NATIONAL QUALIFICATIONS CURRICULUM SUPPORT
History
Annotated Bibliography for
Japan: From Medieval to
Modern State 1850s-1920
[ADVANCED HIGHER]
Sydney Wood


IN T RO D UC T IO N
First published 2000
Electronic version 2001
© Scottish Consultative Council on the Curriculum 2000
This publication may be reproduced in whole or in part for educational
purposes by educational establishments in Scotland provided that no profit
accrues at any stage.
Acknowledgement
Learning and Teaching Scotland gratefully acknowledge this contribution to
the Higher Still support programme for History.
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HIST O RY
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CONTENTS
Introduction
1
Section 1:
General histories
3
Section 2:
Collections of primary and secondary sources
9
Section 3:
Foreign affairs
13
Section 4:
Social and economic histories
15
Section 5:
Detailed political studies
19
Section 6:
Foreigners in Japan: Japanese and foreigners
23
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IN T RO D UC T IO N
INTRODUCTION
This field of study provides an opportunity to investigate the remarkable
transformation in the nature of one of the most important countries in world
affairs, both past and present. A considerable range of resources, both
primary and secondary, are available.
T he r e so ur c es i n t hi s b i b lio gr ap h y h a ve b ee n o r ga n i sed a s fo llo ws :
Section
Section
Section
Section
Section
Section
1:
2:
3:
4:
5:
6:
General histories
Collections of primary and secondary sources.
Foreign affairs.
Social and economic histories
Detailed political studies
Foreigners in Japan; Japanese and foreigners.
These resources vary greatly in character. Some can readily be put into
students’ hands; others will require careful guidance from te achers. Certain
texts provide a clear, broad overview of the period; others probe more deeply
into particular dimensions of the course.
A number of these publications are not currently in print but have been
included to guide students who are using libra ries other than school libraries
or who will be using the inter-library loan service. Such are labelled OP.
As the contents of this bibliography indicate this is a very realistic field of
study to undertake both in terms of the whole course and in terms of topics
for detailed investigation.
Bibliographies
Many of the wor ks that are listed contain useful bibliographies. A
number of general bibl iographies are also available, including:
Dower, John W and George, Ti mothy S, Japanese History and Culture
from Ancient to Modern Times: Seven Basic Bibliographies, Princeton:
Markus Wiener, 1995
Perren, R, Japanese Studies from Prehistory to 1990: or
Bibliographic guide, Manchester: Manchester Uni versity Press, 1992
Shul man, F J, Japan World Bibliograph y Series 103, Oxford: Clio
Press, 1989
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G E N ER AL H IS TO R IE S
SECTION 1
Beasley, W G, The Ri se of Modern Japan. Political, Econom ic and
Social Change since 1850 , London: Weidenf eld & Nicolson, 1990
This concise and inexpensive history covers the curricular area in a seri es
of well focused and relatively brief chapters, each of which is split into
three sub-sections. The author has long been one of Britain’s leading
authorities on Japanese history. His text is aimed at undergraduates and
adult readers and is clear, concise and appropriate for student use. The
fairly detailed structure of the book makes it especially useful for students
who are beginning to build on initial knowledge of the topic; by using it
they should be able to construct a coherent and clear framework of
material to which they can add from more detailed readings. A class set
will be well worth obtaining.
Few ster, Stuart and Gordon, Tony, Japan from Shogun to
Superstate, Ashf ord: Paul Norbury, 1987
This book has been written by two school teachers, i s heavily illustrated
and includes six maps. The chapters are divided into sub -sections, key
events are highlighted in boxed areas and each chapter is followed by a list
of six key points together with two questions designed to serve as tasks for
students to undertake. A number of documents, enclosed in boxed areas,
are placed at relevant points in the text.
The content is not wholly structured on chronological lines. It includes
the following chapters: Shogun and Meiji; Modernisation; Taisho Japan;
Early Industry; The Thirties; Education; Japan at War 1937 –45; The
Countryside; Occupation 1945–52; Women; Growing Prosperity 1952–
1970; Post-War Industry; Japan Today.
The coverage provided is very much at an outline level, but the book is
highly readable, intended for school use, and provides an ideal
introduction to the course for students seeking to place the required
curriculum in a broader setting.
Hall, John W; Jansen, Marius B; Kanai, Madoka; and Tw itchett,
Denis, The Cam bridge History of Japan, Vol u m e 5, The Nineteenth
Century, Cambridge: Cambridge Universit y Press, 1989
This highly academic work consists of chapters by different authors on
Japan in the Early Nineteenth Century; The Tempo Crisis; Late Tokugawa
Culture; The Foreign Threat and Opening of the Treaty Ports; The Meiji
Restoration; Opposition Movements in Early Meiji Japan; Japan’s turning
to the West; Social Change; Economic Change in the Nineteenth Century;
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Meiji Political Institutions; Meiji Conservatism; Japan’s Drive to Greater
Power Status.
The chapters are broken up into sub-headed sections and most incorporate
short quotations from primary sources in the text. This will be a very
helpful resource for students to dip into for particular aspects that are
appropriate to their dissertations.
Hane, Mikiso, Modern Japan. A Historical Survey, Boulder and
Oxf ord: Westview Press, 1992
Around half of this textbook deals directly with the required curriculum.
Although the author begins his analysis of the Tokugawa period well
before the nineteenth century, what is provided is very helpful background
material. The text is structured in a basically chronological fashion and
covers the late Tokugawa period, the fall of the Bakufu, the Meiji
Restoration, the Continuing Meiji Revolution, Politic al Developments in
later Meiji, the Conclusion of the Meiji Era and the Era of Parliamentary
Ascendancy. Each chapter is subdivided into headed sections of two or
three pages and there are a number of clearly drawn maps.
