INTRODUCTION

After reading this Unit you will be able to: explain the tensions which were created in the
Tokugawa structure and the inability of the rulers to deal with these problems,

know about the new social forces which were generated by economic development,

understand the intellectual currents which undermined the ideological b support of the social
order

. know about the intrusion of Western imperialist powers and the crisis it -1 created in Japan, and .

discuss the nature and meaning of the Meiji Restoration.

After reading this Unit you will be able to:

explain the tensions which were created in the Tokugawa structure and the inability of the rulers
to deal with these problems,

know about the new social forces which were generated by economic development,

understand the intellectual currents which undermined the ideological b

support of the social order.

know about the intrusion of Western imperialist powers and the crisis it -1 created in Japan, and

. discuss the nature and meaning of the Meiji Restoration. 9.

TOP QUESTIONS

What caused the Meiji Restoration?

How did the Meiji Restoration change Japan?

Why was the Meiji Restoration important?

NATURE OF THE MEIJI RESTORATION –

• Contemporary writers like Fukazawa Vukichi (1875) justified the Restoration. There was a need
felt to place Japan’s experience in a larger worldly context. A group of
Japanese historians called the Min’yusha’ Historians hold the opinion that the restoration was
required to get completely rid of the problems faced by the Japanese society. These historians
tend to equate the event of Restoration with the English and the French Revolution

TOKUGAWA BACKGROUNF

JAPANESE HISTORY

Meiji Restoration, in Japanese history, the political revolution in 1868 that brought about the final
demise of the Tokugawa shogunate (military government)—thus ending the Edo (Tokugawa) period
(1603–1867)—and, at least nominally, returned control of the country to direct imperial rule under
Mutsuhito (the emperor Meiji). In a wider context, however, the Meiji Restoration of 1868 came to
be identified with the subsequent era Meiji restoration also known as meiji revolution or renewable
was a chain of event that brought about enormous change in the political and social structure of
japan ,it occurred in the latter half of 19 th century a period that spans both late edo period and
beginning of the meiji restoration ,the formation in 1866 of the satsuma ciassou alliance between
saigo takamori the leader of the satsuma clan and aikido takyoshi the ;leader of chosu clan build the
foundation of meiji restoration these two leader supported emperor ku my emperor made his father
of for the putropse of challenignin og tokugawa shogunate and restoring them for a true power

of major political, economic, and social change—the Meiji period (1868–1912)—

that brought about the modernization

and Westernization of the country.

The rule of the Tokugawa Shogunate lasted in Japan from 1603 and 1868. The Tokugawa Shogunate
had come to power in 1603, after a period of complete feudal anarchy. The Tokugawa Shogunate
operated through an elaborate administrative apparatus called the bakufan system an extremely
rigid social structure, isolationist policies and a traditional belief system. With the nineteenth
century Japanese society, polity and economy witnessed many changes, conflicts and
transformations.. By the first half of the nineteenth century the Shogunate began to face a series of
crises. The forces which were to bring about its eventual downfall began to develop sometime in this
period. The Tokugawa government began to be perceived as incapable and incompetent in dealing
with what was known as ‘Naiyu Gaikan’ or troubles from within and without.so in combination with
internal and external pressures, led to the downfall of the Shogunate threat of military force from
the West and the unwillingness of the Shogunate to consult the other daimyo of Japan coupled with
the disregard for the opinion of the Emperor resulted in a b downfall of the Tokugawa regime was
thus the result of the conjunction of 2 processes:  the internal decay of feudal society  pressure
from the Western nations

It was only through the coincidence of these two forces of internal decay and external pressure that
contributed to the so-called Meiji Restoration

The overthrow of the Tokugawa was finally accomplished through the union of anti-Tokugawa
parties. The immediate background to the downfall of the Tokugawa Bakuhan was the Satsuma-
Choshu alliance (1866) The kuge, i.e. the court nobility and the Emperor who served as the
ideological justification for the overthrow of the usurping Shogun;  The merchants, especially of
Osaka and Kyoto, who contributed money to the revolution;  The peasants who not only served as
soldiers but whose general discontent weakened the Tokugawa domainsration in 1868. acklash
against the Tokugawa Shogunate.

The leadership of this alliance was in the hands of the lower samurai, some of whom were
administrators, some were intellectuals or warriors and all of whom were concerned that the
Tokugawa had to go,

The defeat of the Tokugawa bakufan gave impetus to the demand for the return of the monarch to
actual power and the beginning of ‘Meiji Ishin’ or the Meiji restoration. It is significant that this has
been called a ‘restoration’ and not a revolution or a movement. The term ‘Ishin’, in addition to
change connotes renewal and new beginnings of all things. Opposition to Tokugawa rule had been
growing for a long time, but it was not until the 19th century that several lines, ideological, of
attack on the Shogun were available.

The rebels did not claim to bring any new concepts but were only bringing back power to the
Emperor – Adopting the slogan “Enrich the country, strengthen the army” (Fukoku kyōhei), they
sought to create a nation-state capable of standing equal among Western powers.
. If we compare the situation of 1869 in any aspect – political, economic, social, cultural – to that of
just a decade later, the changes are breathtaking and fully merit the term revolution. REASON WHY?

BECAUSE,

When the meiji mepreror was restored as head in japan, in 1868 the nation was military weak
country was primarily agricultural and had littile technological development it was controlled by
100 of semi independent feudal lords the western powers euorpe and united states had forcede
japan to sign treaties that limited its control over its own foreign trade and required that crime
concerning foreigner japan When the meiji period ended with the death of the emperor in 1912
japan had -

Highly centralized bureaucratic government

A constitution establishing an elected parlimanet

A well developed and transport and communications ystem

A highly educated population free of feudal class restriction

An established rapidly growing industrial sector based on larest technology

A powerful armya and navy

It had regained complete control o fits foreign trade and legal system and by fighting and winning
two wars one of them against major europw power Russia it had established full independence
and equality international affairs in littile more than a generation japan shad exceede its goals and
in the process had changed its whole society japans success in modernization had created great
interest in why and how it was able to adopt western political social and economic instituio in
short time THIS answer is found in meij restoration itsel

fMEIJI RESTORATION

this political revolution restored the emperor to power but he did not rule directly he was
expected toa ccept the adcice from o fhte group that had overthrown yhee shogun and it was
from this group that a small no. of ambitiousa bale and patriotic young men from th lower ranks of
the dmaurai emerged to take control and established the new political system

By July 1896 the feufdal lords ahd been requested to give upp their dmains and iin 1871 these
domains were abolished and transformed into prefectures of unified central state the feuadal
lords and samurai classes were offered yearly stifend the samurai lost their class privivlges when
the government declarded all classes to be equal

