Hired Foreigners: Arrangements on the eve of the audience at the Paris World's Fair Hired Foreigners and the interregnum from the end of the Edo period to the beginning of the Meiji period (from the end of the Edo period to the beginning of the Meiji period)
The scene where Tokugawa Akitake and his party had an audience with Emperor Napoleon III of France was not only the achievement of Japanese diplomacy at the end of the Edo period, but also the moment when its immaturity became most apparent. Behind the glamorous world expositions and court ceremonies, details such as who would ride in which carriage and who would serve as interpreter were arranged in extraordinary detail.
At the time, Japan, although an independent nation by treaty, was totally dependent on the practices of the powers in diplomatic practice. An audience with the emperor was a place where the nation's standing was measured, and the slightest rudeness or confusion could lower the reputation of Japan as a whole. This tension made the preparations on the eve of the event so precise that they could be described as excessive.
The arrangements were supported by hired foreigners who worked alongside Tokugawa Akitake's entourage. Cachon, Florihert, Siebold, and others were deployed as interpreters and coordinators, serving as a link between French customs and Japanese intentions. In particular, the arrangement of the carriages was the hierarchy itself, and was an important factor in determining the success or failure of the audience.
This preparation on the eve of the audience shows that diplomacy is not a matter of ideas or speeches, but a series of arrangements to avoid failure. Japan at the end of the Edo period learned modern diplomacy through such practical work, and it was through this tension that it moved toward Meiji diplomacy.
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