It was Perry's second visit, and culminated in the signing of the Convention of Kanagawa on March 31, which effectively ended Japan's centuries of sakoku (closed country) diplomatic seclusion.

After giving the shogunate until the following year to make a decision, Perry returned with 10 ships and 1,600 soldiers, landing at Yokohama, where the Convention of Kanagawa was signed.

On March 31, 1854, US Commodore Matthew Perry and representatives of the Japanese government signed the Convention of Kanagawa. The terms of the treaty marked the end of Japan's 500 years of ...