Emperor Meiji

Emperor Meiji was restored to power in January 1868, first alongside his father, Emperor Kōmei, and then as sole emperor after Kōmei’s death a month later. The restoration opened a period of civil conflict and far-reaching institutional change. In the book’s account, the transformation under his reign helped turn Japan from an impoverished country under an absolutist regime into Asia’s primary beneficiary of the Industrial Revolution.

Restoration and Civil War

The immediate transition followed Shogun Yoshinobu’s agreement to resign. On January 3, 1868, the Meiji Restoration was declared, restoring Emperor Kōmei to power; after Kōmei died one month later, his son Emperor Meiji succeeded him. Satsuma and Chōshū forces occupied Edo and the imperial capital, Kyōto, but feared that the Tokugawa family would regain power and re-establish the shogunate. The danger became open conflict. Ōkubo Toshimichi sought to end the Tokugawa challenge permanently and persuaded the emperor to abolish the Tokugawa domain and confiscate its lands. On January 27, former shogun Yoshinobu attacked Satsuma and Chōshū forces. Civil war continued until the summer, when the Tokugawas were defeated. The restoration therefore began not as a settled transfer of authority but amid a contest over whether the old political order could return.

Reconstructing the State

After the restoration, the government dismantled the feudal structure and concentrated authority in a new state. In 1869 feudalism was abolished, and the three hundred fiefs were surrendered to the government and converted into prefectures under appointed governors. Taxation was centralized, and a modern bureaucracy replaced the feudal system. The reforms also established equality of social classes before the law and removed restrictions on internal migration and trade. These changes reached beyond administration. The samurai class was abolished, although rebellions had to be put down, and individual property rights in land were introduced. People gained the freedom to enter and practice trades. Together, these measures altered who could move, own land, and pursue economic activity, while strengthening the central government’s capacity to direct national development.

Infrastructure and Industrialization

The state took an active role in building infrastructure and encouraging industry. In 1869, the regime formed a steamship line between Tokyo and Osaka and built Japan’s first railway, between Tokyo and Yokohama. It also began developing manufacturing. Ōkubo Toshimichi, serving as minister of finance, oversaw the start of a concerted industrialization effort. The transition drew on industrial initiatives that predated the restoration. The lord of Satsuma domain had built factories producing pottery, cannon, and cotton yarn, imported English textile machinery, and established Japan’s first modern cotton-spinning mill in 1861, as well as two modern shipyards. The post-restoration state expanded this direction, linking centralized authority and public infrastructure to industrial development.

Constitutional Legacy and Significance

By 1890 Japan had become the first Asian country to adopt a written constitution. It established a constitutional monarchy with an elected parliament, the Diet, and an independent judiciary. The book presents these institutional changes as decisive factors in Japan’s ability to become the primary beneficiary of the Industrial Revolution in Asia. The contrast with China clarifies the political significance of the transformation. In the mid-nineteenth century both countries were poor and governed by absolutist regimes, but Japan’s political structure had included domains such as Satsuma that retained some independence, including the ability to conduct foreign trade. The reforms associated with Emperor Meiji’s restoration thus followed a crisis in which competing centers of authority gave way to a centralized state, which then reshaped legal rights, economic activity, and political institutions.