The amrmies of each band was disbanded and the national army based on universal conscription
was created in 1872 requiring 3 years military service from all men a national tax land system was
establish that rewuiered payment inmoney instead of rice which allowed the government to
stabilize the national budget this gave the government the money tospenfd and build up the
strength of nation

.
 After coming to power, the Meiji government wanted to ensure the people that the

new order would be of justice and opportunity. The emperor on April 6, 1868 issued the

Charter Oath, which promised that assemblies would be established to deal with all

matters through public discussion and that evil feudalistic customs of the past would be

abolished. The early goals of the new government were expressed in the

Charter Oath

the Imperial Oath of March14, 1868

“Charter Oath of Five Principles,”

o which la the abolition of the feudal land system (1871),

o the creation of a new school system (1872),

o adoption of the cabinet system of government (1885),

o promulgation of the Meiji Constitution (1889), an

o d opening of the Diet (1890).

o unched Japan on the course of westernization was an expression, in terms familiar and
acceptable to all,

o to revise the unequal treaties and remove Japan from semi-colonial status,

o to foster national unity, and

o to sweep away the problems of the past in order to build strength and wealth.

o The goals of the early reforms in the Meiji period can be encompassed in the slogan of
building a ‘rich country, strong army’ known as fukoku kyohei in Japan.

Basically spelt the end of the old exclusiveness of the bakufu system

the boundaries between the social classes were

gradually broken down,

The administrative reorganization had been largely accomplished by 1871, when the domains
were officially abolished and replaced by a prefecture system that has remained in place to the
present day. All feudal class privileges were abolished as well. Also in 1871 a national army was
formed, which was further strengthened two years later by a universal conscription law. In
addition, the new government carried out policies to unify the monetary and tax systems, with
the agricultural tax reform of 1873 providing its primary source of revenue. Another reform was
the introduction in 1872 of universal education in the country, which initially put emphasis on
Western learning. parliament, called the

Diet

was established

. In order to stabilize the new government, the former

 feudal lords (daimyo) were required to return their land to the emperor in 1870. The

return of land to the central government allowed the collection of land tax to be more

extensive and allowed the people to own their own land. This led to the restructuring of

the country into prefectures that is currently still in implementation to this day

At the same time, a growing popular rights movement, encouraged by the introduction of
liberal Western ideas, called for the

and wider participation through deliberative assemblies. Responding to those pressures, the
government issued a statement in 1881 promising a constitution by 1890. In 1885 a cabinet
system was formed, and in 1886 work on the constitution began

Japan introduced its first constitution in 1889, based the European style.To win the recognition
of western powers and convince them to change the unequal treaties the Japanese had been
forced to signhte 1850s japan changed its entire legal system the western nation finally agreed
to refivse th treaties in 1894 acknowledgingjapan as equal in principel although in international
power

Let us now examine the significant changes that the Meiji Restoration brought about in the areas of
society, economy, polity, military, education etc.The revolutionary changes that people tend to think
of first when considering the Meiji

Restoration are those to the economy. The late nineteenth century saw a growing

Japanese

economy The government also invested heavily in public works such as

railroad transportation and communication networkEconomy

The government was primarily responsible in laying the foundations necessary for

economic development. It was not just the role that the state undertook, but also the

linkage between the private and public sectors that accounted for the industrial take-off.

This special relationship between the state and private enterprises has remained a feature

of the Japanese economy to the present day. The state-private enterprise relationship was

consolidated within a national framework during the early Meiji period and this coherence

played a vital role in the economic development of Japan.

In the first fifteen years of the Meiji period, the government worked at developing

both social and industrial infrastructure. The government invested heavily in public works

such as railways, shipping, communication, ports, lighthouses, and etc. The Meiji leaders

also invested a high percentage of national revenue in importing Western technology and
expertise in setting up modern factories. There existed no private entrepreneurs who the

capital or the confidence to enter the various fields of telegraph and railways. Without the

direct investments by the government, the backbone of Japan’s modernization would not

have developed as rapidly as it did.

Japan developed in a manner which involved the characteristics of the dual

economy, with distinctions between the traditional and modern sectors. The traditional

sector refers to agriculture, and it dominated the economy for the first two decades of the

Meiji period. Not only did it employ the largest percentage of the workforce, but it also

provided the most revenue for the government, in the form of land tax. Through the

implementation of the Land Reform Act of 1873, the introduction of new strains of rice,

and the establishment of educational center of farming, the economy experienced a

impressive rate of growth of 2% per year in the period of 1870-1900.ix After the Meiji

Restoration the peasants were made the owners of the land that they had cultivated for the

feudal lords under the old government. Payment of land tax in currency was substituted

for forced labor and for payment in the products of the land. Japan’s economic

transformation in the Meiji was initially achieved through the subsidizing of the agriculture

industry, and exploiting the peasant population. This was the only viable source for

government revenue, for the government to tax the heavy industries and the zaibatsu at

this early stage of development would have been counter-productive for the whole

economy.

While the country was poor in natural resources, Japan was able to take advantage

of the high demand for silk in Europe. Up to the end of the nineteenth century raw silk

represented 40% of Japan’s total export revenues. Tea was another commodity that Japan

exported heavily. The foreign demand for silk and tea, therefore, stimulated agricultural

diversification and growth, which in turn led to higher revenues for which the government

used to invest in industrial development. The revenues from exports in Japan was used for

the purchase of foreign machinery. By the end of the Meiji Period, Japan was the leader

among all manufactured silk exporting countries. The spin-off effects from the silk trade

were particularly noticeable in the cotton industry. The initial motivation for the

introduction and diffusion of Western technology in the cotton industry was to end its

dependency of imports of Western textile goods. The aim of both public and private
sectors was to achieve a situation whereby foreign revenue would be used to fund import

of capital goods rather than on consumer goods. At the end of the first decade of the

Meiji, there were less than 10,000 cotton spindles in Japan, but by the second decade that

figure was up to 100,000.x Thus by the end of the Meiji Era, Japan was a world leader in

the textile industry. Japan was able to import foreign technology, then make adaptation

and innovation to build its industry to become competitive in the world.

In more recent times perhaps the most marked characteristic influence of the

Japanese economy on the West has been the competition and ultimate victory which the

Japanese have waged precisely in the areas of apparent Western comparative advantages:

Swiss watches, British motorcycles, Western Europe/ US automobiles and musical

instruments have been overtaken by Japanese products. As has been indicated in regards

to silk and cotton, the roots of this phenomenon goes back to the Meiji Period.

