The Anglo-Satsuma War was a pivotal encounter in the final years of Tokugawa rule, reflecting the... more The Anglo-Satsuma War was a pivotal encounter in the final years of Tokugawa rule, reflecting the emergence of Satsuma as a central force in creating the new Meiji state. If Kagoshima took centre stage at some critical moments in the formation and survival of the Meiji state, for much of the nineteenth century it was Nagasaki that consistently drew attention as a source of valuable information. When the Meiji government experienced a severe political crisis in 1873, it turned out to be a pivotal moment in alienating some shizoku groups in Kyushu from the central regime. The assassination of Okubo Toshimichi in Tokyo by a shizoku group from Kanazawa the following year contributed to establishing the Saigō legend that has become such a fixture in modern Japan. A right-wing group that spearheaded calls for colonial expansion was the Genyōsha.Keywords: Anglo-Satsuma War; colonial expansion; Genyōsha; Kagoshima; Kyushu; Meiji restoration; Nagasaki; Saigō legend; Tokugawa rule
Mongol warriors are noted for their celebrated riding skills than any tradition of seamanship, bu... more Mongol warriors are noted for their celebrated riding skills than any tradition of seamanship, but on one occasion they had already prepared a vast fleet and set sail, targeting Hakata Bay in an attempt to gain a foothold on the coast of northern Kyushu. A conspicuous feature of provincial life in Japan under Kamakura rule was the escalation in legal disputes between jitō stewards and proprietors as they fought over the profits from their shōen estates. In 1204, a few years after Minamoto Yoritomo had set up his bakufu government in Kamakura, Genghis Khan established his position as leader of all the Mongols. The catastrophic failure of the Mongol invasions has sometimes been linked to Khubilai Khan's dependence on large numbers of troops from Koryo and on the second occasion from Song China. The cumulative burden these campaigns placed upon the bakufu in Honshu contributed directly to its long-term decline.Keywords: bakufu government; Genghis Khan; Hakata Bay; Kamakura rule; Khubilai Khan; Koryo; Minamoto Yoritomo; Mongol invasions; northern Kyushu; Song China
Archaeological discoveries sometimes provide clues that lend weight to a particular argument, suc... more Archaeological discoveries sometimes provide clues that lend weight to a particular argument, such as at Yoshinogari twenty years ago, but the nucleus of the third-century confederation of Wa remains elusive. Such finds strengthen the case for arguing that northern Kyushu was the centre of Yayoi political hegemony, but do not amount to evidence for Yamatai itself. After Chen Shou's Sanguozhi, it is not until the late fifth century that an extant Chinese chronicle hints at political developments on the islands of Wa. In the interim, there were clearly some significant changes, enabling the emergence of a line of powerful kings in the Kinai area. How the pattern of political control developed from the confederation of Wa in the third century to grow into the Yamato dynasty by the fifth is still largely concealed by the historical void often described as 'the mysterious fourth century' that followed the era of Himiko.Keywords: archaeological discovery; Chen Shou; Himiko; islands of Wa; Kyushu; Sanguozhi; Yayoi political hegemony
Preface Notes on Romanization and Transcription Map 1: Japan in the mid-nineteenth century Map 2:... more Preface Notes on Romanization and Transcription Map 1: Japan in the mid-nineteenth century Map 2: Shikoku and Kochi area Map 3: South Hokkaido and Hakodate area Map 4: Clyde Valley and Central Glasgow Map 5: Sunderland 1. The Secret in the Casket 2. The Years of Rebellion 3. Mitsubishi Rising 4. A Japanese Student Abroad 5. A Glasgow Lass 6. Flowering Love 7. Evening Frost 8. Sunderland Spring 9. Chasing the Rainbow 10. Meiji Docklands 11. The Potato Baron 12. In Search of Jeanie Glossary Appendix 1: Ryokichi's family tree Appendix 2: Jeanie's family tree Appendix 3: Biographical notes Notes Bibliography Index
[This book examines key themes of Kyushu’s history from earliest times – the cultural interaction... more [This book examines key themes of Kyushu’s history from earliest times – the cultural interaction with the continental mainland, settlement, location and infrastructure as well as trade and commerce – arguing that it was the principal stepping-stone in terms of Japan’s cultural, social and economic advance through history up to the present day., This book examines key themes of Kyushu’s history from earliest times – the cultural interaction with the continental mainland, settlement, location and infrastructure as well as trade and commerce – arguing that it was the principal stepping-stone in terms of Japan’s cultural, social and economic advance through history up to the present day.]
