See also:

• MUTSU, MUNEMITSU, COUNT (1842-1896)

MUTSU HITO, See also:

• MIKADO (Japanese for " exalted gate ")

MIKADO, or See also:

• EMPEROR (Fr. empereur, from the Lat. imperator)

EMPEROR, OF See also:

• JAPAN

JAPAN (1852— )  , was See also:

• BORN, IGNAZ, EDLER VON (1742–1791)

born on the 3rd of See also:

• NOVEMBER (Lat. novem, nine)

November 1852, succeeded his See also:

• FATHER

father, Osahito, the former See also:

• EMPEROR (Fr. empereur, from the Lat. imperator)

emperor, in See also:

• JANUARY

January 1867, and was crowned at See also:

• OSAKA

Osaka on the 31st of See also:

• OCTOBER

October 1868 . The See also:

• COUNTRY (from the Mid. Eng. contre or contrie, and O. Fr. cuntree; Late Lat. contrata, showing the derivation from contra, opposite, over against, thus the tract of land which fronts the sight, cf. Ger. Gegend, neighbourhood)

country was then in a ferment owing to the concessions which had been granted to foreigners by the preceding See also:

• SHOGUN (Japanese for " generalissimo ")

shogun Iyemochi, who in 1854 concluded a treaty With See also:

• COMMODORE (a form of " commander"; in the 17th century the term " commandore " is used)

Commodore See also:

• PERRY
• PERRY (from Fr. Moire, from poire, a pear)
• PERRY, MATTHEW CALBRAITH (1794–1858)
• PERRY, OLIVER HAZARD (1785-1819)

Perry by which it was agreed that certain ports should be open to See also:

• FOREIGN

foreign See also:

• TRADE (O. Eng. trod, footstep, from tredan, to tread; in M. Eng. the forms teed, trod and trade appear, the last in the sense of a beaten track)
• TRADE, BOARD OF

trade . This See also:

• CONVENTION (Lat. conventio, an assembly or agreement, from convenire, to come together)
• CONVENTION, THE NATIONAL

convention gave See also:

• GREAT

great offence to the more conservative daimios, and on their initiative the See also:

• MIKADO (Japanese for " exalted gate ")

mikado suddenly decided to abolish the shogunate . This See also:

• RESOLUTION

resolution was not carried out without strong opposition . The reigning shogun, Keiki, yielded to the See also:

• DECREE (from the past participle, decretus, of Lat. decernere)

decree, but many of his followers were not so complaisant, and it was only by force of arms that the new See also:

• ORDER
• ORDER (through Fr. ordre, for earlier ordene, from Lat. ordo, ordinis, rank, service, arrangement; the ultimate source is generally taken to be the root seen in Lat. oriri, rise, arise, begin; cf. " origin ")
• ORDER, HOLY

order of things was imposed on the country . The See also:

• MAIN (from the Aryan root which appears in " may " and " might," and Lat. magnus, great)
• MAIN (Lat. Moenus)

main See also:

• OBJECT

object of those who had advocated the See also:

• CHANGE (derived through the Fr. from the Late Lat. cambium, cambiare, to barter; the ultimate derivation is probably from the root which appears in the Gr. «a urmu', to bend)

change was to See also:

• LEAD
• LEAD (pronounced iced)

lead to a reversion to the See also:

• PRIMITIVE

primitive See also:

• CONDITION (Lat. condicio, from condicere, to agree upon, arrange; not connected with conditio, from condere, conditum, to put together)

condition of affairs, when the will of the mikado was See also:

• ABSOLUTE (Lat. absolvere, to loose, set free)

absolute and when the presence in See also:

• JAPAN

Japan of the hated foreigner was unknown . But the reactionary party was not to be allowed to monopolize revolutions . To their surprise and discomfiture, the powerful daimios of Satsuma and Choshu suddenly declared themselves to be in favour of opening the country to foreign intercourse, and of adopting many far-reaching reforms . With this See also:

• MOVEMENT

movement See also:

• MUTSU, MUNEMITSU, COUNT (1842-1896)

Mutsu Hito was cordially in agreement, and of his own See also:

• MOTION (Lat. motio, from movere, to move)
• MOTION, LAWS OF

motion he invited the foreign representatives to an See also:

• AUDIENCE (from Lat. audire, to hear)

audience on the 23rd of See also:

• MARCH
• MARCH (1) (from Fr. marcher, to walk; the earliest sense in French appears to be " to trample," and the origin has usually been found in the Lat. marcus, hammer; Low Lat. marcare, to hammer; hence to beat the road with the regular tread of a soldier: cf.
• MARCH, AUZIAS (c. "1395-1458)
• MARCH, EARLS OF
• MARCH, FRANCIS ANDREW (1825– )

March 1868 . As See also:

• SIR

Sir Harry See also:

• PARKES, SIR HARRY SMITH (1828-1885)
• PARKES, SIR HENRY (1815–1896)

Parkes, the See also:

• BRITISH

British See also:

• MINISTER (Lat. minister, servant)

minister, was on his way to this See also:

