16世纪40年代,欧洲人首次到达日本,他们在日本进行了长达一个世纪的传教和经商,那个时期被称为日本的“切支丹(基督教)时代”。17世纪初,新教徒英国人首登日本,但英国商馆仅在日本经营了10年(1613-1623年)便被关闭。17世纪初的英日贸易虽然短暂,这是东西方两大岛国的首次接触,因此具有特殊意义。 In the 1640s, Europeans first arrived in Japan. They conducted a century-long mission and business in Japan, which was called “the era of the Chieti-Dan (Christianity)” in Japan. At the beginning of the 17th century, Protestants were the first to visit Japan, but British merchants were closed for only 10 years (1613-1623) in Japan. Although the brief trade between Britain and Japan in the early 17th century was the first contact between the two eastern and western island nations, it is of special significance.