Bakumatsu
1853-1868
Outer Daimyo and Tokugawa
Reasons
Ancien Regime 1853-1867
Economic weakness (domestic)
1. Rice crop failures in 1822, 1836= hunger
2. Value of silver coins (therefore prices) in Japan set by
Shogun, not by weight
3. Exchange in Japan to silver : gold 5:1, in world 15:1,
massive silver influx = inflation.
• Samurai paid by daimyo in rice, standard of living falls as
price stays low
• Trade with West after 1854, heavy demand for:
– Exports: silk, tea
– Imports: cheap cotton goods and firearms
Economic weakness
(foreign relations)
• Treaty of Kanagawa 1854 set tariffs low, cannot
protect Japanese manufacturers from cheaper
imports, Japanese start to go out of business
• Shi-shi (“men of determination”) assassinate
foreigners 1859-1862
• Shi-shi burn British consulate in 1863
• Western governments want heavy
indemnities/reparations, shogun must pay but
running out of money
Political weakness (military)
• Samurai abandoned cannon and firearms which
won sengoku after 1609
• 1638-1854 no significant wars in Japan
• Samurai took up philosophy and ink brush
• Samurai moved from warriors to admin.
• Still carried swords, but worked on theory of war
and not practice
Political weakness (foreign affairs)
• “Unequal Treaties” cannot be resisted
– Treaty of Kanagawa 1854
– Treaty of Edo or Harris Treaty 1858
Political weakness (domestic)
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Shi-shi cannot be controlled
Shi-shi go to Edo to speak out on politics
Tozama of Choshu and Satsuma plot against shogun
Japanese intellectuals studied “Dutch learning”
(Western knowledge ) rangaku
• Official schools study Western knowledge and
language opened in Mito, Satsuma, Choshu, Tosa,
Hizen
Tokugawa government
Pressure group: Tozama
• The tozama, anti-shogun from 1600
• Choshu economically healthy, other
daimyos deep in debt
• Satsuma grew sugar for great wealth,
monopoly based on climate
• Could purchase Western arms; school in
Nagasaki
Pressure group: Emperor
• Radical government established in Kyoto
under Emperor and Choshu
• Radical shi-shi assassinate moderate
samurai (terror)
• 1863 Emperor-Choshu alliance called
shogun to Kyoto, shogun promised to expel
barbarians (which he could not)
Choshu-Satsuma alliance
• 1857 Choshu begins to build an army using
peasants and samurai with rifles
• 1863 Satsuma begins building navy by
purchasing Western ships
• 1866 Satsuma and Choshu choose to
cooperate against the shogun
Leaders do not support
government
Yoshida Shoin
• Very influential teacher
• Studied Western military
books in Nagasaki
• He opened school in
Choshu
• Pro-emperor, anti-shogun
• Influenced young nobles
like Kido Takayoshi
(Koin)
Leading personalities of the Meiji
Restoration
• Choshu
– Kido Takayoshi (Koin) (1833-1877)
– Ito Hirobumi (1841-1909)
– Yamagata Aritomo (1838-1922)
– Inoue Kaoru (1836-1915)
• Satsuma
– Saigo Takamori (1828-1877)
– Okubo Toshimichi (1830-1878)
– Matsukata Masayoshi (1835-1924)
• Tosa
– Itagaki Taisuke (1837-1919)
• Hizen
– Okuma Shigenobu (1838-1922)
Okubo Toshimichi
• Satsuma daimyo
leader
Saigo Takamori
• Satsuma daimyo
leader
• Military leader of
Restoration
Kido Takayoshi
• or Kido Koin
• Choshu daimyo leader
Class antagonism
• Shogun vs. outer daimyo
• Merchants vs. samurai and daimyo--have a
lot of money but little say in government
• Peasants suffering under high prices
• Wealthier peasants vs. poorer peasants
Reform
Rule of Moderates
1867-1868
Moderate government in power
Tokugawa Yoshinobu
(or Keiki)
(in retirement)
• 1866-1867 new shogun
Tokugawa Yoshinobu
• Created council of leading
daimyo to share power
• Failed: only 5 of 24
daimyo attended meeting
Moderates politically weak
• Tokugawa cannot resist foreign armies and
• Cannot cancel unequal treaties
Dual sovereignty
• January 1868 Choshu-SatsumaKyoto/Emperor alliance in Kyoto vs.
• The shogun in Edo maintained support from
loyal daimyo in central Japan
Foreign war or civil war
Choshu, Satsuma, and other tozama march to Kyoto,
seize power, and proclaim restoration of emperor
• Shogun retreats to Edo
• July 1868: Saigo Takamori leads Choshu and
Satsuma march to Edo, battle between tozama
modern forces (imperial army) and samurai at
today’s Ueno Park. Shogun army defeated.
Saigo Takamori at Ueno
Moderate government loses
support
• Conservatives: Shogun did not want to
share power but could not meet emergency
• Liberals and radicals: Choshu, Satsuma,
and shi-shi felt shogun was weak in front of
foreign powers
Radicals or
Reactionaries?
