Deepening of the Sakoku Policy

Timeline

1. 1633Edo · JapanThe shogunate issued the first seclusion edict, stipulating that only ships bearing shogunal permits (shuinjo) could engage in overseas trade; unlicensed merchant ships were barred from port, and foreign missionaries and their contact networks were forbidden entry to Japan.
2. 1635Edo · JapanThe third seclusion edict explicitly forbade all Japanese from leaving the country and forbade Japanese already overseas from returning (violators executed); it also restricted Chinese merchant ship trade to the single port of Nagasaki, completely cutting off the flow of people between Japan and the outside world.
3. 1636Dejima (artificial island in Nagasaki harbor) · Nagasaki PrefectureThe shogunate ordered the reclamation of a fan-shaped artificial island, Dejima, in Nagasaki harbor, forcing Portuguese merchants and their families to reside there, completely isolating them from Japanese society to prevent the spread of Christianity. Dejima covered about 1.5 hectares, connected to the mainland by a bridge with strictly controlled access.
4. 1639Nagasaki · Nagasaki PrefectureShaken by the Catholic element in the Shimabara Rebellion, the shogunate issued the fifth seclusion edict, completely expelling the Portuguese and severing Portuguese-Japanese trade. After Dejima fell vacant, it was transferred to the Dutch East India Company in 1641. The seclusion system was now essentially complete, retaining only controlled trade with the Dutch and the Qing through Nagasaki.