Changes

The Imperial Japanese Army emerged from the implementation of a new system of [[military conscription]] in [[1872]]-[[1873]], following the abolition of the samurai class in [[1871]]. This was the first citizen army in Japan, and the first in service of the modern Japanese nation-state.<ref>Norman, E.H. ''Soldier and Peasant in Japan: The Origins of Conscription''. New York: Institute for Pacific Relations, 1945. pp41-42, 49.</ref> It was originally based chiefly on a French model, but was reorganized in [[1878]] with inspiration from Prussian practices. The [[Imperial Japanese Navy]] was established concurrently, based largely on the model of the British Royal Navy.<ref>Conrad Schirokauer, David Lurie, and Suzanne Gay, ''A Brief History of Japanese Civilization'', Wadsworth Cengage (2013), 192.</ref>

The Imperial Japanese Army emerged from the implementation of a new system of [[military conscription]] in [[1872]]-[[1873]], following the abolition of the samurai class in [[1871]]. This was the first citizen army in Japan, and the first in service of the modern Japanese nation-state.<ref>Norman, E.H. ''Soldier and Peasant in Japan: The Origins of Conscription''. New York: Institute for Pacific Relations, 1945. pp41-42, 49.</ref> It was originally based chiefly on a French model, but was reorganized in [[1878]] with inspiration from Prussian practices. The [[Imperial Japanese Navy]] was established concurrently, based largely on the model of the British Royal Navy.<ref>Conrad Schirokauer, David Lurie, and Suzanne Gay, ''A Brief History of Japanese Civilization'', Wadsworth Cengage (2013), 192.</ref>

The feudal domains (''[[han]]'') were [[abolition of the han|abolished]] in 1871, and the [[provinces of Japan|provinces]] reorganized into [[prefectures of Japan|prefectures]]; though the precise names and borders of the prefectures fluctuated for some time, by the late 1880s they had settled down into the 47 prefectures which remain today. As the former ''daimyô'' gave back their land to the Emperor, the central government also took control of most of the country's [[castles]]. Many were demolished at this time. Some were turned over to governmental or military purposes. Many former ''daimyô'' clans relocated to secondary residences, turning these into primary family mansions; the [[Hotta mansion]] which survives in [[Sakura (city)|Sakura]], [[Chiba prefecture]], and the Shimazu clan's Iso mansion at [[Sengan'en]] in [[Kagoshima]] are examples of this. Many [[daimyo yashiki|domain mansions]] in [[Edo]], [[Kyoto]], and [[Osaka]], though not seized by the government, were abandoned or sold. The existence of so many large compounds, now able to be turned over to other purposes, proved a boon to the development of these modern cities, as many were converted into public schools, government buildings, public parks, and the like.

The feudal domains (''[[han]]'') were [[abolition of the han|abolished]] in 1871, and the [[provinces of Japan|provinces]] reorganized into [[prefectures of Japan|prefectures]]; though the precise names and borders of the prefectures fluctuated for some time, by the late 1880s they had settled down into the 47 prefectures which remain today. This came after [[Choshu han|Chôshû]], [[Satsuma han|Satsuma]], [[Tosa han|Tosa]], and [[Kumamoto han|Kumamoto (Higo)]] petitioned the government in [[1869]]/1 to return their fiefs to the Emperor. As the remainder of the former ''daimyô'' gave back their lands to the Imperial institution, the central government also took control of most of the country's [[castles]]. Many were demolished at this time. Some were turned over to governmental or military purposes. Many former ''daimyô'' clans relocated to secondary residences, turning these into primary family mansions; the [[Hotta mansion]] which survives in [[Sakura (city)|Sakura]], [[Chiba prefecture]], and the Shimazu clan's Iso mansion at [[Sengan'en]] in [[Kagoshima]] are examples of this. Many [[daimyo yashiki|domain mansions]] in [[Edo]], [[Kyoto]], and [[Osaka]], though not seized by the government, were abandoned or sold. The existence of so many large compounds, now able to be turned over to other purposes, proved a boon to the development of these modern cities, as many were converted into public schools, government buildings, public parks, and the like.

