Journalist John O. P. Bland (1863-1945) is more commonly associated with China than Japan, although his 'treaty port mentality' means his career sheds light on the British trading communities views of Japan.

This fascinating first-hand account of the impact of the declaration of war by Japan upon Britain in 1941 provides reflections upon the diplomatic and personal situaions of the staff engaged in Anglo-Japanese relations at the time.

This paper focuses on Admiral Viscount Saitō Makoto's (1858-1936) early career when Japan was emerging as a modern state in the Meiji and Taishō periods under the major influence of Britain.

Following the collapse of the Romanov, Hohenzollerns and Hapsburg powers in 1917-18, Britain's most significant royal relationship was with Imperial Japan. This essay details Court Diplomacy between 1900-41, shedding light on the broader Anglo-Japanese relationship.

This essay provides an account of how newspaper proprietor Alfred Harmsworth (1865-1922), who visited Japan on a number of occasions shaped British suspicions and fears over Japan's intentions in Asia.

Ariyoshi Yoshiya (1901-82) was known as 'the grand old man of Japanese shipping'. This portrait focuses on his character and his love of both Britain and Japanese cultural traditions.

Officers from all three services have done stints in post-war Japan as advisers during the Occupation years. Their tasks were to observe the demilitarization of Japan and then to develop contacts with the Self-Defense Forces, and more recently to promote defence sales from British manufacturers. Here a number of previous service attachés recount their experience in Japan. 

This chapter details Arthur Waley's (1899-1966) career as one of the great translators of Japanese literary works and as an inspiration to generations of Japan scholars. 

The subject of this essay is Basil William Robinson, who became an expert on Japanese swords and helped to inspire interest in the Japanese sword and associated art and crafts.

The composer Benjamin Britten (1913-1976) was only in Japan for twelve days, in 1956, but his exposure to Japanese culture had a powerful impact on his music, resulting in his opera Curlew River.

Bertrand Russell had a brief but complicated relationship with Japan. This account provides a chronology of his visit as well as the Japanese reaction to his ideas and character.

This portrait considers Kenneth Sansbury's (1905-1993) time as a missionary in Japan, which coincided with the beginning of the Pacific War.

Former ambassador John Whitehead's Canterbury address marking the fiftieth anniversary of VJ Day.

Captain Oswald Tuck RN played a very significant role in the teaching of Japanese to those involved in the Japanese Section of Bletchley Park during the Second World War. This essay charts his naval and teaching career, especially at the Bedford Japanese School.

Carmen Blacker (1924-2009) became one of Britain's most original and perceptive scholars of Japan, and this account charts the development of her love for the country and the impact this had upon her choice and pursuit of a career in academia.

Charles Alfred Fisher (1916-82) was an ex-prisoner of war, who played a significant, if forgotten role, in the rise of Japanese Studies.

This essay charts Charles Boxer's (1904-2000) abiding love for Japan throughout the Second World War and his internment as a POW, his position as chair of Portugese studies at London University, and his authorship of The Christian Century in Japan.

Charles Dunn (1915-1995) was one of the scholars responsible for the expansion of Japanese studies after the Second World War. This essay details his career as a scholar and dealings with the Japanese language.

This essay offers an account and analysis of the career of one of the most charismatic and forwardthinking leaders in the Japanese Securities Industry, Chino Yoshitoki's (1923-2004), along with his work with the Daiwa Anglo-Japanese Foundation.

This portrait charts the dual interaction of Christmas Humphreys (1901-83) with Japan as a junior at the Military Tribunal for the Far East and as a devotee of Buddhism.

This essay details the contribution of Frank Daniels (1900-83) towards teaching Japanese during the Second World War, and also his role in establishing a major centre for Japanese Studies at SOAS.

This essay details David Lean's interactions with Japan as a filmmaker through his two film projects The Wind Cannot Read and The Bridge on the River Kwai.

This portrait considers the complex figure of contradictions and extremes that is Dr Thomas Baty (1869-1954), the legal adviser to the Japanese Foreign Ministry from 1916-41.