This book is aimed, primarily, at undergraduates but capable Advanced
Higher students should not find that using it is a problem. It is written
clearly and in a concise style that demands careful analysis of what is
there, sub-section by sub-section. There are a very limited number of
useful primary sources embedded in the text. This is a strongly
recommended, well balanced textbook that provides very sound coverage
of the whole course and skilfully integrates economic, social and cultural
dimensions.
Harvey, Robert, The Undefeated. The Rise, Fall and Rise of Greater
Japan, London: Macmillan, 1994
Around a sixth of this book relates to the curriculum. The text includes
useful, short primary source extracts, and there is a chronological table.
The author opens with a dramatic chapter focused on the events of 1945
and the dropping of atomic bombs on Japan. He then provides an outline
of Japan’s early history and a more detailed account of the shogun’s
downfall and the Meiji period. This is a very clear and accessible text that
primarily provides a narrative of events but also offers an interesting
sketch of Japanese society.
Hunter, Janet E, The Em ergence of Modern Japan. An Introductory
History since 1853 , H arlow : Longman, 1989
This survey of modern Japanese history begins in the mi d nineteenth
century and includes two maps and a detailed chronology of events. The
author is an academic specialist in Japanese history but she has set out to
reach an audience beyond that found in academic institutions.
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An initial brief chapter provides a chronological survey of the whole
period; thereafter the author adopts a thematic approach providing chapters
on Japan and the West; Japan and Asia; Individual and Community; Town
and Country; The Pattern of Industrial Development; Men and Women;
Emperor and Nation; Heterodoxy, Orthodoxy and Religious Practice;
Oligarchy and Democracy; Popular Protest and the Working Class; The
Role of the Military; and Administration and Public Service.
This is a very readable book that students should enjoy using; it contains
much highly relevant material and will complement the more
conventionally constructed texts as well as offering material in a broad
thematic fashion well suited to potential essay questions.
Jansen, Marius B (ed), The Em ergence of Meiji Japan, Cambri dge:
Cambridge Universit y Press, 1995
The five extended essays in this book have been extracted from Volume 5
of the massive Cambridge History of Japan. They are aimed at an
academic audience rather than the general reader and tend to assume some
degree of prior knowledge. The essays are each by different historians.
They deal with The Tempo Crisis; Late Tokugawa Culture and Thought;
The Meiji Restoration; Opposition Movements in early Meiji 1868 –85;
Japan’s Drive to Great-Power Status. Each chapter is divided into
substantial sub-sections.
All the chapters are of relevance to the curriculum, the last three especially
so. This is clearly not the kind of book with which to begin the course, but
is a helpful work of reference to which students can t urn once they have
built up an initial knowledge-framework and require further material and
interpretations. The final chapter, for example, not only surveys the whole
of the theme that makes up the fourth strand in the curriculum, it also
relates Japanese foreign policy to developments in the West and to
domestic politics and touches on differing interpretations of the motives
behind Japanese actions abroad. It thus provides material to deepen
students’ initial understanding of this aspect.
Kornicki, P F (ed), Meiji Japan: Political, Social and Econom ic
History 1868–1912 (4 volumes) , London: Routledge, 1998 (volumes
may be purchased separately)
This is a massive and very costly publication that brings together the views
of academics on a whole range of issues. The initial introductory survey
by Dr Kornicki provides a useful outline of these issues and some
thoughtful questioning of the whole notion that the history of modern
Japan begins in 1868. This essay (like subsequent ones) is aimed at an
academic, adult audience, however the essays do vary in level of difficulty
and there are a good number to which students pursuing appropriate
investigations could be directed. Students would certainly
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G E N ER AL H IS TO R IE S
learn much from the study that deals with changing foreign po licy attitudes
from 1853 to 1868, from Jansen’s account of the Meiji Restoration, and
from the account of the Korean crisis of 1873. These essays are all in Vol.
I.
Vol. II deals with the Growth of the Meiji State, Vol. III is entitled ‘The
Mature Meiji State’ and Vol. IV ‘The End of Meiji and Early Taisho’.
Vol. II’s essays include a revealing study of the military and a useful
account (with primary sources in it) of textile factory workers, Vol. III
contains an especially helpful account ‘Japan’s dri ve to great-power
status’, whilst Vol. IV contains a range of political and economic studies.
This is, essentially, a work of reference to which students should be
directed according to the investigations they are pursuing.
Lehmann, Jean Pierre, The Im age of Japan. From Feudal Isolat ion
to World Power 1850 –1905, London: Allen & Unw in, 1978 OP
The author of this book explores a number of themes in the history of the
period rather than attempting a chronological history. His chapters deal
with: the New Japan – Far East or Far West?; Western Encounters with
Japan in Enchantments and Disenchantments; The Women of Japan – in
Reality and Fantasy; Politics – Oriental obscurantism – Industry and
Industrialisation; Yellow Hope – Yellow Peril.
There are numerous quotations from primary sources in the text and twelve
illustrations. The focus is very much on Western attitudes to Japan. The
text will be readily accessible to students.
Lehmann, Jean Pierre, The Roots of Modern Japan, London:
Macmillan, 1982
About half of this historical survey relates to the prescribed curricular
period. The lengthy chapters are broadly sub -divided; there are no
illustrations of any kind to break up the tightly packed text. This is quite a
demanding book written for a university audience. It attempts to cover the
economic, political, social, intellectual and moral dimensions of Japanese
society and especially tries, the author claims, ‘to underline the extent to
which culture and economy have exerted reciprocal influences’. Student s
will not find this text easy to use; it is certainly not the best study with
which to begin to build up a knowledge of the period. Its value lies in
later study to add to initial notes and develop a deeper understanding and
an appreciation of cross connections between different dimensions of
Japanese history.
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Pyle, Kenneth B, The Making of Modern Japan, Toronto: D C
Heath, 1996
The author deals with Japanese history from the later sixteenth century to
the period after the Second World War. The book inc ludes photographs
and a helpful bibliographical essay. This work provides a very useful
introduction to the major themes of the period, setting them in a wider
chronological sweep that will help students to make sense of the particular
period required for study. Students should be able to tackle this text
without difficulty and will especially derive a sound understanding of the
changes that have affected Japanese people over the past four hundred
years.
