Jesuit missionary Francis Xavier arrived at Kagoshima (Satsuma, Kyūshū), launching the Jesuit mission in Japan and beginning organized Christian evangelization there.
Xavier met the local daimyō Shimazu Takahisa and obtained authorization to preach—an early example of mission progress depending on daimyo patronage and local political conditions.
Daimyō Ōmura Sumitada converted and was baptized, often cited as the first Christian daimyō. Elite conversions like this provided protection for missionaries and helped Christian communities grow in Kyūshū.
With Oda Nobunaga’s support, Jesuits established the prominent Kyoto church often known as Nanban-ji, strengthening the mission’s foothold in the political-cultural center of Japan.
Powerful Kyūshū daimyō Ōtomo Sōrin was baptized as Francisco, deepening Jesuit influence in Bungo and supporting institutions (churches, schools, charitable works) associated with the mission.
Daimyō Arima Harunobu converted (baptismal name Protasius), expanding the network of Christian domains in Kyūshū and providing new bases for seminaries and mission work.
Jesuit Visitor Alessandro Valignano reached Japan and promoted strategies such as cultural adaptation and the training of Japanese clergy, shaping the mission’s institutional development.
A seminary was created in Arima domain (using a converted Buddhist site) to educate Japanese Christians for clerical and catechetical roles—an important step toward a locally rooted church.
Through the Donation of Bartolomeu, Ōmura Sumitada ceded Nagasaki and Mogi to Jesuit administration, turning Nagasaki into a central hub for mission activity and Portuguese-connected trade networks.
Four Japanese Christian youths left Nagasaki as part of the Tenshō embassy, a Jesuit-sponsored diplomatic and cultural mission that showcased emerging Japanese Christian elites to European audiences.
The Tenshō envoys were received in Rome and met Pope Gregory XIII, highlighting the global ambitions of the Jesuit mission and reinforcing ties between Japanese Christian communities and Catholic Europe.
Toyotomi Hideyoshi’s Bateren Edict ordered the expulsion of Christian missionaries and restricted mission activity—an early, pivotal turn from toleration toward state suppression.
After Valignano brought a movable-type press back to Japan, printing began at Katsusa. The Kirishitan-ban publications (religious and linguistic works) became key tools for evangelization and education.
The Spanish galleon San Felipe wrecked on the Japanese coast; the ensuing controversy intensified suspicions linking missionaries with foreign expansion, helping set the stage for harsher punishments.
Twenty-six Christians (Japanese believers and foreign clergy) were executed at Nishizaka, Nagasaki, becoming emblematic martyrs and signaling a major escalation in the coercive suppression of Christianity.
The Tokugawa regime promulgated an edict prohibiting Christianity and ordering the expulsion of missionaries, ending the period of open Jesuit mission expansion and driving Christian communities underground.
Jesuit missions in Japan and the rise of Christian communities before the 1614 ban (1549–1614)
