Wako - Japanese pirates

Japanese: 倭寇 - わこう

It is a term found in Chinese and Korean documents, and its original meaning refers to Japanese acts of piracy or the individuals and groups who commit such acts, but the actual meaning differs depending on the era and region, and is not necessarily consistent. An example of an ancient use of the characters for wokou is in an inscription of King Gwanggaeto of Goguryeo, and a more recent example is the Japanese army during the Sino-Japanese War, which are called 20th century wokou in China. The Japanese troops dispatched to Korea by Toyotomi Hideyoshi were called Wanli wokou. The best known wokou are those who operated along the coasts of the Korean Peninsula and mainland China from the 14th century to the beginning of the 15th century, and those who operated along the southern coast of mainland China and in the South Seas in the second half of the 16th century.

[Tanaka Takeo]

Wokou in the 14th and 15th Centuries

The first record of Japanese invading the Korean peninsula appears in the Korai-shi (History of Goryeo) in 1223 (Jo-o 2), and Japanese records also state that in 1232 (Jo-ei 1), residents of Kagami-sha (Karatsu City, Saga Prefecture) stole precious treasures from Goryeo and returned home. However, it was not until 1350 (Shohei 5, Kan-o 1) that large-scale Wako groups began to take action, and since then, Wako have been raiding the coasts of the Korean peninsula almost every year. The first thing the Wako targeted for plunder was rice. The first targets of their attacks were the warehouses that stored the millet tax and the rowing boats that transported it. The second target of their plunder was the coastal residents. Not only were captured Koreans brought to Japan, but they were also resold as far away as the Ryukyu Islands. Goryeo sent high-ranking officials to Japan to request a ban on the Wokou, and also bought Goryeo prisoners living in Japan to return to their home countries. If the prisoners were sent back to Goryeo from Japan, a reasonable price was paid. The members of the Wokou included pirates led by Japanese village headmen, manor officials, and jito (local lords), vagrants at sea, armed merchants, and sometimes groups of low-class people known in Goryeo as Kashaku and Saijin. The Kashaku were a group whose work included slaughtering cattle and horses, processing leather, and making willow ware, while the Saijin were a group whose occupations included masked theater and acrobatics, and were traditionally looked down upon.

In 1392, the Korean dynasty of the Yi dynasty replaced the Goryeo dynasty of the Wang dynasty. It inherited the Goryeo era's policy of suppressing the Wako through diplomatic negotiations, improved the national defense system, and adopted a new policy of appeasing the Wako. As a result of this policy, the Wako were divided into several groups: those who surrendered to Korea and received government positions, clothing, and housing, those who traded as envoys or merchants, and those who continued their piracy as before, and eventually disappeared. In 1419 (Oei 26), the Korean side sent a large army to Tsushima to wipe out the island, which they considered a den or transit point for the Wako. This was the Oei Invasion, which was called the Kihai Eastern Expedition in Korea. After this, Korea gave preferential treatment to the So clan of Tsushima, giving them the task of managing travelers from Japan, and taking measures to prevent the recurrence of wako pirates.

After attacking the Korean Peninsula, the wako turned and headed for mainland China, where they attacked the Yuan and Ming dynasties. Emperor Taizu of the Ming dynasty (Hongwu Emperor) tightened patrols along the coast and tried to stop the wako by negotiating with Prince Kanenaga, the Japanese general of the Western Expedition, but to no avail. During the reign of Emperor Chengzu of the Ming dynasty (Yongle Emperor), a system of exchange was established between the two countries and Yoshimitsu Ashikaga, and the wako on mainland China were pacified.

[Tanaka Takeo]

Wokou in the 16th century

In the 16th century, a group of pirates called wokou again began to operate from the southern coast of mainland China to the South Seas. The most powerful group was known as the Great Wokou of Jiajing, which operated for about 40 years from 1522 (the first year of the Jiajing era in the Ming Dynasty). The wokou of this period were characterized by the fact that very few of them were Japanese, and the majority were Chinese, and that the Portuguese, who had first appeared in the waters of East Asia, were also treated as the same kind of wokou. It was not uncommon for Chinese people captured by the wokou to have their heads shaved and be made into fake wokou and be added to the group. Since the time of Emperor Taizu, the Ming Dynasty had implemented a kind of isolationist policy known as kaikin, which prohibited Chinese people from engaging in maritime activities, but in the 16th century, when economic activity developed, this policy became difficult to maintain, and smuggling by sea increased dramatically. Wealthy local people, known as 'Kyoushin' (town gentry) and 'Kangou' (official officials), also allied with the smugglers and encouraged their activities. The Portuguese also became smugglers as they were unable to obtain official trade permission from the Ming Dynasty. Japanese merchant ships travelled south with silver, whose domestic production was rapidly increasing at the time, and joined them. These people were collectively regarded as Wokou by the Chinese authorities. They carried out a thriving smuggling trade, using Qiyu in Zhejiang Province and then Liggang as their bases. When these bases were destroyed by attacks by the Chinese authorities, they moved their base to Japan and deployed to the coast of mainland China to carry out plundering activities. Wokou groups repeatedly split and merged, and their actions were complex, but the most famous was Wang Zhi. Wang Zhi was based in Hirado and Goto in Japan, and organized a large fleet to frequently invade the coast of China. He was one of the crew members of a foreign ship that was cast ashore on Tanegashima in 1543 (Tenbun 12) and brought firearms to Japan for the first time. He was called "Master Wufeng" and was highly respected. He was qualified to mediate smuggling, and it seems he protected the trade of smugglers, and arranged warehouses and sales. In the Ming Dynasty, they helped wipe out Wang Zhi's faction, and lured him back to China by promising to pardon his crimes and allow him to trade, but when he returned, they imprisoned him and beheaded him.

