Jump to content

Italy–Japan relations: Difference between revisions

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous editNext edit →
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
integrated translation from Italian original
update and source
Line 15: Line 15:
Italy has an embassy in [[Tokyo]] and Japan has an embassy in [[Rome]].
Italy has an embassy in [[Tokyo]] and Japan has an embassy in [[Rome]].


== Early relations from the 13th Century ==
== First contacts ==
Although relations between Japan and Italy formally began with the signing of the first treaty of friendship in 1866, the first contacts between the two nations can be traced back to the 13th century, when [[Marco Polo]] learned of the existence of Japan, which he called Cipango (or Zipangu).<ref>{{Cite web|title=“Japan, the Land of Gold.” How True Is the Old Legend? : NIPPONIA No. 45|url=https://web-japan.org/nipponia/nipponia45/en/feature/feature01.html|access-date=2021-09-21|website=web-japan.org}}</ref> Although he never set foot on Japanese soil, the Venetian navigator described the Japanese country as a large independent island full of riches.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Hoffman|first=Michael|date=2008-07-27|title=Cipangu's landlocked isles|url=https://www.japantimes.co.jp/life/2008/07/27/general/cipangus-landlocked-isles/|access-date=2021-09-23|website=The Japan Times|language=en-US}}</ref>
Although relations between Japan and Italy formally began with the signing of the first treaty of friendship in 1866, the first contacts between the two nations can be traced back to the 13th century, when [[Marco Polo]] (1254-1324) learned of the existence of Japan, which he called [[Names of Japan|Cipango]] (or Zipangu).<ref>{{Cite web|title=“Japan, the Land of Gold.” How True Is the Old Legend? : NIPPONIA No. 45|url=https://web-japan.org/nipponia/nipponia45/en/feature/feature01.html|access-date=2021-09-21|website=web-japan.org}}</ref> Although he never set foot on Japanese soil, the Venetian navigator described the Japanese country as a large independent island full of riches.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Hoffman|first=Michael|date=2008-07-27|title=Cipangu's landlocked isles|url=https://www.japantimes.co.jp/life/2008/07/27/general/cipangus-landlocked-isles/|access-date=2021-09-23|website=The Japan Times|language=en-US}}</ref> He is credited as being the first person to introduce the "island country" into the European imagination.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Hoffman|first=Michael|date=2015-10-10|title=It's a small world, with no respect for islands|url=https://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2015/10/10/national/media-national/small-world-no-respect-islands/|access-date=2021-09-24|website=The Japan Times|language=en-US}}</ref>


