Yuri Kimimasa
Encyclopedia
Viscount was a statesman in Meiji period
Japan
. During the Meiji Restoration
he used the alias
born in Fukui
, Echizen Province
(present-day Fukui Prefecture
). He studied under the Confucian scholar Yokoi Shōnan. He worked towards the financial reform and modernizing Fukui domain
and received preferential treatment from daimyō
Matsudaira Yoshinaga
due to his great ability.
Yuri joined the new Meiji government as a san'yo (senior councillor), and took charge of the financial and monetary policy of the new government. Together with Fukuoka Takachika
, he was the principal author of the Charter Oath.
Yuri was involved in the issuance of Japan's first national paper banknote
s in 1868.
In 1871, he became the fourth governor of Tokyo
.
Yuri left government the following year, but was selected as one of the members of the Iwakura Mission
on its around-the-world voyage to the United States
and Europe
. After his return to Japan, he joined Itagaki Taisuke
in petitioning for a representative national assembly
.
In 1875 he was appointed to the Genrōin
.
In 1887 he was elevated to the rank of shishaku (viscount
) in the kazoku
peerage system. He was nominated to serve in the House of Peers
of the Diet of Japan
in 1890.
In 1891, Yuri quit government service, moved to Kyoto
, and founded the Yurin Seimeihoken K.K., one of Japan's first life insurance
companies. The company later merged with Meiji Seimei, the predecessor to modern Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Company
.
Meiji period
The , also known as the Meiji era, is a Japanese era which extended from September 1868 through July 1912. This period represents the first half of the Empire of Japan.- Meiji Restoration and the emperor :...
Japan
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...
. During 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 used the alias
Life and career
Yuri was a samuraiSamurai
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...
born in Fukui
Fukui
Fukui is a Japanese name meaning "fortunate" or it can mean "one who is from the Fukui prefecture". It may refer to:- Places :* Fukui Prefecture** Fukui, Fukui - the city of the same name in the prefecture...
, Echizen Province
Echizen Province
was an old province of Japan, which is today the northern part of Fukui Prefecture. It was sometimes called , with Etchū and Echigo Provinces.Echizen is famous for washi . A text dated AD 774 mentions the washi made in this area. Echizen-produced Washi is still the most commonly sold traditional...
(present-day Fukui Prefecture
Fukui Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region on Honshū island. The capital is the city of Fukui.- Prehistory :The Kitadani Dinosaur Quarry, on the Sugiyama River within the city limits of Katsuyama, has yielded the Fukuiraptor kitadaniensis and Fukuisaurus tetoriensis as well as an unnamed...
). He studied under the Confucian scholar Yokoi Shōnan. He worked towards the financial reform and modernizing Fukui domain
Fukui Domain
The was a feudal domain in Echizen Province of Japan during the Edo period. It is also sometimes called '. The family name of the heads of the domain is "Matsudaira".- List of heads :# Hideyasu# Tadanao...
and received preferential treatment from 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...
Matsudaira Yoshinaga
Matsudaira Yoshinaga
, also known as Matsudaira Keiei, was the 14th head of Fukui Domain during the Late Tokugawa shogunate and politician of the Meiji era. "Yoshinaga" is his imina and "Shungaku" is his gō...
due to his great ability.
Yuri joined the new Meiji government as a san'yo (senior councillor), and took charge of the financial and monetary policy of the new government. Together with Fukuoka Takachika
Fukuoka Takachika
Viscount was a Japanese statesman of the Meiji period.- Early life :Fukuoka was born in Tosa District in present-day Kōchi Prefecture, and served the Yamauchi daimyō of Tosa as a domain official...
, he was the principal author of the Charter Oath.
Yuri was involved in the issuance of Japan's first national paper banknote
Banknote
A banknote is a kind of negotiable instrument, a promissory note made by a bank payable to the bearer on demand, used as money, and in many jurisdictions is legal tender. In addition to coins, banknotes make up the cash or bearer forms of all modern fiat money...
s in 1868.
In 1871, he became the fourth governor of Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
.
Yuri left government the following year, but was selected as one of the members of 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 voyage to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. After his return to Japan, he joined Itagaki Taisuke
Itagaki Taisuke
Count was a Japanese politician and leader of the , which evolved into Japan's first political party.- Early life :Itagaki Taisuke was born into a middle-ranking samurai family in Tosa Domain, , After studies in Kōchi and in Edo, he was appointed as sobayonin to Tosa daimyo Yamauchi Toyoshige,...
in petitioning for a representative national assembly
National Assembly
National Assembly is either a legislature, or the lower house of a bicameral legislature in some countries. The best known National Assembly, and the first legislature to be known by this title, was that established during the French Revolution in 1789, known as the Assemblée nationale...
.
In 1875 he was appointed to the Genrōin
Genroin
' was a national assembly in early Meiji Japan, established after the Osaka Conference of 1875. It is also referred to as the Senate of Japan, Genrōin being the word used to describe the Roman Senate, and other western legislatures named after it....
.
In 1887 he was elevated to the rank of shishaku (viscount
Viscount
A viscount or viscountess is a member of the European nobility whose comital title ranks usually, as in the British peerage, above a baron, below an earl or a count .-Etymology:...
) in the kazoku
Kazoku
The was the hereditary peerage of the Empire of Japan that existed between 1869 and 1947.-Origins:Following the Meiji Restoration of 1868, the ancient court nobility of Kyoto regained some of its lost status...
peerage system. He was nominated to serve in the House of Peers
House of Peers (Japan)
The ' was the upper house of the Imperial Diet as mandated under the Constitution of the Empire of Japan ....
of the Diet of Japan
Diet of Japan
The is Japan's bicameral legislature. It is composed of a lower house, called the House of Representatives, and an upper house, called the House of Councillors. Both houses of the Diet are directly elected under a parallel voting system. In addition to passing laws, the Diet is formally...
in 1890.
In 1891, Yuri quit government service, moved to 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:...
, and founded the Yurin Seimeihoken K.K., one of Japan's first life insurance
Life insurance
Life insurance is a contract between an insurance policy holder and an insurer, where the insurer promises to pay a designated beneficiary a sum of money upon the death of the insured person. Depending on the contract, other events such as terminal illness or critical illness may also trigger...
companies. The company later merged with Meiji Seimei, the predecessor to modern Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Company
Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance Company
is a Japanese life insurance company, headquartered in Tokyo and created in 2004 from the merger of Meiji Life and Yasuda Life. The company is one of the oldest and largest insurers in Japan.-History:...
.