Ms Burke | World Cultures

Post-Meiji Remind the class… what were the

PERMS changes that changed Japan under Meiji?

Post-Meiji Reminders: The old feudal lords were convinced to

give up their traditional power and were given high government positionsTraded feudal power for modern, political

power New court and legal system

Used European ideasAbolished tortureNew rules for evidence and court rules

Post-Meiji Reminders: Government started organizing

departmentsMinistry of Education, Transportation,

Finance, etc… Increase in education Set up new tax system Strengthen the military

Post-Meiji Reminders: New Constitution and Government:

The new constitution was written and presented to the people in 1889

Adapted Western ideas to Japanese needs

Kept the idea of imperial rule and the role of the emperor

Set up the two-house Diet ○ Modeled on Germany○ Kind of like the US Congress / British

Parliament

Mitsui Bank in Tokyo After the Meiji Restoration, the Mitsui family

received permission to establish Japan’s first private bank. Out of this main building in Tokyo, it operated 30 branches and this bank became the cornerstone of Mitsui, one of the most powerful companies in Japan.

Why did Japan need to develop a modern banking system in order to build an industrial economy?

Economic Modernization Why did Japan need to modernize

their economy after the Meiji Restoration?

Economic Modernization Japan sent people across the world to

learn new technology / weapons / industry / information

BUT the government needed money to develop these new ideas! Where did they get it?

Need for Capital Capital: To raise money, the government

continued to tax peasants and borrow money from merchants

During the 1860s…a natural disaster helped the Japanese!

Need for Capital In the 1860s, disease killed most of the

silkworms in Europe

What happens to silk prices?

Japanese silk was in demand and silk merchants made LOTS of moneyThey then used that money to mechanize

silk factories

Need for Capital Zaibatsu

Powerful families using traditional ties of loyalty and modern business methods to build huge companies

Social Changes (review) Ended feudal classes (no more triangle!) Everyone is equal before the law Samurai are not allowed to wear swords All men must serve in the military, not just

Samurai Urbanization Women could work All children could attend elementary school More newspapers and magazines

Japanese Expansion in Asia By 1900, Japan became a modern

industrial nation

Why were they so successful?

Japanese Expansion in Asia By 1900, Japan became a modern

industrial nation

Why were they so successful?Strong sense of national unityTradition of self-sacrifice and hard work

Military Expansion What were some of the military

conquests that occurred during this time?

What territories did Japan gain?

What territories did Japan gain? Korea Taiwan (as known as Formosa) Special trade privileges in China Manchuria

Benefits of Military Expansion Japan sought equal political standing

with Western powers Raw materials for industrialization

Coal // Iron

What else? What is another benefit?

Growth of Extreme Nationalism During the 1920s, Japan enjoyed the

benefits of long lasting peaceWhat are some of these benefits?

Japan started reducing their army and navy to ensure world peace continuedThey signed agreements with England and

the US to keep world peace

The Great Depression In 1929, the Great Depression hit the

United States Japan also felt the effects of the

worldwide economic slowdown

Japan relied on tradeWhy?

The Great Depression The Depression forced other nations to

protect their industriesThey started taxing imports, impacting

countries like Japan who made their money from exports

As trade went down, unemployment rose

The Great Depression As the government failed to fix the

domestic / economic problems, extremist groups attracted large followings

Extreme nationalists argued that Japan should not have stopped expanding overseas

Many were also upset that Western nations would NOT allow Japanese immigration

Military Dictatorship Military figures were important in Japanese

society now they started gaining more political power

In 1931, a group of army officers caused a military crisis in Manchuria (China)Gave Japan an excuse to take the entire areaMost Japanese people supported thisThe Prime Minister of Japan did NOT support it,

but he was assassinated

Military Dictatorship During the 1930s, Japan gradually became a

military dictatorship

New leaders supported militarismGlorification of the military and a readiness for war

Old Samurai traditions / ideas came back and loyalty to Emperor Hirohito was paramount

Japan has a special mission: free Asian nations from western imperialism