Yankees in the Land of the Gods: Commodore Perry and the Opening of Japan

Describes Commodore Perry's expedition to "open" Japan to international trade and places this episode in the context of American imperial ambitions

Commodore Matthew Perry, a gruff and testy old salt from a Navy family of Quaker stock, set sail for Japan in 1853. Often mistakenly given credit for opening Japan to trade with the U.S., he and his mission had more pressing objectives: to secure ports for a Pacific steamship line linking San Francisco to Shanghai and to prevent America's chief rival, Britain, from monopolizing the China trade. Yet Japan's self-imposed isolation ended a few years later, after unpopular concessions to the "outer barbarians" (i.e., Americans) triggered a political crisis that brought the shogunate's downfall and ushered in Japan's modern era. As vivid as a ship's log, as engrossing as a good novel, Wiley's sweeping chronicle casts fresh light on U.S.-Japanese relations, portraying Perry as an interventionist out of step with an America not yet ready to act upon its imperial ambitions. Wiley is coauthor of America's Saints: The Rise of Mormon Power. Illustrations.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.

The bold mission led by Matthew Calbraith Perry to the shores of Japan in the mid-19th century is a story of America's entrance into the world community. Wiley makes effective use of source documents, American and Japanese, to present a detailed account of the expedition. Early U.S. naval history, politics and intrigues in Washington and Tokyo, the tense situation in China, the complex relations with European powers, and Perry as seen by himself and others are all here. Students, scholars, and historical buffs will delight in this fascinating study, certain to be the new standard on Perry and Japan. Highly recommended.
-Kenneth W. Berger, Duke Univ. Lib., Durham, N.C.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc.