with cannon fire and the message that all of the captured Russians were dead. On 9 September 1812, in retaliation for the capture of Golovnin, Commander Pyotr Ivanovich Ricord of the Diana detained the Japanese ship Kansai Maru and took captive the wealthy merchant Takadaya Kahei as well as symbolically retaining four other Japanese and a Kurile and releasing the rest of the crew on Kunashir. Takadaya was taken to Kamchatka, where he would remain in custody for the rest of the winter. That action brought the two countries on the brink of war. In March, 1813 a new governor arrived who prohibited firing on Russian ships. To assure the Russians of their continuing survival, Golovnin and Moor wrote to Rikord to inform them that they were still alive. However, two of the Japanese and one of the Ainu had died in captivity in Kamchatka, seemingly of scurvy. Moor, scared of retaliation by the Russians when he was released, endeavoured to upset the exchange of prisoners by warning that the Russians would attack the Japanese. Negotiations were made between Rikord, the governor of Hokkaido, and the Japanese government in Edo in which the Japanese were convinced that Chwostoff's action had not been condoned by the Russian government and that the crew of the Diana had gone to the Kurils without bad intent towards the Japanese. Kakadaya Kahei was released on 29 July as a show of good intentions by Rikord. An agreement was finally reached to negotiate with Rikord and offer safe passage to the Diana and Golovnin was released from prison in August 1813 with copies of all their negotiations with the Japanese as well as those of Resanov and Laxman to present to the Russian government. The Diana arrived in late September. After deliberations with the governor, Golovnin and his crew were officially released on 6 October. Aftermath Golovnin's parting with the Japanese was amiable, both sides exchanged gifts, and Rikord hosted a party on board the Diana for the Japanese. The crew returned to Petropavlovsk, but in despair and possibly madness, Moor committed suicide. The crew returned to St. Petersburg in 1814 and were rewarded for their service. The Golovnin incident did not establish a renaissance in diplomacy between Europe and Japan, with the Japanese becoming increasingly fearful of the growing European presence in East Asia. In 1825, the Japanese government enacted the Edict to Repel Foreign