Nishiki Fukuzawa

"She was just a gentle, old-fashioned grandmother. Despite being the wife of Yukichi Fukuzawa, she didn't know a word of English, didn't eat butter... but she would boast that she could drink milk. So, we thought of our grandmother as a symbol of the old era." This is a recollection by Eiichi Kiyooka, a grandson of Yukichi Fukuzawa (from "Talking About My Father Yukichi"). This grandmother refers to Yukichi's wife, Nishiki. Yukichi adored his wife, calling her "Okin-san," and respected and loved her throughout his life. Yukichi reportedly told his grandson Kiyooka, "No matter what I leave in your grandmother's care, she never loses it. The fact that I can work without worry and that we have managed to save some wealth is entirely thanks to her" (ibid). On the other hand, his fourth daughter, Taki, reflected on her mother Nishiki, saying, "I don't think my mother understood my father's ideas at all. Since most people of that time didn't understand what my father said, it's no wonder my mother didn't either" (from "Yukichi Fukuzawa in Everyday Clothes").

Nishiki was born in 1845 at the Nakatsu Domain residence in Shiodome, Edo, as the second daughter of the Toki family. According to the "Biography of Yukichi Fukuzawa's Children" written by Yukichi in 1876, the Toki family was a branch of the Okudaira family, who were the chief retainers of the Nakatsu Domain. Nishiki's mother, Hama, was the daughter of the Inoue clan of the Yodo Domain, and her father, Tarohachi, served as a "yojin-yaku" (steward). Yukichi described him as a "person of high character who had transcended worldly desires."

According to stories Eiichi Kiyooka heard from his mother, Nishiki was named "Kan" in her childhood, but she disliked the name and asked her parents to change it to "Kin" (Gold). However, she then disliked the kanji character for it, so after her marriage, she had Yukichi think of a new one, and it became "Nishiki" (Brocade), which has the same pronunciation. Additionally, Nishiki had a fiancé when she was young but stubbornly refused to marry him. Ultimately, the fiancé was deemed unsuitable and the engagement was canceled, but Nishiki herself reportedly felt that she would rather lose her life than go through with that marriage.

Nishiki married Yukichi in the winter of 1861. Nishiki was 17 and Yukichi was around 26. As mentioned, the Toki family were high-ranking samurai of the Nakatsu Domain with a stipend of 250 koku. The difference in stipend compared to the Fukuzawa family, who were lower-ranking samurai with 13 koku and a two-person ration, was more than tenfold. The fact that two people from such different social ranks, who normally could not marry, were able to wed in this era was largely due to Nishiki's father recognizing Yukichi's potential and leaving a will requesting the marriage before he passed away. Furthermore, around this time, Yukichi had completed his first visit to the United States and had been appointed as a translator for the Shogunate with a 20-person ration and a 15-ryo allowance. Yukichi's service to the Shogunate is also considered a factor that made the marriage possible.

The Fukuzawa couple's married life began in a rented house in Shin-senza, Shiba, with a total of about 20 mats across the first and second floors. After moving several times, they settled in Mita about 10 years after their marriage. The Fukuzawas were blessed with four sons and five daughters, but they did not hire a wet nurse until their sixth child. According to the recollections of Moemon Ito, around 1875 or 1876, there were six or seven maids and wet nurses, five to ten students, one handyman, and about two grooms; including the Fukuzawa family and relatives, there were usually an average of 25 or 26 people. Nishiki directed the maids and wet nurses, supporting this large Fukuzawa household.

In the Fukuzawa household, not only did many Keio students come and go, but home parties and various events were also held. These ranged from events for acquaintances, friends, and Keio students to gatherings where invitations were sent out in the names of the couple or Nishiki herself, providing a space for women to socialize as advocated in "On Japanese Womanhood." Yukichi's letters reveal that Nishiki herself sometimes acted as the host, using her ingenuity to entertain guests at lottery events. Mr. and Mrs. John Henry Wigmore, faculty members of the college who were invited to the meetings, both noted in their letters that while Nishiki did not speak English, her noble character was evident from her gentle face.

Nishiki's days were extremely busy with various forms of hospitality in addition to housework and childcare. In a letter to her eldest son Ichitaro, she stated, "When I receive invitations from outside, I cannot simply refuse them, and we also have guests coming here, so every day is busy." Due to this busyness, she sometimes even had Yukichi write letters on her behalf to acquaintances, relatives, and even her son studying in the United States.

In the "Biography of Yukichi Fukuzawa's Children," Yukichi wrote, "Although the Fukuzawa and Toki families are from the same domain, their ancestors lived in the East and West respectively, and there is no blood relation at all." Yukichi, who was born in Osaka and spent his later years in Nakatsu, and Nishiki, who was born in Edo, can be said to have grown up in the different cultures of the West and East. Even regarding food, there was a custom of eating pufferfish in Nakatsu which Yukichi enjoyed, but Nishiki is said to have admonished him, saying that if he was going to eat dangerous pufferfish, he should kill the family first, illustrating their differences.

