Godai Tomoatsu (五代 友厚, February 12, 1836 – September 25, 1885) was one of the Satsuma students of 1865 who were smuggled out of Bakumatsu period Japan to study in Great Britain.

[2] He himself was, naturally, one of 15 students to be sent to Great Britain to study at the University College, London in defiance of the Tokugawa bakufu's official national seclusion policy.

In 1865 Godai made contact with Thomas Glover who steered negotiations with the Platt textile machinery giant in Oldham, Lancashire, England.

[3] Godai later returned to Europe to negotiate with the Comte des Cantons Charles Montblanc (1832–1893) to establish a joint venture commercial enterprise for the development of Satsuma's natural resources in exchange for European weapons and manufactured goods.

At the same time, Godai used his contacts to purchase the latest warships to equip the Satsuma in preparation with the growing conflict to overthrow the Tokugawa regime.