十七世紀初英國東印度公司的對日關係

On the Relationship between the English East India Company and Japan in the Early Seventeenth Century

英國對於遠東日本的拓殖起始於十七世紀初的第二個十年。作為其殖民先鋒的英國東印度公司在1613年派遣「克羅夫」號來航日本並在日建館，正式開啟了歷史上最初的英日關係。然而，這段關係在維持了十年之後就戛然而止，英國成為了歐洲四國當中來航最晚卻離開最早的國家。過往針對英國東印度公司在日商館的研究極少，且主要強調其商業運營的失誤導致了英國在日事業的夭折。然而，十七世紀初的日本商館卻並非只是英國東印度公司在日本設立的商業分支，而是由於東印度公司本身所具有的「準國家」特性並發展出經濟、外交、社會、軍事等多樣性功能，因而，它的失敗並不能僅僅從經濟這一個維度來探析。英國人的撤離和英日關係的中斷是由於日本商館在與母國東印度公司、在日外國勢力，以及與日本社會的多重關係上始終處於不利地位，在內憂和外患中陷入困境而又無力扭轉的結果。在這次英國人中途放棄之後，十七世紀餘年東印度公司重返日本的計畫又屢屢耽擱或者受挫，其貿易重心也逐漸向中國轉移。最終，英日關係的重啟已是兩百多年之後了。

In June 1613, the Clove, a merchant ship dispatched by the English East India Company, arrived in Japan, its mission to open up a trading post, or“factory,”that would allow England to trade with Japan. Just ten years later, however, the factory was abruptly shut down. The English, who had arrived in Japan later than other European nations, were now also the first to leave. While previous scholars who have studied the issue have concluded that the factory was closed due primarily to its poor economic performance, this paper argues that we cannot focus on economic causes alone. The factory was not merely a trading post: it was also an important diplomatic, social, and military center. Its closure had to do with the strained relations between the factory and the East India Company headquarters back in London. Relations between the factory and the Bantam Presidency in Java were also far from ideal. In addition, the factory was not on amicable terms with its Japanese hosts, or with other foreign powers in Japan. After the English left Japan, they turned their attention to China. More than two hundred years would elapse before Anglo-Japan relations were restored.