Excerpts from Japan’s Closed Country
Edict of 1635.
 Japanese ships may absolutely not leave for
foreign countries.
 No Japanese person is allowed to go abroad.
Anyone who tries to do so will be put to death.
 All Japanese persons who live abroad will be put
to death when they return home…Samurai
[paid warriors] may not purchase goods from
foreign ships directly from foreign merchants in
Nagasaki.
Questions
What policy did the Closed
Country Edict Establish?
How did this affect
Japanese traders?
Questions
How do you think foreign
powers will react to Japan’s
isolationism?
Japan Modernizes
Japan Before Modernization
Before the late 17th century, Japan had
virtually no contact with industrialized
nations.
They traded with China and some
Dutch traders from Indonesia and had
a diplomatic relationship with Korean,
but otherwise they were shut off from
the rest of the world.
Japan Before Modernization
 Japan was under the rule of Tokugawa
shoguns, and they had a strictly ordered
society.
Shogun=a supreme military commander
who ruled in the name of the emperor
 Shoguns distributed land to landlords.
Peasants worked for the landlords and were
protected by them and their samurai.
Tokugawa Yoshinobu, the last
Tokugawa shogun, in French military
dress (1867)
Tokugawa Ieyasu, the first
Tokugawa shogun, ruled
from 1603-1605
Japan Before Modernization
 Women were very
restricted, their duty was
to remain in the home and
raise sons.
 “A woman has no other
lord; she must look to her
husband as her lord and
must serve him with all
worship and reverence…”
~Kaibara Ekken (c. 1729)
Japan Before Modernization
Japanese society
was very
restrictive, but
they were
prosperous and
had a peaceful
life.
Demands of Foreign Trade
Like China in the early
th
19
centuries, western countries were
trying to convince Japan to open
their ports and trade.
Unlike China, Japan completely
refused to trade with anyone.
Demands of Foreign Trade
In 1853,
Commodore
Matthew Perry of
the US navy
showed up in one
of Japan’s harbors
with four ships.
Demands of Foreign Trade
 The Japanese were
awed by these ships
and realized their
samurai and
methods of defense
were completely
outdated.
The Letter
 Commodore Perry
came to Japan to bring
a letter from President
Fillmore, politely
asking Japan to begin
trading.
 Perry said he would
return in a year, with
an even larger fleet to
receive Japan’s reply.
The Letter
 This led to Japan signing
the Treaty of
Kanagawa in 1854
which opened two ports,
and let the US set up an
embassy in Japan.
 This led to
extraterritorial rights and
more foreigners in the
country by the 1860’s.
Japan Reforms
 The Japanese people were
angry that their country
had been given over to
foreigner’s demands.
 People began to put their
support in Emperor
Mutsuhito, because he
appealed to people’s pride
and nationalism.
Japan Reforms
 In 1867 the Tokugawa
shogun stepped down, and
this allowed Mutsuhito to
create a new government.
 Mutsuhito was 15 when he
took over. He ruled from
1867 – 1912 and this was
known as the Meiji Era.
Japan Reforms
Mutsuhito named
his new government
Meiji which means
enlightened rule.
Meiji Era
The emperor
realized that the
best way to oppose
western ways was
to modernize.
All land was given
to the emperor, and
owned by him.
Meiji Era
 Representatives
were sent to foreign
countries to study
their ways. The
Japanese chose what
they believed were
the best societies
and militaries and
modeled themselves
based off that.
Foreign Ideas
Germany – the Japanese liked the
way Germany had a strong
centralized government where a small
group of men had political power.
They also liked how strong
Germany’s army was, so they
modeled these aspects of their
country after the Germans.
Foreign Ideas
 Britain – the Japanese admired the British
navy greatly, and they attempted to create a
similar one.
 United States – they admired the
American school system, and created free
public schools and required all the children
to go in order to be more educated citizens.
They included foreign experts and often
encouraged people to study abroad.
Industrialization
 The emperor realized it
was also important for
Japan to industrialize.
 By 1872, Japan had
built their first railroad.
 By 1914, Japan had
more than 7,000 miles
of rails.
Industrialization
 Coal production greatly increased. The
state supported other means of
production and those increased greatly
as well.
 Japan continued to produce commodity
products like tea, and silk for trade.
 They also began weapon/military
development.
JAPANESE IMPERIALISM
Question and Answer-10 minutes
QUESTIONS
 Using your notes, answer the following
questions (1 sentence each):
Why did the Japanese imperialize?
Why did Japan attack China? What was
the outcome?
Why did Japan go to war with Russia?
What was the outcome of this conflict?
Why did Japan take over Korea? What
was Korea like under Japanese rule?
Exam Review
Studying should focus on imperialism
since you have already been quizzed on
industrialization.
Make sure to look at vocab and unit
questions
Are there any questions pertaining to
industrialization and/or imperialism?