The Meiji Restoration

Meiji Restoration in Japan
Tokugawa Shogun Meiji Emperor

Meiji Restoration: Lead-up
“Edo Period”
• Tokugawa Family ruled Japan from 1603 – 1868
• Emperor reigned over Japan under Tokugawa protection
• Foreign trade limited to China, Korea, and Netherlands
at Nagasaki a few times each year
• Japanese Feudalism with power held by Daimyos and
the Samurai Warrior class
• Internal Trade dominated as Merchant class became
wealthier than the upper class Daimyo / Samurai

Meiji Restoration: Lead-up
“Initial Western Influences”
• “Rangaku” or “Dutch Learning”
became popular with doctors,
scientists and scholars
• New knowledge and technology
benefitted entrepreneurs in
Trade and Industry
• Went against Japanese traditions
and threatened the power of
Daimyo’s and Samurai

Meiji Restoration: Lead-up
“U.S. Influences”
U.S. Commodore Matthew C. Perry
• 1853: Gunboat Diplomacy
• 1854: Treaty of Kanagawa
Consul General Townsend Harris
• 1856: First Consulate to Japan
• 1858: Harris Treaty opens Trade

Meiji Restoration: Lead-up
“Anglo-Japanese Conflict”
1862 - 1863
• Choshu Incident: Western ships
fired on by Choshu Samurai
• Bombardment of Kagoshima:
British Royal Navy fired on Port City
1862
• Namamugi Incident:
British merchants
attacked by Satsuma
Samurai in Namamugi

Meiji Restoration: Lead-up
“Satsuma-Choshu Alliance”
• Dissatisfaction with new
Tokugawa policies allowing
foreigners more access to Japan
• 1866: Alliance between the
Satsuma and Choshu Provinces
against the Tokugawa Shogunate
• 1867 – 1869: Boshin War
(Satsuma-Choshu alliance
versus the Tokugawa Shogun)
• Each side accepted military
training, supplies and
support from western allies

Meiji Restoration: Lead-up
“Why the Satsuma and Choshu?”
• Two richest Han clans in Japan
• Choshu: 100 + years of illegal,
secret investment in commercial
enterprises
• Satsuma: Controlled highly profitable sugar monopoly
• Both: Secretly and illegally traded with Western nations
for technology and military equipment

Young Emperor Meiji
Meiji Restoration
1868
• Declare Restoration of the
Emperor to his rightful place
Liberate the Emperor from
Tokugawa’s rule
Emperor to rule directly
• Emperor issued a decree
ending the rule of the
Tokugawa Shogunate
• Tokugawa Yoshinobu stepped
down from power

New Meiji Leadership by 1870’s
• 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
• Key Goals:
Westernize
Modernize
Industrialize
Militarize
Become an Imperial Power

Meiji Plans for Reform
• 1871 Iwakura Mission to the West:
Analyze Western Governments
Improve Western Contacts
Create new Alliances
• Key Government Ideas Adopted:
1872: Sovereign Monarch (Like Germany)
1889: Legislative Branch (Like German Diet)
1890: Independent Cabinet (Like the U.S.)
1890: Emperor Grants Constitution
1890’s: Elite Bureaucracy (Similar to France)

Meiji Plans for Reform
• Key Economic Reforms Adopted:
Abolish Feudalism and Institute Land Reform
Adopt National Currency (Yen) in 1872
Encourage Foreign Trade
Expand Industrialization
Businesses patterned after British & US
• Key Military Reforms Adopted:
Elimination of Local Samurai Armies
Creation of Modern Army (Like the Prussians)
Creation of Modern Navy (Like the British)
Accept Military Equipment and Training from the West
1873 Conscription Act to require every male to serve
3 years in the military

Meiji Japan Expands
• First Sino-Japanese War (1894 – 1895):
Gained control of Formosa (Taiwan)
Gained control of Manchuria (N. China)
Gained influence over Korean Peninsula
Treaty of Shimonoseki (17 April 1895)
• Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905):
Destruction of Russian Fleet
Re-confirmed control of Manchuria
Established Japan as a World Power
Formal Control established in Korea
Treaty of Portsmouth (5 September 1905)
• Annexation of Korea (1910):