Changes

The Satsuma Rebellion which took place in [[1877]] was the most famous, and the final major instance out of a series of [[shizoku rebellions]] led in the late 1870s by [[shizoku|former samurai]] of southwestern Japan against the prospect of the [[Meiji government]] abolishing their elite status and the rice stipends which had traditionally been the samurai's chief or sole source of income. Known in Japanese as the ''Seinan Sensô'', or "Southwestern War," the rebellion was led by [[Saigo Takamori|Saigô Takamori]] of [[Satsuma han]] ([[Kagoshima prefecture]]), and involved roughly 15,000 former samurai facing off against around 100,000 [[Imperial Japanese Army]] troops.

The Satsuma Rebellion which took place in [[1877]] was the most famous, and the final major instance out of a series of [[shizoku rebellions]] led in the late 1870s by [[shizoku|former samurai]] of southwestern Japan against the prospect of the [[Meiji government]] abolishing their elite status and the rice stipends which had traditionally been the samurai's chief or sole source of income. Known in Japanese as the ''Seinan Sensô'', or "Southwestern War," the rebellion was led by [[Saigo Takamori|Saigô Takamori]] of [[Satsuma han]] ([[Kagoshima prefecture]]), and involved roughly 15,000 former samurai facing off against around 100,000 [[Imperial Japanese Army]] troops.

==Background==

==Background==