Edmund Blunden returned to Japan as cultural adviser to the United Kingdom Liaison Mission. Here he describes rural Japan.

This essay details the life and career of teacher, explorer, and missionary Edward Gauntlett (1868-1956) in Japan, and his contributions to English education in the country as a whole.

Eikichi and Rosa Itoh carved out a niche in Anglo-Japanese relations that spanned the twentieth century. This portrait details their career and dealings with Britain.

This essay details Ernest Bevin's (1881-1951) role in Britain's post war attitudes and policies towards occupied Japan at the start of the Cold War, as Britain strived to remain a global power and public oppinion of Japan remained poor.

Lewis Bush was a POW who had lived in Japan prior to the war. This chapter comprises extracts from his account, The Road to Inamura.

This essay details the military career of Francis Festing (1912-76), along with his hobby as a connoisseur of Japanese swords and acts of reconcilliation.

This essay recounts Florence Freeth's (1871-1946) pioneering missionary work in Kyushu, where she established a number of kindergartens and nursaries.

Frank Hawley (1906-61) was the first post-war correspondent of The Times in Japan. He had already spent ten years in Japan as a young scholar, and a renowned collector of rare Japanese editions. This essay considers his journalistic and scholarly career.

This portrait covers the life and intellectual career of Freda Utley, aetheist, idealist, and writer, particularly as it related to Japan as an emerging power.

General Hamilton's (1853-1947) account of the Russo-Japanese war provides a fascinating insight into Britain's perspective on the conflict and on Japan's military capabilities in general.

This portrait details the controversial career of the journalist George Gorman (1888-1956) as a propagandist during the inter-war years and beyond, and his complicated and contradictory relationship with both sides of the conflict.

This portrait considers the journalistic and writing career of Hessell Tiltman (1897-1976) on Japan before, during, and after the Second World War.

Hisaakira Kanō's (1886-1963) family rode the tide of a rapidly changing Japan, being open to Western ways and modern thinking, but responding in ways that were rooted in his traditional samurai background.

This essay provides an account of Honda Sōichirō's (1906-1991) life, personality, and business relationship with Britain.

Honor Tracy gives a sardonic and anti-American view of Japan in the latter days of the Occupation.

This essay provides an account of the life and career of journalist Hugh Byas (1875-1945), in particular his writing on Japan's interbellum political development.

This essay details Ian Fleming's (1908-64) 1959 visit to Tokyo for the Sunday Times, as part of a five-week tour of his personal canon of 'the thrilling cities of the world', and the impact this and his subsequent visits to the country had on his writing.

Ian Nish, later Professor at SOAS, gives an account of his work in the Combined Services Detailed Interrogation Centre, where he translated contemporary newspapers, along with documents from during the war, and was later involved in the first post-war elections.

As the first British Ambassador to Japan after the War, Esler Dening (1897-1977) was the central figure in Anglo-Japanese relations at a time when British opinion was distinctly anti-Japanese.

In this interlude extracts from Mme Yoshida Yuki's memoir, Whispering Leaves in Grosvenor Square, are presented as snapshots of life in the London Embassy. 

This chapter puts the individual accounts included within Japan Experiences into the context of Anglo-Japanese post-war relations.

Ian Nish's Introduction to Part II of British Envoys to Japan: From the Alliance to Estrangement. .

Peter Lowe's Introduction to Part III of British Envoys in Japan: The Post-war Years.

Diplomat John Figgess was among the first of the British contingent to arrive in Tokyo in 1945 and in this chapter he describes his arrival and his work in Japan.

A consideration of George Allen's (1900-1982) career as an economist and lecturer in Japan. 

This essay gives an overview to some of the prominent businessmen who spent significant parts of their careers in Britain.

John Corner is offten described as a colourful and controversial biologist, and this portrait considers his career and contributions to botany.

This portrait covers the writing and journalistic career of John Morris in the build up to the Second World War, and his contact with George Orwell during his time with the BBC.

