Early Meiji Japan 1868-1912

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Early Meiji Japan1868-1912

• 13a

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Meiji Restoration Lead-up

• Choshu incident 1863
• Choshu tries to sink Western ships
• Choshu marches against Kyoto to capture Emperor
  but fails
• Tokugawa fails to punish Choshu

3
Meiji Restoration Lead-up

• Review
• 1864 Ships from England, France, Holland and the
  US all attack the Choshu
• Choshu leaders recognize futility of resistance
  for now
• Map out new response including modernization/Weste
  rnization

Young Choshu leaders visit London 1860s
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Meiji Restoration1868

• Choshu and Satsuma draw up alliance
• Plot revolution

Satsuma/Choshu Plotters

• Young Samurai decide to reform Japan
• March on Kyoto and seize new young Emperor Meiji
• Declare Restoration of the Emperor to his
  rightful place
• Liberate the Emperor from Tokugawas rule
• Emperor to rule directly

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Meiji Restoration1868

• Declare Restoration of the Emperor to his
  rightful place
• Liberate the Emperor from Tokugawas rule
• Emperor to rule directly
• Emperor issues decree ending the rule of the
  Tokugawa Shoguns

Young Emperor Meiji
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Meiji Restoration

• Tokugawa Shogunate counter attacks
• Satsuma/Choshu alliance wins
• Meiji Emperor assumes leadership with Satsuma and
  Choshu based committee of advisors
• New Government made up of young Samurai with a
  smattering of nobles

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Meiji Restoration

• Why Satsuma and Choshu?
• Two richest Han
• Choshu 100 years of illegal, secret investment
  in commercial enterprises
• They were secretly running a merchant trade
• Satsuma Profitable sugar monopoly
• Both Secretly and illegally traded with Western
  nations for technology and military equipment

Choshu ?
? Satsuma
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Meiji Leadership

• Collective leadership with the Emperor
• 20-30 young leaders
• Mostly samurai
• Mostly from Satsuma or Choshu
• Includes some reformers among the royal court
• Known as the Meiji Oligarchy

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Imperial Role??

• Note Emperor Meiji is still the heir to the
  Yamato clan dynasty
• His ancestors had reigned from _at_ 300 CE

• Since the beginning of the Kamakura period,
  Shoguns ruled while the emperor reigned
• Meiji Restoration Still the Yamato heir is
  relevant.
• Does he rule or reign?

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Meiji OligarchyRuling Platform

• To survive Japan must modernize
• Become a Rich nation with a Strong Army
• Fukoku Kyohei

• Japan must learn from the West
• Japan must Adapt to a Western-dominated world
• By learning and adapting, Japan can become modern
• By becoming modern they can become rich
• By becoming rich they can build a strong army
• With a strong army they can become truly
  independent
• Fukoku Kyohei!

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Meiji OligarchyRuling Platform

• Iwakura Mission

• Japan sends diplomatic mission to Western nations
• San Francisco ? across the US
• London ? Continental Europe
• Goals
• Build relationships earn Western respect
• Gain knowledge patterns of business, science,
  and government

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Meiji Restoration Rapid Westernization /
modernization

• Japan launches wholesale Westernization drive
• Wholesale rejection
• of all things
• Japanese
• Even Japanese art takes ?
• on a strictly modern tone

13
Meiji Restoration Rapid Westernization /
modernization

• Abolish Caste Structure
• Strip Daimyo of Han and special privilege
• Compensate Daimyo for lost land with cash
• Abolish Samurai class and privileges
• Adopt conscript army of commoners
• Forbid wearing of swords
• Assign many former samurai as government
  officials

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Meiji Art takes a modern turn
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Satsuma Rebellion 1877Reaction to too much
modernization

• Saigo Takamori a Meiji Oligarch
• Saw too much change
• Feared Japan was losing its soul
• Angered by Koreas refusal (1873) to recognize
  Emperor (they called him a king)
• Wanted war with Korea
• (got unequal treaty with Korea, 1874)
• Oligarchy saw war with Korea as a distraction
  would not attack
• Saigo stormed out

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Satsuma Rebellion 1877

• Saigo leads failed attack against the too-modern
  Meiji government
• Tries to reinstitute special role of Samurai
• Failed last throe of traditional Japan

• Basis for
• The Last Samurai movie with Tom Cruise

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Meiji Program
Iwakura Mission departs from Japan, 1871

• Following the
• Iwakura Mission
• Japanese Business largely
• borrows American and
• British models
• Japanese Government patterns itself after Germany
• Sovereign monarch (Germanys Kaiser)
• Weak legislative branch (Germanys Diet)
• Constitution as a gift from the Emperor
• Powerful, professional, prestigious bureaucracy

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Meijis Economic Plan

• Government supported rapid development
• Market-based economy
• Former Daimyo stripped of land but paid
  compensation
• Daimyo fortunes become source of CAPITAL for new
  manufacturing firms
• Merchant fortunes also fund new manufacturing
• Government plays strong role in directing
  investment

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Political/economic theoryAlexander
GerschenkronLate Development State

• Late developing nations need strong government
• Private business cannot compete with advanced
  foreign competitors
• Strong Government must coordinate and lead
  development
• Strong, development state necessary to succeed
• A government strong enough to succeed in late
  development, generally is too strong for
  participatory democracy

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Meiji OligarchySuccessful Late Developing State

• Dramatic Economic take-off
• Motivated by feelings of insecurity
• Driven by need to achieve equality with West
• Spurred by desire to become powerful and thus
  independent
• Fukoku Kyohei!!

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Meiji Constitution

• Prince Ito Hirobumi
• Iwakura Mission
• Meiji Constitution
• a gift from the Emperor
• Imperial Sovereignty
• Transcendental cabinet
• doesnt answer to parliament (Diet)

• Independent military
• Answers only to the Emperor
• Strong position in Cabinet
• Elite Bureaucracy
• Well educated
• Powerful, professional, prestigious
• Insulated from electoral pressure

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Bureaucracy in Japan

• Difficult Civil Service Exam
• Political appointments minimal
• Elite educational requirements
• Tokyo National University, Dept. of Law
• Extraordinary policy-making authority
• Patterned after Kaiser Wilhelm's Germany
• Similar to France elite education

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Legislature in Meiji Constitution

• Diet
• Two Houses
• Commoners and Lords
• Commons elected (but only 5 male suffrage)
• Little power except BUDGET
• On budget, if impasse occurs, last years budget
  automatically rolls over
• This power surprisingly became the source of an
  expanded legislative role

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Cabinet in Meiji Constitution

• Transcendental
• Doesnt answer to Diet
• Only to Emperor
• Special Military Ministers
• In later periods military ministers had to be
  active duty officers
• Cabinet was incomplete without military ministers
• Gave military extraordinary power to drive
  government