Changes

==In Japan==

==In Japan==

Prior to Satsuma getting involved in the sugar industry, mainland Japan obtained brown, white, and rock sugar chiefly from [[Chinese in Nagasaki|Chinese]] and [[VOC|Dutch]] merchants in [[Nagasaki]]. Sugar continued to come in through these sources even later into the Edo period, with Dutch merchants selling Javanese sugar and Chinese merchants selling Taiwanese sugar following the [[Qing Dynasty]] quelling of the last of the [[Ming loyalists]] on [[Taiwan]] in [[1683]]. Sugar also began to be grown and refined in small quantities in [[Owari han|Owari]], [[Wakayama han|Wakayama]], and several [[han|domains]] in [[Chugoku|western Honshû]] and [[Shikoku]] after the shogun obtained information about sugar cane cultivation from Satsuma and planted a test crop at his personal villa. In the early 19th century, [[Tosa han]] began to produce so much sugar, in fact, that Satsuma filed a formal suit with the shogunate, asking that they do something to limit Tosa's sugar production, as it represented unfair competition.<ref>[[Luke Roberts]], ''Mercantilism in a Japanese Domain: The Merchant Origins of Economic Nationalism in 18th-Century Tosa'', Cambridge University Press (1998), 190.</ref> By 1800 or so, consumption of domestic sugar exceeded that of imported sugar.

Prior to Satsuma getting involved in the sugar industry, mainland Japan obtained brown, white, and rock sugar chiefly from [[Chinese in Nagasaki|Chinese]] and [[VOC|Dutch]] merchants in [[Nagasaki]]. Sugar continued to come in through these sources even later into the Edo period, with Dutch merchants selling Javanese sugar and Chinese merchants selling Taiwanese sugar following the [[Qing Dynasty]] quelling of the last of the [[Ming loyalists]] on [[Taiwan]] in [[1683]].  

 

Sugar also began to be grown and refined in small quantities in [[Owari han|Owari]], [[Wakayama han|Wakayama]], and several [[han|domains]] in [[Chugoku|western Honshû]] and [[Shikoku]] after Shogun [[Tokugawa Yoshimune]] obtained information about sugar cane cultivation from Satsuma and planted a test crop at his personal villa. This came as part of a greater effort on the part of the shogunate to encourage the cultivation of cash crops which might be used to help reduce the amount of [[silver]] and [[copper]] flowing out of the country. These programs were successful to a point, introducing a variety of cash crops to a number of regions across the archipelago, some of which had profoundly positive impacts upon the local or [[han|domain]] economies; it also spurred considerable growth of scholarly activity in botanical categorization and pharmocopoeia. It did not, however, single-handedly solve the country's silver problem.<ref>[[Marius Jansen]], ''China in the Tokugawa World'', Harvard University Press (1992), 35-37.</ref> In the early 19th century, [[Tosa han]] began to produce so much sugar, in fact, that Satsuma filed a formal suit with the shogunate, asking that they do something to limit Tosa's sugar production, as it represented unfair competition.<ref>[[Luke Roberts]], ''Mercantilism in a Japanese Domain: The Merchant Origins of Economic Nationalism in 18th-Century Tosa'', Cambridge University Press (1998), 190.</ref> By 1800 or so, consumption of domestic sugar exceeded that of imported sugar.

This domestic sugar included, however, sugar grown on the [[Amami Islands]], a set of islands seized from the Ryûkyû Kingdom and annexed to Satsuma han in [[Invasion of Ryukyu|1609]]. In a series of policies that has been compared to "a structure of colonial extraction,"<ref name=hellyer95>Hellyer, 95.</ref> Satsuma encouraged the islanders of [[Amami Oshima|Amami Ôshima]], [[Tokunoshima]], and [[Kikaigashima]] to dedicate much of their efforts to the cultivation and refining of sugar, rather than subsistence farming or other diversified activities. This paralleled the exploitative practices of sugar plantations elsewhere in the world, such as in the Caribbean and [[Japanese immigration to Hawaii|Hawaii]], in various respects, with one key difference (among others) being that Satsuma did not employ slaves or indentured labor,<ref>Hellyer, 96.</ref> but allowed the islanders to retain their traditional lands, and to a large extent, their local social hierarchies, elite political structures, and a small degree of political autonomy.

This domestic sugar included, however, sugar grown on the [[Amami Islands]], a set of islands seized from the Ryûkyû Kingdom and annexed to Satsuma han in [[Invasion of Ryukyu|1609]]. In a series of policies that has been compared to "a structure of colonial extraction,"<ref name=hellyer95>Hellyer, 95.</ref> Satsuma encouraged the islanders of [[Amami Oshima|Amami Ôshima]], [[Tokunoshima]], and [[Kikaigashima]] to dedicate much of their efforts to the cultivation and refining of sugar, rather than subsistence farming or other diversified activities. This paralleled the exploitative practices of sugar plantations elsewhere in the world, such as in the Caribbean and [[Japanese immigration to Hawaii|Hawaii]], in various respects, with one key difference (among others) being that Satsuma did not employ slaves or indentured labor,<ref>Hellyer, 96.</ref> but allowed the islanders to retain their traditional lands, and to a large extent, their local social hierarchies, elite political structures, and a small degree of political autonomy.