Furthermore, as the daughter of a high-ranking samurai, Nishiki had received the "standard upbringing of a domain samurai living in Edo." On the other hand, Yukichi grew up in a poor lower-ranking samurai family where he lost his father early and had to help his mother with side jobs in a fatherless household. It is conceivable that their values differed greatly from Yukichi's, who sought to proactively adopt Western ideas.

For example, for Nishiki, it was perfectly natural to greet her husband with a bow and say "Welcome home" when he returned, but Yukichi disliked this. He would intentionally enter through the back to escape, and the sight of Nishiki chasing after him was reportedly like a game of tag. Eventually, Nishiki gave in and stopped, but it is imagined that there were many things she could not agree with as someone who had acquired the etiquette of a high-ranking samurai's daughter. However, letters sent from travel destinations show that Yukichi relied on Nishiki daily for things like managing his clothes and preparing his toothbrush.

In his writings, Yukichi preached that men and women have equal rights and that education is important for women as well. There are also letters in which he asked his sons studying abroad for an estimate of the costs if he were to send his daughters to study abroad.

However, in reality, the daughters did not study abroad, nor did they even attend school properly. Up to the third daughter, they were briefly enrolled in the Yochisha, but the content they studied was different from the boys, and they quit after about two years. Later, some daughters were enrolled in the Kyoritsu Women's School in Yokohama (now Yokohama Kyoritsu Gakuen), but they were withdrawn after only one or two months. Even though this school was a boarding school, petitions were sent asking for the daughters to be allowed to skip weekend services and return home as an exception until they got used to it. According to Kiyooka, a major factor was that "Grandmother said she was so worried and lonely that she called them back." The fifth daughter never attended school even once.

Ultimately, the daughters' education, aside from having foreign women come to the house to teach English, knitting, and cooking, consisted of "standard lessons" such as koto, shamisen, dance, and Japanese painting—an "education for girls no different from a completely ordinary household." This may have been strongly influenced by the views of Nishiki, who had received the "standard upbringing of a domain samurai living in Edo." Additionally, Nishiki's mother, Hama, had lost her husband early and lived in retirement in the Fukuzawa household. She is said to have managed all the housework alongside Nishiki, paying particular attention to the supervision of the maids. Out of consideration for the Okudaira family's "Horen-in-sama," she was so stubborn and formal that she never uttered the word "horenso" (spinach) in her life, calling it "akaneso" instead. Hama's presence may also have influenced the daughters' education.

Yukichi preached that the foundation of a family is the husband and wife, and that they are equals and should consult each other well on all matters. Indeed, in letters Yukichi sent to his sons studying abroad, words like "agreement" and "talking together" with "Mother" can be seen. Nishiki's letters also contain content to the effect that she would listen to concerns first and "consult" with Yukichi later, so as not to affect his health.

Furthermore, at the end of every month, collaborative work was seen, such as "always bringing out the ledger and abacus to face each other as a couple" and keeping the household accounts together. Additionally, Nishiki's hobby was haiku, and she received instruction from Sanji Iida, one of Yukichi's disciples; sometimes Yukichi would join in, showing an effort to engage with Nishiki's hobby by creating linked verse (renku) together.

On the other hand, the fourth son, Daishiro, heard from his older sister that "Father said things about women's rights and so on, but at home, he always did exactly as he pleased without hesitation." However, he analyzed that in reality, "it probably happened naturally because there was no one to oppose him," and reflected that the reason they were harmonious without marital quarrels was likely because "Mother was a Japanese-style woman and an extremely calm and obedient person, so no problems arose" (from "My Father, Yukichi Fukuzawa").

For more than 20 years after Yukichi passed away, Nishiki lived alone in the Mita house as a widow. According to Kiyooka, she did not rely on her children for care, but rather "the children and grandchildren relied on her." There was a "fine office desk in the corner of the living room," and she was so composed that he thought, "She was a gentle person who might scold but never got angry, and she was always calm and never sat in a relaxed posture, so no matter how hot it was in summer, I thought only Grandmother was not hot." He said that because she "gave instructions to the maids in a natural flow, it made us feel very relaxed as well."

To her grandchildren, Nishiki was a "gentle person" and at the same time, as mentioned at the beginning, a "symbol of the old era." Depending on how one looks at it, could it not be said that in her later years, despite being the wife of Yukichi Fukuzawa, Nishiki was able to "grow old" as an "old-fashioned grandmother"? This might be because Yukichi and Nishiki respected each other's values as independent individuals and prioritized dialogue, consultation, and collaborative work.

Nishiki passed away in 1924 and was buried at Joko-ji Temple, where Yukichi rests; she was later reinterred at Zenpuku-ji Temple, just like Yukichi.

During his lifetime, Yukichi believed that Nishiki should also have her own property and made deposits in Nishiki's name. After Nishiki's death, that property had grown significantly, so a memorial fund named the "Nishiki-kai" was created to help relatives and support the Juku. Currently, this fund is used for the copies of "The Autobiography of Yukichi Fukuzawa" presented to the Yochisha graduates every year, and Grandmother Nishiki's kindness is still being delivered to the young Keio students today.

(Reference: "Yukichi Fukuzawa and Women" by Naoko Nishizawa)