Reischauer, Edw in O, Japan: the Story of a Nation , New York:
Knopf , 1989
This is a more recent edition of a work first published in 1946. It includes
nine maps and a detailed chronology. The text is split into three major
sections: Traditional Japan (which deals with the land, the people and
early history up to 1868); Modernising Japan (which covers the curriculum
plus the 1920s and 30s) and Post-War Japan. It provides a clear survey of
the country’s history that will be helpful to students who wish to place
their studies in a wider framework.
Storry, Richard, A History of Modern Japan, Harmondsw orth:
Penguin, 1982 (rev. edn.)
This clear, concise and lively text has been popular for many years and
still provides students with a highly intelligible introductory coverage of
the whole period. The author places particular emphasis on the interaction
between the Japanese and the West. His text is structured along
chronological lines and includes studies of Japan’s early contacts with the
West, the mid nineteenth-century impact of the West, the development of
the Meiji State and the emergence of Japan as a world power; remaining
chapters survey the period from the end of the curriculum to recent times.
It thus provides the kind of clear narrative structure that students find
invaluable in building an overall grasp of the topic before going on to
explore particular aspects in greater detail.
Thomas, J E, Modern Japan. A Social History since 1868 , Harlow:
Longman, 1996
The author argues that his book is for ‘people who know little or nothing
about the history of Japan’. His style is clear and accessible and his
explanations and account of past events and circumstances will be readily
understood by students. The text is not organised in a straightforward,
narrative fashion but alternates an account of a majo r period with a
detailed investigation of a theme of special importance to that period. The
book begins with a chapter ‘Out of Isolation’ that examines events up to
the downfall of the Shogunate; there then follows a chapter ‘Racism’ –
that explores this theme in a broader fashion than that suggested by the
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dates of the previous chapter. The third chapter deals with the 1868 –1905
period and is followed by a thematic study entitled ‘Japan’s Outcasts:
Discrimination Then; Discrimination Now’. Further themes that are
explored (following the study of a period) are ‘The Peoples of Japan and
Korea’; ‘Women in Japan’ and ‘Education’. Three maps and eleven
illustrations are also included.
This is an interesting, stimulating book that contains a good deal of
relevant material. Students will find it a helpful supplement to their initial
reading and of special value for the five themes that are explored in detail.
Wasw o, Anne, Modern Japanese Society 1868 –1994, O xf ord: Oxf ord
University Press, 1996
This small paperback survey of modern Japanese history is part of a series
intended to offer easy introductions to important topics. The author is an
established academic and virtually two thirds of her book relates to the
prescribed curriculum. She writes in a highl y concise style that is
nevertheless reasonably clear and accessible, though it may require regular
use of the dictionary by students. This is a useful introductory survey.
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SECTION 2
Black, John R (introduced by Grace Fox), Young Japan: Yokoham a
and Yedo. A narrative of the settlem ent and the city from the
signing of the treaties in 1858 to the close of the year 1879. With a
glance at the progress of Japan during a period of twenty one years .
Oxf ord: Oxf ord University Press, 1968 ( Tw o volumes) OP
This contemporary account of life in Japan was first published in 1883.
The author was a British newspaper man who lived in Japan in the vitally
important period of 1861 to 1879. His account of the changing society
that he saw around him is detailed and vi vid. It covers Japanese feelings
about Westerners, Western lives in Japan, the events that brought the
downfall of the Shogunate, and the early Meiji period. This is a very
useful primary source.
Jansen, Marius B and Rozman, Gilbert (eds), Japan in Transiti on:
from Tokugawa to Meiji, Princeton: Princeton University Press,
1986
The seventeen essays that make up this collection span the period from the
1840s and are divided into four sections: Administration, Organisations,
Cities and Population, and the Rural Economy and Material Conditions.
Within these sections there are clusters of essays on such topics as the
central government, local government, military organisations, the
educational system, the press, and the rural economy.
This is a useful work of reference for student dissertations.
Livingston, John; Moor, Joe; and Oldf ather, Felicia, The Japan
Reader, Vol I Im perial Japan 1800 –1945, H armondsw orth: Penguin,
1976
This publication provides an interesting and useful mix of scholarly
articles and book extracts together with a limited number of primary
sources. The authors of these items include Westerners and Japanese.
Short background introductions lead up to clusters of resources that are
grouped around the themes of Japan’s Feudal Origins 1800 –1868; Meiji
Japan – Foundations for Empire 1868–1890; Industrialisation and
Imperialism 1890–1929; Depression, Militarism and War 1929–45.
Among the many contributions there is an especially fascinating account
from personal experience of life in Japan i n the early nineteenth century
that was written by a Russian sea captain.
Both teachers and students will find this publication useful. It provides
invaluable primary and secondary sources as well as greater depth on
certain issues that have been studied from a general textbook.
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Lu, David J, A Docum entary History. The Late Tokugawa Period to
the Present , New York: M E Sharpe, 1997
This is the second of a two-volume compilation of sources covering the
whole history of Japan. About 40% of this volume co ntains material of
direct relevance to the curriculum. Four of the sources are in the form of
illustrations. The book also contains a detailed chronology and an
extensive glossary of Japanese terms. The sources are grouped around the
topics of: The End of Tokugawa Rule: Early Meiji Development; Social
and Economic Development in the Meiji Era; Taisho Democracy.
Subsequent sections deal with more recent history. Each section begins
with a brief introductory survey; documents within each section are
clustered around sub-themes and each of these is also briefly introduced.
The sources include official proclamations and laws as well as personal
views and recollections.
This book provides a quite invaluable collection of primary sources, many
of them extracted from the writings of the leading political figures of
Japanese history of the period. Even though more than half of the book
does not deal with the curriculum, what is here is so useful that this really
is an essential purchase. Its main value will be for teachers’ use as a
repository of source materials.
