What exactly was the Meiji Restoration?
The term refers to both the events of 1868 that led to the “restoration” of power to the emperor and the entire period of revolutionary changes that coincided with the emperor’s reign (1868–1912). The Tokugawa family had controlled the shogunate, from 1603 to 1867. The Shogun was the title of the feudal military administrator from the 12th to the 19th century in Japan. However, by the mid-19th century, weakened by debt and internal division, the Tokugawa shogunate had declined, and much internal opposition had already manifested itself. However, the intrusion of Western powers, particularly the Americans, under Commodore Matthew C. Perry, precipitated further discontent. Under pressure, the Tokugawa shogunate submitted (1854) to foreign demands and signed treaties that ended Japan’s isolation. The powerful Choshu and Satsuma domains of W Japan tried to resist the foreigners on their own and were defeated (1863). These domains, excluded from the Tokugawa governing councils because of th