With the growth of international commerce, banks naturally sprang up. Initially,

the Meiji government experimented with various devices, and in 1873 established a

national banking system patterned largely after the United States. Japan also desperately

required a strong financial system, due to the unequal treaties with the West, Japan was

being drained of its currency. The banks and the national treasury were in a precarious

state. In 1881, the government was led to organize a central bank, later known as the

Bank of Japan. Furthermore, to assist in trade and foreign exchange, a secondary

institution called the Yokohama Specie Bank was set up. Postal savings bank was also

introduced in this time period

such that by 1920 It also saw processes of urbanisation,

homogenisation of the language, and the beginnings of university education. Each of these

changes was revolutionary in its own way, helping to bind together the Japanese nation

Another area of Japanese society that was changed revolutionarily during the Meiji period

could be loosely referred to as its „

networks
Most revolutionary and obvious was perhaps the railway system in

Japan which had to be imported through extensive borrowing from the British while Japan‟s

heavy industries remained in their embryonic state. In Foreign Policy terms, the Meiji Restoration
not only transformed the Japanese state and

how it was perceived by outsiders but it was also successful in its aims. The impetus for the

entire drive for modernisation was for defensive reasons of international relations and a fear Part of
this was the reversal of the unequal treaties, but also there was a strong desire among

many in the Meiji government to be seen by the West as an equal partner rather than for Japan

to return to isolationism. By using its array of economic and political levers, the Meiji

oligarchy was able to prise the West out of Japanese affairs The most revolutionary change in

Japanese foreign affairs

however was without doubt its switch from being an isolationist state,

. With

successful wars

against China and Russia in

1894 and 1904, plus the colonisation projects in Taiwan and then in Korea, J

This expansion and

success in war earned Japan respect,

The international climate :colonialism and expansion

In 1894japan fought a war against china over its interest in korea japan won th war nad hained
control to over korea and gained Taiwan as a colony jpans sudden decisive victory oever cihina
surprised the world and worried some European powers at this time European nation were
beginning to claim speicla rights in china the frenchberitsisg and russisna who had important works
projects goimgn on in part od china which was annexed by japan so therse there countriws
pressurized japan to give up which made Japanese government angered by this incident an ddrew
the lesson that foe=r jaapna that to maintain its independence and recive equal treatment in
international affairs it was necessary to strntghen the its miltray even further by 1904 when Russians
were again threatening to establish its control over korea japan ws amuch over korea japan was
more stronger it declared war on priudssia and suing all its strnght wo victory in 1905 beginning
japan thusachieved dominance over korea and established itself as a coonial power in east asia
To then look at the Japanese government itself, it is obvious that what Japan is by the First

World War is a complete transformation from what had been the situation at the end of the

Edo period.

Where Japan had been regionally focused and daimyo were in charge, not only

had Japan moved to a prefectural system11 and

By 1868, almost immediately after the restorationist coup, top leaders of the new provisional
government such as Kido Koin of Choshu and Saigo Takamori of Satsuma decided that the politically
fragmented system of domains had to be overhauled. The objective was to set up a centralized state
structure geared towards modernizing Japan in an effective manner. One of the first things to be
done was to end the system of ‘Daimyos’ and ‘Samurai’. The men at the centre sought to extend
their authority over nearly 280 still-independent daimyo domains. In 1869 the imperial government
announced that it would accept the return of registers from all daimyo. In one move the government
deprived the daimyo of their traditional autonomy and substantially increased its ability to control
administrative policy, although it permitted the lords to stay on as ‘imperial governors’. As the
patrons of many of the coup planners, these men were guaranteed respect and a voice in the new
order if they wished. In fact, they were all quickly reappointed as domain governors with handsome
salaries. Nonetheless, the ‘return of lands’ established the principle that all lands and people were
subject to the Emperor’s rule.

got rid of its daimyo, In 1871 in a short, simply worded edict the domains especially those of
Satsuma, Choshu, Tosa and Hizen, were done away with and in their place 302 prefectures (soon
reduced to 72 and later to 48) and three administrative cities, each under the jurisdiction of a new
governor appointed by a Dajokan, were created. The central government would now collect taxes
from the domain lands. The daimyo were ordered to move to Tokyo, and domain armies were also
disbanded. The idea was to end administrative localism. This decree was accompanied by a large
payoff to the daimyo themselves. They were granted permanent yearly salaries equivalent to
roughly 10 percent of their former domain’s annual tax revenue. Daimyo were simultaneously
relieved of all the costs of governing. The responsibility for paying samurai stipends, immediately
accounted for almost one-third of the central government’s expenditures. Later in 1873, the Dajokan
offered to give fixed-term interest-bearing government bonds to ex-samurai who surrendered their
stipends, and three years later it made the exchange obligatory for all. In aggregate the, annual
interest payments on the bonds came to just half the amount paid as stipends, and inflation steadily
reduced the cost of future bond redemption Social

By the beginning of the second decade of the Meiji Period, most of the daimyo and

upper samurai power and privileges had disappeared. The new ruling class, in terms of

socio-economics consisted of an urban-based upper middle class. It was primarily

composed of industrial managers and bureaucrats. To the bureaucrats and managers, the

ruling class also included military officials, doctors, professors, architects, and members of

liberal professions. All of these classes, by the late Meiji period tended to be drawn

completely from the universities and colleges. Thus the new Japanese elite can be said to

have been meritocratic in nature.xii

The composition of Meiji’s ruling class was very similar to that of Western

industrial countries. However there are two marginal differences which set Japan apart

from the West. Most Western countries counted among their elite the magnates of

various churches, while there were no such phenomenon in Japan.xiii More significant

difference lies in the fact that Meiji bureaucrats and managers tended to be completely

divorced from the land, where in the West, the possession of estates continued to confer

social and political prestige.

Japan remained a overwhelmingly peasant society and economy, under the

leadership of a minority elite class. The demographic picture of Japan showed a heavy

concentration of the population in small villages. There was a urban ruling class within

that population, which consisted namely of school teachers, proprietors of small

businesses, retailers, and manufacturers of traditional crafts. Another feature of the social

setting of Japan during the Meiji period was the relatively small number of urban middle

class. Japanese society at this time has two main characteristics. First, there was a

substantial gap of wealth between the urban and rural areas, and secondly, the difference

between the upper and lower class. The upper class was well educated and rich, while the

lower class was poor and uneducated. The upper orders tended to be cosmopolitan in

outlook, while the lower orders were parochial. The rapid modernization did bring along

with it comforts, however it brought a great deal of social confusion as well. The failure to

recognize the imperative need for social progress made all political reform no more than

cosmetic in effect. The economic gains of the first phase of the period of Meiji

modernization were not translated into social amendments in the course of the second

phase.
it had managed to

become in some ways a populist and nationalist democratic state with the Meiji oligarchy

being but a transitional phase between the two. The role of Emperor had been brought to the

forefront of Japanese sovereignty and its constitution as well as being a strong cultural

symbol of the nation.