According to Zheng Ruozen's Chukaizuhen, the Japanese who joined the Wokou pirates were mostly from Satsuma, Higo and Nagato, with people from Osumi, Chikuzen, Hyuga, Settsu, Harima, Kii, Tanegashima, Buzen, Bungo and Izumi among others. The ships departed Goto or Satsuma between March and May, passing through Greater and Lesser Ryukyus (Okinawa and Taiwan), before reaching Jiangnan, Guangdong and Fujian. The atrocities committed by the Wokou are typified as "binding a baby to its mother's womb" and "hollowing out the abdomen of a pregnant woman." The former involved tying an infant to a post and pouring boiling water over it, then rejoicing when it cries. The latter was said to be a gambling game in which a pregnant woman's stomach was cut open and the participants tried to guess whether the baby was a boy or a girl. On the other hand, there were also stories of the wako showing mercy to good local residents. In the Ming Dynasty, Hu Zongxian, Qi Jiguang, Yu Dayu and others achieved success in coastal defense, and in 1567 the 200-year-old maritime ban was relaxed, trade with the South Sea region was permitted, and wako activities began to subside. During this period, the Ming Dynasty published numerous books on Japan, completely changing China's previous perception of Japan.

[Tanaka Takeo]

"Tanaka Takeo, 'Wako - History of the Sea' (Kyoikusha History Books)"

[Reference] | Oei Invasion

The Wako pirates' invasion areas and bases
©Shogakukan ">

The Wako pirates' invasion areas and bases

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

Japanese:

中国・朝鮮の文献にみえる名辞で、本来の意味は、日本人の寇賊(こうぞく)行為ないしその行為をする人物および集団をさすものであるが、実体は時代や地域によって相違し、かならずしも一定してはいない。倭寇の文字が古く用いられた例は高句麗(こうくり)広開土王(こうかいどおう)の碑文にあり、新しい例では日中戦争時の日本軍が中国で20世紀的倭寇とよばれている。なお豊臣秀吉(とよとみひでよし)の朝鮮出兵は万暦(ばんれき)倭寇であった。倭寇とよばれるもののなかで、もっともよく知られているのは、14世紀から15世紀初頭まで朝鮮半島と中国大陸の沿岸で行動したものと、16世紀の後半に中国大陸南岸や南洋方面で行動したものとである。

［田中健夫］

14～15世紀の倭寇

『高麗史(こうらいし)』に倭人が朝鮮半島に寇した記事が初めてみえるのは1223年（貞応2）で、日本側の記録でも1232年（貞永1）に鏡社(かがみしゃ)（佐賀県唐津市）の住人が高麗から珍宝を奪って帰ったと記している。しかし、大規模な倭寇集団の行動が起こるのは1350年（正平5・観応1）以後で、この年以後毎年のように倭寇は朝鮮半島の沿岸を荒らしている。倭寇が略奪の対象としたものの第一は米穀である。租粟(そぞく)を収める漕倉(そうそう)とそれを運搬する漕船(そうせん)がまず攻撃の目標になった。ついで沿岸の住民が第二の略奪対象になった。捕虜にされた高麗人は日本に連れてこられただけでなく、遠く琉球(りゅうきゅう)にまで転売されることもあった。高麗では高官を日本に派遣し、倭寇を禁止するように求めるとともに、日本在住の高麗人捕虜を買って帰国させた。日本から捕虜を高麗に送還すれば相当の対価が支払われた。倭寇の構成員は、日本の名主(みょうしゅ)・荘官(しょうかん)・地頭(じとう)などを中心とする海賊衆、海上の浮浪者群、武装した商人などのほかに、高麗で禾尺(かしゃく)・才人(さいじん)といわれた賤民(せんみん)群が合流することがあった。禾尺は牛馬のと畜や皮革の加工、柳器の製作などに従った集団、才人は仮面芝居や軽業を職とした集団で、伝統的に蔑視(べっし)されていた。

　1392年、王氏の高麗王朝にかわって李(り)氏の朝鮮王朝が成立すると、高麗時代からの外交折衝による倭寇鎮圧策を継承するとともに国防の体制を整備し、新たに倭寇を懐柔する政策を採用した。この政策により、倭寇は朝鮮に投降して官職や衣料、住居などを受けるもの、使人(しじん)や商人として貿易に従うもの、従来どおり海賊行為を続けるものなどに分解変質し、やがて消滅していった。朝鮮側では1419年（応永26）、倭寇の巣窟(そうくつ)ないし通過地とみなした対馬(つしま)の掃討を目的として大軍を対馬に送り込んだ。これが応永(おうえい)の外寇(がいこう)で、朝鮮では己亥東征(きがいとうせい)とよんだ。こののち朝鮮では対馬の宗(そう)氏を優遇して、日本からの渡航者を管理する役目を与え、倭寇再発の防止に備えた。

