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History of China and Japan
1
HISTORY
Subject
:
History
Paper No.
:
Paper - VIII
History of China & Japan Unit No. & Title
:
Unit- 2
History of Japan
Topic No. & Title
:
Topic - a
Meiji Restoration
Lecture No. & Title
:
Lecture - 2
Tokugawa Shogunate – Part II
(For under graduate student)
FAQs
1.
How was the Meiji Restoration brought about?
While the shogunate was immobilized by its own inner
divisions and the rest of Japan was divided into units
too small to take effective action, a handful of able
young samurai from Choshu and Satsuma gained
control over their own domains and then through a bold
use of the power of these domains, seized control over
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the entire nation with great speed and relatively little
bloodshed.
2.
What were the immediate challenges before the
leaders of the Meiji restoration?
The leaders of the new Meiji government in 1868 were
concerned about the prospect of continued foreign
encroachment as well as resistance from domestic
opponents. They were also moved by their own sense
of the ongoing problems of the Tokugawa order,military
and
economic
weakness,
political
fragmentation, and a social hierarchy that failed to
recognize men of talent. Propelled by both fear and
discontent with the old regime, they generated an
ambitious agenda, through a process of trial and error,
aiming to build a new sort of national power.
3.
What was the first significant step undertaken by
the Meiji regime?
Their first dramatic step was to abolish all the daimyo
domains, thus dismantling a political order in place for
260 years. The new government convinced the most
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influential daimyo to voluntarily surrender their lands
back to the emperor. The “return of lands” established
the principle that all lands and people were subject to
the emperor’s rule. In August 1871, all domains were
immediately abolished and replaced with “prefectures”
whose governors were appointed from the centre. The
central government would now collect taxes from
domain lands.
4.
What did the ‘Five Articles Oath’ seek to achieve?
The ‘Five Articles Oath’ issued by the Meiji emperor in
April
1868
indicated
the
course
that
the
new
government would follow. It stated that deliberative
assemblies
would
be
established
and
all
matters
decided by public discussion. Two of the articles
promised a revolutionary break with the feudal class
restrictions of the past.
The other article promised that knowledge would be
sought
throughout
the
world
foundations of imperial rule.
to
strengthen
the
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5.
What were the major markers of the social
revolution
in
Japan
following
the
Meiji
restoration?
By 1876, less than a decade after the restoration coup,
the economic privileges of the samurai were wiped out
entirely. The elimination of samurai privilege allowed
the
new
regime
to
redirect
financial
and
human
resources alike and was part of a larger transformation
of society from a system of fixed statuses to a more
fluid, merit-based social order. The other side to the
abolition of samurai privilege was the end to formal
restrictions on the rest of the population. At least in
theory, this constituted social liberation. In 1870, all
non-samurai
were
classified
in
legal
terms
as
commoners (heimin). With some important genderbased exceptions, the restrictions of the Tokugawa era
on
modes
of
travel,
dress,
and
hairstyle
were
eliminated. Restrictions on occupation were abolished.
The government ended legal discrimination against the
hereditary outcaste groups of Tokugawa times such as
eta and hinin.
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5
6.
Outline
the
major
military
reforms
decisions
enforced under the Meiji emperor.
The Meiji oligarchy introduced measures to consolidate
their power against the remnants of the Shogunate,
daimyo and samurai class. In 1868, all Tokugawa lands
were seized and placed under imperial control, thus
placing them under the prerogative of the new Meiji
government. The roughly 300 domains (han) of the
daimyos were turned into prefectures, each under the
control of a state appointed governor. By 1888, several
prefectures had been merged to reduce their number to
75. The daimyo received government bonds in 1876 in
lieu of further annual payments. By 1876, less than a
decade
after
the
restoration
coup,
the
economic
privileges of the samurai were wiped out entirely. The
Meiji leaders also decided to renovate the military from
the bottom up. In April 1871 the Government created
the imperial army. To reform the army, the government
instituted nationwide conscription in 1873, mandating
that every male would serve in the armed forces upon
turning 21 for four years, followed by three more years
in the reserves.
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7.
What
were
the
major
educational
reforms
undertaken by the Meiji order?
The Meiji government instituted a new system of
education with remarkable speed. In 1872 it declared
four years of elementary education to be compulsory
for
all
children,-
boys
and
girls.
Education
was
remodelled partly on French and American systems,
under the influence of men like Fukuzawa and Mori
Arinori. Alongside government sponsored schools there
were a great many private and Christian schools
(founded by missionaries). The Confucian ‘University’ in
Edo, the medical school and the Institute for the Study
of Barbarian books were united, and renamed the
Tokyo University.
At the bottom of the Japanese educational structure
were six-year co-educational elementary schools, and
above this level were five-year academic middle schools
for boys, various technical schools, and girls’ higher
schools and at the top of the pyramid were the threeyear universities. But this system was mainly tailored to
fit the needs of the state as envisioned by its leaders.
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8.
What was the position of the emperor in the Meiji
period?
Perhaps the most portentous new departure undertaken
during the revolutionary years of the early Meiji was the
decision to put the emperor at the very centre of the
political order. The emperor issued the ‘Charter Oath’ or
‘Five Articles Oath’ in April 1868, which indicated the
course the government intended to follow. It promised
a revolutionary break with the feudal class restrictions
of the past and declared that Japan was to be
modernized and strengthened through the use of
Western knowledge. The constitution was presented as
the gift of the emperor who reserved the right to make
amendments. It declared the emperor to be sacred and
inviolable,
and
the
locus
of
sovereignty
as
the
descendant of a dynasty that ‘has reigned in an
unbroken line of descent for ages past’. It also
specifically stated that the ‘emperor has the supreme
command of the army and navy’. The constitution was a
blend of many conflicting ideas, but it turned out to be
a reasonably successful balance among the various
political forces of the time. In reality though, political
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power simply moved from the Tokugawa Shogun to an
oligarchy
consisting
of
leaders,
mostly
from
the
Satsuma and Choshu province. This reflected their
belief in the more traditional practice of imperial rule,
whereby the emperor performs his high priority duties
and his ministers govern the nation in his name.
9.
Discuss the major economic steps undertaken
during the Meiji restoration.
Within a mere half-century the Meiji leaders achieved
their
goals
of
creating
a
relatively
sound
and
modernized economy. The leaders of the Japanese
government realized that if it was to withstand the
Western menace they would have to emphasise the
development of strategic industries on which modern
military power depended. Western technology was used
to smelt iron and cast cannon. The Meiji government
started building Western-style ships, and mastered
Western navigational techniques. The new government
built shipyards and operated large factories (in Tokyo
and Osaka) for making rifles and ammunition. Though
Western models were used, foreigners themselves were
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not employed in the arsenals for security reasons.
Modern
communications,
including
construction
of
railways, and telegraph lines were developed. The
government established a Ministry of Industry in 1870,
which encouraged the development of manufacturing
and industries through technical assistance, easy credit
and subsidies. The most important industrial field was
textiles, since these made up half of Japan’s imports
between 1868 and 1882.
10. Which sector in the industry performed most
spectacularly during the Meiji restoration?
Within a mere half-century the Meiji leaders achieved
their goals, creating a relatively sound and modernized
economy. The most important industrial field was
textiles, since these made up half of Japan’s imports
between 1868 and 1882. Spinning mills were set up.
The first mechanical silk-reeling plant was established
in 1870 in central Honshu. It was the silk industry that
eventually contributed to the balancing of foreign trade
in the mid-1880s.