The Treaty of Amity and Commerce In the mid 19th century the Edo Shogunate was weakening. In 1854,
the United States made the
Japan-US Treaty of peace and Amity with it.
France and other powerful countries also followed that example. In 1858, at a time the
Treaty of Amity and Commerce (
Ansei Treaties) between
Japan and France was signed same as with the United States,
Great Britain,
Russia, and the
Netherlands. And diplomatic relations and trade between the two countries began. This treaty led the Shogunate to open several Japanese ports and offer the land to make French settlements.
Nagasaki was one of them.
Unequal treaty The treaty was unequal and unfavourable to the Japanese side in a number of respects, like extraterritorial jurisdiction, no tariff autonomy,
MFN treatment. Moreover, the elimination of these unequal clauses was not only negotiated with one country, but required the consent of all other countries that had accepted MFN treatment. Later on the Meiji Government had have to continue this unequal treaty too. Then the unequal treaties put the new government at a great disadvantage, especially in terms of the economy, and their revision was a major task for the Meiji Government.
French Catholic mission In 1838, the
Paris Foreign Missions Society was granted authority for the mission to Japan by The Vatican. Fathers Girard and Furet entered the Ryukyu Kingdom (Okinawa).
Bernard Petitjean, a French Catholic missionary, was ordered to Japan in 1860. He stayed in Ryukyu for one year and learned Japanese. He landed in
Yokohama in November 1862 and went to Nagasaki in 1863. His mission was to provide pastoral care for the French living in the settlement of Ōura. Later, Petitjean obtained permission under the Treaty of Commerce between Japan and France to build a church for the French living in the settlement on the hilltop overlooking Nagasaki's Nishizaka (the site of the
martyrdom of the 26 saints of Japan in 1597). Construction of the church and bishop's palace began in 1864.
Ōura Tenshudo The Ōura Tenshudo or
Oura Church opened on 19 February 1865. It was a rare Western-style building at the time, so it gained a reputation, and the Japanese living nearby called it the 'French temple' or 'Nanban-temple' and came to see it. Petitjean opened the church to the visiting Japanese and allowed them to visit freely. There was a reason why Petitjean opened the church, which was originally built for the French residents, to curious Japanese visitors and allowed them to see it. There was a slight hope that, as Nagasaki was the land of the Christian martyrs, there might still be believers somewhere, or that some of the Japanese who visited might be believers.
Encounter with Hidden Christians On April 12 (old calendar March 17) of 1865, some villagers of Urakami visited the church. One woman, whose name was "Yuri", age 52, came to close to Father Petitjean and said, "Our heart (faith) is same as yours" as well as "Where is the statue of Santa Maria?" The father was astonished. It was the first time of the emergence of "Hidden Christians" (Kakure Kirishitan) who came to the French Priest, Father Bernard Petitjean. They rejoiced at the image of the Virgin Mary and prayed. The priest was again surprised to hear that they observe 'Kanashimi-setu' (Lent) based on a liturgical calendar passed down orally. From then on, leaders of the congregation living not only in Urakami, but also in Sotome, Goto, Amakusa and Chikugo-Imamura visited Father Petitjean one after another and asked for his guidance. Father Petitjean instructed them in secret and they returned to their villages to spread his teachings. and others clearly expressed their Christian faith, but the perplexed Nagasaki magistrate returned them to the village. Later on receiving a report from the Nagasaki Magistrate, the Shogunate ordered secret detectives to investigate the congregation in Urakami, and at midnight on July 14 (old calendar: June 13), the secret gathering place was raided by the shogunate officials, and 68 members of the congregation, including Senemon Takagi, were captured at once. The congregation did not resist and those captured were subjected to severe torture. Later on the number increased to 83. After imprisonment and torture, all but Senemon took a vow to apostatise. The next day, upon hearing of the incident, the Prussian Minister and French Consul, as well as the Portuguese and American Ministers, immediately protested to the Nagasaki Magistrate, accusing him of an offence against humanity. September 21(old calendar: August 24),
Leon Roche, the French Minister who had lodged a formal protest, and Shogun
Yoshinobu Tokugawa met at
Osaka Castle, and they discussed the incident. And the Tokugawa Shogunate relented. == Meiji era ==