A World of Difference The VOC and Japan's economic policy,
1640-1715 Although much research in this field since the 1670s
has been based on Japanese documents, foreign relations of
Tokugawa Japan (1603-1867) have never been thoroughly examined
from the perspective of Dutch trade reports. The purpose of the
dissertation by Kayoko Fujita is to investigate the foreign and
economic policies of Japan between 1640 and 1715, as observed by
the Dutch East India Company (VOC). By KAYOKO FUJITA My study is
based on the entries concerning the Dutch factory in Nagasaki
found both in the Generale Missiven, namely, the series of
official reports from the VOC in Batavia to its headquarters in
the Dutch Republic, and in the response information flow known
as the Patriasche Missiven. A comparison of these two types of
documents reveal how Dutch authorities in the East Indies and in
Europe thought of the transformation of Japan, and how they
tried to deal with it. Presently, I am preparing the Dutch
transcription as well as a