Sakai, a representative example of the free cities in the medieval period, was rated by missionaries in some surviving accounts as 'the Venice of the East,' and continued its autonomy until it was later forced to capitulate to Nobunaga ODA.
中世の代表的自治都市である堺は宣教師も「東洋のベニス」と評価する文書を残しており、織田信長に屈服するまで自治を行う。