The Keicho Embassy, considered the first Japanese diplomatic mission to reach America and Europe, arose at the initiative of a feudal lord named Date Masamune. This notorious man had seen his income streams cut off by a tsunami, which, with the authorization of the Japanese central government, led him to extend his trade ties to other continents.
To achieve this, of course, it was necessary to have a ship up to the challenge, so the feudal lord hired about 5,000 carpenters, blacksmiths and helpers, who took 45 days to build a ship in the style of what is known as "galleons". de Manila", which made the route between the Philippine capital and Acapulco, in New Spain.
As the Spanish had the most advanced technology at that time, the construction had the advice of a Spanish navigator named Sebastián Vizcaíno.
The Japanese galleon, known as San Juan Bautista, reached Mexico. After crossing that country by land, the Japanese delegation continued its journey in Spanish ships to Cuba, Spain, France and the Vatican, the final destination of its trip. The religious component of this trip is important, since at that time the Jesuits and the Franciscans were fighting for control of Europe's relations with Japan. On board the ship was the Franciscan Luis Sotelo, one of the main promoters of the expedition and, to facilitate trade relations, the members of the diplomatic delegation not only planned a visit to the Vatican, but many of them converted to Christianity. .
It cannot be said that the mission was a success —Japan ended up outlawing Christianity and expelling Catholic priests—, but some of those travelers decided to settle in Coria del Río, a town they had known when they entered the Iberian Peninsula by going up the Guadalquivir River. .
Over the years, those Japanese began to have offspring with the local population. And according to some Spanish historians, to avoid the Sevillians the bad taste of pronouncing the complicated Japanese surnames, the priest who baptized them had to register them with the surname Japón, which still survives today in more than 600 corianos.
El Pais 2021
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