Gaertner Cultivation Treaty Incident (ガルトネル開墾条約事件)
Gaertner Cultivation Treaty Incident or Gaertner Incident is a diplomatic incident that occurred over the cultivated land in Nanae Town in the first year of Meiji period.
Outline
The Prussian trader, Gaertner had been engaged in cultivation business in Nanae town since the last days of Edo period. In 1868, the Ezo Republic occupied Hakodate and in 1869, a 99-year lease was signed between Gaertner and the Ezo Island government. Later that year, in the aftermath of the Battle of Hakodate, the contract was taken over by the Hakodate government, which terminated the contract by paying a penalty fine to Gaertner in 1870.
Current Situation
(as of 2008)
Nanae town regards itself as 'the birthplace of western agriculture.'
The forest of beech trees planted in the cultivated land is called 'Gaertner Beech Forest.'