O regresso de Portugal ao Japão

: a representação diplomática portuguesa em solo nipónico : 1860-1926

Abstract

This thesis on the diplomatic relations between Portugal and Japan from 1860 to 1926 outlines the general orientation of Portuguese foreign policy in Japan and analyses its fluctuations. It favours the point of view of the Portuguese diplomats in Japan, in their relations with the Japanese authorities and in their correspondence with the central government in Lisbon. This official diplomatic correspondence offers enough elements to explore the often difficult articulation between the policy set by the Portuguese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the heavily conditioned action of the Portuguese diplomats in Japan, due in great part to the distance separating both countries; to examine the western understanding of the Asian other, and how the way the Portuguese diplomats viewed both the Japanese and the Asian Portuguese populations influenced their discourse and action; and lastly, to understand the fluctuations in vigour and visibility which characterized the Portuguese diplomatic presence in Japan, usually closely related to the degree of experience of each diplomat.

Date of Award	16 Jan 2012
Original language	Portuguese
Awarding Institution	Universidade Católica Portuguesa
Supervisor	Pedro Aires Oliveira (Supervisor), Ana Fernandes Pinto (Co-Supervisor) & Luís Filipe F. R. Thomaz (Co-Supervisor)