Townsend Harris (October 3, 1804 – February 25, 1878) was an American diplomat best known as the first U.S. Consul General to Japan and the negotiator of the Treaty of Amity and Commerce (Harris Treaty) in 1858. Born in New York, he had a background in business and education before entering diplomacy. Arriving in Japan in 1856, he skillfully navigated the isolationist Tokugawa shogunate, securing trade ports and diplomatic relations. His efforts opened Japan to the West and are considered pivotal in modernizing the country. Harris is remembered as a key figure in early U.S.-Japan relations.
Related Quotes
“In case of war, a treaty would have to be made at the end of the war.”
“By means of steam one can go from California to Japan in eighteen days.”
“If Japan had been near to either England or France, war would have broken out long ago.”
“In time of war steamships and improved arms are the most important things.”
“Since the invention of steamships distant countries have become like those that are near at hand.”
“The President of the United States thinks that for the Japanese opium is more dangerous than war.”