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| For over two centuries Japan had been closed to all foreigners until American warships forced Japan, in 1854, to open her ports to foreign trade. In the 1850's the Tokugawas signed many unequal treaties with foreign countries, giving others more rights than Japan. Many daimyo were angered at the government's decisions.The infuriated Japanese blamed the Tokugawa shogun - the military leader who had ruled Japan in place of the emperor - for the humiliation. The Tokugawa line of shoguns had ruled Japan for 250 years and had enforced the seclusion of Japan. The groups opposed to the Tokugawa finally succeeded in a coup d��tat on 3 January 1868. They later legitimized their revolution by using the term the �Meiji Restoration.� That is restoring rule away from the Shogunate and back to the Emperor, at this point in time, Emperor Mutsuhito, whose reign name is Meiji or enlightened rule. The revolution or restoration began by eliminating remaining opposition Tokugawa in several campaigns, dismantling the bakufu�s domains, and bringing legitimacy to the Revolution. Thus sixteen year old Emperor Mutsuhito was led before his �subjects� on several grand trips. He chose the name Meiji, meaning enlightened reign, for his rule. Meiji's supporters' slogan was "rich country, strong military". Emperor Mutsuhito announced that he had taken his traditional powers back from the shogun. The Emperor moved the capital from ancient Kyoto to Edo, which he renamed Tokyo the "eastern capital.". In the 45 years of 122nd Emperor Mutsuhito's reign, Japan went a long way toward achieving many goals. By the end of the nineteenth century the nation had a new political system with a parliament and a constitution, a modern army and navy, and growing industries. During his reign, Japan adopted many industrial and military ideas from foreign countries. Thus began the modernization of an isolated country. Leaders set up a new education system, military, banking, and industry. In 1889, Japan's first constitution was written, making the emperor head of state, and appointing government ministers and a parliament, called the Diet. Under a strong, deified monarchy and the new open door policy, there followed rapid change and much emphasis on building a strong military power. As a result of emerging victorious in wars against China (1894-95) and against Russia (1904-05), Japan gained Taiwan and Karafuto in 1895, Korea in 1910, and a strong sense of national destiny. He promptly instituted a far reaching modernization effort. Railroads, telephones, and modern factories were all built. A modern banking system was introduced, along with private ownership of land, and subsidies to private enterprise. Under the influence of these policies the economy grew. This period of the Meiji restoration was the most prosperous time period in Japan in its 2000 year history. The intention was to �catch up� with the western nations technologically, yet retain Japanese values and morality. To diminish the extreme class orientation of society to give rights to all, yet reinforce the role of the emperor as divine ruler. Universal education would have made a huge difference in going from a feudal class oriented society, into one where �peasants� were considered important members of society. He was the first emperor to grant farmers titles to their lands and instituted public education for all Japanese people. The abolition of pensions to the samurai and of the ancient code of the sword led to the samurai uprising in 1877. Following its defeat the samurai caste disintegrated. This was the Meiji restoration, the chief event in the modern history of Japan, for it meant the downfall of Japanese feudalism and the forging of a new and modern state. Emperor Meiji himself had little political power, but he was a paramount symbol of the unity of Japan. A constitution adopted in 1889 provided for a diet with an upper house selected mainly from the peerage, and an elected lower house to advise the government. The cabinet was not directly responsible to the diet but was regarded as above politics and responsible only to the emperor. In practice, the emperor delegated selection of premiers to a group of close advisers known as the genro, or elder statesmen. Under the direction of these oligarchs (among them Hirobumi Ito, Aritomo Yamagata, and Kaoru Inouye), Japan was transformed into a modern industrial state, and its military power was demonstrated in the first Sino-Japanese War (1894�95) and the Russo-Japanese War (1904�5). When the Meiji period ended in 1912, Japan was a world power. During the Meji period (1868 -1912) the feudal system was replaced with western ideas and business contacts gained wide acceptance. Young and ambitious Emperor Mutsuhito dispatched favored officials from the imperial court and others to the US, Germany and the UK to learn and absorb the ways of the West. They were compelled and expected to return with their overseas study to help trigger the desired modernization of Japan. They returned , in some cases, with foreign experts with them, as reverse brain drain. He succeeded in amalgamating the western technology with Japanese values and morality, in diminishing the extreme class orientation of society to give rights to all, yet reinforce the role of the emperor as divine ruler. . The new Japan understood that being a strong and prosperous nation was the only way to preserve its independence and unique culture. European nations had seized huge territories all across Asia, which they ruled as colonies. The once-mighty empire of China was forced to offer European powers special trade privileges. Japan's rulers were determined to keep their country from becoming a colony of the West. The best way to do this, they believed, was to adopt Western culture and technology and to make Japan strong. Emperor Meiji married Haruko (1850-1914), the daughter of Ichijo Tadaka, on September 8, 1867; she was styled kogo (empress consort). The couple had no children. The Emperor fathered at least fifteen children (five sons and ten daughters) by four officials concubines: (1) Lady Mitsuko, (2) Lady Natsuko (b. 1856, d. 1873), (3) Lady Kotoko (b. 1855, d. 1944), (4) Sono Sachiko (b. 1867, d. 1947) and (5) Lady Yanagiwara Naruko (b. 1855, d. 1943). Only five of his children, four princesses and the future Emperor Taisho, lived to adulthood. Emperor Meiji died in 30 July 30 and his remains interred in Kyoto's Momoyama Imperial Mausoleum on 14 September. Emperor Mutsuhito was succeeded by his son, Taisho emperor Yoshihito in1912. |
| Meiji Restoration |
| 1868 -1912 |
| Emperor Mutsuhito |
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