Okubo Toshimichi
Encyclopedia
, was a Japan
ese statesman
, a samurai
of Satsuma
, and one of the three great nobles
who led the Meiji Restoration
. He is regarded as one of the main founders of modern Japan.
, (present-day Kagoshima Prefecture
) to Ōkubo Juemon a low-ranking retainer of Satsuma daimyō
Shimazu Nariakira
. He was the eldest of five children. He studied at the same local school with Saigō Takamori
, who was three years older. In 1846, he was given the position of aide to the domain's archivist.
Shimazu Nariakira
recognized Ōkubo's talents and appointed him to the position of tax administrator in 1858. When Nariakira died, Ōkubo joined the plot to overthrow the Tokugawa Shogunate
. Unlike most Satsuma leaders, he favored the position of tōbaku (倒幕, overthrowing the Shogunate), as opposed to kōbu gattai (公武合体, marital unity of the Imperial and Tokugawa families) and hanbaku (opposition to the Shogunate) over the Sonnō jōi
movement.
The Anglo-Satsuma War of 1863, along with the Richardson Affair
and the September 1863 coup d'état in Kyoto
convinced Ōkubo that the tobaku movement was doomed. In 1866, he met with Saigō Takamori
and Chōshū Domain's Kido Takayoshi
to form the secret Satcho Alliance
to overthrow the Tokugawa.
. The triumvirate of Ōkubo, Saigō and Kido formed a provisional government. Appointed to be Home Lord
, Ōkubo had a huge amount of power through his control of all local government appointments and the police force
. Initially the new government had to rely on funds from the Tokugawa lands (which the Meiji government seized in toto). He then was able to appoint all new leaders for this land, most of the people he appointed as governors were young men, some were his friends, like Matsukata Masayoshi
, and others were the rare Japanese who had gained some education in Europe or America. Okubo used the power of the Home Ministry to promote industrial development building roads, bridges, and ports, all things which the Tokugawa Shogunate had refused to do.
As Finance Minister in 1871, Ōkubo enacted a Land Tax Reform
, the Haitōrei Edict
, which prohibited samurai from wearing swords in public, and ended official discrimination against the outcasts
. In foreign relations, he worked to secure revision of the unequal treaties
and joined the Iwakura Mission
on its around-the-world trip of 1871 to 1873.
Realizing that Japan was not in any position to challenge the western powers in its new present state, Ōkubo returned to Japan on September 13, 1873 just in time to take a strong stand against the proposed invasion of Korea
(Seikanron
). He also participated in the Osaka Conference of 1875
in an attempt to bring about a reconciliation with the other members of the Meiji oligarchy
.
However, he was unable to win over former colleague Saigō Takamori
regarding the future direction of Japan. Saigo became convinced that Japan's new policy of modernization was wrong and in the Satsuma Rebellion
of 1877, some Satsuma rebels under the leadership of Saigō fought against the new government's army. As Home Minister Ōkubo took command of the army and fought against his old friend Saigo. With the defeat of rebellion's forces, Ōkubo was considered a traitor by many of the Satsuma samurai. On May 14, 1878, Okubo was assassinated by Shimada Ichirō
and six Kanazawa Domain samurai while on his way to the imperial palace, only a few minutes walk from the Sakurada gate where Ii Naosuke
had been assassinated 18 years earlier.
Ōkubo was one of the most influential leaders of the Meiji Restoration and the establishment of modern governmental structures. Albeit briefly, for a time he was the most powerful man in Japan. A devout loyalist and nationalist, he enjoyed the respect of his colleagues and enemies alike.
Tarō Asō
, the 92nd Prime Minister of Japan
, is a great-great-grandson of Ōkubo Toshimichi. Ōkubo's second son, Makino Nobuaki
, served as Foreign Minister.
In the manga/anime series Rurouni Kenshin
, Ōkubo Toshimichi appears to seek Himura Kenshin
's assistance in destroying the threat posed by the revolt of Shishio Makoto
. Kenshin is uncertain, and Ōkubo gives him a May 14 deadline to make his decision. On his way to seek Kenshin's answer on that day, he is supposedly assassinated by Seta Sōjirō
, Shishio's right-hand man, and the Ichirō clan desecrates his corpse and claim they killed him. Watsuki makes a comparison to President of the United States
Abraham Lincoln
with Ōkubo in his notes. In Boris Akunin
's novel, The Diamond Chariot
, Erast Fandorin
investigates the plot to assassinate Ōkubo, but fails to prevent the assassination.
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese statesman
Statesman
A statesman is usually a politician or other notable public figure who has had a long and respected career in politics or government at the national and international level. As a term of respect, it is usually left to supporters or commentators to use the term...