Megarry, Jim (ed), The Making of Modern Japan. A Reader,
Dartf ord: Greenw ich University Press, 1995
This is an academic work that brings together the views of a whole range
of scholars. The editor’s initial introductory survey raises questions about,
and offers views on, various interpretations of the issues raised by the
study of the emergence of modern Japan. It serves as a useful quarry for
essay questions and for secondary source quotations.
The essays are clustered around such themes as ‘Feudal Japan’ and
‘Transition and Transformation in Early Modern Japan’. Each is preceded
by a short additional essay on the questions raised by contributors. The
essays include particularly interesting discussion about why the
aristocratic leaders of feudal society were the very people who abolished
their own privileges and the society on which they rested.
This is a very worthwhile publication that will provide teachers with
valuable material and to which students can be directed to study particular
essays once they have acquired a basic understanding of what is being
discussed.
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Mutsu, Munemitsu (t rans. Gordon Mark Berger), Kenkenroku. A
Diplom atic Record of the Sino -Japanese War 1894 –95, Tokyo:
University of Tokyo Press, 1982 OP
Maps, a small number of photographs and a very detailed chronology are
included in this remarkable primary source. The author was Japan’s
Foreign Minister during this vitally important episode in Japanese history
and wrote this memoir (whilst still holding his position) in the months that
immediately followed the conflict. Mutsu defends his government’s
policies especially in relation to the Treaty of Shimonoseki that was signed
at the end of the war and seemed to some Japane se critics to give up many
of the gains won on the battlefield. The editor provides a short
introduction to the memoir, as well as extensive notes on particular points
in the text. The text is very readable but highly detailed. It would provide
a quarry for numerous primary source extracts and might even be the focus
for a dissertation, discussing and evaluating its arguments and evidence.
Tames, Richard, Encounters with Japan, Stroud: Alan Sutton, 1991
This is a beautifully produced book illustrated wi th a large number of line
drawings, early photographs and eight colour illustrations. These
illustrations are highly informative, worthy of careful study and are
reproduced in a size that is sufficiently large to make possible analysis of
their contents. Since illustrations are all too few in most relevant
histories, this attribute alone makes this a desirable purchase.
The author concentrates on the period 1853 –1922. The text consists of
relatively brief authorial material that links together extracts from
accounts written by Western visitors to Japan. It is highly readable, lively
and enjoyable. The provision of so many varied primary sources will be of
great value to teachers. This is a splendid publication.
Tsunoda, Ryusaku; De Bary, William Theo dore; and Keene,
Donald, Sources of Japanese Tradition, Vol . II, New York:
Columbia University Press, 1958
This book consists of a compilation of sources translated from Japanese
and dealing with the period from the eighteenth century. The sources are
grouped in sections, each of which has a particular theme. The sections
deal with: The Shinto Revival; Reformers of the Late Tokugawa Period;
The Debate over Seclusion and Restoration; The Meiji Era; The High Tide
of Pre-War Liberalism; The Rise of Revolutionary Nationalism; The
Japanese Social Movement; The Japanese Tradition in the Modern World.
Each section is preceded by a short essay providing a background and each
source is preceded by a discussion of the author and the nature of the
source. These authors are mainly concerned with ideals and beliefs.
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The bulk of the book relates to the curriculum and all the authors quoted in
it are Japanese. Many of the sources are lengthy and require careful study,
yet the compilers have put together a resource t hat teachers will find
invaluable for it provides evidence of Japanese viewpoints to set against
those of visitors to Japan. This is not likely to be a resource that will be
readily usable by students however, and teachers will need to extract the
items they wish to be studied.
Wray, Harry and Conroy, Hilary, Japan Exam ined. Perspectives
on Modern Japanese History, Honolulu: University of Haw aii Press,
1983
This is an invaluable resource for teachers who are gathering differing
interpretations by historians of various aspects of Japan’s recent history.
Both North American and Japanese historians contribute to the total of 44
different essays.
The essays are clustered around twelve themes; two thirds of these themes
are of very direct relevance to the curriculum and include: When does
modern Japan begin?; Have ‘modern’ and ‘modernisation’ been
overworked?; The Meiji Restoration – product of gradual decay, abrupt
crisis or creative will?; The Meiji Government and its critics – what is best
for the nation?; Meiji imperialism – planned or unplanned?; The RussoJapanese War – turning point in Japanese History?; How democratic was
Taisho Japan?; Japanese colonialism – enlightened or barbaric?. Parts of
the last two essays go beyond the curricular dates and the final essays
explore issues in more recent times.
The level of difficulty of the essays does tend to vary, but many will be
readily understood by students engaged in particular investigations. For
such students the brevity of the essays and the probl em-focused structure
of the book make this a work that will be of very considerable value. This
is not a basic text; students who use it should come to it with considerable
prior knowledge.
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FO R E I GN AFF A IR S
SECTION 3
Choucri, Nazli; Nort h, Robert C; and Yamakago, Susm u, The
Challenge of Japan before World War II and after. A study of
national growth and expansion , London: Routledge, 1992
The first twenty pages of this book consist of a discussion of the theory of
lateral pressure, that is, the relationship between domestic growth and
international behaviour. The next hundred pages deal with matters of
relevance to the curriculum; the text incorporates a considerable number of
statistical tables. The author considers how far the expansion of Japanese
power beyond the country’s frontiers was a response to the political,
economic and strategic demands of the state, an expansion that once begun
created its own demands and needs.
This is a difficult, academic and challenging work that will reward the able
student’s careful study of its arguments. It is a work to be used only when
the outlines of the course are well established.
Connaughton, Richard, The War of the Rising Sun and Tum bling
Bear. A Military History of the Russo -Japanese War 1904 –5,
London: Routledge, 1988
The author’s military background enables him to write with authority
about this crucial conflict. There are thirty photographs showing various
facets of the conflicts and thirteen clear sketch maps that are very helpful.
