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Each mission was led by a civil official, usually of the third rank (in the Korean court hierarchy), and consisted of roughly 350-500 Koreans,<ref>The smallest Korea mission consisted of roughly 300 people. Lillehoj. p102.; Robert Hellyer, ''Defining Engagement'', Harvard University Press (2009), 44.</ref> and roughly 1500 Japanese escorts from [[Tsushima han]], the [[han|domain]] which managed Japan-Korea relations in this period. From [[1655]] onwards, all of the missions were sent, nominally, to congratulate a new shogun on his succession; unlike was the case with the Ryûkyû Kingdom, Korea did not send missions upon the succession of their own kings in order to request any sort of ritual acknowledgement or recognition of their new king.
Each mission was led by a civil official, usually of the third rank (in the Korean court hierarchy), and consisted of roughly 350-500 Koreans,<ref>The smallest Korea mission consisted of roughly 300 people. Lillehoj. p102.; Robert Hellyer, ''Defining Engagement'', Harvard University Press (2009), 44.</ref> and roughly 1500 Japanese escorts from [[Tsushima han]], the [[han|domain]] which managed Japan-Korea relations in this period. From [[1655]] onwards, all of the missions were sent, nominally, to congratulate a new shogun on his succession; unlike was the case with the Ryûkyû Kingdom, Korea did not send missions upon the succession of their own kings in order to request any sort of ritual acknowledgement or recognition of their new king.
All but the last mission traveled to Edo, going via Tsushima, through the [[Inland Sea]] to [[Osaka]], and then overland from there; the 1811 mission only journeyed as far as Tsushima. The maritime journey through the Inland Sea was accomplished aboard a fleet of vessels, numbering as many as one hundred according to one 1821 painting; for at least a portion of this journey, the fleet was preceded by a ship flying the banners of the [[Murakami clan (Chugoku)|Murakami clan]], who in the [[Sengoku period]] had been the dominant power in these waters. The three lead Korean ambassadors each rode in separate thirty-meter-long vessels with red and gold banners, while smaller ships carried other members of the mission and their luggage.<ref>Martin Dusinberre, ''Hard Times in the Hometown: A History of Community Survival in Modern Japan'', University of Hawaii Press (2012), 23-24.</ref>
All but the last mission traveled to Edo, going via Tsushima, through the [[Inland Sea]] to [[Osaka]], and then overland from there; the 1811 mission only journeyed as far as Tsushima.
The journey from Tsushima to "mainland" Japan went via [[Ainoshima]], a small island in the [[Genkai Sea]], just north of the dual ports of [[Fukuoka]] & [[Hakata]]. More than a year in advance, [[Fukuoka han]] authorities funded and oversaw the construction of a new reception hall on the island. Villagers' homes, among other buildings, were used to house the other 350-500 Koreans, plus the lord of Tsushima and his men. The chief Buddhist temple on the island would be renovated, to serve as lodging for Fukuoka domain officials acting as hosts. Repairs were also made to harbors on the island, and at the port of Shingû; all of these efforts involved considerable corvée labor. In [[1748]], Fukuoka han deployed 443 small boats with 1,625 crew members plus another 1,174 corvée boatmen from across a number of coastal villages, to help provide transport for Fukuoka officials and supplies to Ainoshima, to mark shallows and help ensure a safe route for the Korean & Tsushima ships, and to provide enough fresh seafood to feed roughly 1,000 people (Koreans plus samurai).<ref>Arne Kalland, ''Fishing Villages in Tokugawa Japan'', University of Hawaii Press (1995), 219-220.</ref>
After arriving in Fukuoka, the embassies made their way east around Kyushu, through the straits at Shimonoseki, into the Inland Sea. The maritime journey through the Inland Sea was accomplished aboard a fleet of vessels, numbering as many as one hundred according to one 1821 painting; for at least a portion of this journey, the fleet was preceded by a ship flying the banners of the [[Murakami clan (Chugoku)|Murakami clan]], who in the [[Sengoku period]] had been the dominant power in these waters. The three lead Korean ambassadors each rode in separate thirty-meter-long vessels with red and gold banners, while smaller ships carried other members of the mission and their luggage.<ref>Martin Dusinberre, ''Hard Times in the Hometown: A History of Community Survival in Modern Japan'', University of Hawaii Press (2012), 23-24.</ref>
At the port of [[Kaminoseki]], near the easternmost reaches of [[Choshu han|Chôshû han]], which might serve as a representative case, most of the houses along the main street, as well as a number of houses along the main street of the neighboring port of Murotsu, were made to house Tsushima or Chôshû officials accompanying the Korean missions.<ref>In 1764, for example, 36 out of the 43 homes along the main street in Kaminoseki each housed at least one official, with some of them housing as many as four or five. Dusinberre, 24-25.</ref>
At the port of [[Kaminoseki]], near the easternmost reaches of [[Choshu han|Chôshû han]], which might serve as a representative case, most of the houses along the main street, as well as a number of houses along the main street of the neighboring port of Murotsu, were made to house Tsushima or Chôshû officials accompanying the Korean missions.<ref>In 1764, for example, 36 out of the 43 homes along the main street in Kaminoseki each housed at least one official, with some of them housing as many as four or five. Dusinberre, 24-25.</ref>