Japan remained relatively isolated and therefore immune to Western influence at least until 1543, when a Portuguese ship containing Portuguese and Italian Jesuits was blown off course and landed in the Asian country.<ref>{{Cite web|title=V&A · Japan's encounter with Europe, 1573 – 1853|url=https://www.vam.ac.uk/articles/japans-encounter-with-europe-1573-1853|access-date=2021-09-23|website=Victoria and Albert Museum|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Ruiz-de-Medina|first=Father Juan G.|title=Cultural Interactions in the Orient 30 years before Matteo Ricci.|publisher=Catholic Uni. of Portugal, 1|year=1993}}</ref> The Japanese [[Roman Catholic]] [[Christians|Christian]] ''[[daimyō]]s'' dispatched the [[Tenshō embassy]] to [[Pope Gregory XIII]]. This was the first Japanese mission in a foreign land on the initiative of the missionary [[Alessandro Valignano]] and the Christian daimyō [[Ōtomo Sōrin]], [[Ōmura Sumitada]] and [[Arima Harunobu]]. The delegation consisted of four young dignitaries: Itō Mancio, Giuliano Nakaura, Martino Hara and Michele Chijiwa, joined by the Jesuit Diogo de Mesquita, who acted as their interpreter.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Benzoni|first=Maria Matilde|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/809762398|title=Americhe e modernità : un itinerario fra storia e storiografia dal 1492 ad oggi|date=2012|publisher=FrancoAngeli|isbn=978-88-204-0408-6|location=Milano, Italy|pages=133|oclc=809762398}}</ref>
Japan remained relatively isolated and therefore immune to Western influence at least until 1543, when a Portuguese ship containing Portuguese and Italian Jesuits was blown off course and landed in the Asian country.<ref>{{Cite web|title=V&A · Japan's encounter with Europe, 1573 – 1853|url=https://www.vam.ac.uk/articles/japans-encounter-with-europe-1573-1853|access-date=2021-09-23|website=Victoria and Albert Museum|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Ruiz-de-Medina|first=Father Juan G.|title=Cultural Interactions in the Orient 30 years before Matteo Ricci.|publisher=Catholic Uni. of Portugal, 1|year=1993}}</ref> The Japanese [[Roman Catholic]] [[Christians|Christian]] ''[[daimyō]]s'' dispatched the [[Tenshō embassy]] to [[Pope Gregory XIII]]. This was the first Japanese mission in a foreign land on the initiative of the missionary [[Alessandro Valignano]] and the Christian daimyō [[Ōtomo Sōrin]], [[Ōmura Sumitada]] and [[Arima Harunobu]]. The delegation consisted of four young dignitaries: Itō Mancio, Giuliano Nakaura, Martino Hara and Michele Chijiwa, joined by the Jesuit Diogo de Mesquita, who acted as their interpreter.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Benzoni|first=Maria Matilde|url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/809762398|title=Americhe e modernità : un itinerario fra storia e storiografia dal 1492 ad oggi|date=2012|publisher=FrancoAngeli|isbn=978-88-204-0408-6|location=Milano, Italy|pages=133|oclc=809762398}}</ref>
Line 22: Line 22:
The group arrived in Italy in 1585 and were received in Rome by [[Pope Gregory XIII]] and especially by his successor Pope Sixtus V, who made them a gift of the Church of Santa Maria dell'Orto, which has been the place of worship for the Japanese Catholic community in the Italian capital ever since. In 1615, the [[Daimyo|daimyō]] of Sendai, Date Masamune, sent another delegation headed by the samurai [[Hasekura Tsunenaga]]. The latter met [[Pope Paul V]], and formally requested a trade treaty between Japan and [[Mexico]] (then Viceroyalty of New Spain), as well as the sending of Christian [[Missionary|missionaries]] to Japan.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2018-02-19|title=The Samurai Who Met the Pope {{!}} Culture, Japanese Culture|url=https://www.tokyoweekender.com/2018/02/the-samurai-who-met-the-pope/|access-date=2021-09-23|website=Tokyo Weekender|language=en-US}}</ref>
The group arrived in Italy in 1585 and were received in Rome by [[Pope Gregory XIII]] and especially by his successor Pope Sixtus V, who made them a gift of the Church of Santa Maria dell'Orto, which has been the place of worship for the Japanese Catholic community in the Italian capital ever since. In 1615, the [[Daimyo|daimyō]] of Sendai, Date Masamune, sent another delegation headed by the samurai [[Hasekura Tsunenaga]]. The latter met [[Pope Paul V]], and formally requested a trade treaty between Japan and [[Mexico]] (then Viceroyalty of New Spain), as well as the sending of Christian [[Missionary|missionaries]] to Japan.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2018-02-19|title=The Samurai Who Met the Pope {{!}} Culture, Japanese Culture|url=https://www.tokyoweekender.com/2018/02/the-samurai-who-met-the-pope/|access-date=2021-09-23|website=Tokyo Weekender|language=en-US}}</ref>


== Beginning of official relations ==
== The 19th Century ==
During the 19th century Italy and Japan experienced similar historical periods, characterised by huge changes in their political and social structure.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2014-12-27|title=Asian Century Institute - Italy and Japan -- opposites attract!|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141227044711/http://www.asiancenturyinstitute.com/international/507-italy-and-japan-opposites-attract|access-date=2021-09-23|website=web.archive.org}}</ref> Italy achieved national unity in 1861 during the period known as the [[Italian unification|Risorgimento]], while Japan saw the end of the [[Shogun|Bakufu]] system and the beginning in 1868 of a process of profound modernization along Western lines that came to be known as the [[Meiji Restoration]].
During the 19th century Italy and Japan experienced similar historical periods, characterised by huge changes in their political and social structure.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2014-12-27|title=Asian Century Institute - Italy and Japan -- opposites attract!|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141227044711/http://www.asiancenturyinstitute.com/international/507-italy-and-japan-opposites-attract|access-date=2021-09-23|website=web.archive.org}}</ref> Italy achieved national unity in 1861 during the period known as the [[Italian unification|Risorgimento]], while Japan saw the end of the [[Shogun|Bakufu]] system and the beginning in 1868 of a process of profound modernization along Western lines that came to be known as the [[Meiji Restoration]].


Revision as of 09:21, 24 September 2021

Italy–Japan relations
Map indicating locations of Italy and Japan

Italy
Japan
Embassy of Italy in Japan

Italy–Japan relations refers to the bilateral relations between the Italian Republic and Japan.