The text includes a considerable number of paragraph-long quotations
from primary source materials that teachers will find a useful resource.
This is a massively detailed account of the war – its causes are dealt with
in a mere eleven pages and the peace settlement in three pages. It is
clearly and vigorously written and will fascinate anyone who plunges into
its complexities. Any student who chooses to investigate the Russo Japanese War will find this book invaluable.
Giff ard, Sydney, Japan am ong the powers 1890 –1990, New Haven:
Yale University Press, 1994
Around sixty pages of this text are of relevance in the form of chapters on:
A Place Among the Powers 1890–1900; Expansion on the Asian Continent
1900–1912; World Crisis and Reconstruction 1912–1922. There is a
glossary and a map. Chapters are not broken into sections and the level of
the text is demanding. The author inter-relates foreign and domestic
affairs and, though his account of the Russo -Japanese War is brief, it is
useful to have the material on the 1912–22 period. This is very much a
teacher’s book to be studied, under guidance, by able students.
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Love, Stew art, Japan’s First Asian War. Arm y and Society in the
Conflict with China 1894 –5, London: Macmillan, 1994
This very detailed study of Japan’s army and Japanese socie ty draws
heavily on letters, diaries and newspapers to construct an account of the
experiences of Japanese soldiers and civilians. The author ranges over
military and diplomatic affairs, discusses the Emperor’s role and examines
the impact of the war on Japanese society.
This clearly written academic work will be most useful to students
engaged in detailed work on appropriate dissertations.
McCully, New ton A, The McCully Report. The Russo -Japanese War
of 1904–5, Annapoli s: The Naval Institute Press, 19 77 OP
This is a most fascinating and extensive primary source. Lieutenant
Commander McCully of the US Navy was assigned to the Russian side
during the 1904–5 war. His report on the conflict was submitted to the
Secretary of the US Navy in 1906 and is her e reproduced in full. The
author deals with naval and military operations in Manchuria, Port Arthur
and Vladivostock; his work includes an account of the Battle of Tsushima
and sketches of the battle damage suffered by Russian warships that
survived. McCully’s account was actually written up after his return to the
USA and was based on the detailed diary that he kept. As well as military
matters he deals with railway building, agriculture, mining, commerce,
industry and his journey (after the war) by camel caravan across the Gobi
Desert to Peking. It is an eminently readable and entertaining account.
Nish, Iain H, The Anglo-Japanese Alliance. The Diplom acy of Two
Island Em pires 1894 –1907, London: University of London, 1968 OP
This book provides a survey of the background to the formation of the
Anglo-Japanese alliance as well as accounts of the alliance in operation,
especially in relation to Japan’s war with Russia. Its depth and detail
make it suited to appropriate dissertations rather than to general course
coverage. Chapters are sub-divided and the author’s style is reasonably
clear and accessible in terms of student use. This is a useful book for
providing detail on a key aspect of foreign affairs. A number of useful
documentary extracts are provided in the appendix.
Walder, David, The Short Victorious War. The Russo -Japanese
Conflict 1904–5, London: Hutchinson, 1973 OP
This study of the war of 1904–5 includes a number of photographs and
three maps. It provides a clear, detailed, old -fashioned narrative that is
derived, primarily, from the British Official History of the War.
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SO C I A L A ND E CO N O M IC H I S TO RI E S
SECTION 4
Gluck, Carol, Japan’ s Modern Myths. Ideology in the Late Meiji
Period, Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1985
The text makes up 287 pages of this very detailed study; there are six
illustrations and a diagram. It is written at a demanding level that students
will not find easy, while its closely packed textual layout will further
challenge students’ study skills. The work, then, is probably best see n as a
teacher’s reference book serving to provide greater depth and
understanding on matters of ideology and belief. The author discusses the
ideologies surrounding the Emperor and the political system, the
relationship between ideology and national iden tity, and patriotism and
ideologies affecting society and everyday life. Even as a teacher’s
reference book, however, this work is probably not a very high priority for
study because of its complexity.
Hane, Mikiso, Peasants, Rebels and Outcast s: the und erside of
m odern Japan, London: Scholar Press, 1982
This work covers the period from 1868 to 1945 and includes two maps and
extensive use of primary sources such as diaries and memoirs. Although
only part of the book relates to the curriculum, it provides valuable
insights into the human and social costs of the modernisation of Japan.
The author’s text and the sources combine to provide a lively and vivid
narrative and moving accounts of the hardships endured by peasants,
female factory workers, and women driven by poverty into prostitution and
the coal mines.
Hanley, Susan B, Everyday Things in Pre -m odern Japan. The
Hidden Legacy of Material Culture , Berkeley: University of
Calif ornia, 1997
This is a readily readable and most interesting book that is ill ustrated with
a number of line drawings and includes statistical tables. Even the latter
will fascinate students with insights into such matters as life expectancy,
and shopping patterns in late nineteenth-century Tokyo. The author is a
Professor of Japanese Studies at an American university and her
knowledge of social conditions in pre-Meiji Japan is impressive.
The author is primarily concerned to try to establish how well the Japanese
were living by 1868. Much of her evidence (though by no means all)
comes from periods earlier than 1868, nevertheless the general picture that
she builds up is most useful since evaluations of the post -1868 period
depend heavily on an understanding of the Tokugawa times. Students who
use this book will build up a far better understanding of pre-industrial
Japan and a greater respect for the achievements of the Tokugawa
Shogunate. The author establishes the high level of physical well -being
achieved in Japan by the mid-nineteenth century, a level that stands
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comparison with Britain at the time. She shows too that ‘lifestyle and
culture remained similar from the late Tokugawa through the Meiji period’
(p23).
The book is divided into chapters on Housing and Furnishings; A
Resource-efficient Culture; A Healthful Lifestyle; Urban Sanitation and
Physical Well-Being; Demographic Patterns and Well-Being; Stability in
Transition from the Tokugawa Period to the Meiji Period. Even if students
read just the final chapter – Physical Well-Being: A Comparative
Perspective – they will learn much.