• ASSEMBLY, UNLAWFUL

assembly, he was attacked by a number of two-sworded samurai, who, but for his guard, would doubtless have succeeded in assassinating him . The See also:

• OUTRAGE (through O. Fr. ultrage, oltrage, oultrage, from Lat. ultra, beyond, exceeding, cf. Ital. oltraggio; the meaning has been influenced by connexion with " rage," anger)

outrage was regarded by the emperor and his ministers as a reflection on their See also:

• HONOUR (Lat. honos or lwnor, honoris; in English the word was spelled with or without the u indifferently until the 17th century, but during the 18th century it became fashion-able to spell the word " honor "; Johnson's and Webster's Dictionaries stereoty

honour, and they readily made all reparation within their See also:

• POWER [WILLIAM GRATTAN] TYRONE (1797-1841)

power . While these agitations were afoot, the emperor, with his advisers, was maturing a See also:

• POLITICAL

political constitution which was to pave the way to the See also:

• ASSUMPTION, FEAST OF

assumption by the emperor of See also:

• DIRECT

direct See also:

• PERSONAL

personal See also:

• RULE

rule .

As a step in this direction, Mutsu Hito transferred his See also:

• CAPITAL (i.e. capital stock or fund)
• CAPITAL (Lat. caput, head)

capital from See also:

• KIOTO (Kyoto)

Kioto to Yedo, the former seat of the shoguns' See also:

• GOVERNMENT
• GOVERNMENT (0. Fr. governement, mod. gouvernement, O. Fr. governer, mod. gouverner, from Lat. gubernare, to steer a ship, guide, rule; cf. Gr. xv(3epvav)

government, and marked the event by renaming the See also:

• CITY (through Fr. cite, from Lat. civitas)

city See also:

• TOKYO (or TOKIO, formerly called Yedo)

Tokyo, or Eastern Capital . In 1869 the emperor paid a visit to his old capital, and there took as his imperial See also:

• CONSORT (Lat. consors, a companion)

consort a princess of the See also:

• HOUSE
• HOUSE (O. Eng. hiss, a word common to Teutonic languages, cf. Dut. huis, Ger. Haus; in Gothic it is only found in gudhiss, a temple; it may be ultimately connected with the root of " hide," conceal)

house of Ichijo . In the same See also:

• YEAR

year Mutsu Hito See also:

• BOUND, or BOUNDARY (from O. Fr. bonde, Med. Lat. bodena or butina, a frontier line)

bound himself by See also:

• OATH (0. Eng. ddh)

oath to See also:

• INSTITUTE (from Lat. instituere, to establish or set up)

institute certain reforms, the first of which was the See also:

• ESTABLISHMENT (0. Fr. establissement, Fr. etablissement, late Norm. Fr. establishement, from O. Fr. establir, Fr. etablir, Lat. stabilire, to make stable)

establishment of a deliberative assembly . In this onward movement he was supported by the See also:

• MAJORITY (Fr. majorite; Med. Lat. majoritas; Lat. major, greater)

majority of the daimios, who in a supreme moment of patriotism surrendered their estates and privileges to their See also:

• SOVEREIGN

sovereign . This was the See also:

• DEATH

death-knell of the See also:

• FEUDALISM
• FEUDALISM (from Late Lat. feodum or feudum, a fee or fiel; see FEE)

feudalism which had existed for so many centuries in Japan, and gave Mutsu Hito the See also:

• FREE

free See also:

• HAND
• HAND (a word common to Teutonic languages; cf. Ger. Hand, Goth. handus)
• HAND, FERDINAND GOTTHELF (1786-185r)

hand which he desired . A centralized bureaucracy took the See also:

• PLACE (through Fr. from Lat. platea, street; Gr. IrAar6s, wide)

place of the old See also:

• SYSTEM

system, and the nation moved rapidly along the road of progress . Everything See also:

• EUROPEAN

European was eagerly adopted, even down to See also:

• FROCK

frock-coats and patent-See also:

• LEATHER (a word which appears in all Teutonic languages; cf. Ger. Leder, Dutch leer or leder, Swed. leder, and in such Celtic forms as Welsh llader)
• LEATHER, ARTIFICIAL

leather boots for the officials . See also:

• TORTURE (from Lat. torquere, to twist)

Torture was abolished (1873), and a judicial See also:

• CODE (Lat. codex)

code, adapted from the Code See also:

• NAPOLEON

Napoleon, was authorized . The first railway—that from See also:

• YOKOHAMA

Yokohama to Tokyo—was opened in 1872; the European See also:

• CALENDAR

calendar was adopted, and See also:

• ENGLISH

English was introduced into the curriculum of the See also:

• COMMON

common See also:

• SCHOOLS

schools . In all these reforms Mutsu Hito took a leading See also:

• PART

part . But it was not to be expected that such sweeping changes could be effected without opposition, and thrice during the See also:

• PERIOD
• PERIOD (Gr. irepioSos, a going or way round, circuit, aepi, round, and &Sis, way, road)

period between 1876 and 1884 the emperor had to See also:

• FACE (from Lat. fades, derived either from facere, to make, or from a root fa-, meaning " appear "; cf. Gr. cbatvstv)

face serious rebellious movements in the provinces . These he succeeded in suppressing; and even amid these pre-occupations he managed to inflict a check on his huge See also:

• NEIGHBOUR (O. Eng. neahgebiir, from Walt, " nigh," " near ")

neighbour, the See also:

• EMPIRE

empire of See also:

• CHINA

China .

