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Nineteen young men from [[Satsuma han]] were among the first Japanese to study overseas in the West, departing Japan in [[1865]], a year before the [[Tokugawa shogunate]] lifted bans on overseas travel. A number of these students went on to become prominent figures in the [[Meiji government]], or in [[Meiji period]] society otherwise.
Nineteen young men from [[Satsuma han]] were among the first Japanese to study overseas in the West, departing Japan in [[1865]], a year before the [[Tokugawa shogunate]] lifted bans on overseas travel. A number of these students went on to become prominent figures in the [[Meiji government]], or in [[Meiji period]] society otherwise.
The students, aided by the Scotsman [[Thomas Glover]], claimed to be merely traveling to the [[Koshiki Islands]] just off the coast of Kyushu, when they departed from Hashima (an area in Kushikino city, on the Kyushu mainland<!--串木野 羽島-->). In fact, they left Japan entirely, arriving in Singapore twenty days later; 46 days after that, they arrived in London. All adopted new names while overseas, but most are known today by their "real" names.
The students, aided by the Scotsman [[Thomas Glover]], claimed to be merely traveling to the [[Koshiki Islands]] just off the coast of Kyushu, when they departed from Hashima (an area in Kushikino city, on the Kyushu mainland<!--串木野 羽島-->). In fact, they left Japan entirely, arriving in Singapore twenty days later; 46 days after that, they arrived in London. All adopted new names while overseas, but most are known today by their "real" names. While in London, they studied at University College London (UCL) under chemistry professor Alexander Williamson, as the [[Choshu Five|Chôshû Five]] had before them, beginning in [[1863]]. Williamson also arranged for the Satsuma students to visit industrial cities in the UK, to study railroad engineering, shipbuilding, surveying, and other industrial and technical fields.<ref>Plaques on-site at University College London.[https://www.flickr.com/photos/toranosuke/25574315256/sizes/k/]</ref>
The mission was led by 34-year-old [[Niiro Hisanobu]] and 31-year-old [[Godai Tomoatsu]], and included a set of three brothers: 28-year-old [[Machida Hisanari]], 19-year-old [[Machida Sanetsumi]], and 15-year-old [[Machida Seijiro|Machida Seijirô]].
The students returned to Japan with examples of numerous new technologies, including spinning machines, and also made arrangements for Satsuma to show a pavilion, separate from that of the shogunate, at the [[1867 Paris World's Fair]]. Members of the mission also arranged to gain Britain's support for Satsuma in the upcoming [[Meiji Restoration|rebellion against the shogunate]].
The students returned to Japan with examples of numerous new technologies, including spinning machines, and also made arrangements for Satsuma to show a pavilion, separate from that of the shogunate, at the [[1867 Paris World's Fair]]. Members of the mission also arranged to gain Britain's support for Satsuma in the upcoming [[Meiji Restoration|rebellion against the shogunate]].
Several members of the mission, including [[Nakamura Hironari]], [[Samejima Hisanobu]], and [[Yoshida Kiyonari]], later went on to serve as Japanese ambassadors to Western countries, while others, including [[Mori Arinori]] and [[Matsuki Koan|Terashima Munenori]] became top-ranking government ministers. A number of the students went on to study at Rutgers University in New Jersey, or at other institutions in the United States. [[Hatakeyama Yoshinari]] and Machida Hisanari became the first heads of the institutions that would later develop into the [[University of Tokyo]] and [[Tokyo National Museum]], respectively.
==Members of the Mission==
==Members of the Mission==
(listed along with age at the time of the mission, and notes)
*[[Niiro Hisanobu]] (34) - leader of the mission
*[[Niiro Hisanobu]] (34) - leader of the mission
*[[Godai Tomoatsu]]
*[[Godai Tomoatsu]] (31)
*[[Hatakeyama Yoshinari]] - first president of [[University of Tokyo]]
*[[Hatakeyama Yoshinari]] (23) - first president of [[University of Tokyo]]
*[[Machida Hisanari]] - first director of [[Tokyo National Museum]]
*[[Hori Takayuki]] - from [[Nagasaki]]
*[[Matsuki Koan|Matsuki Kôan]]
*[[Ichiki Kazuhiko]] (24) - first Japanese to graduate from Annapolis
*[[Mori Arinori]] - first [[Ministry of Education|Minister of Education]]
*[[Machida Hisanari]] (28) - first director of [[Tokyo National Museum]]
*[[Machida Sanetsumi]] (19)
*[[Machida Seijiro|Machida Seijirô]] (15)
*[[Matsuki Koan|Matsuki Kôan]] (34)(aka Terashima Munenori)
*[[Mori Arinori]] (19) - first [[Ministry of Education|Minister of Education]]
*[[Murahashi Naoe]] (23)
*[[Nagasawa Kanae]] (13) - settled in US, started a vineyard
*[[Nagasawa Kanae]] (13) - settled in US, started a vineyard
*[[Nagoe Tokinari]] (21)
*[[Nakamura Hironari]] (25) - ambassador to the Netherlands, Portugal, and Denmark
*[[Samejima Hisanobu]] (21) - ambassador to France
*[[Takami Yaichi]] (31) - from [[Tosa han]]
*[[Tanaka Moriaki]] (23)
*[[Togo Ainoshin|Tôgô Ainoshin]] (23)
*[[Yoshida Kiyonari]] (21) - ambassador to the United States
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==References==
==References==
*Plaque at Kagoshima-Chûô train station, Kagoshima City.
*Plaque at Kagoshima-Chûô train station, Kagoshima City.[https://www.flickr.com/photos/toranosuke/21519295436/sizes/o/]
<references/>
[[Category:Bakumatsu]]
[[Category:Bakumatsu]]
[[Category:Groups]]
[[Category:Groups]]
