(855) 4-ESSAYS

Type a new keyword(s) and press Enter to search

Role of The Emperor in Meiji Japan


             order to govern effectively. In the years leading up to 1868 members .
             of the Satsuma and Choshu clans were part of the imperialist .
             opposition. This opposition claimed that the only way that Japan could .
             survive the encroachment of the foreigners was to rally around the .
             Emperor.Footnote4 The Imperialists, claimed that the Tokugawa .
             Shogunate had lost its imperial mandate to carry out the Imperial Will .
             because it had capitulated to Western powers by allowing them to open .
             up Japan to trade. During this time the ideas of the imperialists .
             gained increasing support among Japanese citizens and intellectuals .
             who taught at newly established schools and wrote revisionist history .
             books that claimed that historically the Emperor had been the.
             ruler of Japan.Footnote5 The fact that the Tokugawa's policy of .
             opening up Japan to the western world ran counter to the beliefs of .
             the Emperor and was unpopular with the public made the Tokugawa .
             vulnerable to attack from the imperialists. The imperialists pressed .
             their attack both militarily and from within the Court of Kyoto. The .
             great military regime of Edo which until recently had been all .
             powerful was floundering not because of military weakness, or because .
             the machinery of government had broken but instead because the .
             Japanese public and the Shoguns supporters felt they had lost the .
             Imperial Will.Footnote6 .
             The end of the Tokugawa regime shows the power of the .
             symbolism and myths surrounding the imperial institution. The.
             head of the Tokugawa clan died in 1867 and was replaced by the son of .
             a lord who was a champion of Japanese historical studies and who .
             agreed with the imperialists claims about restoring the Emperor. .
             Footnote7 So in 1868 the new shogun handed over all his power to the .
             Emperor in Kyoto. Shortly after handing over power to the Emperor, the .
             Emperor Komeo died and was replaced by his son who became the Meiji .
             Emperor.Footnote8 Because the Meiji Emperor was only 15 all the power .


Essays Related to Role of The Emperor in Meiji Japan

1. Role Of Emperor In Meiji Restoration

However, the role played by Mutsuhito in the redevelopment of Japan was not one of making reforms that would assist Japan in this. ... Though Mutsuhito was the emperor, the real brains behind the actions were a small group of samurai, known as the Meiji Oligarchs who wished to revolutionize Japan. ... These situations are similar in that the public saw Emperor Meiji as a descendant from their God. According to Shintoism the current Emperor is "the direct descendent of the Sun Goddess Amaterasu, who formed the islands of Japan out of the Ocean in ancient times. - In a speech delivered by Profes...

  • Word Count: 828
  • Approx Pages: 3
  • Has Bibliography

2. Causes of the Meiji Restoratio

The two most important players in the Meiji restoration were Meiji's father, Emperor Komei, because of his stubbornness in maintaining tradition and his conservatism; and Iwakura Tomomi, an important nobleman, for his schemes against the court and, ultimately, his role in the death of Emperor Komei. ... It is clear that the spirit of military reform that would mark the Meiji period and lead to victories in the Russo-Japanese and Sino-Japanese wars was directly influenced by the influence of foreign ships on Japan. ... Southern domains of Japan, especially the Satsuma and Choshu, played...

  • Word Count: 1630
  • Approx Pages: 7
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

3. Democracy in 1920's Japan

As well as these official barriers to the role of the Diet's lower house, there also existed the informal Genro, a small cadre of elder statesmen whose role was also to advise the emperor on political matters. ... The Meiji Constitution dictated that the military answer only to the emperor, and so any issue concerning military action was out of the hands of the lower house. Finally, the role of the emperor himself as the ultimate source of Japanese authority meant that any action on the part of government could be overruled by recourse to an imperial prerogative. ... It appears that the ...

  • Word Count: 2458
  • Approx Pages: 10
  • Grade Level: Graduate

4. Japanese Monarchy

The Japanese people believed this since no Emperor had ever been overthrown; however his position is mostly symbolic and he portrays a figurehead status. ... As a result of World War II defeat, the Emperor declared his humanity and thus in the Japanese constitution the Emperors position is one of state symbol not divinity. Today's Emperor Heisei (Akihito) is the 125th Emperor and was crowned on November 12th, 1990. ... SHINTOISM: The other sources of information about early Japanese history are two Japanese sources of ancient history; "Kojiki" in 712, and the "Nihon Shoki" in 720, ...

  • Word Count: 3562
  • Approx Pages: 14
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

5. Japanese Militarism

The forces that aided in this transformation were the failed promises of the Meiji Restoration that were represented in the stagnation of the Japanese economy, the perceived capitulation of the Japanese parliamentary leaders to the western powers, a compliant public, and an independent military. Beginning in the 1890's the public education system indoctrinated students in the ideas of nationalism, loyalty to the emperor and traditionalist ideas of self-sacrifice and obedience. These values taught obedience not to a democratic but to the emperor; so the fact that the militaristic governmen...

  • Word Count: 1437
  • Approx Pages: 6
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

6. Hirohito; Leader or Bystander

Despite the appearance of holding power, leader's often are undermined by their own subjects as the case of Emperor Hirohito of Japan. It is true that during his reign Japan has seen a territorial expansion in Asia not unlike that of Genghis Khan's Mongolia or Julius Caesar's Rome but the question remains whether Hirohito played an active role in that expansion. ... On Christmas day 1926, Emperor Taisho succumbed to lung cancer and Hirohito ascended to the throne to become the 124th God Emperor of Japan. ... Wakatsuki ultimately failed in the attempt to carry out his emperor&...

  • Word Count: 5382
  • Approx Pages: 22
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

7. Comfort Women of World War II

(Greenfield) Also, as Japan plays more and more an important role in international society, due to its economic power, many worry that this might cause the international society to overlook an incidence of gross violation of human rights. ... (Greenfield) In 1868, after the Meiji Restoration, the Meiji government introduced "the Great Japanese Imperial Constitution" and provided the emperor with the legal basis for an absolute power over the sovereignty of Japan. All Japanese were regarded as servants to the emperor and had to promise loyalty. ... The emperor-centered Japanese government le...

  • Word Count: 4553
  • Approx Pages: 18
  • Grade Level: Undergraduate

8. Japan

The educational system in Japan has not always been the way it is today. ... The Meiji government was the first imperial government and it came into power in 1868. ... This document had three themes: that the foundation of the nation is Confucian Values, that the role of education is perfecting "moral powers", and that the duty of the subjects is to respect the national polity headed by the emperor. ... The classes are overflowing just as they do in Japan. There is one thing that Japan really does have working for them though. ...

  • Word Count: 1826
  • Approx Pages: 7
  • Has Bibliography

Got a writing question? Ask our professional writer!
Submit My Question