This is not so much a basic course book as an invaluable work that should
be readily available for reference and further reading.
How e, Christopher, The Origins of Japan’s Trade Suprem acy ,
London: Hurst, 1996
Around three quarters of this well organised and sub-divided text relates to
the required curriculum. The author explores trade and technological
developments in both their public and private forms. This is an academic
work aimed at university students and will be useful to able studen ts
engaged in appropriate dissertations.
Macpherson, W J, The Econom ic Developm ent of Japan 1868 –1941,
Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995
This is a brief and very concisely written study of a key theme. It is aimed
at students with some knowledge of economics and is written in a style
that demands intense concentration. Nevertheless parts of it will prove to
be useful, notably the chapter ‘The Tokugawa Background’ and parts of
the chapters on ‘The Role of the State’ and ‘Land and Agriculture’. Dr
Macpherson makes frequent reference to the interpretations of other
academics; this is potentially helpful, though his way of doing it will not
readily enlighten many students. This is a book that teachers should use
with great care.
Maddison, Angus , Econom ic Growth in Japan and the USSR,
London: Allen & Unwin, 1969 OP
The first seventy-nine pages of this book are devoted to Japan; of these
pages about 40% are devoted to aspects of relevance to the curriculum.
This book was produced a generation ago and the author’s views on such
matters as the achievements of Tokugawa Japan betray the book’s date.
The text is somewhat dry but reasonably clear, and there are a number of
statistical tables. It does offer a distinct survey of the economy in a
reasonably coherent form but, if used, needs to be compared with more
recent studies.
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Osamu, Nariai, A History of the Modern Japanese Econom y, Tokyo:
Foreign Press Centre, 1976
This pamphlet is part of the ‘About Japan’ series published by Japan’s
Foreign Press Centre to help visiting journalists and others to understand
Japan better. Around twenty pages of the tightly written text deal with
aspects of the past of direct relevance to the curriculum. Information is
very clearly organised under a series of headings and subheadings and
provides a very convenient way of gathering an initial structure of notes on
the period 1868–1918. However this material can only be viewed as a
basic starting point from which to build a further understanding from more
substantial works.
Roberts, John G, Mitsui: Three Centuries of Japanese Busi ness,
New York: Weatherhill, 1989 OP
The author provides an account of the founding of Mitsui in 1673, its
development to become the wealthiest merchant house of the Tokugawa
period, its evolution into the largest pre-1940 zaibatsu and its post-war
recovery. This is an interesting account of an important dimension of
Japanese society: its specialised character means it is best used as a
reference work for appropriate dissertations.
Seidensticker, Edw ard, Low City, High Cit y. Tokyo from Edo to the
Earthquake: How the Shogun’s Ancient Capital Becam e a Great
Modern City 1867 –1923, Cambridge: Harvard University Press,
1996
This heavily illustrated study of part of Tokyo’s history is clearly writ ten,
entertaining and provides insights into social and cultural life and the way
the city changed. A number of contemporary sources are quoted. This
work will interest students pursuing dissertations in relevant areas. It ends
with the great earthquake of 1 September 1923.
Smith, Thomas C, The Agrarian Origins of Modern Japan,
Stanf ord: Stanf ord University Press, 1984
This work was first published in 1959. The author provides an account of
the traditional village, the way of life of the rural populatio n and the
political system that controlled their lives. He discusses the ways in which
this system was transformed with the development of more commercialised
farming, the increasing use of technology and the changing relationships
between members of the rural population.
This very detailed study will be of use to students whose dissertations
involve investigating this aspect.
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Smith, Thomas C, Native Sources of Japanese Industrialisation
1750–1920, Berkeley: University of Calif ornia Press, 1988
This publication brings together ten essays written by the author over an
eighteen-year period. The essays range over a number of topics, some of
which deal with matters outside the curriculum. They provide very
detailed studies of such topics as the idea of s ocial justice among factory
workers at the end of the nineteenth century. These specialised studies
will be of interest to very able students.
Tsurumi, Patricia E, Factory Girls. Wom en in the Thread Mills of
Meiji Japan, Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1990
This is an important, accessible and interesting study of female labour in
the silk and cotton mills which were so important to the expanding Meiji
economy. The author charts the shift in recruitment from initially
attracting Samurai girls ready to respond to a national call for economic
growth, to country girls who were far more concerned with the support of
their families. The ten chapters are based on first -hand accounts from
which numerous extracts are derived that highlight the bleak liv ing
conditions in dormitories and the harsh working conditions that could
stretch from 4.30 am to 10.00 pm.
This is a very worthwhile book to have both for teacher’s reference and for
detailed study by students.
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SECTION 5
Akamatsu, Paul, Meiji 1868. Revolution and Counter -Revolution in
Japan, London: Allen & Unw in, 1972
This work includes useful maps, a chronological table and a glossary. The
author deals with the latter years of the Shogunate (from around 1830) and
charts the downfall of the bakufu, the establishment of the Meiji regime,
and the reforms in government and army. As the title suggests, there is
also a consideration of the various individuals and groups who opposed the
Meiji regime as well as an epilogue that discusses the Meiji govern ment of
1877–1889. The style is clear and vigorous though fairly demanding. The
concluding section outlines basic trends in the period (the economy, the
lives of the mass of the population, the leaders and political thought).
This is a useful study in depth of a key dimension of the course.
Banno, Junji, The Est ablishm ent of the Japanese Constitutional
System , London: Routledge, 1992
This highly academic and very detailed study of the establishment of the
constitutional government in 1889 provides mate rial on the political
system prior to 1889 and the differences and disputes surrounding the
constitutional upheaval. Chapters are sub-divided. The author explores
the relationship between political, constitutional and foreign policy
dimensions of the issue. This is one of the very few available texts in
English written by a leading Japanese scholar for a Japanese audience.
