A few years before the first English ship reached Japan, William Adams a navigator and sailor arrived in Japan on a Dutch ship. William came from Gillingham and this annual festival is a celebration of the life of Will Adams who left England in Tudor times and, having become an experienced and important sailor and Captain, ended up in Japan becoming a Samurai (a title bestowed by the Shogun and an incredible honour for a foreigner) The event focuses on the Tudor England that Adams would have grown up in, the experiences as a sailor that he would have undergone and then the Japanese life he would have encountered on his arrival. The festival also features many aspects of contemporary Japanese culture Whilst there is an educational feel to the event it is still very much a fun day out for the family with activities for everyone of all ages.
Refreshments and both Japanese and traditional English food will be available (but no alcohol)
Download the day’s programme here! WillAdamsProgramme2013
The Will Adams festival is support and managed by Medway Council. See Whatson Medway
For information about the towns of the Medway（メドウェイ市) you can download a leaflet here in Japanese:
You can also contact the Japan Group at Medway Visitor Information Centre
メドウェイ国際交流委員会Japanグループ: medwayjapangroup@aol.com Tel: +44 (0)1634 811 172
Medway Visitor Information Centre, 95 High Street, Rochester, Kent, ME1 1LX Tel: +44 (0)1634 338141
http://www.visitmedway.org
You may be interested in ‘Who was William Adams?’ A talk on 29 October. For more details please see here: http://japan400.org/event/who-was-william-adams/