, a samurai
Samurai
is the term for the military nobility of pre-industrial Japan. According to translator William Scott Wilson: "In Chinese, the character 侍 was originally a verb meaning to wait upon or accompany a person in the upper ranks of society, and this is also true of the original term in Japanese, saburau...
of Satsuma
Satsuma Province
was an old province of Japan that is now the western half of Kagoshima Prefecture on the island of Kyūshū. Its abbreviation is Sasshū .During the Sengoku Period, Satsuma was a fief of the Shimazu daimyo, who ruled much of southern Kyūshū from their castle at Kagoshima city.In 1871, with the...
, and one of the three great nobles
Three great nobles
In Japan, Three great nobles are figured playing an important role in the Meiji restoration. They are called in Japan.They are:* Ōkubo Toshimichi of the Satsuma Domain * Saigō Takamori of the Satsuma Domain...
who led the Meiji Restoration
Meiji Restoration
The , also known as the Meiji Ishin, Revolution, Reform or Renewal, was a chain of events that restored imperial rule to Japan in 1868...
. He is regarded as one of the main founders of modern Japan.
Early life
Ōkubo was born in Kagoshima, Satsuma ProvinceSatsuma Province
was an old province of Japan that is now the western half of Kagoshima Prefecture on the island of Kyūshū. Its abbreviation is Sasshū .During the Sengoku Period, Satsuma was a fief of the Shimazu daimyo, who ruled much of southern Kyūshū from their castle at Kagoshima city.In 1871, with the...
, (present-day Kagoshima Prefecture
Kagoshima Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyushu. The capital is the city of Kagoshima.- Geography :Kagoshima Prefecture is located at the southwest tip of Kyushu and includes a chain of islands stretching further to the southwest for a few hundred kilometers...
) to Ōkubo Juemon a low-ranking retainer of Satsuma daimyō
Daimyo
is a generic term referring to the powerful territorial lords in pre-modern Japan who ruled most of the country from their vast, hereditary land holdings...
Shimazu Nariakira
Shimazu Nariakira
was a Japanese feudal lord of the Edo period, the 28th in the line of Shimazu clan lords of Satsuma Domain. He was renowned as an intelligent and wise lord, and was greatly interested in Western learning and technology...
. He was the eldest of five children. He studied at the same local school with Saigō Takamori
Saigo Takamori
was one of the most influential samurai in Japanese history, living during the late Edo Period and early Meiji Era. He has been dubbed the last true samurai.-Early life:...
, who was three years older. In 1846, he was given the position of aide to the domain's archivist.
Satsuma samurai
Shimazu Nariakira
was a Japanese feudal lord of the Edo period, the 28th in the line of Shimazu clan lords of Satsuma Domain. He was renowned as an intelligent and wise lord, and was greatly interested in Western learning and technology...
recognized Ōkubo's talents and appointed him to the position of tax administrator in 1858. When Nariakira died, Ōkubo joined the plot to overthrow the Tokugawa Shogunate
Tokugawa shogunate
The Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the and the , was a feudal regime of Japan established by Tokugawa Ieyasu and ruled by the shoguns of the Tokugawa family. This period is known as the Edo period and gets its name from the capital city, Edo, which is now called Tokyo, after the name was...
. Unlike most Satsuma leaders, he favored the position of tōbaku (倒幕, overthrowing the Shogunate), as opposed to kōbu gattai (公武合体, marital unity of the Imperial and Tokugawa families) and hanbaku (opposition to the Shogunate) over the Sonnō jōi
Sonno joi
is a Japanese political philosophy and a social movement derived from Neo-Confucianism; it became a political slogan in the 1850s and 1860s in the movement to overthrow the Tokugawa bakufu, during the Bakumatsu period.-Origin:...
movement.
The Anglo-Satsuma War of 1863, along with the Richardson Affair
Namamugi Incident
The was a samurai assault on foreign nationals in Japan on September 14, 1862, which resulted in the August 1863 bombardment of Kagoshima, during the Late Tokugawa shogunate...
and the September 1863 coup d'état in Kyoto
Kyoto
is a city in the central part of the island of Honshū, Japan. It has a population close to 1.5 million. Formerly the imperial capital of Japan, it is now the capital of Kyoto Prefecture, as well as a major part of the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto metropolitan area.-History:...
convinced Ōkubo that the tobaku movement was doomed. In 1866, he met with Saigō Takamori
Saigo Takamori
was one of the most influential samurai in Japanese history, living during the late Edo Period and early Meiji Era. He has been dubbed the last true samurai.-Early life:...
and Chōshū Domain's Kido Takayoshi
Kido Takayoshi
, also referred as Kido Kōin was a Japanese statesman during the Late Tokugawa shogunate and the Meiji Restoration. He used the alias when he worked against the Shogun.-Early life:...
to form the secret Satcho Alliance
Satcho Alliance
The ', or Satchō Alliance was a military alliance between the feudal domains of Satsuma and Chōshū formed in 1866 to combine their efforts to overthrow the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan....
to overthrow the Tokugawa.
