Paper 3, Section 7: Tokugawa Shogunate Flashcards
(20 cards)
Describe Japan’s political structure.
Emperor: was a god; had no real political power, just cultural significance
Shogun: highest military ruler; Shogunate refers to the family
Bakufu: central administration of gov; made most decisions for the Shoguns
Daimyo: warlords
Han: provinces in Japan; in charge of each Han is a daimyo
1500s Japan
1500s: Daimyo in Nagasaki allows Portuguese to trade
–Portuguese introduced guns
–Portuguese Jesuits spread Catholicism; trend of trade first, then religion
–Portuguese delivered goods from China to Japan (China had forbidden trade w/ Japan due to Japanese piracy)
1600s Japan
Japan becomes skeptical of Europeans
–Bans Christianity & expells missionaries
–Kicks out Spanish & Portuguese merchants; Dutch (were protestant) restricted to Nagasaki
1700s Japan
Kokugaka Period: new literary movement of national learning
–Shift from a military mentality to a cultural mentality
–Studied Japan’s life before Chinese cultural interference
–Refascination on Shinto → puts focus back on emperor
–Popular with wealthy peasants & merchants; think that education is key to a higher social class
–Mito School of Learning: devoted to study of Japanese history, emphasized reverence for the Emperor
–Western books circulated Japan; knowledge of Western science & technology spread; big discoveries happening in Europe at same time
–Literacy spread
Economic Probelms
Growth of cities → bureaucracy becomes more complex → growth of gov. costs
Merchants getting richer & more powerful; challenges entire social structure
Inadequate ways of taxing growing sectors of economy
Farming industry is decreasing & commercial industry is increasing, however, farmers are still getting taxed more
Daimyo live lavishly while most peasants live in poverty
Alternate attendance system
Made to keep daimyos in check
Daimyos have to finance it → daimyos tax their Han more
Daimyos let go of their samurai → ronin
Social Problems
Peasants start to grow other crops because it can’t be taxed like rice can
1800s: most samurai living in poor conditions (less well off than merchants & wealthy peasants); some samurai married into merchant families, set up their own industries, or got gov. positions; divide between the two
Samurai loyalty shifts from daimyo to the Han (being loyal to a geographic area)
beginning of modern nationalism in Japan
Political Problems
Shogun is not able to make quick changes in gov. because daimyos have a lot of power too
Famines caused by taxation
Daimyos taxed up to 60% of rice
Peasant rebellions
Gov. strictly controlled farmers; restricted travel, could only wear cotton clothes, had to work on roads for little pay
Commercial farming grew as cities grew; regions specialized in different crops → creates class of wealthy peasants (gono)
Expulsion Edict of 1825
Any ship sighted off Japanese coast should be fired upon
Describe the difference in attitudes toward the West between Japan and China.
Japanese were distrustful yet curious; a difference between the Japanese & the Chinese was the Japanese were curious towards the West while the Chinese were not.
Why was the US interested in Japan?
–As US expanded westward into Oregon & California, the Pacific Ocean became a sphere of influence
–US ships needed a rest stop for trade between China & San Francisco
–Whaling in Pacific around Japan; whale oil a valuable resource
How does Commodore Perry persuade Japan to open up for trade?
Perry threatens war.
What was the Treaty of Kanagawa?
US receives “most-favoured-nation status”
Open up some ports to US
Americans establish a consul in Shimoda
Treat shipwrecked sailors well
Another “unequal treaty”; same strategy US used w/ China
What was the Harris Treaty?
More ports opened for trade
Japanese tariffs placed under international control & import duties fixed at low prices
Extraterritoriality established
How does Japan resond to the US treaties?
Shogun Iesada avoids war w/ US & signs treaties to open Japan; hopes to still restrict foreign access
What was the Satcho Alliance?
Satsuma & Choshu clans shifted anger from foreigners to Shogun & Bakufu
Came to believe that expelling foreigners was not possible
Both clans financially strong & had samurai
Bought rifles, ships, & cannons in 1860s
Wanted to end shogunate & restore power to the emperor
Boshin War
Satcho daimyo seized imperial palace & forced Emperor Mutsuhito (later known as Meiji Emperor) to proclaim end of the Tokugawa Shogunate & restoration of imperial rule
1868: Charter Oath signed; considered to be Japan’s first constitution → shift toward democracy
Political power restored to Emperor
Established deliberative assemblies
Called for all classes to unite & work in unity to carry out gov. plans
Abolished old customs; anyone can pursue anything
Encouraged the seeking of knowledge; would strengthen the empire
Rejected the old feudal system
Kenneth Pyle
Tokugawa Shogunate lasted as long as it did because of the institutions it created
–Alternate Attendance System
–Bakufu
The reason why the shoguns did not centralize their power more:
–Shoguns came to power through the help & alliances of daimyo
–Shoguns needed the daimyo to support him & daimyos needed the shogun
–Shoguns had samurai
Unequal treaties in Japan were significant
–Were the first unequal treaties in Japan’s history; turned Japan into a colony
–Recovery of national independence becomes a goal
–Treaties destroyed bakufu authority
Reischauer & Craig
Drastic change in social structure:
As the samurai are losing their purpose, they are losing their loyalty to the shogun/daimyo
Higher views of emperor
Instead of focus on class, there was a focus on what an individual has achieved; rich peasants & merchants left traditional social structure
Toru Haga
Tokugawa’s seclusion policies were brilliant:
Not all foreigners were kicked out; limited foreign influence while still staying knowledgeable on the rest of the world
Shogun could control what the rest of the world knew about Japan
Allowed gov. to focus on internal problems, not foreign ones
Beasly
1858 marked the beginning of modern nationalism in Japan:
Awareness of a new foreign threat emerged & political unity spread
There was a call to honor the emperor
