Shibata Takenaka

Shibata Takenaka (柴田 剛中, February 27, 1823 – August 24, 1877) was an emissary for Japan who visited France in 1865 to help prepare for the construction of the Yokosuka arsenal with French support.

[1] Takenaka was born in the district of Koishikawa in Edo, the first son of Shibata Junzo Yoshimichi, a Metsuke samurai of the Tokugawa shogunate.

In 1858 Shibata became chief of staff in the gaikoku bugyo (foreign affairs department).

In fact, Shibata was one of the heads of the mission and participated directly in the negotiations, but he did not express himself, he was there as an observer, he listened and took notes.

His first assignment was to go to Hakodate to negotiate with the Russian consul general Iosif Antonovich Goskevich regarding the opening of Japanese ports.

Shibata was stationed in Paris for a year and requested on behalf of the Tokugawa shogunate that both the United Kingdom and France send a military mission to Japan for training in Western warfare.

[3] He was put in charge of the opening of the port of Kobe, and oversaw the construction of piers, residential areas for foreigners, and Tokugawa-do (Tokugawa Road).