*Genro, etc.

*Genro, etc.

Meanwhile, the government began printing & minting new [[currency]] in [[1868]], establishing the [[yen]] as the new Japanese currency in [[1871]], and establishing the [[Bank of Japan]] in [[1882]].<ref>Pamphlets, Currency Museum of the Bank of Japan.</ref>

Meanwhile, the government began printing & minting new [[currency]] in [[1868]], establishing the [[yen]] as the new Japanese currency in [[1871]], and establishing the [[Bank of Japan]] in [[1882]].<ref>Pamphlets, Currency Museum of the Bank of Japan.</ref>

==Society==

==Society==

Through participation in [[World's Fairs]], the establishment of [[Tokyo National Museum|Imperial (National) Museums]] in the 1880s, the establishment of a system of [[National Treasures]], and the promotion of particular art forms, among other means, the government worked to prove to the Japanese people, and to the world, that Japan was modern, civilized, and possessed just as worthy a tradition and history as any other great nation. Many new art forms, such as ''[[Nihonga]]'' (neo-traditional painting) and ''[[yoga|yôga]]'' (Western-style oil painting), the novel & other forms of "modern" literature, and [[shinpa|new forms of theatre]], were born out of this, while many older art forms, such as [[Noh]], [[kabuki]], [[shamisen]] music, [[nihon buyo|Japanese dance]], and [[tea ceremony]], were formalized or re-invented as "national traditions." Others, such as ''[[ukiyo-e]]'', simply continued along, changing and developing but not being re-conceptualized entirely. Artists such as [[Kobayashi Kiyochika]] designed ''ukiyo-e'' propaganda prints which served to report on national events, such as the promulgation of the Constitution, and the Sino-Japanese and Russo-Japanese Wars. By the end of the period, however, ''ukiyo-e'' had fallen away, and had been replaced by modern print forms such as ''[[shin hanga]]'' ("new prints") and ''[[sosaku hanga|sôsaku hanga]]'' ("creative prints"). Photography, postcards, newspapers, and a variety of other modern arts & cultural forms also developed and became widespread in the Meiji period.

Through participation in [[World's Fairs]], the establishment of [[Tokyo National Museum|Imperial (National) Museums]] in the 1880s, the establishment of a system of [[National Treasures]], and the promotion of particular art forms, among other means, the government worked to prove to the Japanese people, and to the world, that Japan was modern, civilized, and possessed just as worthy a tradition and history as any other great nation. Many new art forms, such as ''[[Nihonga]]'' (neo-traditional painting) and ''[[yoga|yôga]]'' (Western-style oil painting), the novel & other forms of "modern" literature, and [[shinpa|new forms of theatre]], were born out of this, while many older art forms, such as [[Noh]], [[kabuki]], [[shamisen]] music, [[nihon buyo|Japanese dance]], and [[tea ceremony]], were formalized or re-invented as "national traditions." Others, such as ''[[ukiyo-e]]'', simply continued along, changing and developing but not being re-conceptualized entirely. Artists such as [[Kobayashi Kiyochika]] designed ''ukiyo-e'' propaganda prints which served to report on national events, such as the promulgation of the Constitution, and the Sino-Japanese and Russo-Japanese Wars. By the end of the period, however, ''ukiyo-e'' had fallen away, and had been replaced by modern print forms such as ''[[shin hanga]]'' ("new prints") and ''[[sosaku hanga|sôsaku hanga]]'' ("creative prints"). Photography, postcards, newspapers, and a variety of other modern arts & cultural forms also developed and became widespread in the Meiji period.

