Shuinsen (red seal ship)

Also called Goshuin-sen, these were trading ships that traveled to various parts of Southeast Asia with red seal letters issued by Toyotomi Hideyoshi and the Tokugawa Shogunate as permission to travel abroad. Already during the Muromachi period, the Kyushu Tandai and the So clan of Tsushima had trade ships carry "shokei" (written documents) and "bunbiki" (written handwritten documents) as measures against the wako (Japanese pirates) of Korea, and ships bound for the Ryukyus required "inhan" (stamps) from the Shimazu clan. Also, around 1584 (Tensho 12), a vassal of the Mori clan sent a flag with a ship's seal to a Ming ship from Quanzhou that arrived at Akamagaseki (Shimonoseki), promising safe trade. The Shuin-sen system was a means for the unified power to issue a piracy ban while taking control of the individual diplomatic trade of local powers and at the same time gaining international recognition for its status within the country. Furthermore, travelers who obtained a red seal could expect safety at sea and in their future destinations, as well as favorable trade.

There are objections to the theory that Hideyoshi established the system in 1592 (Bunroku 1), but it is true that around 1598 (Keicho 3), the Zen monk Bukoji Shotai/Shoda was in charge of the administration, and it seems that the red seal of "Toyotomi" was stamped on the system. The Tokugawa clan inherited this system and improved and developed it. Those who wished to receive the ship would apply with a small amount of gratitude in the form of a dyed brush, and then Shodai and his successors, Genkitsu Enkoji and Suden Konchiin, would write "Ship from Japan, arrived at (destination) / above" and the date of issuance in four large lines on Otakadanshi paper, and Tokugawa Ieyasu would stamp the seal "Minamoto Ieyasu Hirotada forgiving" in front of the ship, and Hidetada would stamp the seal "Minamoto Hidetada" in front of the ship, and the applicant's name would be written on the wrapping paper and handed over. Only one envelope was allowed for each ship and voyage, and loaning or transferring was not permitted.

From 1604 (Keicho 9) to 1605 (Kan'ei 12), when the Hoshosen were abolished due to national isolation, the total number of red seal ships known to have been 356 ships and 105 people to whom they were issued. The destinations of travel were 19 in total, including Kochi, Siam, Luzon, Annam, Cambodia, Takasago (Taiwan), and farther away places such as Malacca, Jagatara, and the Maluku Islands, avoiding the Chinese mainland, where sea lanes were prohibited. Japan towns were formed at the ports of call. The people who sent ships included 10 daimyo clans in the western provinces, such as Shimazu, Matsuura, Arima, Kato, and Nabeshima, four samurai including the Nagasaki magistrate, Suminokura and Chaya from Kyoto, Sueyoshi from Osaka, Suetsugu from Nagasaki, Takagi, and other wealthy merchants who were like magistrates, as well as many others whose origins are unknown. There were also 23 foreign residents, including Li Dan, Hua Yu, Yayous (Jan Joosten), and Miura Anjin (William Adams). The ships were large, averaging 200 to 300 tons, and incorporated Western-style shipbuilding and navigation techniques. In some cases, passengers and cargo were mixed and nearly 400 people were on board.

At one time they outnumbered foreign ships from Europe and Asia overseas, but in the domestic market they competed with other countries such as Portugal, China, the Netherlands, and Britain, and as a result, coupled with the shogunate's strengthened control, the number of ships was limited to around eight families and nine ships before the country was isolated.

[Nakamura Shigeo]

"Study on the History of Red Seal Ship Trade" by Iwao Seiichi (1958, Kobundo)

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

御朱印船ともいい、豊臣(とよとみ)秀吉や徳川幕府が出した外国渡航許可の朱印状をもって、東南アジア各地へ渡った貿易船。すでに室町時代に、九州探題や対馬(つしま)の宗(そう)氏は朝鮮国の倭寇(わこう)対策に沿って貿易船に「書契」や「文引」をもたせ、琉球(りゅうきゅう)渡航船は島津氏の「印判」を必要とした。また1584年（天正12）ころの毛利(もうり)氏の一被官は、赤間関(あかまがせき)（下関）に来航する明(みん)の泉州船に通交貿易の安全を約して船印の旗を遣わしている。朱印船制度は、統一権力が海賊禁止令を出す一方、在地勢力の個別的な外交貿易を掌中に収め、あわせて国内におけるその地位を国際的に承認させる手段であった。また朱印状を得た渡航者にとっては海上や先々での安全と有利な取引が期待できた。

　秀吉による1592年（文禄1）創設説には異論もあるが、98年（慶長3）ころ禅僧の豊光寺承兌(ぶこうじしょうたい／しょうだ)が下付事務を担当していたことは事実で、「豊臣」の朱印が押されたらしい。徳川氏はこの制度を受け継ぎ、整備発展させた。下付希望者は幕府重臣を紹介者として、染筆の謝礼若干を添えて願い出ると、承兌や後任の円光寺元佶(げんきつ)、金地院崇伝(こんちいんすうでん)らが、大高檀紙(おおたかだんし)に「自日本、到／（渡航地）船也／右」と下付年月日とを、計4行に大書し、徳川家康は「源家康弘忠恕(こうちゅうじょ)」、秀忠(ひでただ)期は「源秀忠」の朱印をそれぞれの面前で押捺(おうなつ)し、包紙に申請者名を書いて渡した。1隻1航海につき1通で、貸与や譲渡は許されなかった。

　1604年（慶長9）から、鎖国により奉書船が廃絶される35年（寛永12）までの、判明している朱印船の総数は356隻、下付された者105人に上っている。渡航地は海禁の中国大陸を避け、頻度順に交趾(こうち)、シャム、ルソン、安南、カンボジア、高砂(たかさご)（台湾）など、遠きはマラッカ、ジャガタラ、モルッカなどの計19地。寄港地には日本町が形成された。派船者は島津、松浦(まつら)、有馬、加藤、鍋島(なべしま)などの西国大名10氏、長崎奉行(ぶぎょう)ほかの武士4名、京の角倉(すみのくら)、茶屋、大坂の末吉(すえよし)、長崎の末次(すえつぐ)、高木らの代官的豪商以下、素性不明の者も多い。李旦(りたん)、華宇(はう)、ヤヨウス（ヤン・ヨーステン）、三浦按針(あんじん)（ウィリアム・アダムズ）らの在留外人も23人に及ぶ。船は平均200～300トンの大型船で、洋式の造船・航海術も取り入れ、客貨混載で400人近く乗り込む例もあった。

　一時は海外でヨーロッパ、アジアの外国船を圧したが、国内市場ではポルトガル、中国、オランダ、イギリスなどの諸国人と競合し、幕府の統制強化と相まって、鎖国前には8氏9艘(そう)ほどに限られていた。

［中村　質］

『岩生成一著『朱印船貿易史の研究』（1958・弘文堂）』

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