Meiji restoration
On January 3, 1868, the forces of Satsuma and Chōshū seized the Kyoto Imperial Palace and proclaimed the Meiji RestorationMeiji Restoration
The , also known as the Meiji Ishin, Revolution, Reform or Renewal, was a chain of events that restored imperial rule to Japan in 1868...
. The triumvirate of Ōkubo, Saigō and Kido formed a provisional government. Appointed to be Home Lord
Home Ministry (Japan)
The ' was a Cabinet-level ministry established under the Meiji Constitution that managed the internal affairs of Empire of Japan from 1873-1947...
, Ōkubo had a huge amount of power through his control of all local government appointments and the police force
Police services of the Empire of Japan
The of the Empire of Japan, consisted of numerous police services, in many cases with overlapping jurisdictions.-History and background:During the Tokugawa bakufu , police functions were based on a combination of appointed town magistrates of samurai status, who served simultaneously as a chief of...
. Initially the new government had to rely on funds from the Tokugawa lands (which the Meiji government seized in toto). He then was able to appoint all new leaders for this land, most of the people he appointed as governors were young men, some were his friends, like Matsukata Masayoshi
Matsukata Masayoshi
Prince was a Japanese politician and the 4th and 6th Prime Minister of Japan.-Early life:...
, and others were the rare Japanese who had gained some education in Europe or America. Okubo used the power of the Home Ministry to promote industrial development building roads, bridges, and ports, all things which the Tokugawa Shogunate had refused to do.
As Finance Minister in 1871, Ōkubo enacted a Land Tax Reform
Land Tax Reform (Japan 1873)
The Japanese Land Tax Reform of 1873, or was started by the Meiji Government in 1873, or the 6th year of the Meiji era. It was a major restructuring of the previous land taxation system, and established the right of private land ownership in Japan for the first time.-Previous land taxation...
, the Haitōrei Edict
Haitorei Edict
The was an edict issued by the Meiji government of Japan on March 28, 1876 which prohibited people, with the exception of the military and law enforcement officials, from carrying weapons in public. Violators would have their swords confiscated....
, which prohibited samurai from wearing swords in public, and ended official discrimination against the outcasts
Burakumin
are a Japanese social minority group. The burakumin are one of the main minority groups in Japan, along with the Ainu of Hokkaidō, the Ryukyuans of Okinawa and Japanese residents of Korean and Chinese descent....
. In foreign relations, he worked to secure revision of the unequal treaties
Unequal Treaties
“Unequal treaty” is a term used in specific reference to a number of treaties imposed by Western powers, during the 19th and early 20th centuries, on Qing Dynasty China and late Tokugawa Japan...
and joined the Iwakura Mission
Iwakura mission
The Iwakura Mission or Iwakura Embassy was a Japanese diplomatic journey around the world, initiated in 1871 by the oligarchs of the Meiji period. Although it was not the only such "mission", it is the most well-known and possibly most important for the modernization of Japan after a long period...
on its around-the-world trip of 1871 to 1873.
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
(Seikanron
Seikanron
The Seikanron debate was a major political conflagration which occurred in Japan in 1873....
). He also participated in the Osaka Conference of 1875
Osaka Conference of 1875
The was a meeting held by the major leaders of the Meiji Restoration in Osaka, Japan from January-February 1873 to address the issue of forming a representative assembly....
in an attempt to bring about a reconciliation with the other members of the Meiji oligarchy
Meiji oligarchy
The Meiji oligarchy was the name used to describe the new ruling class of Meiji period Japan. In Japanese, the Meiji oligarchy is called the ....
.
However, he was unable to win over former colleague Saigō Takamori
Saigo Takamori
was one of the most influential samurai in Japanese history, living during the late Edo Period and early Meiji Era. He has been dubbed the last true samurai.-Early life:...
regarding the future direction of Japan. Saigo became convinced that Japan's new policy of modernization was wrong and in the Satsuma Rebellion
Satsuma Rebellion
The was a revolt of Satsuma ex-samurai against the Meiji government from January 29 to September 24, 1877, 9 years into the Meiji Era. It was the last, and the most serious, of a series of armed uprisings against the new government.-Background:...
of 1877, some Satsuma rebels under the leadership of Saigō fought against the new government's army. As Home Minister Ōkubo took command of the army and fought against his old friend Saigo. With the defeat of rebellion's forces, Ōkubo was considered a traitor by many of the Satsuma samurai. On May 14, 1878, Okubo was assassinated by Shimada Ichirō
Shimada Ichiro
was a Japanese samurai of the late Edo period through early Meiji period. The son of an ashigaru of the Kaga domain, he was famous as the lead assassin of the powerful politician Ōkubo Toshimichi on May 14, 1878. Following the assassination, he and the other assassins turned themselves in and all...
and six Kanazawa Domain samurai while on his way to the imperial palace, only a few minutes walk from the Sakurada gate where Ii Naosuke
Ii Naosuke
was daimyo of Hikone and also Tairō of Tokugawa Shogunate, Japan, a position he held from April 23, 1858 until his death on March 24, 1860. He is most famous for signing the Harris Treaty with the United States, granting access to ports for trade to American merchants and seamen and...
had been assassinated 18 years earlier.