As the government of this See also:

• STATE
• STATE, GREAT OFFICERS OF

state declared that it was incapable of punishing certain Formosan pirates for outrages committed on See also:

• JAPANESE

Japanese See also:

• SHIPS

ships (1874), Mutsu Hito landed a force on the See also:

• ISLAND (O.E. ieg =isle, +land')

island, and, having inflicted chastisement on the bandits, remained in See also:

• POSSESSION
• POSSESSION (Lat. possessio, possidere, to possess)

possession of certain districts until the See also:

• COMPENSATION (from Lat. compensare, to weigh one thing against another)

compensation demanded from See also:

• PEKING, or PEKIN

Peking was paid . The unparalleled advances which had been made by the government were now held by the emperor and his advisers to justify a demand for the revision of the foreign See also:

• TREATIES

treaties, and negotiations were opened with this object . They failed, however, and the consequent disappointment gave rise to a strong reaction against everything foreign throughout the country . Foreigners were assaulted on the roads, and even the See also:

• RUSSIAN

Russian See also:

• CESAREVICH

cesarevich, after-wards the See also:

• TSAR, or CZAR

tsar See also:

• NICHOLAS
• NICHOLAS (1841– )
• NICHOLAS (or NICLAES), HENRY (or HENDRIK) (c. 1501-C. 158o)
• NICHOLAS, SIR EDWARD (1593-1669)
• NICHOLAS, ST

Nicholas II., was attacked by would-be assassins in the streets of Tokyo . A renewed See also:

• ATTEMPT (Lat. adtemptare, attentare, to try)

attempt to revise the treaties in 1894 was more successful, and in that year Great See also:

• BRITAIN (Gr. Hperavuml vi7vot, Bperravia; Lat. Britannia, rarely Britannia)

Britain led the way by concluding a revised treaty with Japan . Other nations followed, and by 1901 all those See also:

• OBNOXIOUS (Lat. obnoxiosus, from ob, over, against, and noxa, harm)

obnoxious clauses suggestive of political inferiority had finally disappeared from the treaties . In the same year (1894) See also:

• WAR
• WAR (O. Eng. werre, Fr. guerre, of Teutonic origin; cf. O.H.G. werran, to confound)

war See also:

• BROKE, or BROOKE, ARTHUR (d. 1563)
• BROKE, SIR PHILIP BOWES VERE, BART

broke out with China, and Mutsu Hito, in common with his subjects, showed the greatest zeal for the See also:

• CAMPAIGN

campaign . He reviewed the troops as they See also:

• LEFT

left the shores of Japan for See also:

• KOREA
• KOREA, or COREA (CH'AO HSIEN, DAI HAN)

Korea and See also:

• MANCHURIA

Manchuria, and personally distributed rewards to those who had won distinction . In the war with See also:

• RUSSIA
• RUSSIA (Rossiya)

Russia, 1904–5, the same was the See also:

• CASE
• CASE, JOHN (d. 1600)

case, and it was to. the virtues of their emperor that his generals loyally ascribed the Japanese victories . In his See also:

• WISE, HENRY ALEXANDER (1806-1876)
• WISE, ISAAC MAYER (1819-1900)

wise patriotism, as in all matters, Mutsu Hito always placed himself in the See also:

• VAN

van of his countrymen . He led them out of the trammels of feudalism; by his progressive rule he lived to see his country advanced to the first See also:

• RANK (O.Fr. rant or rent, mod. rang, generally connected with the O.E. and O.H.G. bring, a ring)

rank of nations; and he was the first See also:

• ORIENTAL

Oriental sovereign to See also:

• FORM (Lat. forma)

form an offensive and defensive See also:

• ALLIANCE

alliance with a first-See also:

• RATE

rate European power . In 1869 Mutsu Hito married Princess Haru, daughter of Ichijo Tadaka, a See also:

• NOBLE, SIR ANDREW (1832- )

noble of the first rank: He has one son and several daughters, his See also:

• HEIR (Lat. heres, from a root meaning to grasp, seen in heres or erus, master of a house, Gr. xeip, hand, Sans. hat ana, hand)

heir-apparent being Yoshi Hito, who was born on the 31st of See also:

• AUGUST (originally Sextilis)

August 1879, and married in 1900 Princess Sada, daughter of See also:

• PRINCE
• PRINCE (Lat. princeps, from primus capio, " I am the first to take "; Ital. principe, Fr. prince)

Prince Kujo, by whom he had three sons before 1909 .

Mutsu Hito adopted the epithet of Meiji, or " Enlightened See also:

• PEACE
• PEACE, BREACH OF THE

Peace," as the nengo or See also:

• TITLE (0. Fr. title, mod. titre, from Lat. titulus)

title of his reign . Thus the year 1901, according to the Japanese calendar, was the 34th year of Meiji .