Bilateral relations between Japan and Italy formally began on 25 August 1866, but the first contacts between the two countries date back at least to the 16th century, when the first Japanese mission to Europe arrived in Rome in 1585 led by Itō Mancio.

In the 19th century Italy and Japan saw great changes in their political and social structure, with the former gaining national unity in 1861 and the latter entering, from 1868, into a process of profound modernization along Western lines that took the name of the Meiji Restoration. In this same period relations became increasingly close, culminating in the participation of the two countries as allies in both World Wars.

After the Second World War, Italy and Japan both experienced a period of strong economic growth, which enabled them to recover from the disastrous situation in which they found themselves after the end of the conflict and to forge renewed economic and trade agreements, as well as active scientific cooperation for technological development.

Nowadays, Italy and Japan enjoy a cordial and friendly relationship. Italy is one of the best loved countries in Japan and one of the most popular European tourist destinations, thanks above all to the success of the 'Made in Italy' brand which has contributed, since the 1990s, to increasing Japanese appreciation of Italian culture.

Italy has an embassy in Tokyo and Japan has an embassy in Rome.

Early relations from the 13th Century

Although relations between Japan and Italy formally began with the signing of the first treaty of friendship in 1866, the first contacts between the two nations can be traced back to the 13th century, when Marco Polo (1254-1324) learned of the existence of Japan, which he called Cipango (or Zipangu).[1] Although he never set foot on Japanese soil, the Venetian navigator described the Japanese country as a large independent island full of riches.[2] He is credited as being the first person to introduce the "island country" into the European imagination.[3]

Japan remained relatively isolated and therefore immune to Western influence at least until 1543, when a Portuguese ship containing Portuguese and Italian Jesuits was blown off course and landed in the Asian country.[4][5] The Japanese Roman Catholic Christian daimyōs dispatched the Tenshō embassy to Pope Gregory XIII. This was the first Japanese mission in a foreign land on the initiative of the missionary Alessandro Valignano and the Christian daimyō Ōtomo Sōrin, Ōmura Sumitada and Arima Harunobu. The delegation consisted of four young dignitaries: Itō Mancio, Giuliano Nakaura, Martino Hara and Michele Chijiwa, joined by the Jesuit Diogo de Mesquita, who acted as their interpreter.[6]

The group arrived in Italy in 1585 and were received in Rome by Pope Gregory XIII and especially by his successor Pope Sixtus V, who made them a gift of the Church of Santa Maria dell'Orto, which has been the place of worship for the Japanese Catholic community in the Italian capital ever since. In 1615, the daimyō of Sendai, Date Masamune, sent another delegation headed by the samurai Hasekura Tsunenaga. The latter met Pope Paul V, and formally requested a trade treaty between Japan and Mexico (then Viceroyalty of New Spain), as well as the sending of Christian missionaries to Japan.[7]

The 19th Century

During the 19th century Italy and Japan experienced similar historical periods, characterised by huge changes in their political and social structure.[8] Italy achieved national unity in 1861 during the period known as the Risorgimento, while Japan saw the end of the Bakufu system and the beginning in 1868 of a process of profound modernization along Western lines that came to be known as the Meiji Restoration.

This period also coincided with the beginning of formal relations between the two countries: in 1860 the first Italian merchant ship docked in Nagasaki, while the arrival of the military steamer Magenta in the port of Yokohama (27 May 1866) led to the signing of the Treaty of Friendship and Commerce on 25 August of the same year, ratified in Edo by Captain Vittorio Arminjon.[9][10]

As a result the Italian ships were able to expand their activities to the ports of Kanagawa, Nagasaki and Hakodate. One year later, Tokugawa Akitake, younger brother of the shogun Tokugawa Yoshinobu, went to Italy as part of the first official Japanese trip to the European country, which also corresponded to the last official trip organized by the Tokugawa shogunate, close to its collapse.[11]

The beginning of official relations was also characterized by an intense commercial exchange, which led Italy, between the end of the Edo period (1603-1868) and the beginning of the Meiji period (1868-1912), to absorb up to one fifth of Japanese silkworm eggs exports.[12]

In 1873, the Iwakura mission arrived in Italy, organized by the new government as part of the series of measures it had taken to renew Japan. A key figure in the relations between the two countries was Count Alessandro Fè d'Ostiani[13], designated Minister Plenipotentiary for China and Japan in 1870, who accompanied the members of the mission during their visit. The mission visited cities such as Florence, Naples, Venice and Rome, where it was received by Victor Emmanuel II. The main interest in Italy was directed towards artisanal works and the different aspects of modernization in the country.[14][15]