Legacy
Tarō Asō
Taro Aso
was the 92nd Prime Minister of Japan serving from September 2008 to September 2009, and was defeated in the August 2009 election.He has served in the House of Representatives since 1979. He was Minister for Foreign Affairs from 2005 to 2007, and was Secretary-General of the LDP briefly in 2007 and...
, the 92nd Prime Minister of Japan
Prime Minister of Japan
The is the head of government of Japan. He is appointed by the Emperor of Japan after being designated by the Diet from among its members, and must enjoy the confidence of the House of Representatives to remain in office...
, is a great-great-grandson of Ōkubo Toshimichi. Ōkubo's second son, Makino Nobuaki
Makino Nobuaki
Count was a Japanese statesman, active from the Meiji period through the Pacific War.- Biography :Born to a samurai family in Kagoshima, Satsuma domain , Makino was the second son of Ōkubo Toshimichi, but adopted into the Makino family at a very early age.In 1871, at the age of 11, he accompanied...
, served as Foreign Minister.
In the manga/anime series Rurouni Kenshin
Rurouni Kenshin
, also known as Rurouni Kenshin and Samurai X, is a Japanese manga series written and illustrated by Nobuhiro Watsuki. The fictional setting takes place during the early Meiji period in Japan. The story is about a fictional assassin named Himura Kenshin, from the Bakumatsu who becomes a wanderer to...
, Ōkubo Toshimichi appears to seek Himura Kenshin
Himura Kenshin
, known as Kenshin Himura in the English-language anime dubs, is a fictional character from the Rurouni Kenshin universe created by Nobuhiro Watsuki. He is the main protagonist of the manga and anime series, as well as the related media in the franchise...
's assistance in destroying the threat posed by the revolt of Shishio Makoto
Shishio Makoto
, known in the anime in Western order as Makoto Shishio, is a fictional character from the manga and anime series Rurouni Kenshin. He is the primary antagonist of the series' Kyoto arc...
. Kenshin is uncertain, and Ōkubo gives him a May 14 deadline to make his decision. On his way to seek Kenshin's answer on that day, he is supposedly assassinated by Seta Sōjirō
Seta Sojiro
, addressed as Sojiro Seta in the English-language dubs, is a fictional character from the Rurouni Kenshin universe created by Nobuhiro Watsuki for the series and developed into a media franchise, which consists of a series of manga, anime, OVAs, movies, soundtracks, video games, and other...
, Shishio's right-hand man, and the Ichirō clan desecrates his corpse and claim they killed him. Watsuki makes a comparison to President of the United States
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States, serving from March 1861 until his assassination in April 1865. He successfully led his country through a great constitutional, military and moral crisis – the American Civil War – preserving the Union, while ending slavery, and...
with Ōkubo in his notes. In Boris Akunin
Boris Akunin
Boris Akunin is the pen name of Grigory Shalvovich Chkhartishvili , a Russian writer. He is an essayist, literary translator and writer of detective fiction.-Life and career:...
's novel, The Diamond Chariot
The Diamond Chariot
The Diamond Chariot school of Tantric Buddhism) is a historical mystery novel by internationally acclaimed Russian detective story writer Boris Akunin, published originally in 2003. It is the tenth novel in Akunin's Erast Fandorin series of detective novels...
, Erast Fandorin
Erast Fandorin
Erast Petrovich Fandorin is a fictional 19th-century Russian detective and the hero of a series of Russian historical detective novels by Boris Akunin. The first novel was published in Russia in 1998, and the latest was published in December 2009...
investigates the plot to assassinate Ōkubo, but fails to prevent the assassination.
External links
- Kagoshima Information
- Okubo Toshimichi's Grave in Tokyo
- National Diet Library Photo & Bio
- Yomiuri ShimbunYomiuri ShimbunThe is a Japanese newspaper published in Tokyo, Osaka, Fukuoka, and other major Japanese cities. It is one of the five national newspapers in Japan; the other four are the Asahi Shimbun, the Mainichi Shimbun, Nihon Keizai Shimbun, and the Sankei Shimbun...
: Less than 30% of primary school students in Japan know historical significance of Ōkubo, 2008.