By: Nicole Crumpler
The Tokugawa Shogunate
From the 12th century to the 13th century, Japan was ruled by a Shogun and feudal relations. In theory the Shogun was a temporary stand-in for the emperor, but in reality the emperor was little more than a figurehead. During the 14th century, conflict between the Shogun and the feudal vassals resulted in civil war during the era of sengoku ("the country at war").
Tokugawa Ieyasu (Ruled 1600-1616)
-At the end of the 16th century, there were several powerful states, and a series of military leaders was able to unify Japan
-Tokugawa Ieyasu was the last of these military leaders, and he established a form of military government called bakufu
-Tokugawa Ieyasu and his descendants ruled as bakufu shoguns until 1867, the end of the Tokugawa Dynasty.
-An image of Tokugawa Ieyasu is displayed to the right
Control of the Daimyo
-The main goal of the Tokugawa Dynasty was to stabilize the realm and prevent the return of civil war by controlling the Daimyo (powerful territorial lords)
-Each Daimyo was an absolute ruler on his own lands and had his own government, infrastructure, and currency
-During the 16th century, relations with Europe gave the Daimyo the knowledge of creating and using gunpowder weapons
-The shogun ruled from the Japanese capital of Edo, and sought to increase his control by creating a policy of alternate attendance that required the Daimyo to keep their families at Edo and to spend every other year at court in Edo.
-This policy allowed the Shoguns to keep an eye on the Daimyo and encouraged the Daimyo to spend money on lavish accommodations at Edo rather than on military forces
-Marriage alliances between Daimyo required the Shogun's approval, and Daimyo were discouraged from visiting each other
-Daimyo had to get permits from the Shogun in order to do construction on their castles and needed the Shogun's permission before meeting with the Emperor
Tokugawa Ieyasu (Ruled 1600-1616)
-At the end of the 16th century, there were several powerful states, and a series of military leaders was able to unify Japan
-Tokugawa Ieyasu was the last of these military leaders, and he established a form of military government called bakufu
-Tokugawa Ieyasu and his descendants ruled as bakufu shoguns until 1867, the end of the Tokugawa Dynasty.
-An image of Tokugawa Ieyasu is displayed to the right
Control of the Daimyo
-The main goal of the Tokugawa Dynasty was to stabilize the realm and prevent the return of civil war by controlling the Daimyo (powerful territorial lords)
-Each Daimyo was an absolute ruler on his own lands and had his own government, infrastructure, and currency
-During the 16th century, relations with Europe gave the Daimyo the knowledge of creating and using gunpowder weapons
-The shogun ruled from the Japanese capital of Edo, and sought to increase his control by creating a policy of alternate attendance that required the Daimyo to keep their families at Edo and to spend every other year at court in Edo.
-This policy allowed the Shoguns to keep an eye on the Daimyo and encouraged the Daimyo to spend money on lavish accommodations at Edo rather than on military forces
-Marriage alliances between Daimyo required the Shogun's approval, and Daimyo were discouraged from visiting each other
-Daimyo had to get permits from the Shogun in order to do construction on their castles and needed the Shogun's permission before meeting with the Emperor
Control of Foreign Relations
-The close control of relations between Japan and the outside world was intended to limit European influence from destabilizing Japan -News of Spanish conquests in the Philippines caused the Tokugawa shoguns to fear European alliances with Daimyos, since supplying them with weapons could give the Daimyo power over bakufu -In the 1630s, the Shogun issued a series of edict that limited Japanese foreign relations by forbidding Japanese people from going abroad, forbidding large ship-building, expelling Europeans from Japan, prohibiting foreign merchants from trading at Japanese ports, and prohibiting the import of foreign books -The edicts allowed for tightly controlled trade with Asia, and there were a small number of Chinese and Dutch merchants trading at Nagasaki -The edicts were strictly enforced, by gradually loosened -The edicts never fully cut off Japan from the outside world -To the right is a map of the Spanish Philippines |
Economic and Social Change
When the Tokugawa Dynasty ended civil conflict, they set the stage for economic growth. The peace caused economic growth which caused social change that undermined the order bakufu sought to protect. The economy grew because of new agricultural practices and technology like new crop strains, new methods of irrigation, and the use of fertilizer that increased rice yields. Villagers turned from subsistence farming to farming for market consumption.
