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The arrival of the Portuguese also signified the commencement of direct trading relations with the West. Portuguese trade in Asia generally was not intercontinental; rather, they served as transporters of goods between Asian countries. For Japan in the sixteenth century, this trade consisted primarily of an exchange of Chinese silks and medicines for Japanese gold and silver. Other things were introduced along the way, including tobacco, corn, and Western articles of dress such as the cape. Although the Portuguese managed to maintain a virtual monopoly on this profitable commerce for over fifty years, in 1589, the Spanish ignored the papal bull that had divided the world and sent both Franciscan missionaries and traders from the Philippines to Japan.
At the same time Europe was going through radical changes. The Portuguese and Spanish empires began to crumble. In 1581 the Netherlands had declared independence from Portugal, and by 1595, the forerunners of what would become the Dutch East India Company sent expeditions to Asia and the Indies. It was one such expedition, also beset by storms that resulted in the arrival of theLiefde (Charity), the sole survivor of a fleet of five, on the shores of Kyūshū in 1600. Some of the members of the crew, notably Melichor van Santvoort, and the captain, Jacob Quackernaeck, worked actively to promote trade between the Netherlands and Japan. The United East India Company was formed in 1602, and the factory, or trading post, was established in Hirado in Kyūshū in 1609.
One of the most famous passengers on the Liefde, however, was not Dutch. Will Adams, the subject of at least two books and fictionalized in James Clavell’s Shogun, was the pilot (what we would today call navigator) of the ship. Adams taught shipbuilding and navigation, and received a stipend in recognition for his services. He encouraged the English to enter the market. The English East Company ship, the Clove, captained by John Saris, arrived in Japan in 1613. The factory was officially established in 1614.
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