justin.david.hebert

The New Frontier

November 7, 2024 justin-david-hebert Meiji, Season 13 Comments Off on The New Frontier
Season 13, Episode 4: The New Frontier
A photograph of an Ainu man in traditional clothing. Source: Public Domain
A replica of the Hokkaido Development Committee’s headquarters. Source: Public Domain
A photograph of William S. Clark, who served as a foreign expert in Hokkaido in 1876. Source: Public Domain
A photograph of Sho Tai, the last king of the Ryukyu islands. Source: Public Domain
Naha Shuri Castle, which had been the capital building of the Ryukyu Kingdom. Source: 663highland, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Dancers in modern-day Okinawa performing a traditional Ryukyu ceremonial dance. Source: Jean-Pierre Dalbéra from Paris, France, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
A photograph of Japanese soldiers in Taiwan, pictured with friendly villagers assisting in their punitive expedition. Source: Public Domain

The View From Below

November 4, 2024 justin-david-hebert Meiji, Season 13 Comments Off on The View From Below

As the new Meiji government continued to develop and expand, so did the participation of Japanese commoners in the political process. The 1870s witnessed the Iwakura Mission and the birth of Japan’s first newspapers which were quickly followed by censorship laws.

The Meiji Revolution

October 31, 2024 justin-david-hebert Meiji, Season 13 Comments Off on The Meiji Revolution
Season 13, Episode 2: The Meiji Revolution
A photograph of Emperor Meiji in traditional dress. 1872. Source: Public Domain
A photograph of Emperor Meiji in a military uniform, 1872. Source: Public Domain
A photograph of Emperor Meiji (center, in white court dress) surrounded by various advisors and attendants at the official inauguration of the Yokosuka arsenal in 1872. Source: Public Domain
A map featuring Japan’s Prefectures, which were created in 1871 to replace the abolished feudal domains. Colors indicate regions: gray is Kyushu, light purple is Shikoku, orange is Chugoku, purple is Kansai, teal is Chubu, green is Kanto, yellow is Tohoku, red is Hokkaido. Source: Public Domain
A 50 Sen coin which was issued in 1870. 100 Sen was equivalent to 1 Yen. Source: As6673, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
A 5 Yen coin issued in 1870. Although today the Yen is relatively low in individual value (worth about one single US penny), its value was initially high enough to require two subdivision coins – the sen(1/100) and the rin (1/1,000). Source: As6673, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

The Bakufu’s Last Gasp

October 28, 2024 justin-david-hebert Meiji, Season 13 Comments Off on The Bakufu’s Last Gasp
Season 13, Episode 1: The Bakufu’s Last Gasp
The official capital building of the Republic of Ezo. This was a repurposed government office in Hakodate. Source: Public Domain
A photograph of the political leaders of the Republic of Ezo. Enomoto Takeaki is seated on the viewer’s right. Source: Public Domain
A photograph of Enomoto Takeaki, the president-elect of the short-lived Republic of Ezo. Source: Public Domain
A diagram of the Goryokaku Star Fort at Hakodate, which the former shogunate forces defended from imperial assault, only to be eventually overrun. Source: Public Domain
The Goryokaku Star Fort as it exists today in modern-day Hakodate. As you can see, it has been transformed into a beautiful public park. Source: 京浜にけ at Japanese Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
A contemporary etching representing the Battle of Hakodate Bay, a naval engagement in which Ezo Republic forces were driven out of the port. Source: Public Domain
The Japanese text of the Charter Oath, which was declared by the fledgling Meiji government during the Boshin War as a way of establishing their legitimacy and giving some idea of the direction in which they would steer the nation. Source: Public Domain

The Boshin War

June 6, 2024 justin-david-hebert Later Edo, Season 12 Comments Off on The Boshin War

Tensions between the Bakufu and the freshly-energized Loyalists came to a head when a shogunate army was refused entry to Kyoto – then promptly fired upon. The ensuing Boshin War was largely one-sided, with Loyalists gaining repeated victories due to superior arms, tactics, and numbers.

Bakumatsu, Part 3: The Last Shogun

June 3, 2024 justin-david-hebert Later Edo, Season 12 Comments Off on Bakumatsu, Part 3: The Last Shogun

Things appeared grim for Choshu Domain after their defeat to western forces at the Battle of Shimonoseki. In a few short years, however, their fortunes would be completely reversed and the Bakufu would find itself politically besieged.

Bakumatsu, Part 2: Blood in the Streets

May 30, 2024 justin-david-hebert Later Edo, Season 12 Comments Off on Bakumatsu, Part 2: Blood in the Streets

After the assassination of Ii Naosuke, political violence became a new norm. The Shogunate was deeply troubled when a rebellion began in its own backyard of northern Kanto, in Mito Domain.

Bakumatsu, Part 1: The Ansei Purge

May 27, 2024 justin-david-hebert Later Edo, Season 12 Comments Off on Bakumatsu, Part 1: The Ansei Purge

After the national humiliation and subsequent economic turmoil caused by opening Japan to more foreign trade, the Bakufu desperately tried to regain a position of national authority. This culminated in the Ansei Purge initiated by the chief elder Ii Naosuke. However, the shogunate’s tough actions would bring significant unexpected consequences.

The Black Ships

May 23, 2024 justin-david-hebert Later Edo, Season 12 Comments Off on The Black Ships
Season 12, Episode 10: The Black Ships
A photograph of Commodore Matthew C. Perry toward the end of his life, around 1856. Commodore Perry succeeded in forcing Japan to open its nation to foreign trade in 1854. Source: Public Domain
A Japanese illustration of one of Commodore Perry’s Black Ships. Source: Public Domain
A Japanese illustration depicting Perry (center) sitting amid some of his officers. Source: Public Domain
An illustration of the second fleet which Perry brought to Japan when he returned in 1854. Source: Public Domain
This statue of Perry stands in the city of Newport in the state of Rhode Island. Source: Ahodges7, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Pillars of Resistance

May 20, 2024 justin-david-hebert Later Edo, Season 12 Comments Off on Pillars of Resistance

Throughout the 1840s, various groups sought to find solutions to repeated violations of sakoku and questioned the ability of the shogunate to practically defend the country if there was an actual invasion. Many came to very different conclusions.