幕末の江戸に、フランス公使の召使として、一人のイタリア生まれの男がいました。名は、ナタルです。
イギリス公使オールコックは、ナタルが「フランス公使館の門の階段」で斬られた、と書いています。
フランスの総領事ド・ベルクールは、安政六年（1859年）、ここ三田の済海寺に入っています。
In Edo at the end of the shogunate, an Italian-born man served the French Minister. His name was Natal.
The British Minister, Rutherford Alcock, writes that Natal was cut down "at the gate of the French Legation."
The French Consul-General, Duchesne de Bellecourt, took up residence here at Saikaiji in Mita in 1859, the sixth year of Ansei.
Nella Edo degli ultimi anni dello shogunato, un uomo nato in Italia serviva il ministro di Francia. Si chiamava Natal.
Il ministro britannico Rutherford Alcock scrive che Natal fu colpito con la spada «al portale della legazione francese».
Il console generale di Francia, Duchesne de Bellecourt, si stabilì qui, al tempio Saikaiji di Mita, nel 1859, sesto anno dell'era Ansei.
このことを書き残したのは、イギリス公使オールコックです。
ナタルが門の階段に立っていると、通りがかった侍の一人が階段を上り、そばにいた小犬を蹴り飛ばしました。
ナタルがひとこと咎めると、侍は脇差を抜きました。
ナタルは腕で受けて身をかわし、拳銃を抜いて撃ちます。相手は、群衆の中に消えました。
ナタルは、いつも拳銃と刀と短剣を身につけて歩いていました。それでも襲われた、とオールコックは書いています。
傷は右腕の外側で、命に別状はありませんでした。
公使館の中庭には、二本差しの役人たちが大勢いました。
オールコックによれば、役人たちは最初、自分たちはそこに居なかった、何も見ていない、と言いました。
加害者が罰せられたという話は、オールコックのもとには届いていません。
The man who wrote this down was the British Minister, Rutherford Alcock.
As Natal stood on the steps of the gate, one of two passing samurai climbed the steps and kicked the little dog at his side into the street.
When Natal said a word of protest, the samurai drew his short sword.
Natal took the blow on his arm as he sprang aside, drew his revolver and fired. His attacker vanished into the crowd.
Natal always went about with a revolver, a sword and a dagger. Even so, Alcock writes, he was attacked.
The wound was on the outside of his right arm, and his life was not in danger.
The courtyard of the Legation was full of two-sworded officials.
According to Alcock, the officials at first claimed they had not been there and had seen nothing.
No word that the offender was punished ever reached Alcock.
A lasciare scritto quanto accadde fu il ministro britannico Rutherford Alcock.
Mentre Natal stava sui gradini del portale, uno di due samurai di passaggio salì i gradini e scalciò in strada il cagnolino che gli stava accanto.
Alla prima parola di protesta di Natal, il samurai sguainò la spada corta.
Natal parò il colpo con il braccio balzando di lato, estrasse la rivoltella e sparò. L'aggressore sparì tra la folla.
Natal andava sempre in giro armato di rivoltella, spada e pugnale. Eppure fu aggredito, scrive Alcock.
La ferita era sulla parte esterna del braccio destro, e la sua vita non era in pericolo.
Il cortile della legazione era pieno di funzionari con le due spade.
Secondo Alcock, quei funzionari sostennero dapprima di non essere stati lì e di non aver visto nulla.
Nessuna notizia di una punizione dell'aggressore giunse mai ad Alcock.
この話のもとになった記録の言葉です。ページは、その本に刷られたものです。
増訂武江年表一次史料
濟海寺月岬正覚寺佛蘭西
The Capital of the Tycoon, Vol. II（London: Longman, 1863）一次史料
Monsieur de Bellecourt's Italian servant, who had been attacked, while standing quietly at the gate of the French Legation, by two Samourai passing at the moment, and by one of whom he had been severely wounded.
One of them mounted the steps, and immediately began to pick a quarrel, by violently kicking a little dog at his side, into the street. On the first word of remonstrance, he drew his short sword, and aimed a furious blow at his intended victim's head.
although he went about habitually with an arsenal of weapons in his belt, revolvers, swords, and daggers, for self-defence, that did not seem to have protected him any more than it did my linguist from attack
he had received a sword-cut across the upper part of his right arm … It was fortunately only a flesh wound, though several inches in length, and penetrating deeply ; and being on the outside of the limb, where there are no large vessels to be divided, it was comparatively a safe wound.
Nothing could be more disgraceful than the conduct of all the swarm of two-sworded yaconins and officials, cumbering the courtyard of the Legation with their presence. Several indeed were actual spectators on the spot. At first they denied that any of them were there, or saw what took place !
the Minister, through their Governors of Foreign Affairs, still had the air of treating it as a very doubtful matter what took place ; and pretended to believe that the assailant only drew his sword when menaced with the pistol
the offender was never punished to our knowledge. The men on duty who so shamefully stood by while a foreigner under their special guard was being cut down, equally escaped, though nominally disgraced.
Everyone but the Government officers knew the assailant was an officer of a certain Prince
This was partially parried by Natal, who raised his arm to protect his head as he sprang aside, and drawing his revolver, fired at his assailant, who then turned on his heel, and disappeared among the crowd, — the blood-stained sword still unsheathed in his hand, without a finger being stirred, either by the officers on service or the inhabitants in the street, to stop the ruffian !
港区立郷土歴史館『港区文化財総合目録』外国書願留
フランス総領事ドゥ・ベルクール(Bellecourt, Duchesne de)は、安政6年8月26日(1859年9月22日)に済海寺に入
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