Japan, being geographically close, had long engaged in both exchanges and conflicts with Korea, including the Sampho Waeran (三浦倭亂, Japanese Disturbance of the Three Ports, 1510), the Eulmyo Waebyeon (乙卯倭變, Japanese Disturbance of 1555), the Imjin Waeran (壬辰倭亂, Japanese Invasion of 1592), and the Jeongyu Jaeran (丁酉再亂, Second Japanese Invasion of 1597). There were also exchanges such as the missions of the Joseon Tongsinsa (朝鮮通信使, Korean Envoys to Japan).
From 1636 onward, the Joseon Tongsinsa were dispatched to Edo (江戸, present-day Tokyo), attending major ceremonies of the shogunate, thus facilitating important cultural exchanges between Korea and Japan. However, moving into the 19th century, relations between the two countries began to darken. The last Tongsinsa mission was in 1811, after which exchanges between the two countries were reduced to those between the Dongnae-busa (東萊府使, Governor of Dongnae) and the daimyo of Tsushima, without involvement of the central government.
