How Did the Tokugawa Period Contribute to the Economical and Political Success of Modern Japan?

In Japan, during the end of the first millennium, the samurai went to war with the emperor. This war is known as the Genpei War and the Emperor was defeated by the Samurai. This led to the first established shogunate. During the Edo period (1603-1868) or also known as the Tokugawa shogunate, there was an era of stability that led to the rise of shoguns. Shoguns were considered the single ruler of Japan although, the emperor was above the shoguns on the social class. Tokugawa Ieyasu ruled Japan for 15 generations, controlling about 25% of the peoples land, leaving the rest of the 75% to be put into domains, ruled by 275 daimyos. The shogun of Japan controlled government, however, when the Meiji Restoration began in the 19th century, Japans stable society ended and the Shoguns lost all power, due to Matthew Perry. Matthew Perry was a Christian who was seen as a threat to Japan as he wanted to create a divide within Japan. Japan was split into two sections, one being the shogunate and its supporters to remain in power and the Japanese nationalists who wanted the Emperor to regain power. This divide in Japan led to a civil war known as the Boshin war or the

Tokugawa Ieyasu, the third of Japan’s unifiers, was able to create a stable regime that brought peace to Japan for 250 years. Under his system, “the centralization of feudal state and society went much further than it had in the earlier periods.” (Sources, 121). During this time, Shogun and roughly 260 feudal lords, called daimyos, ruled Japan. According to law, the positions of daimyos were inherited, which meant that a daimyo would be succeeded by one of his sons and this succession would be approved by the Shogun. The Shogun was theoretically selected by the emperor, who fulfilled his role as the “final legitimizing authority in Japan” (sources 121).

While ongoing change became the status quo in late-Tokugawa era Japan the ideals of the samurai—and the respect they receive—endured. And, because samurai could still fall back on the prestige their class represented, members of society still

Japan’s warring state period ended after the consolidation of power by the Tokugawa family in 1603, and the new Tokugawa Period was one of Japan’s most peaceful eras that lasted for nearly two and a half centuries up till 1868. The Tokugawa period had many major developments that alter the lives of how Japanese people functioned during this time period, and one such person who lived during time was Katsu Kokichi (1802 – 1850), who wrote an autobiography, Musui’s Story, showcasing how these new developments affected his life. These new developments that happened during this time period was the introduction of Neo-Confucianism to the samurai class, the role of adoption into other samurai family, and pleasure quarters that were established and

During the post classical period, 650 C.E to 1450 C.E, Japanese leaders were confronted with several issues that threatened political order in Japan. The problems that arose during that time included a lack of respect for Buddhism, for example, monks were not taking their vows seriously. Another problem included the division between classes in the social structure, one instance was when the lady-in-waiting in the temple showed disdain for the peasants in a lower class than her. Ultimately, one last problem was the lack of overall respect for the government. Samurais were not being properly trained and the Daimyo were fighting among themselves simply for power. The issues that presented themselves during this time period can be solved in many ways. Buddhism, a unified religion, reestablishing Confucian values and relationships, and properly training the Samurai are just

Samurai’s were next in the system, they are in the warrior class. Samurais’ were paid by daimyos, they were paid domains. The job of the samurai was to collect taxes and keep order between the peasants. The warrior class was called shi. Shi included daimyos and

The Japanese society was divided into four classes: samurai, peasants, artisans, and merchants. The samurai was a class of warriors, emerged from Japan during the constant

3. What was the nature of Japanese society and economy during the period of the daimyos?

The Meiji Restoration, refers to the events that led to the “restoration” of power to Emperor Meiji Tenno. The previous political and military leader of Japan had been the Tokugawa shogunate, but due to the intrusion of the western powers, particularly the Americans, under the command of Commodore Perry, the Shogun was forced to return power to the Emperor. This restoration of power led to many changes in Japanese society such as the social structure, the education system and the Japanese economy that has contributed to Japan becoming a modern world power.

