Townsend Harris

Biography

Townsend Harris was a distinguished American diplomat and merchant who played a crucial role in opening Japan to Western trade and diplomatic relations during the mid-nineteenth century. As the first U.S. Consul General to Japan, he negotiated the Harris Treaty of 1858, which established formal commercial and diplomatic relations between the United States and Japan. His efforts were instrumental in ending Japan's period of isolation and facilitating the nation's eventual modernization during the Meiji Restoration.