The Famed Black Ships

 

 

Three ships from US Commodore Matthew Perry's squadron on his second visit to Japan, 1854. Perry was on the road with a total of nine ships and a crew of around 1,800 men. These ships will come to be known as the kurofune or kurobune (黒船 - black ships) In the foreground is the flagship "Powhatan" — America's third brand new paddle steamer (1850). This print is from a Japanese cross-frame scroll based on drawings by Hibata Osuke, who meticulously chronicled the American visit and their engineering 'wonders'.
- Edo period, 1854

 

The arrival of Black ships in 1853 is now linked to a historical misconception that makes us think that the people of Edo were extremly scared when the Black ships arrived in 1853, but it is certainly not true. If anything, people were curious and gathered around Edo Bay to look at them.

I would love to list the various misconceptions that are linked to the Bakumatsu period, I recently received a Japanese book on this but it seems to lack historical evidence so I may enquire myself when I have time.