Five Articles Oath and
Constitution of 1868
1868-1889
Five Articles Oath or
Charter Oath
• Emperor Matsuhito (Meiji) is
14 when selected emperor
January 1868
• Charter Oath of 1868 plan for
how Japan would move ahead
after shogun
• Rejects “expel the barbarians”
for learn from the West
Dajokan (Council of State)
Key leaders:
Okubo Toshimichi
Saigo Takamori
Kido Takayoshi
Reign of Terror:
Korean crisis 1871-1873
• Kido Takayoshi
• Okubo Toshimichi
• Go abroad to study
Western science, law,
government,
education, military,
banking,…
• Two year tour
• Saigo Takamori stays
in Tokyo
• Looks for ways to help
samurai
• Proposes invasion of
Korea and
• A large, powerful
army and navy
Reign of Terror:
Korean crisis 1871-1873 (2)
• Kido and Okubo
return quickly from
tour and debate the
Korean invasion.
• Korean invasion is
cancelled
• Modernize Japan
before expanding
• Saigo is angry
• Saigo quits the
government and
returns to Satsuma
with supporters
Reign of terror
• 1874 Saga Revolt 2,000 samurai defeated
• 1877 Satsuma Rebellion
– Saigo led 30,000 against modern government
army. Defeated in six months. This was the
final samurai revolt.
– The Last Samurai
Samurai destroyed as a group
Saigo Takamori at Kagoshima
Early death
• Kido Takayoshi died
of tuberculosis in
1877.
Reign of virtue: social change
• 1869 New social classes proclaimed to
replace feudal structure
• 1871 Eta or outcasts given full legal
equality
• 1870 commoners allowed to have family
names
• Commoners can marry with samurai class
Reign of virtue: social change
• Western dress expected for all official
ceremonies
• Western haircuts replace topknots
• Meat encouraged over Buddhist
vegetarianism
• Beer and dairy products available
• Western ballrooom dancing popular
• All daimyo lands returned to emperor
Reign of virtue: political change
• 1871 men may cut off their topknot
• 1876 Hatori Edict prohibited the wearing of
swords in public except for special
ceremonies
• 1876 samurai must give up swords
• Samurai given one last final payment
• Daimyo given gov’t bonds, become wealthy
Reign of virtue:
economic change
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1871 Yen established as currency
1882 Bank of Japan to control economy
Modern railroad
Modern communications
Zaibatsu to speed industrialization
Zaibatsu
Zaibatsu name and region of origin
• Mitsui (Kyoto) merchant house
• Yasuda (Edo) peasant who became banker
• Kawasaki
• Mitsubishi (Tosa)
• Sumitomo (Osaka/Kyoto) from 17c mining
Few in numbers
• Meiji government mostly men from
Choshu, Satsuma, Tosa, and Hozai. All
former tozama
• Only 4 daimyo out of 260 led revolution
• They were a minority of nobility, and
nobility a minority of population
Control of key organizations
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Imperial army created from conscripts
Dajokan rules in emperor’s name
Emperor is the symbol of new government
1868 Edo renamed Tokyo
1869 Emperor moved into shogun’s Edo castle
1871 Education reform
1890 Rescript on Education (universal ed.)
Authoritarian government
• Oligarchs (Kido, Saigo, Okubo…) rule in
Emperor’s name
• 1880: Newspaper criticisms of government
restricted
• Public meetings required police approval
• Soldiers, policemen, teachers, and students
could not be politically active
National emergency
• Western powers militarily stronger
• Several peasant uprisings against new taxes
• Samurai revolts in 1874-1876/1877
Restoration
Meiji Constitution of
1889
Meiji government
•
Conservatives come to power
•The generation of leaders after the radicals
focused on strengthening their power and creating
a representational government with a Diet.
•Prince Saionji Kinmochi, of old noble family,
entered politics 1900-1940.
•Genro later in life
Prime Ministers 1889-1900
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•Matsukata Masayoshi
•Satsuma
•Yamagata Aritomo
•Choshu
•Army
•Ito Hirofumi
•Choshu
Ito Hirofumi
• Choshu leader who
studied in the West
• Wrote the 2nd
constitution:
• The Constitution of
the Empire of Japan
Law and order restored
• Constitution of 1889 or Meiji Constitution
• There was a long struggle between the new
Diet and the Prime Minister or cabinet.
• But the differences were settled using legal
means and the Diet became equal of the
prime ministers
New ruling group
• The Prime Ministers and genro competed
with Diet for power 1889-1900.
• Diet won the power struggle.
• Prime Ministers become: Genro, elder
statesmen. The unofficial, decision-makers.
Illustrations
http://www.smith.edu/fcceas/curriculum/dunnagan.htm
http://www.svensaaler.de/TokugawaKeiki.gif
Bibliography
• Miocevich, Grant. Investigating Japan.