Kawakita Nagamasa (1903-1981) and his wife Kawakita Kashiko (1908-1993) drove Anglo-Japanese cinematic exchange in the mid to late 20th century, ensuring that high-quality British and Japanese films found new audiences.

This portrait provides an insight into the role of writer, director and impressario Kazuo Kikuta (1908-1973) in the Japanese commercial theatre industry, to which he introduced numerous West End and Broadway shows.

Kenneth Gardner (1924-95) held senior posts in the British Museum and British Library, and was instrumental in these posts in promoting Japanese culture and Anglo-Japanese relations. This essay charts his career and significance within his field and beyond, including his war service as part of Translators V.

Koizumi Gunji (1885-1965) played an important role in the spread and practise of judo in Britain. This essay details his long journey across the world to America, and then back to Britain as well as his importance as a practitioner of judo.

This portait gives an account of the activities of the Japan Consular Service outside of Japan in Korea, Taiwan, and Manchuria (then parts of the Japanese Empire), and how they paved the way for the 1943 Eden reforms which ended the distinction between the British diplomatic and consular services.

Dorothy Britton was born in Japan before the war and returned there during the Occupation. This chapter gives an account of her life as a bridge between Japanese and English cultures.

Lew Radbourne was a member of the British Commonwealth Occupation Force, attached to the Combined Services Detailed Interrogation Centre. In this chapter he describes being sent to Japan in 1947 after studying at SOAS.

Christopher Wood recalls his time as a British soldier in Shikoku in 1946.

This essay seeks to answer the question of Edward Wood's (1881-1959) attitudes towards Japan in his role as foreign secretary from 1938 to 1941, when relations between Britain and Japan were becoming increasingly frayed.

This essay discusses the involvement of Lord Hankey and R.A. Butler in the 'appeasement' of Japan and their attempts to bring about a rapprochement and stem the descent towards war.

Initially an ambassador for British aviation and friend of Japan, Lord Sempill (1893-1965) ended his career in disgrace having received payments for providing Japan with information during the Second World War.

This portrait details the life and career of scholar Louis Allen (1922-91), especially his wartime service and postwar reconciliation efforts.

Louis Allen studied Japanese at SOAS during the war, and worked in Burma as a translator and interrogator. Here he describes his experiences of that time, as well as a remarkable reunion twenty years later.

F.S.G Piggott was one of a small number of japanophiles left in post-war Britain, preferring to overlook the worst excesses of Japan's pre-war leaders. This chapter details his nostalgic view of life in pre-war Japan.

This essay details the miltary and diplomatic career of Major-General F.S.G. Piggott (1883-1966), whose efforts to secure peace and improve relations between Japan and Britain were fatally clouded by an uncritical love for Japan. Following the Pacific War he devoted his life to the restoration of Anglo-Japanese friendship.

This chapter details Malcolm Kennedy's (1895-1935) time in Japan as an army officer sent to study Japanese while attached to a Japanese army unit, his subsequent work at Shell Oil, and his stance as an apologist in the build up to the Second World War.

This essay explores their relationship between Richard Storry - one of Britain's leading historians of Japan - and leading Japanese intellectual Marumaya Masao (1914-96), both of whom pioneered analysis of the Pacific War's implications for Japan. 

Michio Morishima (1923-2004) was one of Japan's few internationally renowned economists in the second half of the twentieth century. This portrait details his life and career both in and oustide of Japan, which he left due to dissatisfaction with the academic establishment.

Morita Akio (1921-99) was one of the main driving forces behind the Sony Corporation. This essay details his career, personality, and business philosophy, as well as his relationship with Britain.

John Morris was one of a handful of British individuals without service connections in Japan in the early days of the occupation. Having written about his experiences in Japan prior to the war, he set off to write a sequel.

The essay details the respect and attention Norman Macrae (1921-2010) was given by Japanese economists and politicians for his remarkable insights into the Japanese economy as deputy editor of the Economist, even though he spoke no Japanese and had never lived in Japan.

This portrait details the scholarly career of P.G. O'Neill (1924-2012), his study of the Japanese language, Japanese festivals and Nō theatre.

