a revolution in the ways of making war. Also
with them came the spread of Christianity, which acquired many converts.
It was St. Francis Xavier (1506-1552), one of the founders of the Society of
Jesus (the Jesuit order), who first brought Christianity to Japan. He arrived
in Kagoshima in the 18th year of Tenbun (1549) and after about forty days of
studying the language he began preaching. He did missionary work Yamaguchi and
made his way to Kyouto. He made the trip barefoot and shouldering a traveler's
load while running behind horses. It was a very difficult journey and he didn't
spare himself any of it which impressed people, so the number of believers
gradually grew. Two years later, he left Japan, and the next year he died on
the island of Sancian near Kantong, China. He was forty-six.
After Xavier, many missionaries came to Japan to preach. In these
missionaries' reports they write detailed information on what the Japan of
those days was like, as well as the character of the people. In a letter of
Xavier, he wrote, "There are no people in the world who hate thievery as much
as do the Japanese." In reports from other missionaries, we can observe what
they thought to be special characteristics of the Japanese: that the Japanese
respected their parents, and if they were unfilial toward them, they believed
that they would certainly receive punishment from heaven; that they placed
great value on honor; that they hated avarice; that they were brave and had
great endurance; that they didn't despair even after a natural disaster; that
they didn't flinch in the face of danger; that regardless of whether they wee
happy or upset, they didn't show it on their faces; that they didn't like
chattering and preferred those of few words; and so on.
In the nearly forty years from the 18th year of Tenbun (1449), when Xavier came to
Japan, to the 15th year of Tenshou (1587), many of the so-called nanbanjin
(that is, Europeans; literally, "southern barbarian," the term being connected
to the arrival of the foreigners from the south) came to Japan, and along with
the gowth of trade came the spread of Christianity, and the numbers of
believers rose. Especially in Kyuushuu, the daimyou Ohtomo Sourin and Arima
Yoshisada believed fervently in the new religion, but in central Japan daimyou
like Takayama Ukon, Hosotawa Tadaoki, Konishi Yukinaga, and others also became
believers.
As slready mentioned, at the pacification of Kyuushuu in the 15th year of
Tenshou (1587), Hideyoshi realixed Christianity was spreading, so he put a ban
on Christianity, and ordered that the missionaries were to be expelled from
Japan. This ban, however, was only on the propagation of the faith; commerce
was warmly allowed to carry on, so in reality the number of the faithful
continued to gradually increase. Since Ieyasu's policies welcomed trade, at
first he was openminded about Christianity, but upon hearing that the
Portuguese had some political ambitions, he took precautions agaist them. In
the 17th year of Keichou (1612), the cathedral in Kyouto was demolished and
mission work was forbidden. In turn, Hidetada limited the trade ports to
Nagasaki and Hirado, and began the oppression of Christians.
The opposition to this oppression was the Shimabara Rebellion in the 14th year
of Kan'ei (1637). (an omission)
The most important thing to come out of the Shimabara Rebellion was that the
shogunate learned from its experiences and heardened its policies of closing of
the country to outsiders. The Portuguese were expelled from Nagasaki and
forbidden to ever return. Thereafter, only Chinese who had no relationship with
Christianity, and the anti-Roman Catholic Dutch who were interested solely in
commerce, were allowed to enter and trade. Then the Dutch factory was moved
from Hirado to Nagasaki. For thirty-three years Hirado had been important port
for Dutch trade, but in the 18th year of Kan'ei (1641), that importance was
transferred to Nagasaki.
As a result of foreigners being forbidden from coming to Japan (save the Dutch
and Chinese) and Japanese being forbidden from going abroad, Japan was unable
to expand overseas and was in the dark about the situation in the world
outside. In Siam during the Genna-Kan'ei years (1615-1644), Yamada Nagamasa of
Suruga helped the king of Siam and rose through his military exploits. When the
Ming themselves were on the verge of being defeated by the rising power of the
Chin, despite urgent entreaties to Japan, the shogunate kept its its eyes closed
to foreign affairs and sent no assistance.
The government was following a policy of total non-involvement, continuing to
respect Ieyasu's influence, and intent on safeguarding domestic peace. This
system was completed under the third Tokugawa shougun, Iemitsu. After him were
to come the splendor to the Genroku era under the fifth shougun, Tsunayoshi,
and the austerity of the Kyouhou era under the eighth shougun Yoshimune.
Changes both large and small would follow the shogunate through to the
bakumatsu period, when the shogunate came to an end. In that 268-year span of
time, there would be 15 shougun before the age of the Tokugawa would come to an
end.
(Rest omitted)
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少年日本史 (平泉澄)
The story of Japan （Hiraizumi Kiyoshi)
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