Page 1. THE JAPANESE DISCOVERY OF VICTORIAN BRITAIN EARLY TRAVEL ENCOUNTERS IN THE FAR WEST ANDRE... more Page 1. THE JAPANESE DISCOVERY OF VICTORIAN BRITAIN EARLY TRAVEL ENCOUNTERS IN THE FAR WEST ANDREW COBBING Page 2. Page 3. Page 4. MfO!I 3EKIE3:3 Tin; | \i'\\i.si. Disai\i.RY 01 VUTORl \\ BRITU\ ~Mu- investigations undertaken in the . ...
Not until the nineteenth century were the Japanese forced to confront and engage with the Europea... more Not until the nineteenth century were the Japanese forced to confront and engage with the European conception of international law. In East Asia a Sinocentric regional order had governed their worldview for over a thousand years, and during the early modern period the Tokugawa dynasty then modified this outlook to place Japan in the centre of its own framework of international relations. Under the Tokugawa judicial system, moreover, the concept of a lawyer, international or otherwise, was practically unknown. It was the reluctant opening of treaty ports in 1859 that paved the way for Japan’s reception of international law. This chapter charts the shift from the early Japanese exploration of the outside world after centuries of self-imposed isolation, to the training of Japan’s first generation of international lawyers as the Meiji state embarked on reclaiming sovereign rights lost through the imposition of the treaty port regime.
The overseas investigations undertaken in the pursuit of knowledge by early Japanese travellers d... more The overseas investigations undertaken in the pursuit of knowledge by early Japanese travellers during the 1860s and 1870s have left a unique record of life in the West as seen by visitors whose understanding of developments in the world outside had been limited by centuries of cultural isolation. Fascinated by the extent of British political and commercial influence they observed during their travels, they paid particularly close attention to the Victorian world, and London became the base of the largest group of Japanese students to emerge overseas. This thesis examines the nature of these travellers' experiences and their perceptions of Victorian Britain. The period addressed covers the unprecedented boom in overseas travel from its inception during the last years of bakufu rule, and through the first years of the Meiji regime until 1876, when new government regulations were already beginning to curb the numbers of Japanese students abroad. The study presents an analysis of t...
The Anglo-Satsuma War was a pivotal encounter in the final years of Tokugawa rule, reflecting the... more The Anglo-Satsuma War was a pivotal encounter in the final years of Tokugawa rule, reflecting the emergence of Satsuma as a central force in creating the new Meiji state. If Kagoshima took centre stage at some critical moments in the formation and survival of the Meiji state, for much of the nineteenth century it was Nagasaki that consistently drew attention as a source of valuable information. When the Meiji government experienced a severe political crisis in 1873, it turned out to be a pivotal moment in alienating some shizoku groups in Kyushu from the central regime. The assassination of Okubo Toshimichi in Tokyo by a shizoku group from Kanazawa the following year contributed to establishing the Saigō legend that has become such a fixture in modern Japan. A right-wing group that spearheaded calls for colonial expansion was the Genyōsha.Keywords: Anglo-Satsuma War; colonial expansion; Genyōsha; Kagoshima; Kyushu; Meiji restoration; Nagasaki; Saigō legend; Tokugawa rule
Mongol warriors are noted for their celebrated riding skills than any tradition of seamanship, bu... more Mongol warriors are noted for their celebrated riding skills than any tradition of seamanship, but on one occasion they had already prepared a vast fleet and set sail, targeting Hakata Bay in an attempt to gain a foothold on the coast of northern Kyushu. A conspicuous feature of provincial life in Japan under Kamakura rule was the escalation in legal disputes between jitō stewards and proprietors as they fought over the profits from their shōen estates. In 1204, a few years after Minamoto Yoritomo had set up his bakufu government in Kamakura, Genghis Khan established his position as leader of all the Mongols. The catastrophic failure of the Mongol invasions has sometimes been linked to Khubilai Khan's dependence on large numbers of troops from Koryo and on the second occasion from Song China. The cumulative burden these campaigns placed upon the bakufu in Honshu contributed directly to its long-term decline.Keywords: bakufu government; Genghis Khan; Hakata Bay; Kamakura rule; Khubilai Khan; Koryo; Minamoto Yoritomo; Mongol invasions; northern Kyushu; Song China