Paul Bates, who studied at SOAS before spending time with the British Commonwealth Occupation Force, sums up his time in the Occupation.

William Gerard Beasley, subsequently a professor at SOAS, arrived in Japan in 1945 with the Americans. This chapter comprises extracts from a talk given on his experiences of the flurry of activity in the early occupation, particularly with regard to demilitarization and early post-war economics.

Peter Bates sums up the feelings of the arriving British troops and their impressions.

As a prisoner of war, Peter Dean was one of the first westerners to experience Japan after the surrender.

This portrait considers Peter Hewett's (1920-82) major contribution to the post-war growth inAnglo-Japanese trade.

Peter Parker reached Japan in October 1945 as a British officer. In this chapter he describes his experiences both of Japan and the American Occupation.

This portrait details Philip Malins' (1919-) military career and key role of  in postwar reconciliation between Britain and Japan.

Shortly before his resignation as Prime Minister in 1954 Yoshida Shigeru visited Britain. This essay examines the political controversy surrounding Yoshida's visit, as well as the visit itself and an assessment of its success.

R.H. Blythe (1898-1964) was not a scholar, but his writing had a profound influence upon the popular British understanding of Zen Buddhism, haiku and the Japanese monarchy.

Among the outstanding students of Japanese during the war, Ronald Doore was so succesful that he was asked to stay on at SOAS as an additional teacher. He had to wait five years after the war for his first trip to Japan, and here he gives his account of Japan in the penultimate year of the Occupation.

Within writer R.V.C. Bodley's (1892-1970) long and varied life lies a year in which his journalistic career took him to Japan. This essay details his writings relating to the country.

This portrait charts the career of Ron Duckenfield (1917-2010) throughout the Second World War, as a fighter pilot and as a prisoner-of-war under the Japanese, and subsequently as air attaché to the British Embassy in Tokyo.

Austin (1863-1937) and Neville Chamberlain (1869-1940) played an important role in British public life, and particularly in the formation of foreign policy. This essay investigates Japanese perceptions and interpretations of their careers.

Malcolm MacDonald (1901-81) presided over an era of Anglo-Japanese relations during which he was forced to consider Japan's position post Second World War and its impact upon the British Empire. This essay acknowledges his relative ambivelance towards Japan, but also his key role in diplomacy with the country.

This essay considers how the missionary career of Samuel Heaslett (1875-1947) - his experiences and struggles - mirrors the general decline of British influence in Japan.

Saitō Takeshi (1887-1982) contributed significantly to the development of English Studies in Japan, as well as inspiring the field of 'British [Cultural] Studies', and this portrait outlines his impact on academia in Japan.

Shigemitsu Mamoru (1887-1957) served as Ambassador to Britain from 1938-41, and his earlier career was also  intertwined with the UK. This essay offers an assessment of Shigemitsu Mamoru's role in Japanese diplomacy as a hugely influential but nonetheless difficult to categorise figure.

Shigemitsu Mamoru (1887-1957) served as Ambassador to Britain from 1938-41, and his earlier career was also intertwined with the UK. This essay offers an assessment of Shigemitsu Mamoru's role in Japanese diplomacy as a hugely influential but nonetheless difficult to categorise figure.

This portrait charts the life and influence of the complicated and enigmatic Shirasu Jirō (1902-1985), described here as 'a symbol of his time' having lived through some of the best and worst episodes of Anglo-Japanese relations. During his life, he was a student at Cambridge, journalist, businessman, farmer and a crucial link between the Japanese government and the office of the Supreme Commander Allied Powers.

Sir Alvary Gascgoine (1946-1951) headed the British liaison mission in Tokyo from 1946 to '51, and was responsible for establishing postive relations with General Douglas MacArthur.

Sir Alvary Gascgoine (1946-1951) headed the British liaison mission in Tokyo from 1946 to '51, and was responsible for establishing postive relations with General Douglas MacArthur.

This portrait seeks to assess Foreign Secretary Anthony Eden's (1897-1977) attitude towards Britain's former ally and contemporary adversary, Japan, as well as detail his efforts to rebuild relations in the wake of the bitter legacy of the Pacific War.

