ABSTRACT
On 3 January 1868, the emperor of Japan was ‘restored’ to what was claimed as his rightful position in society. This is accepted as the point and the event from which the modern history of Japan begins. Although the circumstances were turbulent and violent, this was by no means a sudden change, even though for the Japanese today it is perhaps the most important event in their history. They regard the years after the Restoration with awe, and attribute the phenomenal ‘catching up with the west’ exemplified by economic and military success, as due to the wisdom and power of the restored emperor. Quite how much real power or even influence modern Japanese emperors have had, it is impossible to know: But the question is important, and we shall return to it. What is certain though is that like most major upheavals in societies, the Restoration was the culmination of a complexity of events. To understand this complexity, it is necessary to be aware of the nature of Japanese society and its nineteenth-century inheritance.