Numerous Westerners visited Japan in the Bakumatsu and Meiji eras. Among many other activities, many of them collected Japanese art, bringing large collections back to the West, where they introduced Western audiences to Japanese art. Many museum collections got their start at this time, through the donation or sale of the private collections of people like [[William Sturgis Bigelow]], [[Charles Lang Freer]], and [[Ernest Fenollosa]], and through figures like [[Okakura Kakuzo|Okakura Kakuzô]] pioneering curatorial positions, and giving lectures and demonstrations. Japanese art began to be sold in the West as well; [[Hayashi Tadamasa]], for example, was a prominent art dealer in Paris in the 1880s through [[1905]], and the importation of Japanese art, especially ''ukiyo-e'', spurred the ''[[japonisme]]'' movement, becoming profoundly influential upon Impressionism and other major art trends in the West.

Numerous Westerners visited Japan in the Bakumatsu and Meiji eras. Among many other activities, many of them collected Japanese art, bringing large collections back to the West, where they introduced Western audiences to Japanese art. Many museum collections got their start at this time, through the donation or sale of the private collections of people like [[William Sturgis Bigelow]], [[Charles Lang Freer]], and [[Ernest Fenollosa]], and through figures like [[Okakura Kakuzo|Okakura Kakuzô]] pioneering curatorial positions, and giving lectures and demonstrations. Japanese art began to be sold in the West as well; [[Hayashi Tadamasa]], for example, was a prominent art dealer in Paris in the 1880s through [[1905]], and the importation of Japanese art, especially ''ukiyo-e'', spurred the ''[[japonisme]]'' movement, becoming profoundly influential upon Impressionism and other major art trends in the West. Figures such as Fenollosa and Okakura also played significant roles in shaping Japanese modern art, through encouragement of ''Nihonga'' artists, and promoting appreciation for Buddhist and Japanese traditional arts, discouraging the Japanese art world from fleeing entirely into adoption of Western styles and subjects. The development of art societies, art journals, and official government salon-style exhibitions such as the [[Teiten]], were significant developments, too, in the Japanese art world's modern transformation.

 

 

The city of [[Kyoto]] was intentionally shaped into a symbol of Japan's great, noble, past, and numerous historical figures (such as [[Kusunoki Masashige]]) were revived and celebrated as national heroes. [[Nitobe Inazo|Nitobe Inazô]] invented and promoted the notion of ''[[bushido]]'' as a corollary to Europe's great tradition of chivalry. A European-style aristocratic peerage, complete with titles equivalent to Baron, Duke, and Marquis, was implemented, and many classical government positions were given equivalent European names; for example, the post of ''[[Naidaijin]]'' was named [[Lord of the Privy Seal]], and was, at least partially, patterned in its new, modern incarnation, after the position of Lord of the Privy Seal in European courts.<ref>Ben Ami Shillony, "Restoration, Emperor, Diet, Prefecture, or: How Japanese Concepts were Mistranslated into Western Languages," ''Collected Writings of Ben-Ami Shillony'', Edition Synapse (2000), 67.</ref>

The city of [[Kyoto]] was intentionally shaped into a symbol of Japan's great, noble, past, and numerous historical figures (such as [[Kusunoki Masashige]]) were revived and celebrated as national heroes. [[Nitobe Inazo|Nitobe Inazô]] invented and promoted the notion of ''[[bushido]]'' as a corollary to Europe's great tradition of chivalry. A European-style aristocratic peerage, complete with titles equivalent to Baron, Duke, and Marquis, was implemented, and many classical government positions were given equivalent European names; for example, the post of ''[[Naidaijin]]'' was named [[Lord of the Privy Seal]], and was, at least partially, patterned in its new, modern incarnation, after the position of Lord of the Privy Seal in European courts.<ref>Ben Ami Shillony, "Restoration, Emperor, Diet, Prefecture, or: How Japanese Concepts were Mistranslated into Western Languages," ''Collected Writings of Ben-Ami Shillony'', Edition Synapse (2000), 67.</ref>