Category: History

History, Samurai, Swords, Suicide (Seppuku)

Samurai, Swords, and Suicide

 It was not uncommon for samurai to commit ritual suicide called seppuku “belly slitting”. Harakiri is another term, often mispronounced as “Hairy Carry”.  It was a death ritual that samurai employed to show their sincere regret for having failed in their obligations.  Slitting one’s own throat was another method.

One of the most compelling accounts in my novel, The Shogun’s Gold-Solving a Historical Mystery describes the true story of a horrific mass suicide of nineteen teenage samurai. The incident is relatively unknown outside of Japan, but it plays an important part in my novel.   It occurred at the end of a short civil war between those who supported the Shogun and the Imperial Army which sought to“restore”  the Japanese emperor.

In 1868, the northern domain of Aizu was besieged by the Imperial Army which surrounded and bombarded Tsuruga Castle which was located in the center of the Aizu’s capital. It was thought to be impregnable, but it was no match for the modern English cannonry employed by the Imperial Army.  While the castle was being bombarded, another battle was taking place miles away.

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A memorial depicting one of the boys as he gazes at Tsuruga Castle thinking that it had fallen.

A contingent of teenage samurai, part of the Byakkotai, or “White Tiger Force”  was sent to take part in the battle, but the teenagers became lost. The leader decided to return to the castle to aid in its defense, and the small group  stopped on a hillside clearing where, in the distance, they saw the castle town enveloped in smoke and flame. They assumed that they were too late to come to the capital’s defense and they all decided to commit suicide to atone for their perceived failure in defending Aizu.

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This tragedy is graphically described in The Shogun’s Gold  when the hero of my novel stumbles upon the bodies of nineteen boys whose ages ranged from 16 to 17.  Here is a modern woodblock print depicting the incident.

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The simple grave stones of the teenage warriors.

In present day Japan, suicides average 70 per day and teenage suicides are notably high.  Failing exams in school is one of the main reasons why Japanese youth take their own lives.

Another, more famous case of mass suicide has been immortalized in the play, the Story of the Forty-seven Samurai.  However, from my point of view, the tragedy of the Byakkotai is more compelling because those who died by their own hands were so young.

In 1984, NHK, the national TV network broadcast a serial depicting the end of the civil war in Japan.  You may find it on YouTube.

When Japan joined Nazi Germany  and Italy before the outbreak of WWII, Mussolini sent his foreign minister (his son-in-law) to Japan to donate part of an ancient Roman column to memorialize the Byakkotai sacrifice.  Hitler sent a large, stone tablet featuring a large swastika that was chiseled off after the war.

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This is a photo I took of the Roman column.  A Japanese couple is seen standing below it having their picture taken.
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Tsurga Castle as is is today
History

Courage and Human Kindness: The story of John Manjiro

An excerpt from the draft of my novel The Shogun’s Gold-Solving a Historical Mysery:

“Gentlemen, I am Major Benjamin Butler, retired. I have come to your estimable country well recommended by Mr. John Manjiro.”

Just who was the man named Manjiro? He was a historical figure born in Japan in 1827. “Commoners” did not have family names. At the age of 14 and desperately poor, he set out with this uncle and friends to fish off the coast of Shikoku Island.  A violent storm swept them away, and they ended up shipwrecked  on the deserted island of Torishima, about  700 miles from their home.

They were stranded there for several months and were at the point of starvation when an American whaling ship stopped and rescued them.  The kindly captain, William Whi08d968bc9ba3d145179c6a3912df85e3tfield, clothed and fed the ragged shipwrecked fishermen and took a shine to Manjiro, offering him the chance to return to the U.S. with him.  To this, John Manjiro, as Whitfield re-named him, readily agreed. When he landed in Fairhaven, Massachusetts in 1843, Captain Whitfield saw to it that John learned English at the local public school.

Manjiro eventually entered the Bartlett School in Fairhaven where he learned navigation and advanced mathematics.  He signed on to a whaling ship and was promoted to harpooner.  After a lengthy voyage, he returned to Fairhaven… but not for long.  With the $350 he had earned, he sailed to San Francisco and then travelled to the Sierras where he panned for gold and came back with $600, about $30,000 in today’s money.

Homesick, he made up his mind to return to Japan. Doing so was a dangerous proposition because the shogun’s government  policy of national isolation  made it a capital offense to have contact with foreigners.  Nevertheless, John Manjiro booked passage on a ship that took him and several of his former shipwrecked mates to Okinawa where he was, for all intents and purposes, put under hous89532715cec6eb8f634cb1defa9b3e94e arrest.

After months of interrogation, he was allowed to return to his home where he met his widowed mother after almost 12 years. In 1853,  the Shogun’s government summoned him to Edo (modern day Tokyo) where he advised the government on matters concerning  the treaty demands being made by Commodore Mathew Calbraith Perry who had arrived with a flotilla of warships.  For his services, Manjiro  was elevated to the rank of samurai.   He chose Nakahama as his surname after the town where he had been born.

In the ensuing years Nakahama Manjiro helped establish the whaling industry in Japan, translated a book on navigation, and acted as an official interpreter when the first Japanese delegation visited the U.S.  But, he never forgot the kindness of Captain William Whitfield and in 1870, when he landed in New York with a government delegation, he travelled to New Bedford, Massachusetts to visit his old friend and benefactor.  A photograph of the two men was recently discovered at the New Bedford library and is pictured here with the library’s permission.

Returning to Japan, he became English professor at the institution which would eventually become Tokyo University.  He died in 1898 after a long illness.

Several years ago, I made trips to imanaga and meJapan to conduct research for my novel “The Shogun’s Gold-Solving a Historical Mystery.”  During one stay, I had the pleasure meeting and interviewing Dr. Issei Imanaga, a descendant of Manjiro. He and his wife Yuko provided me with much valuable information for my novel. Since then, we have become close friends.

In 2009, a Japanese philanthropist bought Captain Whitfield’s home in Fairhaven and turned it into a museum which is now operated by The Whitfield-Manjiro Friendship Society.   Every other year in October, a festival honoring Whitfield and Manjiro is held in Fairhaven.  The festivals are now on hold until the Covid pandemic runs its course. Check the following website from time to time to find out about the timing of the next festival:

http://www.whitfield-manjiro.org/THE_MANJIRO_STORY.html

 A few years ago, a bi-lingual children’s book was offered: “Courage & Effort of John Manjiro.”(See below. It can easily be read by enlarging it.)  It is richly illustrated. Sadly, I can no longer find where it can be purchased.

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Note: The photos of Manjiro and Whitfield are courtesy of the Whitfield-Manjiro Friendship Society. Th. Two pages from  “Courage & Effort of John Manjiro” are printed here with permission from the author.