James Baquet

The Anglo-Satsuma War is one of those situations in which a “mountain was made out of a mole hill” — that is, a small offense was made the excuse for an all-out war.

It began with the Namamugi Incident on Sept. 14, 1862, when a British merchant named Charles Lennox Richardson was traveling along a highway from Tokyo (then Edo) to Kyoto.

Richardson and his three British companions were on an excursion to visit a temple. Traveling north, they encountered the south-bound retinue of Shimazu Hisamitsu, a samurai of Satsuma, on the southern island of Kyushu.

Unaware of Japanese protocols, the British party failed to dismount as they approached the Japanese procession. Instead, they were blocking the way, and a Japanese bodyguard mortally wounded Richardson with a sword. Two of the three others were also wounded severely, but rode away rapidly.

When Richardson fell from his horse, the Japanese leader instructed his men to deliver the coup de grace. An autopsy showed 10 wounds, any one of which would have been fatal.

The event, sometimes called the Richardson Affair, sparked outrage in the European expat community of Yokohama. But the Japanese claimed that the disrespect shown by Richardson justified his killing, citing a law allowing a samurai to kill any lower-class person who showed disrespect.

Richardson had previously whipped Chinese people while riding in China; his uncle called him “reckless and stubborn,” and the British envoy to China called him “an arrogant adventurer.”

Nevertheless, the British demanded compensation. Although the Edo government made a payment, the government of Satsuma, Shimazu’s domain, refused. In mid-1863, Royal Navy ships approached the city of Kagoshima in Satsuma, and the Japanese fired on them. The British bombarded the city for two days, but were unable to make headway, and eventually retreated.

Five Japanese died, and 500 houses and three ships were destroyed. Eleven British lives were lost, including the captain and the commander of the British flagship. The Japanese eventually met the demand of the British government for compensation.

Vocabulary:

Which word above means:

1. small animal that lives in the earth

2. proper procedures

3. formal group of attendants on an important person

4. killing stroke

5. progress

6. examination of a body after death

7. get off one’s horse

8. member of the Japanese warrior class

9. trip, often for pleasure

10. careless, unconcerned with consequences