In the meantime, some Italians obtained important public positions in the Japanese government, testifying to the growing influence of Italy in Japan. In 1872, Edoardo Chiossone became director of the Ministry of Finance's Paper and Securities Workshop, Alessandro Paternostro was legal advisor to the Ministry of Justice from 1885 to 1890, General Pompeo Grillo worked at the Osaka foundry from 1884 to 1888, followed by Major Quaratesi from 1889 to 1890 and Major Scipione Braccialini, who taught ballistics from 1892 to 1893.

Japanese art and culture was also influenced by Italy, not least because the painter Antonio Fontanesi, the sculptor Vincenzo Ragusa and the architect Giovanni Vincenzo Cappelletti came to Japan in 1876. They were invited by the government of Tokyo, as part of the modernization process strongly desired by Emperor Mutsuhito. Fontanesi became rector and head of the art department of the Tokyo Technical School of Fine Arts, Ragusa played a significant role in the development of modern Japanese sculpture by introducing bronze casting technologies and other European sculpture techniques, while Cappelletti designed the Yūshūkan military museum at the Yasukuni shrine.[16][17][18][19]

The popularity of opera in Italy led to the development of a new musical genre called "Japanese opera",[20] which in turn influenced Italian opera, as in the case of Giacomo Puccini's Madama Butterfly.[21]

In 1894, a further agreement between the two countries was signed, strengthening the one of 1866, while in 1912 a treaty on trade and navigation was signed. Italy and Japan were also part of the Eight-Nation Alliance that put down the Boxer Rebellion in China between 1899 and 1901.

The World Wars

First World War

During World War I, they were both members of the Allied Powers and fought against Germany from 1914 to 1918. After the war, the Kingdom of Italy turned out to be one of the nations in favor of the clause on Japanese racial equality proposal put forward by the Japanese Empire during the Paris Peace Conference in 1919.[22]

Military relations between the two countries also continued during the intervention in Siberia (1918-1922) during which they fought against Communists as allies. This operation that took place within the general framework of a larger plan of intervention by the Western powers and Japan against the Red Army during the Russian Civil War.

In the meantime, in 1920, pilots Guido Masiero and Arturo Ferrarin, together with their engine drivers Roberto Maretto and Gino Capannini, successfully completed the 'Rome-Tokyo raid'[23], which writers Gabriele D'Annunzio and Harukichi Shimoi had called for, and which represented the first air link between Europe and Japan.[24]

Second World War

In 1940, Italy and Japan were both members of the Axis Powers after signing the Tripartite Pact (World War II). The situation after the end of the First World War and the dissatisfaction with the Treaty of Versailles of 1919 led Italy to join the Anti-Comintern Pact in 1937 (an agreement made a year earlier between Japan and Nazi Germany to counter the work of the Communist International), which gave rise to the first embryo of the tripartite alliance that would be formalized on 27 September 1940 in Berlin.

See also

Country comparison

Italian Republic Japan
Flag Italy Japan
Coat of Arms
Emblem of Italy
Emblem of Italy
Population 60,579,711 125,570,000
Area 301,338 km2 (116,346 sq mi) 377,975 km2 (145,937 sq mi)
Population density 200/km2 (519 /sq mi) 344/km2 (891/sq mi)
Capital Rome Tokyo
Largest city Rome – 3,748,148 (6,144,600 Metro) Tokyo – 13,185,502 (35,682,460 Metro)
Government Unitary parliamentary republic Unitary parliamentary constitutional monarchy
First leader King Victor Emmanuel II
Prime Minister Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour 		Emperor Jimmu
Prime Minister Itō Hirobumi
Current leader President: Sergio Mattarella
Prime Minister: Mario Draghi 		Emperor: Naruhito
Prime Minister: Yoshihide Suga
Official languages Italian Japanese
Main religions 83.3% Christianity
12.4% non-religious
3.7 Islam
0.6% Other religions 		83.9% Shintoism, 7.14% Buddhism, 2% Christianity, 7.8% other
Ethnic groups 93.5% Italian
1.5% Romanian
1% North African
4% Other 		98.5% Japanese, 0.5% Korean, 0.4% Chinese, 0.6% other
GDP (PPP) $2.610 trillion ($43,376 per capita) $5.586 trillion ($44,585 per capita)