. Many other aspects of the state had changed

too. The

Samurai

no longer received their stipend13 and had been absorbed into leadership

positions in the police force and the bureaucracy

the type of

dress

worn by government

officials had become distinctly „western;‟ the Japan of 1914 was not the same country it had

been 50 years previously.

While it is very easy to get caught up in all of the changes that had taken place in Japan, and

they were remarkable changes, the continuity in Japanese society should also not be

understated. Japan was already

a remarkably literate society before the Meiji Restoration and this continued to be the case. Where
officials had adopted Western dress, the public sphere –

most notably in newspapers – was very critical of this development and there were many calls

across Japanese society to maintain traditional values and continue to wear traditional dres.
On July 28, 1873 the Land Tax Reform Law was introduced designed by Okubo Toshimichi. According
to this law, the government gave certificates of ownership to individuals who farmed specific plots of
land and assigned a monetary value to the holdings. The tax rate was fixed at 3 percent of the land’s
value to be paid annually in cash by the legal owner. With this system government revenues were
stabilized the Meiji tax receipts were made roughly equivalent to the total land taxes collected
before 1868. The commutation of the land tax into a money tax collected on a national uniform scale
indicates a new tax relationship, namely the impersonal cash nexus between government and
governed replacing the old irregular tax collected in kind according to the crop. While standardizing
the tax rate brought welcome reductions to some, at the same time it increased the burdens on
others leading to widespread discontent and opposition. In some regions, recalcitrant peasants
objected violently to plans to dismiss local officials, revise the taxation system, and conscript an
army. In the end the Meiji regime changed its policy, cutting the land tax by nearly 20 percent in
1877, and dispatching its police forces to quell protests where necessary.

The idea was to establish a

m MILITARY REFORMS:

• The leaders saw clearly that military strength was a crucial factor not only for the central
government’s control over the nation, but also in the effort to defend Japan from the West. The
early Meiji leaders according to Andrew Gordon were clear they needed military reforms from
bottom up. • At the time of its victory over the Shogunate, the new government had only a few
small volunteer units under its direct control and had been forced to rely on the support of domain
armies, principally those of Choshu and Satsuma. A much larger and more centrally controlled
military was an obvious necessity. • Key figures from Choshu like Kido Koin, Omura Masajiro and
Yamagata Aritomo were impressed with superior performance of the mixed farmer samurai militias
in the restoration wars. Thus they advocated the creation of a conscript army drawn from the whole
population. A disagreement between the leaders of the Satsuma and Choshu domains took place, as
Satsuma leaders-were against the conscription of ordinary peasants and thought that only loyalist
samurais should be incorporated in the army. This was because Satsuma men came from a domain
where only 1/4th of the population was samurai, and they feared arming the ignorant peasants.
Okubo Toshimichi one of the main leaders from Satsuma was a major champion of this view. Initially
in 1871 the Satsuma men succeeded and created an Imperial army which comprised 10,000 samurai
drawn from domain armies of Satsuma, Choshu and Tosa and were trained along French lines. • In
1872, it divided the Ministry of Military Affairs into army and navy ministries. The new navy was
made up of ships from the Shogunate fleet and from the various domains but was largely officered
by men from Satsuma. Meanwhile the new army came under the leadership of men from Choshu,
particularly Yamagata Aritomo. • The most important military innovation, however, came with the
issuance on January 10, 1873, of a conscription law, carefully prepared by Yamagata, who soon
thereafter became Army Minister. This reform was drew its inspiration from the Prussian and French
conscript armies and the idea was to establish a modern army based on universal conscription. •
According to this law – 1. Beginning at the age of twenty, all men, regardless of social background,
were made liable for three years of active military service followed by four in the reserves. 2. Like
the French model, there were some exemptions, for household heads, criminals, the physically unfit,
students and teachers in many prescribed schools, and government officials. 3. It also allowed
people to buy their way out for a huge fee of 270 yen. • Also conscription could mobilize the
energies of the people behind the state and forge ties of loyalty between the government and its
citizenry. Socially, the conscription was another step in disfranchising the samurai estate and
creating a society based on equality of opportunity, and militarily it vastly strengthened the regime’s
authority by creating a force capable of providing internal security.

Meiji Reforms 2

odern army

Military Development

The military was the first area of major structural change, the first to adopt

Western organizational patterns, and the first to hire foreign advisers. The army and the

navy rapidly became the largest scale organizations in Japan, and their demand for

resources acted as a major stimulus in the development of other systems, from the zaibatsu

industries to the universal compulsory education. The government investment in private

industries to aid the country’s military expansion resulted in the founding of companies

such as Mitsubishi, Mitsui, and Sumitomo, which are still in existence today.

There are three phases in the transition to a modern military organization. The

first phase, which lasted from 1853 to 1870 was a lengthy period of experimentation with

new forms and involved wide variation among a large number of organization. The

second phase (1870-1878), the central government established a single, centralized

organizational model for the army and the navy. Both institutions went through intensive

organization building, which focused on internal structures and processes. The third and

last phase (1878-1890), attention was shifted to the ways in which the military interacted

with the political and social environment, with respect to ensuring the supply of needed

resources and increasing the military’s autonomy and effectiveness.vi

The 1853 lifting of the formal prohibition on the construction or purchase of large

scale ships marked the beginning of two decades of military mobilization for Japan. The

military mobilization was initially stimulated by fears of Western invasion. For Japan, the

principle threat from the Western powers came from the sea. A Western-style navy could

be created in “a vacant niche”: there was no existing organization performing that function

which might resist attempts at transformation to a new model or oppose the creation of a

rival organization.vii

There was a widespread agreement within the Meiji elite that Japan needs to

become a militarily and economically powerful nation to be considered in the same rank
with the Western powers. However, there was a great disagreement over how this should

be accomplished. The traditionalists led by Saigo Takamori argued that the samurai

should constitute the core of the new army, while the majority group felt that the samurai

should be a minority. Saigo also urged an expedition against Korea and argued that this

would force the internal unity sought by the government.viii A samurai of Satsuma, he

gathered a strong army of discontent southern samurai. In 1877, acting as the leader

Saigo led a revolt against the Tokyo government, which came to be known as the Satsuma

Rebellion. The new national army was brought out to end the fierce rebellion, which the

national army won relatively easily. The government called out more troops than were

actually necessary to demonstrate to the nation the efficiency of the new system and to

ensure victory. Omura Masajiro, the head of the War Department at that time believed

that the government needs to assure domestic order and once that is achieved, the

Western powers would be compelled to consider Japan as a power and would thus

terminate the humiliating unequal treaties.