　朝鮮半島を襲った倭寇は転進して中国大陸に向かい、元(げん)や明(みん)を攻撃した。明の太祖(たいそ)（洪武帝）は海岸の警備を厳重にするとともに、日本の征西将軍懐良親王と折衝して倭寇を防止しようとしたが、成果はあがらなかった。明の成祖(せいそ)（永楽帝）のときになって足利義満(あしかがよしみつ)との間に通交の体制ができ、以後中国大陸の倭寇も鎮静した。

［田中健夫］

16世紀の倭寇

16世紀になり、中国大陸の南岸から南洋方面にかけて、また倭寇とよばれる集団の活動が始まった。もっとも勢力が盛んだったのは1522年（明の嘉靖1年）以後約40年間にわたって行動したもので嘉靖(かせい)大倭寇といわれる。この時期の倭寇の特色は、構成員中に占める日本人の率がきわめて少なく、大部分が中国人であったこと、東アジアの海域に初めて姿を現したポルトガル人も倭寇の同類として扱われたことである。倭寇に捕らえられた中国人が、髪を剃(そ)られてにせの倭寇に仕立てられ、一群に加えられることも珍しくなかった。明では太祖のとき以来、海禁(かいきん)という一種の鎖国政策をとって中国人の海上活動を禁じていたが、経済活動が発達した16世紀ではこの政策の維持が困難となり、海上で密貿易を行うものが激増した。郷紳(きょうしん)、官豪(かんごう)などとよばれた地方の富豪層も密貿易者群と結んでその活動を助長した。ポルトガル人も明から正式の貿易許可が得られなかったので密貿易者となった。そこに日本商船が、当時国内で生産量を急増させていた銀を所持して南下し、合流した。これらの人々は中国の官憲から一括して倭寇とみられたのである。彼らは浙江(せっこう)省の隻嶼(そうしょ)、ついで瀝港(れきこう)を根拠地として盛んな密貿易を行った。この地が中国官憲の攻撃により壊滅すると、彼らは根拠地を日本に移し、中国大陸沿岸に出動して寇掠(こうりゃく)活動を行った。倭寇の集団は分裂・合体を繰り返し、その行動は複雑な様相をみせたが、もっとも有名だったのは王直(おうちょく)である。王直は日本の平戸(ひらど)や五島(ごとう)地方を根拠とし、大船団を組織してしばしば中国の沿岸を侵した。彼は、1543年（天文12）に種子島(たねがしま)に漂着して日本に初めて鉄砲を伝えたという外国船のなかの乗員の1人であり、五峰(ごほう)先生とよばれて尊敬を受けていた。彼は密貿易の調停者としての資格を備えた人物で、密貿易者の交易を保護代行したり、倉庫、売買の斡旋(あっせん)をしたりしたらしい。明では王直一派の掃討に手をやき、帰国すれば罪を許して貿易を許可するとして誘引し、彼が帰国すると投獄、斬首(ざんしゅ)した。

　倭寇に参加した日本人は、鄭若曽(ていじゃくそう)の『籌海図編(ちゅうかいずへん)』によると、薩摩(さつま)、肥後、長門(ながと)の人がもっとも多く、大隅(おおすみ)、筑前(ちくぜん)、日向(ひゅうが)、摂津、播磨(はりま)、紀伊、種子島、豊前(ぶぜん)、豊後(ぶんご)、和泉(いずみ)の人々であったという。船は3～5月ころ五島または薩摩を発し、大小琉球（沖縄、台湾）を経て、江南、広東(カントン)、福建に至ったという。倭寇の残虐行為として類型化して伝えられているのは「縛嬰沃湯(ばくえいようとう)」と「孕婦刳腹(ようふこふく)」である。前者は幼児を柱にくくりつけて熱湯をかけ、その泣き声を聞いて喜ぶというもの。後者は妊婦の腹を裂いて、男女のどちらをはらんでいたかを当てる賭博(とばく)であるという。一方、倭寇が善良な住民に温情を示したという話もなくはなかった。明では胡宗憲(こそうけん)、戚継光(せきけいこう)、兪大猷(ゆだいゆう)らが海防にあたって成果をあげ、1567年には200年にわたった海禁令が緩められ、南海地方との貿易が許されて、倭寇活動は鎮静に向かった。この時代、明では数多くの日本研究書が発表され、中国におけるこれまでの日本認識は一変した。

［田中健夫］

『田中健夫著『倭寇――海の歴史』（教育社歴史新書）』

[参照項目] | 応永の外寇

倭寇の侵略地と根拠地

出典　小学館　日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)日本大百科全書(ニッポニカ)について　情報 | 凡例

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