Population Growth
-Increased agricultural surplus increased the population
-The population increased from 22 million to 29 million during the 17th century
-The rate of population growth then slowed because couples chose to have less children in order to increase their standard of living
-The population increased to 32 million by 1850, but the practices such as contraception, late marriage, abortion, and infanticide further reduced the rate of population growth
-Families decreased their size because Japan was land poor and large families strained resources
Social Change
-Chinese influence caused Japan to have a similar Confucian social hierarchy
-Ruling elites (like the Shogun, Daimyo, and Samurai) were at the top, then the peasants and artisans, and the merchants were at the bottom
-Peace undermined the authority of the ruling classes since, without war, there was no need for warriors and they served only as administrators and government officials
-The loss of their old place in society brought financial hardship on the ruling class since their main income was from rice, but peace and improved agriculture cause rice prices to drop while the elites continued to live sumptuously and squandered their wealth while trying to impress other elites at Edo, a map of the Tokugawa castle at Edo is displayed to the left
-Merchants increased their wealth and prominence, some even married into the elite class or created contracts with elites in order to improve their social standing
-The large middle class, especially in cities, and the increased social standing of merchants lead to the formation of Japanese popular culture
Population Growth
-Increased agricultural surplus increased the population
-The population increased from 22 million to 29 million during the 17th century
-The rate of population growth then slowed because couples chose to have less children in order to increase their standard of living
-The population increased to 32 million by 1850, but the practices such as contraception, late marriage, abortion, and infanticide further reduced the rate of population growth
-Families decreased their size because Japan was land poor and large families strained resources
Social Change
-Chinese influence caused Japan to have a similar Confucian social hierarchy
-Ruling elites (like the Shogun, Daimyo, and Samurai) were at the top, then the peasants and artisans, and the merchants were at the bottom
-Peace undermined the authority of the ruling classes since, without war, there was no need for warriors and they served only as administrators and government officials
-The loss of their old place in society brought financial hardship on the ruling class since their main income was from rice, but peace and improved agriculture cause rice prices to drop while the elites continued to live sumptuously and squandered their wealth while trying to impress other elites at Edo, a map of the Tokugawa castle at Edo is displayed to the left
-Merchants increased their wealth and prominence, some even married into the elite class or created contracts with elites in order to improve their social standing
-The large middle class, especially in cities, and the increased social standing of merchants lead to the formation of Japanese popular culture
Neo-Confucianism & Floating Worlds
Because many Japanese were schooled in China, Chinese influence was prominent. Formal Japanese education started with Chinese language and literature, and many Japanese scholars wrote in Chinese. Meanwhile, many commoners practiced Buddhism brought from China, and Confucianism was the most important philosophical system,
Neo-Confucianism in Japan
-The Tokugawa Shoguns promoted neo-Confucianism, especially as taught by Zhu Xi, because it emphasized filial piety and loyalty to one's rulers
-A painting of Zhu Xi is displayed to the left
-Neo-Confucianism was the ideological base of bakufu
-Shoguns patronized neo-Confucian scholars, and neo-Confucianism was important in Japanese education
Native Learning
-Neo-Confucianism didn't dominate intellectual life in Japan because many tried to establish Japan's own identity that wasn't reliant on China
-scholars of "native learning" scorned neo-Confucianism and Buddhism and emphasized Japanese folk religions and Shintoism
-Scholars of Native Learning saw Japanese people as superior and urged the study of Japanese classics in order to promote the sense f purity of Japan before outside influence
Floating Worlds
-Floating Worlds were centers of Tokugawa urban culture, and were the entertainment and pleasure quarters of cities
-teahouses, theaters, brothels, public baths
-offered escape from rigid rules of public conduct
-Popular Japanese culture was secular and satirical, it focused around prose literature and new types of theater
-Ihara Saikaku created a new genre of prose literature called "the books of the floating world" that centered around love
-There were 2 new forms of drama that became popular; kabuki theater that was comprised of several acts of lively skits in which actors would improvise and embellish the dialogue and bunkaku which was puppet theater
-An image displaying kabuki theater is displayed below
Neo-Confucianism in Japan
-The Tokugawa Shoguns promoted neo-Confucianism, especially as taught by Zhu Xi, because it emphasized filial piety and loyalty to one's rulers
-A painting of Zhu Xi is displayed to the left
-Neo-Confucianism was the ideological base of bakufu