The Tokugawa period or otherwise known as the Edo period has been recognised as an extremely significant aspect of Japanese history and left history changing effects on the country. In this essay, five primary aspects of the Edo period, which has helped produce present day Japan and had greatly impacted on the nation during this period will be addressed:

As shown in document 10, classes were strictly divided between the ruling class, warrior class, and peasant and other class (doc 10). Those with power, namely the land-owning daimyos, the fearsome samurai and ronin, and the influential shoguns and emperor, controlled and restricted the land owning peasants. Similarly, European feudalism placed powerful kings on top, then land-owning nobles, then knightly vassals, and finally poor serfs (doc 9). These class structures were stringent—rarely did people move from their class. In a Japanese edict of change of status from 1591, rulers commanded that farmers who do not farm and warriors who do not fight are to be expelled and punished (doc 7). The author writes this edict in a matter-of-fact tone, indicating that this social structure was normal. Knowing that only the wealthy were afforded the opportunity to write and make policy, it can be assumed that from the author’s point of view, this code of feudalism is necessary. The wealthy needed the peasants in order to get food and labor, thus a constant feudal class of workers was needed. Perhaps this would lead the author and Japanese rulers and shoguns to order harsher punishments. They would believe feudalism a necessity—a bias not to be over looked. An individual’s class was so important that people could not move from it in feudalism. In The Hundred Article Code of Chosokabe, the author demands that people maintain their station in life—warriors must train constantly, and peasants must pay their fair share to the shogun, otherwise severe punishment is received (doc 8). In general, feudalism requires that the peasants work for the vassals and warriors. In medieval Japan, peasants were to give two-thirds of their crops to the vassal samurai. It was common feudal practice that the rich ruled the poor. Feudalism was dominated by strict class

The Meiji Restoration played a significant role in the modernisation of Japan. The Meiji period was a time of political and social revolution. It brought momentous social, political and economic changes to Japan, and these changes became the foundation of the Japan we know today. Prior to the 1868 Restoration, Japan was a militarily weak country with a feudal agricultural society, and was controlled by feudal lords. When the Meiji period ended with the Emperor's death in 1912, Japan was a well-developed nation with a constitutional monarchy, an elected government, a strong economy, a powerful military and a well educated population.

The death of emperor Hideyoshi and subsequent ascension to the throne of Hideyori in 1598 set into motion events that would alter the political landscape in Japan for the next two hundred and fifty years. Tokugawa Ieyasu, in his quest to become absolute ruler of Japan defeated Hideyori loyalists in the battle of Sekigahara and was appointed Shogun by Hideyori in 1603. This military “coup d’état” effectively gave Tokugawa complete control of Japan and reduced the emperor to little more than a figurehead in the governing of Japan. As history would show, the feudal system of government that Tokugawa created ultimately led to

The Tokugawa Era in Japan was incredibly successful for a multitude of reasons but primarily due to the country’s strong protectionist idealism,which caused them to distance themselves from other countries and at the same time helped them become self sufficient, as well as their clear class system. Japan’s protectionist ideology was an important factor in Japan’s success. Specifically, Japan strictly monitored their interactions with the rest of the world as mentioned by James L. Huffman in the book “Modern Japan”. Huffman wrote that “Officials restricted contact with the rest of the world, fearful lest trade and Christianity undermine the Tokugawa’s hold on power”(3). Though extreme, Japan's fear, which in many ways inspired protectionism,

This created a sense of nationalism within the samurai as they carried their country above any other aspects of life. In an excerpt from Hagakure, Yamamoto Tsunetomo (a retired samurai) quotes “I have found the way of the samurai is death.” Samurais were strictly trained to die for their lords and their countries as samurais “…throw away [their] body and mind in a single-minded devotion to the service of your lord”. The lifestyle of the samurai proved to be rewarding also as lower ranking individuals had to “[produce] profit from mutual trade, so that people’s needs were satisfied” while samurais were able to “… [eat] food without growing it, [use] utensils without manufacturing them, and profit without buying or selling.” (Shido, Soko).