Kazuhiko Shiraiwa
Modern Japanese Political Documents Division
Reference and Special Collections Department

This article is a translation of the article in Japanese of the same title
in NDL Monthly Bulletin No. 585 (December 2009).

During the last days of the Tokugawa Shogunate, Dutch military-related books were circulated all over Japan via the Trading Post in Nagasaki. Referring to the books, feudal domains installed gun batteries and the Shogunate embarked upon the establishment of a modern army and navy in addition to the batteries. As for military uniforms to be adopted by the modernized army, the replacement of linked mail (kusari katabira) and armor and helmet set (kacchuu) then favored by the samurai with Dutch-style military gear was reviewed and put into effect.

Here we introduce Oranda gunsozu (lit. Dutch Military Costumes and Equipments  Illustrated: see the figure 1 for the image and the bottom of page for the original Dutch title), a book imported from the Netherlands for the express purpose of reference for military reforms in Japan. It comprises a text part and an illustrated part describing the uniform, equipment and insignia of the Royal Netherlands Army for each rank.

figure 1: Oranda gunsozu Illustration No. 19

Although the text part is very detailed, complete with a chronological table of military costumes and equipments since 1814, the illustrated part proved to be far more popular in late Edo Japan. Numerous copies and picture scrolls were produced based on it; one such example is Oranda kangun no fukushoku oyobi gunso ryakuzu (lit. Uniforms Colors and Sketched Military Equipments of the Official Dutch Army:NDL call number W442-30), a translation by Masatami Yamawaki published by the Kobu Juku (a private military academy founded at Akasaka, Edo in 1851) in 1858 (figure 2).

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figure 2: Oranda kangun no
fukushoku oyobi gunso
ryakuzu Illustration No. 19

In publishing a Japanese translation, 48 illustrations out of the total 51, leaving out the insignia, were reproduced by Fuminari Murakami in the same order as the original. However, the pictures in the translated work were reduced in size and detail; 9 illustrations are contained on each page. Unfortunately, the copy in the NDL collection has a page missing, lacking total of 18 illustrations, from no.22 to no.39.

The Oranda gunsozu is also in the collection of Takeo City Library and Historical Museum and copies of the illustrated part are possessed by the Tsuyama Archives of Western Learning and Leiden University. The book is known to have an addendum published in 1826 but it is not in our collection.

Leather-made backpacks (Ransel in Dutch) carried by infantrymen in the illustrations were adopted by the Imperial Japanese Army during the Meiji period. An offshoot of the military backpack is randoseru, a school satchel used by primary school students. We had not yet embraced randoserus for school in the early Meiji; children carried their writing slates wrapped in cloth (furoshiki) or carried them unwrapped (figure 3.)

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figure 3: Illustrated cover of
Wagen kokyo, a textbook of
moral education in Meiji period
< NDL call no.: YDM8833 >

In 1885, the primary school of Gakushuin adopted randoseru as a school bag for the first time in Japan (figure 4). An in-school notice quoted in Volume 1 of Gakushuin hyakunenshi (lit. A Hundred Years’ History of Gakushuin) published in 1981 (NDL call number FB22-1471) says: “In view of following martial spirit of European nations, we would like to gradually regularize the use of infantry-style randoseru as a bag for students to carry books. Those obtaining a new bag are strongly recommended either to remodel it after that adopted in our infantry class or to purchase it from the school at approximately 2.60 yen.”

figure 4: Clothing instruction
for students of Gakushuin as
set out in August 1890. (from
Volume 1 of Gakushuin hyakunenshi p. 287)

The use of randoseru gradually spread to schools around the country; by 1960s, it had become nationwide school kit. Thus, the military backpack introduced to Edo-Meiji Japan through Oranda gunsozu has transformed itself to randoseru, a primary school satchel, and become a common sight all over Japan.

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Teupken, J.F. Beschrijving hoedanig de koninklijke Nederlandsche troepen en alle in militaire betrekking staande personen gekleed, geëquipeerd en gewapend zijn...gevolgd van 51 platen met eene titelplaat, voorstellende officieren en manschappen van alle wapenen, in hunne volle kleeding en wapenrusting.
’s Gravenhage, Gebroeders Van Cleef, 1823. 10,110,20 p. 51 pl. < NDL call no.: 蘭-832>

Reference
- Kazuo Katagiri, “Oranda kangun no fukushoku oyobi gunso ryakuzu no gensho to sono fuzu no mosha-zu o megutte”, Kobijutsu (66), pp.62-78, 1983.4.
- Takeo City Library and Historical Museum, Rangaku no kita michi : Takeo Ryoshu no kaimono-cho. 2004.

*Online digital exhibition “Japan-Netherlands Exchange In the Edo Period”containing this material is open from December 16, 2009. Related article.
*The material in figure 3 is available in the Digital Library from the Meiji Era.

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