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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
As the Qing Dynasty continued to decline in the wake of mass rebellions and longstanding insurgencies, a conflict with the British East India Trade Company would evolve into the disastrous Opium Wars.
The Sakoku isolation policies were meant to keep the Japanese government insulated from dangerous foreign influence. However, its tendency toward restriction and xenophobia could not be easily balanced with the Bakufu’s desire to continue governing the nation.
After the expulsion of Matsudaira Sadanobu, the shogun was free to pursue the lavish lifestyle he had always dreamed of. Thanks to a buoyant economy, the rest of the nation joined him in conspicuous consumption. These good times, however, would eventually come to an end.
Newly anointed chief of the roju Matsudaira Sadanobu wanted to set Japan back on course after the devastating Great Tenmei Famine. However, some of his more restrictive policies would prove unpopular.
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