By the 1880’s, both the military and the government came to the agreement that its

independence meant the ability to pursue rights and privileges on the Asian continent as

does the West powers. More precisely, the “independence” of Korea from China and into

their control was the driving force behind the 1895 Sino-Japanese War, a fight between

China and Japan for control of Korea. War served to solidify the strength of the military,

as well as giving a huge boost to the zaibatsu, the government subsidized industrial family

owned companies.

based on universal conscription,. Socially, the conscription was another step in disfranchising the
samurai estate and creating a society based on equality of opportunity, and militarily it vastly
strengthened the regime’s authority by creating a force capable of providing internal security. The
military reforms did create a problem of the status of the old samurai. While they had also been
offered a financial settlement like the Daimyos, their bonds paid far less interest and restless and
dissatisfaction began to grow in this class as well. However the disturbances caused by them were
not serious enough to cause any kind of disruption.
The influence of western ideas

was crucial in the period of early reforms. By the 1870s the Meiji oligarchs had begun to search for
ideas and prototypes that might guide their efforts to achieve the Meiji dream of national
independence, treaty revision, equality with the west and domestic peace and prosperity. Many
Meiji leaders looked to the west for lessons about how to organize political institutions, create
economic wealth, and foster social harmony. Others were fascinated by the political vitality, military
invincibility, and science and technology of western nations. The intense interest in the west shared
by the nation’s leaders some of its most influential private citizens begot an era of ‘bunmei kaika’,
which literally means civilization and enlightenment.

The floodgates to

western knowledge

opened wide in 1868. Within a decade several hundred Japanese were studying in the United States
and Europe, and an even greater number of foreigners,. Increasingly, international expositions
provided another avenue for learning about the wonders of the outside world.

Parallel to its program of military reform, the Meiji government instituted a

new system of education.

EDUCATIONAL REFORMS:

• The influence of Western ideas was crucial in the period of early reforms. Several hundred
Japanese were studying in the United States and Europe and an even greater number of foreigners
lived in Japan. By the 1870s many Meiji leaders looked to the West for lessons about how to
organize political institutions, create economic wealth, and foster social harmony. Others were
fascinated by the political vitality, military invincibility and science and technology of Western
nations. This led to an era of ‘bunmei kaika’, which literally means civilization and enlightenment. •
The influence of this was seen most in the area of education, where the Meiji government instituted
a new system of education influenced by Western ideas and bunmei kaika. The new leaders clearly
saw that an organized, system of education was a fundamental aspect of a modernized society. •
The Confucian-oriented domain schools for the samurai and the “temple schools”, where
commoners learned to read and write, all withered away. The disappearance of most of the earlier
schools left the government free to develop a new and modernized system of education. • The
focus was now on the promotion of self-reliance. Observation of European and American societies
convinced leaders such as Kido Koin that mass schooling, was a fundamental source of the economic
and military power of the West. At the outset the government announced that schools were to
encourage practical learning as well as independent thinking. Under the influence of men like
Fukuzawa, Mori Arinori the centralized French system was somewhat decentralized and remodelled
along American lines. • As early as 1871 created a Ministry of Education to develop such a system. It
first adopted a highly centralized system of education along French lines. Sixteen months of
schooling were made compulsory for children of both sexes. Compulsory education was extended to
three years in 1880 and to six years in 1907. The elementary schools were to be financed by a 10%
local surcharge to the national property tax. • Liberalization of education was also fostered by the
rapid development of a great number of private schools founded by missionaries. Such Christian
schools were particularly important in the field of secondary education for girls, which was
somewhat neglected by the government. There were also many secular private schools many of
which became in time distinguished universities.

Meiji Reforms 3

• A shift back toward a more centralized, authoritarian educational system came in the 1880’s and
reached its height in 1890 with the Imperial Rescript on Education. Part of the new educational
policy was a desirable return to Japanese and Chinese literature, history, and thought, to balance the
hitherto almost exclusive concern with Western subjects. Other aspects of the new policy were an
increasing emphasis on indoctrination in education, standardization of the curriculum, and increased
government control over private educational institutions, especially at the lower levels. • The
government school system was expanded and their prestige over the private schools was
enhancement. As a result, private elementary and secondary schools shrank to relative
insignificance. • The Confucian “University” in Edo, the medical school, and the language programs
were united in 1869 into a single government institution. The non-Western aspects of the curriculum
were dropped and in 1877 the school was renamed Tokyo University. Other government
universities, thereafter known as Imperial Universities, were added including Kyoto, Tohoku, Kyushu
and Hokkaido • The unchallenged prestige of the government institutions, which had the lowest
tuition rates, made Japanese education more egalitarian than schools of Western countries. The
system was open to all who had the desire and ability to make use of it and became the chief device
for selecting the leaders of the nation. • The system, however, had serious drawbacks too. It was so
carefully tailored to fit the needs of the state, that it did not adequately meet all the educational
needs of Japanese society as it developed. Women's higher education, for example, grew up largely
outside the official educational structure, and the rapid growth of private universities showed that
there was a greater demand in Japanese society for higher education than that deemed adequate by
the government. There was also a cramping conformity and a possibility of uniform indoctrination
that were to prove extremely damaging to Japan in the long run. • However in the long run just as
serving in the military became linked to nationalism, so did education. By the end of 1905, 95% boys
and 93% girls attended elementary schools. Thus the Meijis were successful in bringing about two
major reforms in a very short span of time which were necessary for nation building.

Influenced by western ideas, educational reforms were undertaken and as a first step,

in 1871 a department of education was set up

. In 1872 it declared four years of elementary education to be compulsory for all children, boys and
girls.

The focus was now on the promotion of self-reliance. was a fundamental source of the economic
and military power of the west.

the 1872 decree established a system of elementary and middle schools and national universities.

. The Japanese students who were sent abroad to acquire western training came to replace the old-
style Confucian scholars as new intellectual elite.

The overhaul of the education system was one way by which the government tried to create an
atmosphere favourable to the acceptance of the fundamental and profound changes that were
taking place. .
LEGAL REFORMS –

• The Japanese reformed their legal institutions along Occidental lines, to win acceptance with the
West. Legal renovation was also fundamental to technological modernization and was necessitated
by the abolition of the old class structure and other great changes taking place. • Western concepts
of individual rather than family ownership of property were adopted, although for purposes of
formal registration of the population, the law continued to recognize the old extended family, or
“house”, consisting of a patriarch and those of his descendants and collateral relatives who had not
legally established a new “house”. • Concepts of legal rights, as opposed to the traditional emphasis
on social obligation, came to permeate the new laws. • The structure and procedures of the courts
were made to conform to those of the West, and torture as an accepted legal practice was abolished
in 1876. • Most of the legal reforms ware instituted piecemeal and a thorough re-codification of the
laws proved a difficult and slow task. Drafts, drawn up largely under French influence, were

Meiji Reforms 4

submitted in 1881 and again in 1888. A complete code, revised largely on the basis of German legal
precedent, finally went into effect in 1896.