Concerning Sir Esler Dening (1897-1977) as a main figure in Anglo-Japanese relations following the ending of the Pacific War, at a time when British opinion was anti-Japanese. 

Rather than assessing Sir Francis Lindley (1872-1950) as a diplomat, this portrait provides an assessment of his character through the lens of his second term in Japan and as chairman of the Council of the Japan Society of London

Rather than assessing Sir Francis Lindley (1872-1950) as a diplomat, this portrait provides an assessment of his character through the lens of his second term in Japan and as chairman of the Council of the Japan Society of London

This profile considers equally Sir George Sansom's (1883-1965) career as a diplomat, in which he pioneered the serious study of the Japanese economy, and historian. 

This profile considers equally Sir George Sansom's (1883-1965) career as a diplomat, scholar and historian. 

This essay provides an account of the life and career of Sir John Figgess (1909-97), businessman, intelligence officer, diplomat and art expert.

This portrait offers an analysis of Sir John Simon's (1873-1954) flawed role in the foreign office and in Anglo-Japanese relations as a whole as they pertained to the Manchurian crisis.

 Sir John Tilley (1869-1951) was ambassador in Tokyo from 1926-31, and this essay covers his time in office and limited achievements.

 Sir John Tilley (1869-1951) was ambassador in Tokyo from 1926-31, and this essay covers his time in office and limited achievements.

This essay provides an account of Julian Ridsdale's (1915-2004) interest in Japan and politics, and how these two came together in his long service to Anglo-Japanese Parliamentary relations.

Intertwined throughout Miles Lampson's (1880-1964) diplomatic career were dealings with and a genuine affection for Japan. This biography traces those dealings, beginning with his involvement in the 1906 Garter Mission, and provides a portrait of this British diplomatic figure.

Businessman Sir Peter Parker (1924-2002) made an outstanding contribution to Anglo-Japanese relations in the final decades of the twentieth century. This essay offers an account and analysis of his career and impact in relation to Japan.

The period in which Sir Robert Clive (1877-1948) was Ambassador to Japan (1934-37) has been the subject of much study, but the man himself remains a mystery. This essay contends that this was because there was little friction between the Embassy and London despite this being a particularly trying time.

The period in which Sir Robert Clive (1877-1948) was Ambassador to Japan (1934-37) has been the subject of much study, but the man himself remains a mystery. This essay contends that this was because there was little friction between the Embassy and London at this difficult time.

This essay charts the diplomatic career of Robert Craigie (1937-1941) in Japan, one of the most controversial subjects in the history of inter-war Anglo-Japanese relations.

This essay charts the diplomatic career of Robert Craigie (1937-1941) in Japan, one of the most controversial subjects in the history of inter-war Anglo-Japanese relations.

Robert Scott’s (1905-82) career goes some way to illustrate Japan’s impact on the world in the 20th Century, particularly with regard to British and American foreign policy in South East Asia following the Second World War.

Vere Redman (1901-1975) worked, throughout his career as a journalist, press attaché, and in the British Ministry of Information, to contribute to understanding between British and Japanese. This essay recounts his journalistic efforts as they relate to Anglo-Japanese relations.

Despite there being very little of Japan in Somerset Maugham's (1874-1965) writings, he spent much time there and gained much popularity among the Japanese. This essay offers an account and analysis of Maugham's time in Japan.

This essay considers the careers of journalists and writers in post-war occupied Japan, and the impact of their writing upon British perceptions of Japan.

This portrait examines the six year internment of businessman Takayuki Eguchi in Pentonville prison during the Second World War.

This portrait considers how Arthur Edwardes emerges as a shadowy and perhaps naive figure on the edge of Anglo-Japanese relations in the build up to the Second World War.

This essay considers three editors of the Japan Chronicle, among them two of the most perceptive writers on Japan anywhere, covering the period from 1891 to 1940.

This essay uses the tragic death of Melville James Cox (1885-1940) in Tokyo to assess the misconduct of the Kempeitai in arresting British citizens during the Second World War.