References

  1. ^ ""Japan, the Land of Gold." How True Is the Old Legend? : NIPPONIA No. 45". web-japan.org. Retrieved 2021-09-21.
  2. ^ Hoffman, Michael (2008-07-27). "Cipangu's landlocked isles". The Japan Times. Retrieved 2021-09-23.
  3. ^ Hoffman, Michael (2015-10-10). "It's a small world, with no respect for islands". The Japan Times. Retrieved 2021-09-24.
  4. ^ "V&A · Japan's encounter with Europe, 1573 – 1853". Victoria and Albert Museum. Retrieved 2021-09-23.
  5. ^ Ruiz-de-Medina, Father Juan G. (1993). Cultural Interactions in the Orient 30 years before Matteo Ricci. Catholic Uni. of Portugal, 1.
  6. ^ Benzoni, Maria Matilde (2012). Americhe e modernità : un itinerario fra storia e storiografia dal 1492 ad oggi. Milano, Italy: FrancoAngeli. p. 133. ISBN 978-88-204-0408-6. OCLC 809762398.
  7. ^ "The Samurai Who Met the Pope | Culture, Japanese Culture". Tokyo Weekender. 2018-02-19. Retrieved 2021-09-23.
  8. ^ "Asian Century Institute - Italy and Japan -- opposites attract!". web.archive.org. 2014-12-27. Retrieved 2021-09-23.
  9. ^ "Ambasciata d'Italia a Tokyo, La sede". web.archive.org. 2014-07-28. Retrieved 2021-09-23.
  10. ^ Marcianò, Domenico (2006). Cinquecento anni di storia : le relazioni tra l'Italia e le Filippine dai navigatori avventurosi ad oggi. Cosenza: Pellegrini. ISBN 978-88-8101-359-3. OCLC 79862382.
  11. ^ Beretta, Lia ([2008?]). Il viaggio in Italia di Tokugawa Akitake : 1867, la missione in Europa del fratello dell'ultimo shogun. Moncalieri: Centro interuniversitario di ricerche sul "viaggio in Italia, ". ISBN 978-88-7760-084-4. OCLC 290431644. {{cite book}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  12. ^ "150 Anniversario dei rapporti Diplomatici fra Giappone e Italia". www.it.emb-japan.go.jp. Retrieved 2021-09-23.
  13. ^ "Antonio Fontanesi". Turismo Reggiano. Retrieved 2021-09-23.
  14. ^ Iwakura Roma, Shōko (1992). Itinerario della missione di Iwakura in Italia nel 1873. Istituto giapponese di cultura.
  15. ^ The Iwakura mission in America and Europe : a new assessment. Ian Nish. Richmond, Surrey <U.K.>: Japan Library. 1998. ISBN 1-873410-84-0. OCLC 40410662.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  16. ^ 東京国立博物館 -トーハク-. "Oyatoi Gaikokujin - Antonio Fontanesi and Vincenzo Ragusa". www.tnm.jp. Retrieved 2021-09-23.
  17. ^ "Antonio Fontanesi". Turismo Reggiano. Retrieved 2021-09-23.
  18. ^ "Yushukan Museum│Yasukuni Jinja". www.yasukuni.or.jp. Retrieved 2021-09-23.
  19. ^ "The Japanese girl who choose Palermo for love". Retrieved 2021-09-23.
  20. ^ "Asian Century Institute - Italy and Japan -- opposites attract!". asiancenturyinstitute.com. Retrieved 2021-09-24.
  21. ^ "Madama Butterfly | opera by Puccini". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 2021-09-24.
  22. ^ Lauren, Paul Gordon (1988). Power and prejudice : the politics and diplomacy of racial discrimination. Boulder: Westview Press. ISBN 0-8133-0678-7. OCLC 17731724.
  23. ^ "Il raid Roma Tokio del 1920, Schede tecniche aerei militari italiani e storia degli aviatori". web.archive.org. 2014-02-23. Retrieved 2021-09-24.
  24. ^ "Amicizia Italo-Giapponese - articolo dalla rivista Sapere". web.archive.org. 2007-06-14. Retrieved 2021-09-24.
  • Baskett, Michael (2009). "All Beautiful Fascists?: Axis Film Culture in Imperial Japan" in The Culture of Japanese Fascism, ed. Alan Tansman. Durham: Duke University Press. pp. 212–234. ISBN 0822344521
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=Italy–Japan_relations&oldid=1046175900"