ABSTRACT
The leadership for this restoration was supplied by the former samurai who occupied positions of consequence in the Meiji government. They were shrewd practitioners of Realpolitik, and could profess as their ideals the Five-Article Charter Oath, and at the same time continue to suppress the populace through the measures contained in the five notice boards (Documents 1-3). The West provided several models for emulation, and the Iwakura mission that was sent to the U.S. and to Europe brought home more clearly than ever the necessity for modernization. Fukoku kyohei (Rich Nation, Strong Army) and bummei kaika (Civilization and Enlightenment) became the watchwords for those who ruled.
