In Japan print of a Portuguese
Black Ship engaged in the
Nanban Trade. Rodrigues was born at
Sernancelhe in
Viseu,
Portugal, in 1561 at some point, Rodrigues joined his campaigns against other clans competing for control of
Kyushu. and converted to
Catholicism in 1578. In December 1580, and taught grammar while he studied
Latin and
theology under the Jesuits and
Japanese literature and
philosophy with others. He served as interpreter for
Alessandro Valignano during his visit and for Vice-Provincial
Gaspar Coelho (1581–1590). He began to preach in Japanese in 1588, despite still being unordained. During Valignano's visit to
Toyotomi Hideyoshi in July 1590, Rodrigues so impressed Toyotomi that the
regent hired him for a time as his personal interpreter. Following
memorials by the converts
Paul Xu and Leo Li in 1629, Rodrigues—now 68—served as the interpreter for a second expedition While there in early 1631, Sun and Rodrigues were visited by
Jeong Duwon, a
Korean mandarin traveling with a diplomatic mission from
Seoul to Beijing. Rodrigues introduced him to the Jesuits' work on
astronomy and
other sciences and made a personal gift of his
telescope, which Jeong highly praised for
its use in warfare. He also provided Jeong with a small
fieldgun, a treatise on cannon and their use, and a book on European customs and manners. Jeong also had Rodrigues speak with his assistants
Yi Yeonghu (, ) and Colonel
Jeong Hyogil (, ) in greater detail, Yi about geography and Col. Jeong about
Western firearms and cannon. A record survives of his conversation with Yi, who was most curious about whether or not China—whose native name
Zhōngguó () literally means "The Central Realm"—did in fact occupy the middle of the earth. Rodrigues replied that, since the earth was a sphere, every country could truthfully claim their land as its center. On 19 January 1632, Governor Sun's subordinates
Kong Youde and
Geng Zhongming mutinied in Wuqiao. Rather than immediately attacking them, Sun attempted to negotiate a peaceful resolution of their differences. This proved futile and, on 11 February, their forces besieged Dengzhou. When the city fell a little over a week later, Sun was spared by Kong and Geng for his leniency but, for the same reason, he was then arrested, court-martialed, and executed by the Ming government. Captain Teixeira and 11 other Portuguese were killed in battle, 15 escaped only with serious injury, and Rodrigues himself survived by jumping from the high city wall into the sea. He then made his way back to Beijing, where he received an imperial decree praising his services. Rodrigues returned to Macao in 1633 and died there at some point before a letter to
Rome mentioning his death, dated 20 March 1634.
Francesco Sambiasi's 1639
memorial to the throne responsible for the first
Catholic graveyard at Macao's
São Paulo church mentions Rodrigues's remains prominently, although after the plot was approved for the church's use Rodrigues's body was instead interred within the church itself in front of its StMichael altar. ==Works==