Whether out of a sense of resignation at the unstoppable influence of the Western powers, or out of genuine excitement and interest in the Western world, he expressed in secret to [[Ernest Satow]] in [[1867]]/8, that he wished to abdicate his position as heir apparent, or as ''daimyô'', and to instead travel to England. | Whether out of a sense of resignation at the unstoppable influence of the Western powers, or out of genuine excitement and interest in the Western world, he expressed in secret to [[Ernest Satow]] in [[1867]]/8, that he wished to abdicate his position as heir apparent, or as ''daimyô'', and to instead travel to England. |