William Adams

Coming to a historic landmark in 1600 AD, the pilot major of the East India Company fleet, William Adams became the first Englishman to land in Japan.  Born in Gillingham, Kent and having led some achievements of a checkered past, he now began to contribute to international trade and business for Japan.  His Japanese name was Miura Anjin which he was granted as a Samrai's name whilst he lived and worked there.  As a Samurai official, he served for Tokugawa Shogunate developing two Western ships and overseeing the merchant trade with Spain, Portugal and Holland.  He was apparently active in directing commercial sailing from Japan to the South-East Asia during Tokugawa Ieyasu who founded Tokugawa Shogunate, was living.  According to the archive, Will Adams wrote a number of correspondences home to England which can still be viewed at the British Library today.  Through his desire to vitalize the international trade in Japan, one can see an enterprising spirit that had begun to bridge the gap between business of both East and West.