List of foreign-born samurai in Japan
Updated: 11/4/2025, 4:35:32 PM Wikipedia source
This is a list of foreign-born people who became samurai in Japan. During the Edo period (1603–1868), some foreigners in Japan were granted privileges associated with samurai, including fiefs or stipends and the right to carry two swords. Even earlier, during the Azuchi–Momoyama period (1568–1600), certain foreigners received similar benefits. Whether these individuals were members of the warrior class (bushi) is a subject of debate among some historians. While debate among some historians exist, the general historical consensus is that those individuals were most likely members of the warrior class (bushi) and thus, were samurai.
Tables
· List
unknown
unknown
Birthplace
Portuguese Mozambique?(now Mozambique)
Original name
unknown
Original occupation
Servant of Jesuit missionary Alessandro Valignano
Year ofarrival
1579
Japanese name
Yasuke弥助
Lord
Oda Nobunaga
Stipend, title, and misc. notes
Served as Weapon-bearer and bodyguard. He fought during the Honnō-ji incident. He accompanied Nobunaga during the inspection tour of the recently conquered Koshu.
Kim Yeo-cheol(金如鐵)
Kim Yeo-cheol(金如鐵)
Birthplace
Hanseong, Joseon(now South Korea)
Original name
Kim Yeo-cheol(金如鐵)
Original occupation
Son of Kim Si-seong (金時省), civil officer of Joseon
Year ofarrival
1592
Japanese name
Wakita Naokata脇田直賢
Lord
Maeda Toshinaga→Maeda Toshitsune→Maeda Mitsutaka→Maeda Tsunanori
Stipend, title, and misc. notes
He received a stipend of 240 koku later increased to 1,000 koku. Received the Head of Pages title. Commissioner of Kanazawa city. He served in the Summer Campaign of the Siege of Osaka.
unknown
unknown
Birthplace
Joseon
Original name
unknown
Original occupation
Son of Jeung Cheong-gwan (曾淸官), commanding officer of Joseon
Year ofarrival
1598
Japanese name
Soga Seikan曾我清官
Lord
Nakagawa Hidenari
Stipend, title, and misc. notes
He received a stipend of 150 koku. Page of Hidenari.
Yi Seong-hyeon(李聖賢)
Yi Seong-hyeon(李聖賢)
Birthplace
Joseon
Original name
Yi Seong-hyeon(李聖賢)
Original occupation
Son of Yi Bok-nam, commander of Joseon
Year ofarrival
1598
Japanese name
Rinoie Motohiro李家元宥
Lord
Mōri Terumoto→Mōri Hidenari
Stipend, title, and misc. notes
100 koku. Adviser of the Mori clan. He was the swordsman who received the menkyo of the Yagyū Shinkage-ryū.
Jan Joosten van Lodensteijn
Jan Joosten van Lodensteijn
Birthplace
Delft, Dutch Republic
Original name
Jan Joosten van Lodensteijn
Original occupation
Mate of the De Liefde, a Dutch ship
Year ofarrival
1600
Japanese name
Yayōsu耶楊子
Lord
Tokugawa Ieyasu→Tokugawa Hidetada
Stipend, title, and misc. notes
He was given a stipend of 100 koku. He was given the rank of Hatamoto and 50 servants. Under the Tokugawa Shogunate, he chartered several Red Seal Ships.
William Adams
William Adams
Birthplace
Gillingham, Kent, Kingdom of England
Original name
William Adams
Original occupation
Pilot of the De Liefde, a Dutch ship
Year ofarrival
1600
Japanese name
Miura Anjin (the pilot of Miura)三浦按針
Lord
Tokugawa Ieyasu→Tokugawa Hidetada
Stipend, title, and misc. notes
250 koku. He was granted the rank of Hatamoto, a fief and 80-90 servants. Interpreter and shipwright of the Tokugawa Shogunate. Adams was the model for the character John Blackthorne in James Clavell's novel Shōgun (1975).
unknown
unknown
Birthplace
Joseon
Original name
unknown
Original occupation
unknown
Year ofarrival
unknown
Japanese name
Yagyū Shume柳生主馬
Lord
Yagyū Munenori→Yagyū "Jūbei" Mitsuyoshi→Yagyū Munefuyu
Stipend, title, and misc. notes
Retainer of the Yagyū clan. 200 koku? He married the sister of Yagyū "Hyōgonosuke" Toshitoshi.
