contributor
27,126
edits
Changes
no edit summary
In the 18th century, the shogunate encouraged the expansion of the domestic production of [[sugar]], [[ginseng]], and [[silk]], in an effort to use import substitution measures to stem the dangerous flow of silver out of the country. As a result, fewer (though sometimes larger) Chinese ships came to trade. In the latter portion of this century, from [[1764]] onwards, on average eleven Chinese ships called at Nagasaki each year. While they continued to bring in sugar, ginseng, and silk for sale, they also continued to bring in other luxury goods, such as tortoiseshell, sandalwood, ivory, and a wide variety of [[kanpo|medicinal]] products such as herbs and roots. [[Matsudaira Sadanobu]] expressed desires to more severely limit, or even eliminate entirely, Chinese trade at the port, emphasizing the value instead of encouraging the people of Nagasaki to pursue agriculture or industry, but knew it was not possible, as demand for medicinal goods was just too powerful. In [[1790]], he imposed restrictions, limiting the Chinese to only ten ships a year. Profits continued, however, unabated, and indeed soared, with the ''Nagasaki kaisho'' earning an unprecedented 2,742 ''kan'' in bullion imports via the supplemental trade in [[1801]].<ref>Hellyer, 109.</ref>
In the 18th century, the shogunate encouraged the expansion of the domestic production of [[sugar]], [[ginseng]], and [[silk]], in an effort to use import substitution measures to stem the dangerous flow of silver out of the country. As a result, fewer (though sometimes larger) Chinese ships came to trade. In the latter portion of this century, from [[1764]] onwards, on average eleven Chinese ships called at Nagasaki each year. While they continued to bring in sugar, ginseng, and silk for sale, they also continued to bring in other luxury goods, such as tortoiseshell, sandalwood, ivory, and a wide variety of [[kanpo|medicinal]] products such as herbs and roots. [[Matsudaira Sadanobu]] expressed desires to more severely limit, or even eliminate entirely, Chinese trade at the port, emphasizing the value instead of encouraging the people of Nagasaki to pursue agriculture or industry, but knew it was not possible, as demand for medicinal goods was just too powerful. In [[1790]], he imposed restrictions, limiting the Chinese to only ten ships a year. Profits continued, however, unabated, and indeed soared, with the ''Nagasaki kaisho'' earning an unprecedented 2,742 ''kan'' in bullion imports via the supplemental trade in [[1801]].<ref>Hellyer, 109.</ref>
Chinese trade at Nagasaki, at least within the "traditional" Edo period patterns, fell dramatically into decline in the late 1850s, in large part due to competition against Western traders and turmoil at home (especially related to the [[Taiping Rebellion]]). A set of three ships which sold goods at Nagasaki in [[1859]] but were then unable to return to China for a time were likely the last ones to deal directly with the shogunate's clearinghouse. After a few months of sitting in harbor, they resold at a loss the cargoes they had acquired in their initial exchanges. A group of Chinese merchants resident in the city formed a guild in [[1861]] in the hopes of working their way to dominance in the China-Japan trade in the port, but before long, most Chinese merchants simply took up working for, or working with, Western firms.<ref>Hellyer, 184.</ref>
{{stub}}
{{stub}}