Among the other implications of the fundamental changes in the early Meiji period were great

social changes.

The dominance of the Daimyo and Samurai classes in the social sphere was challenged.

Privileges were withdrawn and all came to be seen as equal by the state. By 1876, less than a decade
after the restoration coup, the economic privileges of the samurai were wiped out entirely. The coup
leaders expropriated an entire social class, the semi-autocratic elite from which they came. In 1869
the large number of samurai ranks were reduced In 1872 a large portion of the lower samurai were
reclassified as commoners (heimin), although they retained their stipends for a moment

All the reforms introduced by the Meiji government were geared towards the establishment of a
strong

industrial base for Japan.

The Meiji leaders, especially those who had traveled abroad were profoundly impressed with the
energies unleashed by industrial capitalism. Economic strength appeared to be the base that
supported the military superstructure of the European states. Motivated by such a view of western
learning and industry, government leaders took numerous steps to realize the foremost Meiji slogan
of building a “rich country, strong army” (fukoku kyohei).
industrialization was the primary goal of the government, which directed the development of
strategic industries, transportation, and communications. The first railroad was built in 1872, and by
1890 the country had more than 1,400 miles (2,250 km) of rail. Telegraph lines linked all major cities
by 1880. Private firms were also encouraged by government financial support and aided by the
institution of a European-style banking system in 1882. Those efforts at modernization required
Western science and technology, and under the banner of “Civilization and Enlightenment” (Bunmei
kaika), Western culture, from current intellectual trends to clothing and architecture, was widely
promoted

An important reason why the Japanese government attempted to modernize so fast was the
perceived threat from the west. Japan had the Chinese example to see and did not want to turn into
a colony. It is in this context that one can understand the preoccupation with fukoku kyohei or strong
army and rich country. Industrial development was also urgent because foreign exchange was being
drained out due to unfavourable tariff terms with the west. The only way to combat this was to
modernize domestic industry so that it could compete with the high quality and low priced Western
goods.

Industrial growth

Insdustrialixaztion developed in japan and industrial structure was built on the infrastructure which
th tokugawa shogunate had already built many industries were antioalized and almost of the
industrys got the help of the new ,eiji government but meji government gave impoertance to non
strategic industry the previously stsrategic industries were given much impotrtnace another thing
we see woollen textile developed during this period also big industrial coming upand helping the
government because of lack of fund was the main reason for industrial backwardness in japan
because meiji government was just formed do they neede lots of fund for industrialization so in this
crisis situation the big industrial houses known as zibastu they came up to help the government and
develop industries on other hand we see with the coming of western missions and with th
restoration another change statrt to took palce the pople of japan sterted learnine foreign language
lot of industrial development start tot ttok place from an agricultural economy ajapan became an
industrialized economy during the miji perio the meiji perod reovlutinosed the whole society the
period brought total change in the social order there was great difference from th previous period
also meiji restoration brought about total change in the Japanese society

Another important thing we see in japan 1870 the ministry of industry was started nad ito hir umi
was the first ministry of industry and from 1873 to1 878 he was the kinister anfd it was under his
initiatives and his influence that ottal industrial change took place in japan so we see a total
develpmnetal scenario started in japn

With meji restoration japan entered the odern periods and enetere the modern times and japan
became modernized ther was again a new class of group comin ugp who help government for
industrial development there wre other commercial inistution coming up ther was banking system
total change in total economic structure of japan development in ewvery sector feudal economies
with changed into a modern economic structure so
The Bank of Japan

was created with the monopoly to issue notes. This helped in the centralization of capital
accumulation.. These banks were dominated by the already wealthy houses such as Mitsui,
Mitsubishi and Sumitomo. This banking arrangement brought them close to government interests
leading to the forging of a crucial alliance between the two. During the Meiji Period, the banking
system finally took

the form whose main features set the foundation for the modern Japanese banking system.

In 1894, agricultural and industrial banks were formed to finance the farmers and

manufacturers.

As commerce and financial institutions developed, there was an improvement in

the means of transportation. There was an increase in steamships use and construction in

Japan. The Meiji government gave its encouragement, and heavily subsidized ship

building companies that laid the foundation for the tremendous growth of domestic and

foreign shipping in Japan. On top of shipping, the state was also a pioneer in railway

building. In spite of strong opposition by the conservatives in the government, a railway

was built between Tokyo and a port in Yokohama in 1872. The state continued to

promote railways and most of the earlier ones were constructed either by the state or by

government aided companies. Telegraph lines were built by the state and in 1886 the

telegraph and postal services were united under a joint state bureau.

The government, directed by the reformers played a major part in the

reorganization of banking, commerce, transportation, industry, and agriculture. There

were two main reasons for this. First, the state was the only institution which had the

organization, the capital, and the credit to undertake an operation on the large scale

necessary to compete with the West. At the coming of Perry there were few if any large

commercial industries. Secondly, an emphasis upon the state had been encouraged by the

former government and it was just natural that the ministers of the Meiji should follow the

precedent of the past ages. The emergence of the future

Zaibatsu class

can be traced to this relationship.

.
principal author of the Meiji Constitution.

period

Another important feature

Currency system developed and centeral bank of japan had the power to issue currency another
remarkable feayture with the coming of western the ress and fashion changesd so its seems west
was penetrating into japan which brought total change in japan The Meiji rule ended with the death
of the emperor on July 30, 1912, which also

marked the end of the era of the genro.

End of the Meiji Era

• Emperor Meiji died in 1912

• Japan’s Military and Economic Strength had greatly improved by 1912 (Morton 168)

• Many of the Elder Statesmen who saw Japan through the Restoration had died (Morton 168)

This era in Japanese history was a momentous

epoch that saw the transformation of feudal Japan into a modern industrialized state with a

parliamentary form of government and its emergence as a world power through military

adventures abroad.ii The Meiji period brought about drastic political, economic, and

social changes in Japan, which in turn became the framework and foundation of modern

Japan as we know it. By the early 20th century, the goals of the Meiji Restoration had been largely
accomplished. Japan was well on its way to becoming a modern industrialized country. The unequal
treaties that had granted foreign powers judicial and economic privileges through extraterritoriality
were revised in 1894, and with the Anglo-Japanese Alliance of 1902 and its victory in two wars (over
China in 1894–95 and Russia in 1904–05), Japan gained respect in the eyes of the Western world,
appearing for the first time on the international scene as a major world power. This period also swa
japan change from being a feudal society to having a capitalist economy and left the jaapnese with
lingering western influence Also the Social and economic changes The abolition of feudalism made
possible tremendous changes social and political changes million of people wer suddenbly freee to
choosew their occcuptaion and move about without restrictinnby providing a new emnvironment
ofpolitical and financial security the government made possible investments in new industries and
technolofiges