This is a demanding work best suited to very able students who are
working on appropriate dissertations.
Connors, Lesley, The Em peror’s Adviser. Saionji Kinm ochi and Pre War Japanese Politics , London: Croom Hel m, 1987
This is a study of a senior Japanese statesmen who lived from 1849 to
1940, served as diplomat, entered the cabinet in 1894, formed a cabinet in
1905, and remained a key figure in Japanese affairs for much of the early
twentieth century. Short quotations illustrate Saionji’s views. This book
offers interesting insights into the Japanese political system of the time.
Huber, Thomas M, The Revolutionary Origins of Modern Japan,
Stanf ord: Stanf ord University Press, 1981
This author provides a distinct view of the Meiji Restoration by arguing
that it was above all a movement of men at a fairly minor level –
administrators, priests, scholars, and village officials – rather than
primarily a revolution by the upper section of society. He analyses the
backgrounds and motives of a number of Choshu activists and especially
considers the importance of Yoshida Shoin.
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This book will interest able students who wish to probe more d eeply into
the Meiji Restoration for dissertation purposes.
Ikegami, Eiko, The Tam ing of the Sam urai. Honorific Individual ism
and the Maki ng of Modern Japan , Cambridge: Harvard Universi ty
Press, 1965
This study of the Samurai aims to use the insights it d evelops to foster a
better understanding of modern Japanese society. The author focuses
especially on the ‘honour culture’ of the Samurai. She traces the origins
of the Samurai class and its beliefs, and describes and analyses their
changing fortunes.
Although only around fifty pages of this book relate to the curriculum and
the work is complex and academically demanding, it is a fascinating study
of a key theme in past and present-day Japan. Students engaged in
appropriate investigations should refer to it.
Kelly, William W, Defence and Defiance i n Nineteenth - Century
Japan, Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1985 OP
This book provides an account of four popular protest movements that
took place within the period 1840 to 1875. The protests were di rected
against changes in local and national government policies. This is a
detailed and specialised work that could be consulted by able students
whose dissertations involve this aspect of the period.
Martin, Peter, The Chrysanthem um Throne. A History o f the
Em perors of Japan , Stroud: Sutton Publishing, 1997
This attractively produced illustrated book is the work of a former Tokyo based member of the British Council. The author surveys the history of
the Japanese emperors from their mythological origins to the present day.
Each of the ten chapters begins with a brief general survey which is
followed by a short account of the life and contributions of a series of
emperors. Seventeen pages are of direct relevance to the curriculum and
are written in a style that is easily followed. This is an interesting book,
somewhat marginal in importance, but helpful to students keen to obtain a
wider picture of Japanese history in an easily read form.
Reischauer, Edw in O and Craig, Albert M, Traditions and
Transform ation, Boston: Houghton Miff lin, 1989
The sections within this publication include studies of topics that lie
outside the curriculum as well as discussions of Tokugawa Japan’s
character as a feudal state, how Japan responded to the challenge posed by
the West in the nineteenth century, the processes involved in the
modernisation of Meiji Japan and imperial Japanese society and economy.
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There are nine maps. This book provides further reading for students who
have already been introduced to the issues wi th which it deals.
Remeyer, J Mark and Rosenbluth, Frances M, The Politics of
Oligarchy. Institutional Choice in Im perial Japan, Cambridge:
Cambridge Universit y Press, 1998
The authors of this book draw on the period from the 1860s to the 1930s to
study the political power structures of the time. They investigate the
forming of the Meiji Constitution, the legal and civil service structures,
the military, financial politics, and the relationship between the railways
and the cotton industry and politics.
The result is a complex and demanding work that students will not find
easy to use and in which material relevant to the curriculum has to be
carefully identified. Yet there is real value in considering the authors’
views on Japan’s political leaders for they are more critical of their
motives and achievements than many other historians. They see these
leaders as essentially self-serving, eager to hold on to power and
responsible for awarding the military a degree of independence that
contributed greatly to the crisis of the 1930s and early 1940s.
Totman, Conrad, The Collapse of t he Tokugawa Bakuf u, Honolulu:
University of Haw aii Press, 1980
The author argues that the impact of the West was the crucial factor in
bringing about the end of Tokugawa rule. Thi s is a very detailed study of
the Bakufu’s political, economic and military difficulties and of the efforts
it made to respond to them, to cope with Western pressure and to
implement reforms.
Students who investigate this area for their dissertations wi ll find this a
helpful work to consult once they have an overall grasp of the topic.
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SECTION 6
Burks, Ardath W (ed), The Modernisers: Overseas Students, Foreign
Em ployees, and Meiji Japan , London: West view Press, 1985
Both Western and Japanese historians have contributed essays to this
varied collection. It contains studies of the Tokugawa background,
Japanese students abroad, the Meiji government’s use of foreigners, the
importance of education and some of the contributions made by both
foreigners and Japanese who had been abroad. These are valuable studies
from which students could select topics appropriate to their dissertations.
Checkland, Olive, Isabella Bird and ‘A Wom an’s Right to do what
she can do well’ , Aberdeen: Scottish Cultural Press, 1 996
Isabella Bird (1831–1904) was a formidable traveller whose journeys took
her to Japan in 1878. This study of her adventures includes a chapter on
her Japanese expedition, a section that is illuminated with four
illustrations and a map. Students will enjoy reading this chapter, with its
account of a tweed-wearing lady venturing into parts of Japan to which
Westerners had never hitherto been. The chapter includes quotations from
Isabella Bird’s own writings.
