Foreign Trade

The Shogun put the Daimyo Lords in charge of trade with these countries. The only people excluded from these resources were the samurai warriors due to the fact that the Shogun had passed edict twelve. "In order to have law enforcement that was not influenced by the outside world" making it illegal. Foreign trade was the only way Japan was able to stay modern in Sakoku. The only place in Japan that allowed foreign trade was an island called Dejima. Some of the main things they traded were porcelain, spices, silk, and textiles.

Contrary to many beliefs it was found that Japan was not entirely isolated and in fact had traded with the Dutch, Chinese, and North Koreans, they also had trade with the Ryukyu kingdom as well as the Ezo Clan. This trade was organized through a system called four portals. The reason the Dutch were included in this trade was because of the second trade permit. This permit was made because the Dutch had many valuable resources and a monopoly on many European goods, and Japan hoped Dutch ships would come to Japan in large numbers to trade with them.