Changes

Matsuda Michiyuki returned to Ryûkyû in January 1879, and again in March, this time bringing with him a considerable entourage including 160 military police, and 400 soldiers from the Kumamoto Garrison. In February, Beijing sent diplomatic communications formally urging Tokyo to not unilaterally annex the Ryukyus. On March 27, Matsuda presented to Prince Nakijin the formal document declaring the abolition of the Ryûkyû Kingdom and the annexation of its lands as Okinawa Prefecture. King Shô Tai was given until March 31 to vacate the castle and leave for Tokyo; there, he would officially submit to the Emperor, be stripped of his title as "King" (or, by this time, ''han'ô''), and be absorbed into the [[kazoku|Japanese peerage]] as a Marquis (''kôshaku''). The king vacated the castle sometime during that month of March, and Japanese authorities immediately took over [[Shuri castle]], installing a military garrison there. Though Matsuda initially insisted that the king's departure for Tokyo would be scheduled for April 18, after multiple petitions or appeals from literally hundreds of Ryukyuan court officials, he eventually relented, agreeing to postpone the king's departure for Tokyo to an as-yet-undetermined future date, but that Crown Prince [[Sho Ten|Shô Ten]] would have to come to Tokyo in the meantime. As [[Donald Keene]] explains, Matsuda and others believed that Ryukyuan efforts to delay the king's departure were a tactic to play for time in the hopes that Beijing might come to the kingdom's defense; Matsuda and others also believed that even if the king were to go to Tokyo, the crown prince, if left behind in Ryûkyû, could become the focal point of a resistance or rebellion. This way, Shô Ten could serve as a hostage in Tokyo, forcing Shô Tai to behave more cooperatively even if his own journey to Tokyo were postponed.<ref>Keene, 305.</ref>

Matsuda Michiyuki returned to Ryûkyû in January 1879, and again in March, this time bringing with him a considerable entourage including 160 military police, and 400 soldiers from the Kumamoto Garrison. In February, Beijing sent diplomatic communications formally urging Tokyo to not unilaterally annex the Ryukyus. On March 27, Matsuda presented to Prince Nakijin the formal document declaring the abolition of the Ryûkyû Kingdom and the annexation of its lands as Okinawa Prefecture. King Shô Tai was given until March 31 to vacate the castle and leave for Tokyo; there, he would officially submit to the Emperor, be stripped of his title as "King" (or, by this time, ''han'ô''), and be absorbed into the [[kazoku|Japanese peerage]] as a Marquis (''kôshaku''). The king vacated the castle sometime during that month of March, and Japanese authorities immediately took over [[Shuri castle]], installing a military garrison there. Though Matsuda initially insisted that the king's departure for Tokyo would be scheduled for April 18, after multiple petitions or appeals from literally hundreds of Ryukyuan court officials, he eventually relented, agreeing to postpone the king's departure for Tokyo to an as-yet-undetermined future date, but that Crown Prince [[Sho Ten|Shô Ten]] would have to come to Tokyo in the meantime. As [[Donald Keene]] explains, Matsuda and others believed that Ryukyuan efforts to delay the king's departure were a tactic to play for time in the hopes that Beijing might come to the kingdom's defense; Matsuda and others also believed that even if the king were to go to Tokyo, the crown prince, if left behind in Ryûkyû, could become the focal point of a resistance or rebellion. This way, Shô Ten could serve as a hostage in Tokyo, forcing Shô Tai to behave more cooperatively even if his own journey to Tokyo were postponed.<ref>Keene, 305.</ref>

Shô Ten had an audience with the Meiji Emperor on 5/5 of that year, during which his request for the postponement of his father's relocation to Tokyo was formally denied. Physician [[Takashina Tsunenori]] was meanwhile dispatched to Okinawa and determined that Shô Tai's condition, while real, was neither dangerous nor likely to be cured within months or even years; Matsuda Michiyuki then reported the emperor's formal rejection of requests for any postponement, and declared that the king should prepare to depart for Tokyo within a week.<ref>Keene, 305.</ref>

Shô Ten had an audience with the Meiji Emperor on 5/5 of that year, during which his request for the postponement of his father's relocation to Tokyo was formally denied. Physician [[Takashina Tsunenori]] was meanwhile dispatched to Okinawa and determined that Shô Tai's condition, while real, was neither dangerous nor likely to be cured within months or even years; Matsuda Michiyuki then reported the emperor's formal rejection of requests for any postponement, and declared that the king should prepare to depart for Tokyo within a week. He finally did so on May 27, departing Ryûkyû along with his son [[Sho In|Shô In]] and some 96 members of the court. After arriving in Tokyo on June 7 or 8 and taking up residence at a mansion provided by the [[Imperial Household Ministry]], the king (along with Crown Prince Shô Ten and ten courtiers) was granted an audience with the Meiji Emperor on June 17; he and Shô Ten were granted formal Japanese court rank.<ref>Keene, 305-306.</ref>

Over the ensuing months and years, Japanese control and administration would be, step by step, further expanded in the islands. Prefectural administration was dominated by Japanese officials, especially those from [[Satsuma han]] (now [[Kagoshima prefecture]]), and not by native Ryukyuans, least of all anyone formerly involved in the royal or ''han'' bureaucracy. [[Kinashi Seiichiro|Kinashi Seiichirô]] had been named Acting Governor of the not-yet-existent prefecture on March 3rd, but was replaced a few months later by [[Nabeshima Naoyoshi]], who is counted as the first Governor of Okinawa Prefecture, arriving on May 18th and serving in that capacity for almost exactly two years (until May 19, [[1881]]). Meanwhile, in March [[1880]], Tokyo communicated to the governments of the Western powers that Japan would now be taking on the responsibility of repaying any debts still owed to the Western powers by the Ryûkyû Kingdom.

Over the ensuing months and years, Japanese control and administration would be, step by step, further expanded in the islands. Prefectural administration was dominated by Japanese officials, especially those from [[Satsuma han]] (now [[Kagoshima prefecture]]), and not by native Ryukyuans, least of all anyone formerly involved in the royal or ''han'' bureaucracy. [[Kinashi Seiichiro|Kinashi Seiichirô]] had been named Acting Governor of the not-yet-existent prefecture on March 3rd, but was replaced a few months later by [[Nabeshima Naoyoshi]], who is counted as the first Governor of Okinawa Prefecture, arriving on May 18th and serving in that capacity for almost exactly two years (until May 19, [[1881]]). Meanwhile, in March [[1880]], Tokyo communicated to the governments of the Western powers that Japan would now be taking on the responsibility of repaying any debts still owed to the Western powers by the Ryûkyû Kingdom.