Archaeological discoveries sometimes provide clues that lend weight to a particular argument, suc... more Archaeological discoveries sometimes provide clues that lend weight to a particular argument, such as at Yoshinogari twenty years ago, but the nucleus of the third-century confederation of Wa remains elusive. Such finds strengthen the case for arguing that northern Kyushu was the centre of Yayoi political hegemony, but do not amount to evidence for Yamatai itself. After Chen Shou's Sanguozhi, it is not until the late fifth century that an extant Chinese chronicle hints at political developments on the islands of Wa. In the interim, there were clearly some significant changes, enabling the emergence of a line of powerful kings in the Kinai area. How the pattern of political control developed from the confederation of Wa in the third century to grow into the Yamato dynasty by the fifth is still largely concealed by the historical void often described as 'the mysterious fourth century' that followed the era of Himiko.Keywords: archaeological discovery; Chen Shou; Himiko; islands of Wa; Kyushu; Sanguozhi; Yayoi political hegemony
Preface Notes on Romanization and Transcription Map 1: Japan in the mid-nineteenth century Map 2:... more Preface Notes on Romanization and Transcription Map 1: Japan in the mid-nineteenth century Map 2: Shikoku and Kochi area Map 3: South Hokkaido and Hakodate area Map 4: Clyde Valley and Central Glasgow Map 5: Sunderland 1. The Secret in the Casket 2. The Years of Rebellion 3. Mitsubishi Rising 4. A Japanese Student Abroad 5. A Glasgow Lass 6. Flowering Love 7. Evening Frost 8. Sunderland Spring 9. Chasing the Rainbow 10. Meiji Docklands 11. The Potato Baron 12. In Search of Jeanie Glossary Appendix 1: Ryokichi's family tree Appendix 2: Jeanie's family tree Appendix 3: Biographical notes Notes Bibliography Index
[This book examines key themes of Kyushu’s history from earliest times – the cultural interaction... more [This book examines key themes of Kyushu’s history from earliest times – the cultural interaction with the continental mainland, settlement, location and infrastructure as well as trade and commerce – arguing that it was the principal stepping-stone in terms of Japan’s cultural, social and economic advance through history up to the present day., This book examines key themes of Kyushu’s history from earliest times – the cultural interaction with the continental mainland, settlement, location and infrastructure as well as trade and commerce – arguing that it was the principal stepping-stone in terms of Japan’s cultural, social and economic advance through history up to the present day.]
Page 1. THE JAPANESE DISCOVERY OF VICTORIAN BRITAIN EARLY TRAVEL ENCOUNTERS IN THE FAR WEST ANDRE... more Page 1. THE JAPANESE DISCOVERY OF VICTORIAN BRITAIN EARLY TRAVEL ENCOUNTERS IN THE FAR WEST ANDREW COBBING Page 2. Page 3. Page 4. MfO!I 3EKIE3:3 Tin; | \i'\\i.si. Disai\i.RY 01 VUTORl \\ BRITU\ ~Mu- investigations undertaken in the . ...
Not until the nineteenth century were the Japanese forced to confront and engage with the Europea... more Not until the nineteenth century were the Japanese forced to confront and engage with the European conception of international law. In East Asia a Sinocentric regional order had governed their worldview for over a thousand years, and during the early modern period the Tokugawa dynasty then modified this outlook to place Japan in the centre of its own framework of international relations. Under the Tokugawa judicial system, moreover, the concept of a lawyer, international or otherwise, was practically unknown. It was the reluctant opening of treaty ports in 1859 that paved the way for Japan’s reception of international law. This chapter charts the shift from the early Japanese exploration of the outside world after centuries of self-imposed isolation, to the training of Japan’s first generation of international lawyers as the Meiji state embarked on reclaiming sovereign rights lost through the imposition of the treaty port regime.
The overseas investigations undertaken in the pursuit of knowledge by early Japanese travellers d... more The overseas investigations undertaken in the pursuit of knowledge by early Japanese travellers during the 1860s and 1870s have left a unique record of life in the West as seen by visitors whose understanding of developments in the world outside had been limited by centuries of cultural isolation. Fascinated by the extent of British political and commercial influence they observed during their travels, they paid particularly close attention to the Victorian world, and London became the base of the largest group of Japanese students to emerge overseas. This thesis examines the nature of these travellers' experiences and their perceptions of Victorian Britain. The period addressed covers the unprecedented boom in overseas travel from its inception during the last years of bakufu rule, and through the first years of the Meiji regime until 1876, when new government regulations were already beginning to curb the numbers of Japanese students abroad. The study presents an analysis of t...
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