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Settlement 299: Policy, Chaps. 8-14. Lshii, Zoteimeijilshin, Chaps. 5 and 6, Also Discusses This at Length

The document discusses negotiations between Parkes and the Bakufu regarding postponing indemnity payments from Japan following the opening of Japan. It describes the positions of various diplomats, with Parkes seeking to avoid committing to any Japanese political group, while the French diplomat Roches supported recognizing the Bakufu shogunate. After discussions, the diplomats agreed to the British terms for postponing payments and moved negotiations to Osaka due to the shogun's absence from Edo.

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73 views1 page

Settlement 299: Policy, Chaps. 8-14. Lshii, Zoteimeijilshin, Chaps. 5 and 6, Also Discusses This at Length

The document discusses negotiations between Parkes and the Bakufu regarding postponing indemnity payments from Japan following the opening of Japan. It describes the positions of various diplomats, with Parkes seeking to avoid committing to any Japanese political group, while the French diplomat Roches supported recognizing the Bakufu shogunate. After discussions, the diplomats agreed to the British terms for postponing payments and moved negotiations to Osaka due to the shogun's absence from Edo.

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SETTLEMENT 299

concessions: (1) the opening of Hyogo and Osaka earlier than had been
specified in the London Protocol; (2) the emperor's ratification of the
existing treaties; and (3) a reduction of import duties, establishing the
basic rate at 5 percent. Russell's instructions approving this proposal
reached Parkes in Japan in October 1865.
Because the indemnity convention had been a four-power agree-
ment, it was necessary for Parkes to work in cooperation with the
American, Dutch, and French representatives. The first two offered
no objections, but the French minister, Leon Roches, was beginning
to develop a line of his own with reference to policy in Japan, which
did not entirely accord with that of Britain. Essentially, Parkes, follow-
ing Alcock, sought to avoid committing Britain to any one group in
Japanese politics, even the bakufu, preferring to await the outcome of
the power struggle and then to secure acceptance of the treaties from
the victorious party. Roches saw greater advantages for France in
recognizing the bakufu as a legitimate government and supporting it
accordingly. This implied avoidance, where possible, of any action or
diplomatic pressure that might serve to weaken the shogun vis-a-vis
his political rivals. Roches was wary of the British plan, on the
grounds that it might further lower the bakufu's prestige.45
Parkes's determination, plus recognition that the proposals, if ac-
cepted, would greatly benefit all the treaty powers, not merely Britain,
finally won over Roches. On October 30, 1865, the four ministers
jointly replied to the original bakufu request for postponement of the
indemnity payments, offering to accept it on the terms put forward by
Britain. At the same time, noting that the shogun and his senior
officials were again absent - this time in Osaka to organize a punitive
expedition against Choshu - they observed that this circumstance
would render negotiations in Edo "if not impossible, at least illu-
sory."46 They therefore announced their intention of transferring the
talks to Osaka. On November 4 they arrived at Hyogo with a squadron
of nine ships. The letter embodying their demands was presented to a
senior bakufu official at Osaka three days later and gave a limit of
seven days for a reply.
The discussions that followed during the next two weeks are of
interest chiefly for the light they throw on developments in Japanese

45 The rivalry and political maneuvers of Parkes and Roches in Japan have long been a subject of
controversy, but they are not directly relevant to the theme of this chapter. The most recent and
detailed discussion can be found in Fox, Britain and Japan, chap. 7, and Medzini, French
Policy, chaps. 8-14. lshii, ZoteiMeijilshin, chaps. 5 and 6, also discusses this at length.
46 The French text of the memorandum is given in Beasley, Select Documents, pp. 293-6.

Cambridge Histories Online © Cambridge University Press, 2008

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