==In Ryûkyû==

==In Ryûkyû==

In the 1620s, a pair of young Ryukyuan aristocrats introduced to the kingdom advanced sugar processing techniques which they had studied in China; sugar plantations in the islands quickly began to take off, and Ryukyuan sugar, imported via Satsuma, became a major source of the product. The kingdom began in [[1666]] to pay one-third of its annual tribute payments to Satsuma in sugar. Sugar was not only grown in the Ryûkyûs, but was also obtained by Ryukyuan trading ships in Southeast Asia.  

 

In [[1623]], a pair of young Ryukyuan aristocrats sent from the royal court at [[Shuri]] to China by [[Gima Shinjo|Gima Shinjô]] introduced advanced sugar processing techniques to the kingdom; sugar plantations in the islands quickly began to take off, and Ryukyuan sugar, imported via Satsuma, became a major source of the product. The kingdom began in [[1666]] to pay one-third of its annual tribute payments to Satsuma in sugar. Three years later, the royal court claimed a monopoly on the sugar trade, and began being able to use sugar as collateral for loans from Satsuma.<ref>Akamine Mamoru, Lina Terrell (trans.), Robert Huey (ed.), ''The Ryukyu Kingdom: Cornerstone of East Asia'', University of Hawaii Press (2017), 74-75.</ref> Sugar was not only grown in the Ryûkyûs, but was also obtained by Ryukyuan trading ships in Southeast Asia. The cane was processed using a ''sata-guruma'', a large grinding device pulled by a horse or [[water buffalo]]; the resulting cane juice was then boiled at around 120 degrees Celcius for about five hours, then laid out in a pan to cool, to produce brown sugar (''kurozato'', ''kokutô'').<ref>Explanatory plaques, "sataaguruma," Ryûkyûmura.[https://www.flickr.com/photos/toranosuke/15455369059/in/dateposted-public/]</ref> The original mechanism introduced in the 1620s used two rollers; three rollers came to be used in [[1671]]. The wooden sugar mills were replaced with stone ones beginning in [[1831]], and iron ones from [[1882]]. The first Western-style sugar factory equipment was installed in Okinawa in [[1908]], but traditional mills remained in use well into the post-war period.<ref>Explanatory plaque, ''Sata-guruma'', Okinawa Furusato Mura, at Okinawa Expo Park.</ref>

The Ryûkyû Kingdom's government claimed a royal monopoly on sales of sugar and [[turmeric]] (''ukon'') within the kingdom in [[1647]], helping the kingdom afford its repayments on loans from [[Satsuma han]]. Fifty years later, the kingdom placed restrictions on the planting of these two crops; these restrictions wouldn't be lifted until [[1888]].

The Ryûkyû Kingdom's government claimed a royal monopoly on sales of sugar and [[turmeric]] (''ukon'') within the kingdom in [[1647]], helping the kingdom afford its repayments on loans from [[Satsuma han]]. Fifty years later, the kingdom placed restrictions on the planting of these two crops; these restrictions wouldn't be lifted until [[1888]]. Buying, selling, shipping, and storage of sugar under the governmental monopoly was managed by an office called the ''satôza'' (Sugar Guild). It was headed by two ''satôza ôyako'' (one selected from the [[Shuri]] scholar-aristocracy and one from that of [[Naha]]), under the authority of a single ''satôza bugyô'' (Sugar Guild Magistrate).<ref>''Naha shizoku no isshô'' 那覇士族の一生 (Naha: Naha City Museum of History, 2010), 14.</ref>

As Satsuma's exploitation of Amami sugar became more systematized and successful, the domain imposed restrictions on the export of Ryukyuan sugar from the kingdom, obliging Ryûkyû to produce sugar only for domestic consumption (within the kingdom), and levying a tax on any additional sugar produced. Such policies, aimed at preventing Ryukyuan sugar from competing with Amami sugar at the Osaka markets, were reaffirmed in [[1804]]. However, Ryûkyû continued to export sugar to Satsuma, often arriving earlier in the season than shipments of Amami sugar, and thus arriving earlier at Osaka as well, and commanding higher prices. Seeing the value of this revenue, and the vital role played by sugar in the kingdom's economy, Satsuma officials found themselves reluctant to impose tighter restrictions; in [[1831]], they even allowed Ryûkyû to begin paying a portion of its tribute to Satsuma in the form of sugar, rather than rice.<ref name=hellyer128/>

As Satsuma's exploitation of Amami sugar became more systematized and successful, the domain imposed restrictions on the export of Ryukyuan sugar from the kingdom, obliging Ryûkyû to produce sugar only for domestic consumption (within the kingdom), and levying a tax on any additional sugar produced. Such policies, aimed at preventing Ryukyuan sugar from competing with Amami sugar at the Osaka markets, were reaffirmed in [[1804]]. However, Ryûkyû continued to export sugar to Satsuma, often arriving earlier in the season than shipments of Amami sugar, and thus arriving earlier at Osaka as well, and commanding higher prices. Seeing the value of this revenue, and the vital role played by sugar in the kingdom's economy, Satsuma officials found themselves reluctant to impose tighter restrictions; in [[1831]], they even allowed Ryûkyû to begin paying a portion of its tribute to Satsuma in the form of sugar, rather than rice.<ref name=hellyer128/>