Checkland, Olive, Bri tain’s Encounter with Meiji Japan, 1868 –1912,
Basingstoke: Macmillan 1989
This detailed, clearly written, conveniently sub -divided academic study
includes maps, cartoons and photographs. It provides depth to a dimension
of the curriculum that tends to be treated rather briefl y in more general
histories and will be a useful work of reference for teachers and for
students working on relevant dissertations. The first section of the book
focuses on the British in Japan and deals with Diplomats and Consuls;
Traders and Bankers; Engineers; Shipbuilders; Engineering Teachers; and
British Life in Japan. The second part concentrates on the Japanese in
Britain and deals with the Iwakura Mission; towards an Educational
Philosophy; students; in the shipyards; Japanese life in Britain. T he third
part is entitled ‘The British Facilitators’ and deals with Commercial and
Academic Networks; Licensers and Licensees; Exhibitions; A Co -partnery
– 226 pages of text are followed by substantial notes, references and a
bibliography.
Cortazzi, Hugh, Victorians in Japan. In and Around the Treaty
Ports, London: Athlone Press, 1987
The Victorian visitors to Japan whose writings make up the bulk of this
book are overwhelmingly British. The author dips into the writings of
these travellers to make selections from them that relate to particular
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topics. He also provides half a dozen pages on the historical background
to the period from the 1850s to the 1890s, and sufficient text to weave
together the source extracts to form a coherent and connected flow that is
highly readable.
The book’s first section describes life in the Treaty ports – Nagasaki,
Hakodate, Yokohama, Edo, Osaka, Kobe and Niigata. The next section
deals with other places around the Treaty ports, and the final section
surveys aspects of daily life such as food, bathing, brothels, sports and the
first railways.
Students will enjoy reading this book and teachers will find it a useful
repository of primary source material. It can be used to enliven study of
particular aspects of the curriculum.
Cortazzi, H and Dani els, G (eds) , Britain and Japan 1859 –1991.
Them es and Personalities 1991 , London: Routledge, 1991
Twenty-two separate essays by different scholars make up the contents of
this book; each essay deals with a particular personality except for the
final one, which provides a very detailed chronology of relations between
Britain and Japan. The essays were produced to celebrate the centenary of
the Japanese Society; most of the people who feature in them are British.
Three of the essays deal with the last years of the Shogunate, ten with the
Meiji period and four with the Taisho period. One of the studies that deals
with a Japanese citizen concerns Baba Tatsu, a young Western -educated
intellectual who studied in Britain. Kikuchi Kyoza, an engineer trained by
Henry Dyer, features in another essay. A further example of the interest
provided by this book can be found in an essay on the visit to Japan in
1911–12 of Sidney and Beatrice Webb.
Used selectively this book would enhance appropriate investigations.
Hoare, J E, Japan’s Treaty Ports and Foreign Settlem ents. The
Uninvited Guests , Fol kstone: The Japan Li brary, 1994
This is an academic work derived from the author’s research degree thesis,
yet it is readable, reasonably accessible and includes a number of useful
contemporary pictures. The text includes a very limited number of
quotations from primary sources. The chapters deal with The Opening of
Japan; The First Years of the Treaty Ports; Life in Foreign Settlements
1868–1899; Extra-territoriality in Japan – The Establishment of the System
1858–1869; The System in Operation 1869–1899; Municipal Affairs;
Merchants and Trade; The Foreign Press; Treaty Ports in Retrospect.
Students investigating this dimension for dissertations will find this a very
helpful book that contains interesting details of life in Treaty ports. The
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author argues that the foreign settlements played a marginal role in
Japanese economic development, but a major role in stimulating Japan’s
reforms and developments, so eager were the Japanese to be rid of the
places where foreigners enjoyed privileged positions.
McKay, Alexander, Scottish Sam urai. Thom as Blake Glover 1838 –
1911, Edi nburgh: Canongate, 1993
Thomas Blake Glover was born in Fraserburgh and wen t to Aberdeen
Grammar School. He grew up to be an enterprising businessman and in
1859 arrived in Nagasaki. He became heavily involved in supplying
modern weapons to the clans who overthrew the Shogunate and went on to
build up a successful business in Meiji Japan that brought him into contact
with many Japanese leaders and helped to develop the Mitsubishi empire.
This is a very clear and readable account of his life and achievements and
includes a considerable number of worthwhile illustrations. Studen ts
should be able to read through this book quite speedily; its Scottish
connection makes it especially worthwhile.
Miyoshi, Masao, As We Saw Them . The First Japanese Em bassy to
the United States , New York: Kodansha, 1994
This is an account of the visit to the USA in 1860 of a group of Japanese
officials. It is heavily illustrated with contemporary engravings and
photographs. The author draws on the diaries and memoirs left by the
Japanese mission to describe their experiences and their opinions. He als o
deals with the later fate of prominent mission members and makes
comparisons between these Japanese accounts and those left by Western
visitors to Japan.
The author includes a range of quotations from his sources amid a text that
is clearly and entertainingly written. This is a very detailed study of one
very particular event and, as such, may be best suited to use by students
engaged on relevant investigations. But it is also worth at least brief study
by teachers for the sources it contains and for th e light it sheds on contact
with the West under the Shogunate.
Pedlar, Neil, The Im perial Pioneers. Westerners Who Helped to
Modernise Japan , London: Japan Library, 1990
This survey of the part played by a cross section of Westerners in the
modernisation of Japan deals entirely with the period that is covered by the
curriculum. The author provides a series of biographical studies of
teachers, technocrats and Westerners based in the Treaty ports. The book,
used selectively, will help students more fully to develop this dimension of
the curriculum. The text is reasonably accessible.
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Rosenstone, Robert, A Mirror in the Shrine, Am erican Encounters
with Meiji Japan, Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1988
This account of the lives of three Americans who chose to live in Japan in
the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries is written in a vigorous
style aimed at capturing the interest of the general reader. It deals with
William Elliot Griffis (who wrote ten volumes about Japan), Edward S
Morse (who collected items of Japanese folk art and wrote about Japanese
homes) and Lafeadio Hearn (who compiled twelve volumes about Japan).
The author’s declared aim is to show what these Americans gained from
Japan. The book will be of interest to students who se dissertations explore
the dimension of foreign involvement in Japanese life.
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