Captain de Villaret (front row, center), of the Third French Military Mission to Japan, with his officer students of the Ichigaya Military Academy.
The 1884
French Military Mission to Japan was the third French military mission to that country and consisted of 5 men.
It followed two earlier missions, the first
French Military Mission to Japan (1867-1868), and the second
French Military Mission to Japan (1872-1880), which had a considerable role in shaping the new
Imperial Japanese Army.
From 1886 to 1889, Japan somewhat shifted to
Germany as a military example, and invited two German officers (particularly
Jakob Meckel) in parallel to the French Mission, who were put in charge of reforming the Japanese General Staff.
France would gain considerable influence with the
Imperial Japanese Navy instead, with the dispatch of the engineer
Louis-Émile Bertin.
