Please note that the following is a digitized version of a selected article from White House History Quarterly, Issue 55, originally released in print form in 2019. Single print copies of the full issue can be purchased online at Shop.WhiteHouseHistory.org No part of this book may be reproduced or distributed in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. All photographs contained in this journal unless otherwise noted are copyrighted by the White House Historical Association and may not be reproduced without permission. Requests for reprint permissions should be directed to rights@whha.org. Contact books@whha.org for more information. Š 2019 White House Historical Association. All rights reserved under international copyright conventions.
The Long Shadow of Jiujitsu in the EAST ROOM President Theodore Roosevelt Learns Self-Defense J O H N H U T T O N F O R T H E W H I T E H O U S E H I S T O R I C A L A S S O C I AT I O N
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t h e w h i t e h o u s e wa s b u i lt not only as an office and residence but as a stage for the presidency. All the presidents have considered it more or less in that way, from President George Washington, the builder, who devised the Blue Room as an oval to serve the oval lineup of men callers who came very formally with appointments to pay him court once a week, to President Abraham Lincoln, who made use of a single window over the North Door from which to speak to large crowds that gathered to “serenade” him. The rooms inside have flowed with receptions for hundreds, where the presidents made very carefully planned entrances—that of Andrew Jackson enhanced by a halo of gilded stars pasted over the archway through which he passed into the East Room. Up to this time, however, none used the White House stage to greater advantage than Theodore Roosevelt. His entertainments, his speeches, his horses, his special guests, all attracted national attention. But he attracted the most attention when he ventured into the world of jujitsu. For many reasons, perhaps the notable victory of Japan over Russia in 1905, interest in this ancient art of self-defense had gained popular notice everywhere. Its grace and subtle effectiveness, yet with great physical strength, seemed to embody the spirit of the new Asian world power. Naval officers back from the Philippines and Asia during the Spanish-American War had observed, experienced, and gained respect for jujitsu, and they convinced the military schools of the army and navy to introduce it into their programs. It was not an enduringly successful effort, but the Naval Academy in Annapolis did commission the celebrated jujitsu judan, or blackbelt, Yamashita Yoshiaki to give instructions as an experiment to the cadets. The professor was not only the leading expert on jujitsu but a philosopher on its uses. He devoutly believed that jujitsu should be taught to white house history quarterly
opposite and right Yamashita Yoshiaki (seated top left) and his two demonstration assistants, including his wife, Yamashita Fude (seated top center), demonstrate jiujitsu selfdefense moves during their U.S. tour, which began in 1905.
all women. It was an era when women had begun moving about in public on their own, sometimes traveling, perhaps in business, and they needed some way to defend themselves from those who might harm them. The professor’s belief was that by learning jujitsu women no longer need fear being outside their homes. Yamashita, a stately, athletic figure, sailed to the United States and was received as the famous man he already was in Asia. He traveled with his wife, Yamashita Fude, who had absorbed all the lessons of jujitsu and helped with his promotion of women in this martial art of self-defense. The two were accompanied by an male demonstration assistant. Their demonstrations
were received with overwhelming favor, so much so that President Roosevelt invited Yamashita to the White House, where he would teach and demonstrate his art in the East Room. The stage was set. The old dance cloth of years gone by was laid on the new parquet floors. Gilt bentwood chairs, brought up from storage, were lined up for the numerous guests. The professor made several demonstrations, some bringing gasps from the audience. Then the president came forward. Roosevelt had some idea of what he was getting into and did his best, but he endured quite a beating. He emerged with nothing but praise for the teacher and the art, not that it can be imagined he might respond much
otherwise. Roosevelt’s praise for jujitsu and his continued support helped create interest in martial arts throughout the country. One feature, however, of the professor’s teachings, and one close to his heart, was self- defense for women. Some now forgotten remark the president made in social company demeaned the “weaker sex” as unable to address that which is the work of real men. But the remark was heard by Martha Wadsworth, a small red-headed winter socialite in Washington, and she took exception, determined to show the president of the United States he did not know what he was talking about. A longtime enthusiast of jujitsu, and one who would become the first
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Theodore Roosevelt on JUJITSU:
ALAMY
wr itin g to his so n Kermit in February 2005, President Roosevelt described a jujitsu lesson: “I still box with Grant, who has now become the champion middle-weight wrestler of the United States. Yesterday afternoon we had Professor Yamashita up here to wrestle with Grant. It was very interesting, but of course jujitsu . . . is really meant for practice in killing or disabling our adversary. In consequence, Grant did not know what to do except to put Yamashita on his back, and Yamashita was perfectly content to be on his back. Inside of a minute Yamashita had choked Grant, and inside of two minutes more he got an elbow hold on him that would have enabled him to break his arm; so that there is no question but that he could have put Grant out. So far this made it evident that the jujitsu man could handle the ordinary wrestler. But Grant, in the actual wrestling and throwing was about as good as the Japanese, and he was so much stronger that he evidently hurt and wore out the Japanese.” In Theodore Roosevelt’s Letters to His Children, (New York: C. Scribner’s Sons, 1919), 116–17.
female black belt in the United States, Wadsworth and her husband, Herbert, wintered in a mansion they built on Dupont Circle and summered on a 2,000 acre farm in central New York. She was an athlete, an accomplished horsewoman, and a devoted supporter of women’s rights. Through the Embassy of Japan in Washington she made contact with Professor Yamashita in Annapolis. He and Yamashita Fude agreed to come to Martha Wadsworth’s house and make a demonstration for women alone. Wadsworth’s mission was well planned. She filled her guest list with women from the top level of society women, most of them young. When they entered her house they were directed upstairs to change into padded white pajamas that their hostess had prepared. When they descended they were directed to the ballroom, where the floors were padded. The probably rather wild event lasted several hours, with Madame Yamashita and the professor instructing and helping, always courteous and genteel. The demonstration was a great success and filled the newspapers for a while. Roosevelt never commented upon it, as far as is known. His daughter Alice did not participate, but her friends, socialites, foreign ambassadors’ daughters, and the rest were there. The classes were continued for two years, as long as Professor Yamashita taught at the Naval Academy. The president of the United States, who had little use for women’s rights at that time but endorsed both their rights in general and women’s suffrage within only a few years, was a bit put down by Martha Wadsworth’s society school, but remained a good sport. Perhaps the whole thing turned his viewpoint.
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Martha Blow Wadsworth, who held a black belt in jujitsu, riding sidesaddle on the lawn of Ashantee, the Avon home she shared with her husband, Herbert Wadsworth. below
T O P : M I L N E L I B R A R Y, S TAT E U N I V E R S I T Y O F N E W Y O R K A T G E N E S E O BOT TOM: LIBRARY OF CONGRESS
The ballroom at the Wadsworth mansion on Dupont Circle in Washington, D.C. , where Yamashita Fude held a womenonly demonstration of jujitsu for society women.
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