Customs office - Unjosho

This government office was established in the opening of ports and open markets from the end of the Edo period to the beginning of the Meiji period, and was responsible for policing trade and collecting customs duties. After the conclusion of the Ansei Five-Nation Treaties, it was established in Kanagawa, Nagasaki, and Hakodate, and after the Meiji Restoration, it was also established in Hyogo and Osaka. At the beginning of the Meiji period, it belonged to the Foreign Affairs Bureau, Foreign Affairs Office, and Ministry of Foreign Affairs, but in August 1871 (Meiji 4), it was transferred to the Ministry of Finance and came under the jurisdiction of the Tax Bureau. Eventually, the names of the customs offices at each port became inconsistent, with the Kanagawa Customs Office also being called the Yokohama Customs House, so in November 1872, they were all renamed and unified as Customs Offices.

[Michio Fujimura]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

幕末から明治初年に開港、開市場に設置された貿易取締り、関税徴収を担当した官庁。安政五か国条約の締結後、神奈川、長崎、箱館(はこだて)に設置され、維新後、兵庫、大阪にも置かれた。明治の初め外国事務局、外国官、外務省に属したが、1871年（明治4）8月に大蔵省に移管され、租税寮の管轄となった。やがて神奈川運上所は横浜税関ともいわれるなど、各港の運上所の名称がまちまちになったため、1872年11月、税関にすべて改称、統一された。

［藤村道生］

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