Read the letters that Ii Naosuke and Tokugawa Nariaki produced for the Bakufu’s consideration, and write a paper of approximately 500 words that compares and contrasts the advice they give.
In 1853 the Tokugawa Shogunate that ruled Japan was presented with a distressing ultimatum. American Commodore Matthew Perry arrived in Edo bay with a fleet of warships and demanded that the country be opened to Americans for rescue, refueling, provisions and, eventually, trade. The Shogun’s bureaucratic government, known as the Bakufu, had until that point […]