Abolition of the Han

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The abolition of the Han and the establishment of prefectures ( Japanese 廃 藩 置 県 , haihan chiken ) is a reform measure implemented by the Meiji government in 1871 , during which the feudal fiefs ( Han ) of the Edo period were replaced by a central administration. After the fall of the Tokugawa shogunate, this was the decisive step in the Meiji Restoration , with which the daimyō were subjected to the authority of the Tennō (emperor).

Boshin war

In the Boshin War of 1868-69, the Tokugawa shogunate and its loyal supporters, the Ōuetsu Reppan Dōmei , were defeated by the new Meiji government, which relied primarily on troops from Chōshū and Satsuma . The land that was under the direct control of the shogunate ( Tenryō ) or its direct vassals ( Hatamoto ), as well as the area administered by the defeated daimyō, was confiscated. It was reorganized as prefectures with governors ( 知事 , chiji ) appointed directly by the government . This affected about a quarter of the land area of ​​Japan.

Return of the lands and subjects

The second phase of the return took place in 1869. On the initiative of Kido Takayoshi from Chōshū, and with the support of the court nobles Iwakura Tomomi and Sanjō Sanetomi , Mōri Takachika , daimyō of Chōshū and Shimazu Hisamitsu , regent of Satsuma, the two leading forces behind the suppression of the Tokugawa, returned their lands to the emperor . To prove their loyalty, 260 of the remaining daimyo followed suit and gave back their lands between July 25 and August 2 . Only 14 daimyo did not submit to this measure voluntarily and were forced to do so by the imperial court under threat of military strength. The second phase is also known as the "return of the lands and subjects" ( 版 籍 奉還 , hanseki hōkan ). The former shogunate lands became prefectures, fu for urban prefectures and ken for rural prefectures. The resulting system is referred to as fuhanken sanchisei ( 府 藩 県 三 治 制 , "three- fold administration system made up of fu , han and ken ").

In return for the transfer of their inheritable rights, the daimyo were reinstated by the government as governors of their old lands. Taxation was centralized; Rice paid as taxes went directly to the central government, with only 10% of that income going directly to the governor. Taxes were based on actual rice production and no longer, as in the Edo period, a fixed value for a region.

The governors could still choose their subordinates themselves, but minimum qualifications were set by the central government. In order to loosen the feudal ties further, these were no longer paid for by the governor himself, but by the local government representative.

The title of daimyo was abolished and replaced in July 1869 with the newly created Kazoku system.

Consolidation

Although the daimyō were now employees of the new government, they continued to enjoy a great deal of financial and military independence, and continued to enjoy the loyalty of their subjects. In addition, due to the dissolution of the Han troops and administrations, around 2 million samurai across the country lost their jobs. With the creation of the new army and administrations, this could be partially absorbed, but revolts broke out in various places.

This was perceived as a threat by the new government, and so on August 29, 1871, Okubo Toshimichi, with the help of Saigo Takamori , Kido Takayoshi , Iwakura Tomomi and Yamagata Aritomo , initiated a new imperial edict, with the 261 existing fiefdoms as prefectures were reorganized so that their number rose to 305 prefectures, i.e. H. 3 fu ( Tokyo , Kyoto , Osaka ) and 302 ken . Through several amalgamations, the number of ken was reduced to 72 by February 1872. Through further amalgamations in 1876, which were then partially reversed by 1888, the number stabilized at 47 ken and 3 fu . Today the first subdivision of the state - Todōfuken ( 都 道 府 県 ) - is composed as follows: 1 to (= Tōkyō-to), 1 dō (= Hokkai-dō), 2 fu (Ōsaka-fu and Kyōto-fu) and 43 ken (= 43 prefectures), which results in 47 administrative units at this level.

The Meiji government obtained the support of the former daimyo for this reorganization through considerable financial expenses: It not only granted the daimyo generous salaries, it also took over the debts of the former Han, and promised to use the banknotes ( Hansatsu ) issued by the Han themselves convert to face value. In 1874 the new government ran into financial difficulties and could no longer finance the daimyo's salaries and pensions. The payments made so far were converted into government bonds worth 5 years' salaries, on which the government paid 5% interest annually.

Makino Nobuaki , one of the students in the Iwakura mission , wrote in his memoir: “Along with the abolition of the Han system, the sending of the Iwakura mission to America and Europe must be cited as the most important events on the basis of our state the Meiji restoration. "

Remarks

  1. ↑ 明治 2 年 6 月 17 日 according to the traditional Japanese calendar
  2. ↑ Jansen, The Making of Modern Japan , pp. 344-345
  3. ↑ 明治 4 年 7 月 14 日 according to the traditional Japanese calendar
  4. ↑ Jansen, The Making of Modern Japan , p. 365
  5. ^ Bramall, Sources of Chinese Economic Growth, 1978-1996, p. 452

swell

  • Chris Bramall: Sources of Chinese Economic Growth, 1978-1996 . Oxford University Press, 2000, ISBN 0-19-829697-5 .
  • Marius B. Jansen: The Making of Modern Japan . Belknap Press, 2000, ISBN 0-674-00991-6 .
  • Sugiyama Takie Lebra: Above the Clouds: Status Culture of the Modern Japanese Nobility . University of California Press, Berkeley, California 1993, ISBN 978-0-520-07602-0 .
Japanese name: As is common in Japan, the family name comes before the first name in this article . Thus, Kido is the family name, Takayoshi the first name.