ABSTRACT
The coming of Perry in 1853 turned out to be an epoch-making event in Japanese history, but even before his arrival the Bakufu's seclusionist policy was already being challenged by the arrival of other foreign vessels. In the face of increasing Russian activities in the north, especially in Sakhalin and the Kuriles, the Bakufu began to concern itself with the defense of the northern regions, and in 1808 it sent a survey team there and across into eastern Siberia. In the fall of 1863, with the support of Satsuma and Aizu, the Bakufu managed to expel the Choshu warriors and other anti-Bakufu court advisers from Kyoto. From a political point of view, the agreement to enter into commercial and diplomatic relations with the Western nations proved to be disastrous for the Bakufu. Peasant uprisings were not politically motivated or even directly involved in the actual overthrow of the Tokugawa government.