Therefore we see there was an overall revolution during the meihji period or after the meiji
restoration there was changed in thee spehere of society there was change in sphere o feconomy
there was changed in the sphere of education there was changed in the total society during the
tokugawa priod there was certain socialchange which became very remarkable the whole society
during the tokugawa period was divided into different parts but during the meiji period we see a
remarkable change , change in almost all aspects of society ,education became very imoptant during
the meiji period by the end of 18880s 34 foreign ecxperrs visited japan so wee see with the coming
od this westernixzation started in jpana but ultimately with the meiji restotation westernization
reached its peak and we also see there was total economic development in japans there was
tenancy act was legalised therew as number of landrefforms the daimus and samurai gave land tot
eh emperor than wee see banking system started in jpan the first national bank was opened in 1873
then in 1876 other four banks were started so banking system developed in japan so meji
restoration brought overall change in Japanese society previously japanses society was closed door
dociety but with the influence of west with the western missionary mission coming to japan and
with the meiji restoration the Japanese society became an open society Modernization started with
the meijirestoration modernization was the main propitty of japan and at thet time the
reasonbehind sending those was to so to enlightened the western rhtoughts and they would return
to the country and help thejapnese government society and economy In order to transform the
economy from an agrarian one to a developed industrial

State In social spher also we see lots of changes class didstinction was abolished translation
statreted new periodicals new magazines newspapers from the west was strted to come in japan
Japanese student s allowed to go to abroad western ex[erts were coming to japan so total change
rom being a feudal structure tot ransforming into a mdern structure so meji restoration is on of the
most important incident happen in the japansese history becuae it brought about a modern ersa to
japan it revoluitonzied whole society and with it japan entered a modern state

however

it is important to note that at every corner the Japanese tried

to own the changes they brought about and retain their identity. Obviously the country was

revolutionised, but the state‟s intention was to revolutionise it such that there would be no

revolution, that Japan would remain an independent state with its sovereignty and culture

intact. It is because of this emphasis on continuity in a time of great change that the term

“dynamic conservatism” is particularly apt to describe the Japanese experience over the

course of the Meiji era.