-Shoguns patronized neo-Confucian scholars, and neo-Confucianism was important in Japanese education
Native Learning
-Neo-Confucianism didn't dominate intellectual life in Japan because many tried to establish Japan's own identity that wasn't reliant on China
-scholars of "native learning" scorned neo-Confucianism and Buddhism and emphasized Japanese folk religions and Shintoism
-Scholars of Native Learning saw Japanese people as superior and urged the study of Japanese classics in order to promote the sense f purity of Japan before outside influence
Floating Worlds
-Floating Worlds were centers of Tokugawa urban culture, and were the entertainment and pleasure quarters of cities
-teahouses, theaters, brothels, public baths
-offered escape from rigid rules of public conduct
-Popular Japanese culture was secular and satirical, it focused around prose literature and new types of theater
-Ihara Saikaku created a new genre of prose literature called "the books of the floating world" that centered around love
-There were 2 new forms of drama that became popular; kabuki theater that was comprised of several acts of lively skits in which actors would improvise and embellish the dialogue and bunkaku which was puppet theater
-An image displaying kabuki theater is displayed below
Christianity and Dutch Learning
Christian Missions
-Jesuit Francis Xavier traveled to Japan in 1549 and opened a mission that was an early success because several Daimyo converted and encouraged their subjects to do the same
-An image of Francis Xavier is displayed to the left
-The Daimyo wanted to establish trade and military alliances with Europe
-Although Christians were a small minority in the Japanese population, the conversion of people elicited a backlash from the government and moralists who wanted to keep Japanese cultural traditions
-The Tokugawa Shoguns restricted the access of Europeans to Japan because they feared that Christianity could serve as a bridge between Daimyo and Europeans, which could lead to the Daimyos increasing in power and threatening bakufu
Anti-Christian Campaigns
-Confucian and Buddhist scholars disliked the Christian conviction that Christianity is the only true religion
-Between 1587 and 1639, the Shogun issues several degrees that ordered a halt to Christian missions and that commanded converted Japanese to renounce their faith
-European missionaries who refused to leave and Japanese who refused to renounce their faith were tortured or executed by crucifixion or burning at the stake
-Christianity survived in secret in rural parts of Japan
Dutch Learning
-In the 1630s, Dutch merchants trading at Nagasaki became Japan's main source of information about the outside world
-Some Japanese scholars learned Dutch and their studies, called Dutch Learning, brought knowledge of the outside world to Japan
-When the ban on foreign books was lifted in 1720, Dutch Learning had an even more important role
-European art was used for knowledge about anatomy and botany because of its accurate representation of objects
-Scholars translated Dutch medical and scientific treatises, learned to draw in linear perspective, and made more accurate textbooks
-European astronomy lead to improved calendars and more accurate predictions of eclipses and other celestial events
-The Tokugawas became proponents of Dutch Learning, and established schools of European Medicine and Dutch Learning
-Jesuit Francis Xavier traveled to Japan in 1549 and opened a mission that was an early success because several Daimyo converted and encouraged their subjects to do the same
-An image of Francis Xavier is displayed to the left
-The Daimyo wanted to establish trade and military alliances with Europe
-Although Christians were a small minority in the Japanese population, the conversion of people elicited a backlash from the government and moralists who wanted to keep Japanese cultural traditions
-The Tokugawa Shoguns restricted the access of Europeans to Japan because they feared that Christianity could serve as a bridge between Daimyo and Europeans, which could lead to the Daimyos increasing in power and threatening bakufu
Anti-Christian Campaigns
-Confucian and Buddhist scholars disliked the Christian conviction that Christianity is the only true religion
-Between 1587 and 1639, the Shogun issues several degrees that ordered a halt to Christian missions and that commanded converted Japanese to renounce their faith
-European missionaries who refused to leave and Japanese who refused to renounce their faith were tortured or executed by crucifixion or burning at the stake
-Christianity survived in secret in rural parts of Japan
Dutch Learning
-In the 1630s, Dutch merchants trading at Nagasaki became Japan's main source of information about the outside world
-Some Japanese scholars learned Dutch and their studies, called Dutch Learning, brought knowledge of the outside world to Japan
-When the ban on foreign books was lifted in 1720, Dutch Learning had an even more important role
-European art was used for knowledge about anatomy and botany because of its accurate representation of objects
-Scholars translated Dutch medical and scientific treatises, learned to draw in linear perspective, and made more accurate textbooks
-European astronomy lead to improved calendars and more accurate predictions of eclipses and other celestial events
-The Tokugawas became proponents of Dutch Learning, and established schools of European Medicine and Dutch Learning