The Revolution or Meiji Restoration designates a period of profound political, religious and social renewals that took place in Japan between 1868 and 1900. It is also called the “Renewal” as it transformed the Empire of Japan into a modern nation-state, which resulted in the end of theocratic, dictatorial rule and feudal of the Tokugawa Shogunate Era (which started from 1600) and also of the famous warriors, the Samurai.
As a consequence of the Meiji Revolution, we have a democratic government, the modernization of Japan's economic structure, from the opening of ports, which were previously closed to foreign trade, and the development of urbanization, to the detriment of the feudal system. This process of renewal was fundamental to the process of westernization of Japan, currently considered one of the greatest imperialist powers in the world, and the greatest in the West.
Abstract
From the 17th to the 19th centuries, Japan was controlled by the Shoguns or Bakufus, political and military chiefs considered feudal lords, who held broad powers, alongside the aristocrats, called Damaios. Besides them, the Samurai , considered professional warriors, was a privileged and highly respected class, being the military elite that lasted about 700 years.
From the early 17th century to the mid-19th century, Japan was ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family, established on March 24, 1603 by the first shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu. This period, which lasted from 1603 to 1868, became known as the “Period Edo ” or “Period Tokugawa ”. The city of Edo, is currently the capital of the country, Tokyo.
The end of the shoguns of the Tokugawa Era was the result of an internal civil war, a period called Bakumatsu , from which the Boshin War stands out (War of the Year of the Dragon), against the Meiji Ishin faction, which sought the modernization of the country and fought against the Japanese shogunate.
Thus, the revolutionary group of Meiji Ishin, led by Shintarou Nakoaka, Ryouma Sakamoto and Toshimichi Ookubo, were dissatisfied with the centralized form of government of the shoguns and thus, sought renovations in the political-social field of the country. The Civil War ends with the victory of the Meiji revolutionaries, ending the era of the shogunate and beginning the Meiji Era, considered the era of Japanese progress and the unification of the country.
From 1850, the United States put pressure on Japan, which ended up giving in with the arrival of the North American Admiral Mattew Perry, being therefore included in the foreign trade.
At the behest of US President Millard Fillmore, Perry advances into the port of Edo demanding that Japan open its ports to trade with the United States. Thus, on March 31, 1854, a Treaty was signed between the two countries, opening the Japanese ports of Shimoda and Hakodate and including Japan in international relations with the rest of the world.
Empire of Japan
The Empire of Japan began in 1868 and ended with the end of the second world war in 1945. This period is divided into three epochs also called Eras, namely:
- Meiji Era (1868-1912)
- Taishō Era (1912 - 1926)
- Showa Era (1926 - 1989)
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- Japan
- Japan's Economy
- Asia countries
- Japanese immigration
- Constitutional Monarchy