However The Debate I Whether the events of 1868 mark a restoration or a revolution are questions
which scholars are still debating. Tetsuo Najita, for instance writes that, "The Japanese Emperor did
not have a specific structure of power to restore, and whatever grzndiose images came to be
associated with him after the ishin [restoration] were the rcsult of the i.ieological construction of the
modern state and not the legacy of recent history." The events of 1867 and 1868 were not of a
cataclysmic nature and if only this period is considered, then the transition from Tokugawa to Meiji
seems easy and with little conflict. However, when viewed from the beginning of the nineteenth
century then it can be seen that the changes (which were brought about profoundly altered Japan
and created a new nation btate. The view of the nature of this transition has been influenced by the
concerns of tt-he writers andxtheir times. A well-known Meiji intellectual Tokutomi Soho had argued
that it was not Meiji leaders but the circumstances which helped to create a modem Japan. He saw
feudal Japan as already weakening with the emergence d rural leaders whose strength was based on
a productive and rich economy but who were denied political power. Others, including the last
Tokugawa shogun Yoshinobu, who wrote his.memoirs in 1915, argued that it were the forces of
Imperial loyalism which were responsib&e: for bringing about the restoration. 9.4:2 The Marxist
View A very influential analysis of the Meiji Restoration was made by the Marxists in 12 the 1920's
when internal repression and ar! aggressive foreign policy led them to re-examine the nature of the
modern Japanese sl~tt?. A vast range sf &tailed and Decline or Feudd ~m and :;cholarly' works were
produced and the viewkdere divided into two broad MeUi bkmtlon ;;roups: The Labour-Farmer
group (rono-ha ) saw the restoration as fundamentally a bourgeois revolution which ended
feudalism and laid the basis for capitalist development. The other group, which took its name from
the series or lectures they produced i.e. the kozagroup, argued that the Meiji Restoration was not a
successful capitalist revolution but one which ushered in an absolutist rule. This was based on the
"Emperor System" and the power of this system rested on feudal relations which had continued in
the countryside. The Marxist arguments were closely tied to their political programmes. If feudalism
had ended then it was not necessary to fight the Emperor which would bring about the proscription
of the party but if feudalism was still important then the Emperor system had to be countered and
this meant the party would be banned. An influential Japanese ideologue Ikki saw the restoration as
a ! restoration-revolution recognizing both the forward looking elements as well as k the constraints
of the past which continued. In a work which was banned almost i immediately after it was
published he forcefully put forward this view. 9.4.3 The Post-War Debate In post-war Japan the
debate has continued. E.H. Norman in his path breaking work put forward an interpretation which
has influenced many scholars. Norman saw the restoration as the work of a coalition of "lowers
samurai"'and "mercha~tsts" This coalition was crucial to creating the,Meiji state and it was
responsible for the features which were developed, namely foreign expansion and internal
centralization. However, other scholars have found this framework difficult to substantiate by
detailed studies. ~lbert Craig has argued that "lower samurai " is analytically meaningless as "upper
samurai " were a very small percentage and any movement would include a large number of lower
samurai. Thomas Huber who, like Albert Craig studied the hanof Choshu, has defined the lower
saLmurai by their income and concluded that they included commoner village administrators.
Shibahara Takauji has seen the popular anti-feudal sentiments as the driving force behind the
restoration movement. Conrad ~otman, however, argues that commoners took part on all sides and
it is not possible to equate anti-feudal with anti-Bakufu. The role of popular discontent is difficult to
analyse. Certainly ther,e.were popular movements but, as one study points out, many of them took
place i? the Tokugawa areas which were relatively more prosperous than the anti-Bakufu domains.
The role of merchants also needs to be carefully studied before it can be conclusively argued that
they were supporters of the loyalist movement. Marius Jansen has questioned the ,actual danger
posed by foreign intervention argu?ng that the governments were not either really interested or in a
position to increase their influence. However, he does concede that the Japanese perceptions of
foreign threat were an important force in making the people take action. In particular the fear of
foreign loans played a crucial part in this period as well as in the Meiji era. The debates will continue
and we need to furthur refine our understanding of the actual processes by careful and detailed
study. However, it can be said that there are three major areas around which the debates centre: i)
The first is that the Meiji ishin arose as a protcctive reaction agair t Western imperialist threat. ii)
Secondly, the real conflict lay between the force& of feudalism and the emerging capitalist forces
and the Meiji state which emerged was a mix of these two elements. iii) Thirdly, the debate
continues on the nature and role of the lower samurai. Conrad Totman has argued that the prime
cause of the Meiji Restora,ion was the internal collapse of the Tokugawa Bakufu and this was
brought abou,t by a , . 13 Ja~a:-tj-taMode~izatlw long-term decline caused by an inability to respond
to the new forces generated by the continuous peace and economic development. He sees the
movements of - the early 1860's such as the sonno-joi and kobugattai as voluntaristic but, he argues
that they failed to unify the country. His analysis stresses the importance of national political
considerations and consequently he does not place a crucial -significance on domainal affairs and
problems. The problem of the domains was important but not the crucial determining factor in the
type of change that was brought about. Harold Bolitho who has studied the fudai daimyo of
Tokugawa Japan takes an opposite view. He argues that central autho~ity had not developed but
rather the weak shoguns had increased the strength and power of'the han. The domainal interests
then became the crucial force in the last years of the Bakufu. These han interests found symbolic
leadership under the Emperor. This coalition of hans under the Emperor could challenge the Bakufu
and press its demand for political change. The kobugattai movement was the main attempt to
replace the Bakufu by this coalition. The sonno-joi movement .was national in scope and brought
lower and middle ranking samurai together against the Bakufu. Thomas Huber, as mentioned earlier,
in his study of Choshu focuses on the class nature of the movement which helped to bring about the
Meiji Restoration. Huber agrees with Bolitho in placing importance on imperialist pressure but he
disagrees with both Bolitho and Totman and argues that both domainal consciousness and national
consciousness were not crucial in the anti-Bakufu movements. Huber's study of the movement
called Heaven's Revenge in Choshu shows that it was a consciousness of class and a desire for social
justice which was the prime driving force. Huber's examination of the Baknfu's attempts to . reform
the structure from within is less hopeful. He sees the Bakufu as essentially conservative and
incapable of change and the reformers were at best marginal within this structure. The events of the
Meiji Restoration have been examined by scholars working on Japan but few specialists from other
areas have tried to look at this event within the larger framework of how societies have made the
transition to a modern state. The process is difficult and has not always been successful. Mexico
experienced a peasant revolution in 1910 which was put down but after decades of capitalist
development it still remains an underdeveloped country. Turkey, on the other hand carried out,
under Kamal Ataturk in 1919, a national transformation but it too failed to develop. In Asia, China
carried out a republican revolution in 1911 and in 1949 the Chinese Communist Party came to power
but it too has not been able to successfully industrialize. Japan's Meiji Restoration thus is important
as marking the successful transformation of a non-industrialized society i.nto a modern nation state.
This event needs to be considered as part of a larger historical process. The Meiji Ishin was a period
when society was thrown into turmoil and ideas and relations had not yet jelled into the later
"oligarchic state" and therefore to impose an order from later interests restricts the field of inquiry,
as well as casts that inevitability so apparent on historical writing on Japan. Testuo Najita has looked
at the transformation that took place in the way knowledge and the political economy were
perceived. The Tokugawa concerns were with "ordering society and saving the people" (keisei
saimin) but with the Meijl the prime interest has become "rich country, strong army" (Fukoku
kyohei). The change from "saving" to "mobilizing" the people occurred with the Meiji Ishin. This
process occurred over a period of time and was preceded by debates and confrontation. The
transformation of Japan was not something which was carried out through consensus and harmony.
When we consider these questions it becomes difficult to accept J.W. Hall's view that "Japan saw
little of the social ailtagonisms or political ideologies which the French or Russian revolutions saw ..."
The Meiji Restoration was neither bourgeois nor a peasant revolution, although both peasant and
merchant were found among the individuals who led the attack on the Shogunate. The Russian
historian Latyshev notes that between 1868-1873 there were over 200 peasant uprisings and he
argues that it would be better to see the restoration as an "unaccomplished revolution". It is also
important to remember that while 14 the Tokugawa house was not killed but continued, the battles
which brought down the Bhkufu at Toba and Fushimi ~nvolved 12(1,c)00 goverr~~li~~ii lroops and
3,556 were killed and 3,804 injured. Compare thk with the 5,417 lost in the Sino-Japanese war of .
1894-5 and then only the magnitude of the struggle can be appreciated. The upheaval of the Meiji
Restoration has been examined from various perspectives. Irokawa Daikichi, an influential Japanese
historian whose work on the democratic struggles of the people has established him as a major
interpreter of Japanese history; has stressed on the confrontation between "civilization" and
"westernization". He 'argues that the hopes of the common people in the Great Renew.al (goishin )
as the Meiji Ishin was called were thwarted and with the arbitrary changes in customary practices
their disillusionment increased and this discontent fuelled the anti-establishment struggles, such as
peasant rebellions. It was also evident in the incr-eased popularity of new religions, such as
Maruyamakyo and Tenrikyo. The tension between the demands for modernitv and the destruction
of. the way of life of the common people was the driving force for the violent incidents during the
restoration and immediately after. In conclusion it needs to be emphasised that while the Meiji
Restoration inaugurated a new era fo; Japan the reason for Japan's successful transformation lie not
merely in the breathing space which it enjoyed. The Western imperialist powrs were certainly more
interested in the great China market and did not see any great potential in Japan. This gave Japan
the chance to carry out a series'of reforms but that she was able to conceive and execute these
reforms, that she was able to use the chance that she had was more due to internal strengths and
indigenous institutions.

The fear of being colonized, the fear of social disruption and even the i'ear of foreign loans which
would enslave her attest to this pervasive sense of crisis. • E. H. Norman opines that over time, the
daimyos became very close to the chonin or the merchant class. A daimyo-chonin alliance that was
typically anti-bakuhan in nature had come into being. This alliance had furthered the process of the
decline of the Shogunate and led to the Meiji restoration. .

• In Marxist understanding, the Meiji Restoration can be viewed as a bourgeois revolution. Craig
and Jansen, while critiquing this view argue that the middle class and the lower samurai hadn’t really
formed a class alliance since the entire lower samurai class didn’t participate. The lower samurai
class were not aiming at representing their own class. They had vested interest and wanted to
escape the miseries of their condition and therefore took part in the restoration. They highlight the
‘quick silver’ role of the individuals who were constantly shifting their loyalty.

• While Craig and Jansen attribute the participation of the lower samurais to purely economic
reasons, J.W. Hall believes that there were political reasons as well. According to Hall, they were
committed to bring about a change and wanted the Tokugawa government to take stronger steps
against foreign encroachment. And as opposed to the Marxist interpretation, Hall states that the
Meiji Restoration was neither a bourgeois nor a peasant revolution.