Footnote

d In retaliation for a Spanish threat that conquistadores would follow in the steps of the missionaries, Japanese shogun Hideyoshi executed a number of Jesuits and Franciscans. A Jesuit scheme to conquer China with the help of Filipino and Japanese volunteers doubtless fueled suspicions about Jesuit motives in Japan. The official ban, which came in 1614, specifically mentioned fears that the Catholic aim was to “change the government of the country and obtain possession of the land.”