This volume was published on the occasion of the centenary of the Japan Society, and in this chapter Sir Hugh Cortazzi chronicles its hundred year history, from its founding at the 1891 Congress of Orientalists, via the two world wars and a number of royal visits, through to the 1991 Japan Festival and an assessment of the Society's then challenging state of affairs.

This article traces the establishment of the Japanese embassy in London from 1870 to 1978, including details of some of the pivotal events in the embassy’s history.

One of the oldest Japanese institutions in London, the Nippon club traces it origins back to 1881 when groups of Japanese gathered monthly in the Strand. This portrait details its establishment and development.

This chapter considers the career of Admiral Yamanashi Katsunoshin (1877-1967) including his key involvement in the Naval Limitations Treaty and time in the Imperial Japanese Navy. 

This essay provides an account and analysis of The Shōwa Emperor's (Hirohito's) visit to Britain in 1970. It marked the first Japanese state visit to Britian, as well as the first time a Japanese emperor had ever made a visit abroad.

Tōgō Heihachirō's (1848-1934) naval career was one intimately interlinked with Britain, and this essay charts his illustrious role in international diplomacy and the admiralty of the Japanese Imperial Navy.

Timothy Conroy (1883-1935) had a high opinion of his knowledge pertaining to Imperial Japan, one which was not shared widely other than in Fleet Street. However, the publication of his book The Menace of Japan in 1933 coincided with the explosion of Japanese military activity in China, a fact that led considerable credibility to his writings.

This portrait sketches the life, attitude and career of the renowned judo practitioner Trevor Pryce Leggett (1914-2000).

In this chapter, the lives of Sir Francis Taylor Piggott (1852-1925) and his son F.S.G. Piggott (1883-1966) are detailed in their relation to Japan and involvement with the Japan Society of London. Sir Francis was one of the founders of the Society, and his son was the guiding energy behind its post-war revival.

This essay details Urushiba Mokuchū's (1889-1953) life and career in Britain as a print artist, including his close collaboration with Frank Brangwyn.

This essay details Uyeno Yutaka's (1915- ) family, personal, and business history specifically as it relates to interactions with Britain in the pertrochemical industry.

This essay details the role of William Patrick - Britain's appointed judge - in the International Military Tribunal for the Far East, 1946-48, along with the problems faced by the Tribunal.

This portrait details the colourful teaching career of the great literary scholar and critic William Empson (1906-84) in Japan, and provides a fascinating insight into the life and attitudes of an eccentric foreigner in an unfamiliar and increasingly threatening culture.

William Beasley (1919-2006) was a pioneer in introducing Japanese history into British academic circles as a teacher, researcher and author. This essay recounts his career in academia.

The politically active part of Sir Winston Churchill's (1874-1965) life almost coincided with the emergence, decline and rebirth of modern Japan. This essay details Churchill's part in Anglo-Japanese relations both pre and post Second World War.

Yanada Senji (1906-1972) played a key role in the wartime training of translators and interrogators at SOAS. This portait details his academic career and the deep personal struggles associated with providing key assistance to the war effort against his homeland.

This essay details colonial studies scholar Yanaihara Tadao's (1893-1961) impressions during his 1920-21 tour of Britain, and examines the ways in which his study abroad and his Christian beliefs influenced his thought.

Yone Noguchi (1875-1947) was the first Japanese-born writer to publish poetry in English, and had links with many famous English literary figures. This portrait charts his poetic career including his visits to the USA and London.

Yoshida Ken'ichi, bunshi, writer, and essayist devoted his entire life to literature (1912-77). This essay details his interaction with English literature and culture and his writing career, both in Japan and Britain.

This portrait details the two years Yoshida Shigeru (1878-1941) and Mme Yoshida spent at the London embassy from 1936-38 - a difficult period in Anglo-Japanese relations.

This portrait details the two years Yoshida Shigeru (1878-1967) and Mme Yoshida spent at the London embassy from 1936-38 - a troubling period for both of them as they did what they could to stabilise Anglo-Japanese relations.