Henry Schnell
Henry Schnell
Birthplace
Kingdom of Prussia
Original name
Henry Schnell
Original occupation
Soldier and arms dealer
Year ofarrival
1860s
Japanese name
Hiramatsu Buhei平松武兵衛
Lord
Matsudaira Katamori
Stipend, title, and misc. notes
Served the Aizu domain as a military instructor and procurer of weapons. Given the right to bear swords, a mansion in the castle town of Wakamatsu and retainers.
Eugène Collache
Eugène Collache
Birthplace
July Monarchy
Original name
Eugène Collache
Original occupation
Adventurer and Navy officer
Year ofarrival
1868
Japanese name
unknown
Lord
unknown
Stipend, title, and misc. notes
Fought in Japan for the shōgun during the Boshin War.
| Birthplace | Original name | Original occupation | Year ofarrival | Japanese name | Lord | Stipend, title, and misc. notes |
| Portuguese Mozambique?(now Mozambique) | unknown | Servant of Jesuit missionary Alessandro Valignano | 1579 | Yasuke弥助 | Oda Nobunaga | Served as Weapon-bearer and bodyguard. He fought during the Honnō-ji incident. He accompanied Nobunaga during the inspection tour of the recently conquered Koshu. |
| Hanseong, Joseon(now South Korea) | Kim Yeo-cheol(金如鐵) | Son of Kim Si-seong (金時省), civil officer of Joseon | 1592 | Wakita Naokata脇田直賢 | Maeda Toshinaga→Maeda Toshitsune→Maeda Mitsutaka→Maeda Tsunanori | He received a stipend of 240 koku later increased to 1,000 koku. Received the Head of Pages title. Commissioner of Kanazawa city. He served in the Summer Campaign of the Siege of Osaka. |
| Joseon | unknown | Son of Jeung Cheong-gwan (曾淸官), commanding officer of Joseon | 1598 | Soga Seikan曾我清官 | Nakagawa Hidenari | He received a stipend of 150 koku. Page of Hidenari. |
| Joseon | Yi Seong-hyeon(李聖賢) | Son of Yi Bok-nam, commander of Joseon | 1598 | Rinoie Motohiro李家元宥 | Mōri Terumoto→Mōri Hidenari | 100 koku. Adviser of the Mori clan. He was the swordsman who received the menkyo of the Yagyū Shinkage-ryū. |
| Delft, Dutch Republic | Jan Joosten van Lodensteijn | Mate of the De Liefde, a Dutch ship | 1600 | Yayōsu耶楊子 | Tokugawa Ieyasu→Tokugawa Hidetada | He was given a stipend of 100 koku. He was given the rank of Hatamoto and 50 servants. Under the Tokugawa Shogunate, he chartered several Red Seal Ships. |
| Gillingham, Kent, Kingdom of England | William Adams | Pilot of the De Liefde, a Dutch ship | 1600 | Miura Anjin (the pilot of Miura)三浦按針 | Tokugawa Ieyasu→Tokugawa Hidetada | 250 koku. He was granted the rank of Hatamoto, a fief and 80-90 servants. Interpreter and shipwright of the Tokugawa Shogunate. Adams was the model for the character John Blackthorne in James Clavell's novel Shōgun (1975). |
| Joseon | unknown | unknown | unknown | Yagyū Shume柳生主馬 | Yagyū Munenori→Yagyū "Jūbei" Mitsuyoshi→Yagyū Munefuyu | Retainer of the Yagyū clan. 200 koku? He married the sister of Yagyū "Hyōgonosuke" Toshitoshi. |
| Henan, Ming Dynasty(now China) | Lan Huirong(藍會榮) | The member of the inner circle of the Ming dynasty | After 1624 | Kawaminami Genbei (First)河南源兵衛 | Shimazu Iehisa | 300 koku. He was a political refugee from the Ming, and the Tōtsūji (Chinese translator) of the Satsuma domain. He was given the right to bear swords. |
| Kingdom of Prussia | Henry Schnell | Soldier and arms dealer | 1860s | Hiramatsu Buhei平松武兵衛 | Matsudaira Katamori | Served the Aizu domain as a military instructor and procurer of weapons. Given the right to bear swords, a mansion in the castle town of Wakamatsu and retainers. |
| July Monarchy | Eugène Collache | Adventurer and Navy officer | 1868 | unknown | unknown | Fought in Japan for the shōgun during the Boshin War. |
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