Japan and the Japanese

NOBUNANGA. 81
account in a long and very interesting letter of Almeida's. Hia
visit to Miako was only temporary. Froez remained there, and
from him we have a long series of letters, historical and descriptive,
as well as religious, which, for a period of thirty years follow
ing, throw great light on the history and internal condition of
Japan.
At this time the entire empire, since and at
present so stable,
was the scene of constant revolutions. Very shortly after Froez'a
arrival Mioxindono and Daxandono conspired against their patron,
dethroned him, and drove him to cut himself open, as did great
numbers of his relatives and partisans. These nobles, hitherto
favorable to the missionaries, now published an edict against them,
probably to secure the favor of the bonzes ; and Vilela and Froez
were thus again driven to take refuge at Sakai, where they had
a few converts. But the believers at Miako stood firm, and a new
revolution soon occurred, headed by a noble called Vatondono, and
by Nobunanga, king of VOARI, which province adjoined the
emperor's special territory on the east, a prince whose military
prowess had already made him from a petty noble the master of
eighteen provinces in the eastern part of Nipon.
In 1566 Vatondono and Nobunanga proclaimed as emperor a
brother of the late one a bonze who had escaped from the rebels.
Miako was regained, and the new emperor established there A. D.
1667. All real authority remained, however, with Nobunanga,
who showed himself very hostile to the Buddhist bonzes, they hav-
ing generally taken the side of the late rebels. He even destroyed
many of their temples, using the idols which they contained as
materials for a new palace. He easily granted to Vatondono, who
was himself a sort of half convert, the reestablishment of the mis-
sionaries at Miako, which was soon confirmed by an imperial edict,
issued in 1568 ; and, in spite of an attempt at interference on the
part of the Dairi'the new religion, under the protection of Vaton-
dono, who was appointed governor of Miako, soon
nourishing
reached a very
condition.
To this
prosperity at Miako a strong contrast was, however, presented
by the state of things
at Amanguchi, whence the missiona-
ries were expelled by the king of Naugato, though the church thera
was still kept alive by the zeal and constancy of some of the con.