east asian test 2013

different daimyo

After the Battle of Sekigahara in the year 1600 that marked the beginning of the Edo period, shogun Tokugawa Ieyasu reorganized roughly 200 daimyo and their territories, into the han, and rated them based on their production of rice from rice paddies. Daimyo were those who headed han assessed at 10,000 koku (50,000 bushels) or more. Ieyasu also categorized the daimyo according to how close they were to the ruling Tokugawa family: the shinpan were related to the Tokugawa; the fudai had been vassals of the Tokugawa or allies in battle; and the tozama who had not allied with the Tokugawa before the battle (did not necessarily fight against the Tokugawa). Around 1800, there were approximately 170 daimyo in Japan.[citation needed] A Daimyo paying a state visit, illustration from ca. 1860 The shinpan were collaterals of Ieyasu, such as the Matsudaira, or descendants of Ieyasu other than in the main line of succession. Several shinpan, including the Tokugawa of Owari (Nagoya), Kii (Wakayama) and Mito, as well as the Matsudaira of Fukui and Aizu, held large han. A few fudai daimyo, such as the Ii of Hikone, held large han, but many were small. The shogunate placed many fudai at strategic locations to guard the trade routes and the approaches to Edo. Also, many fudai daimyo took positions in the Edo shogunate, some rising to the position of rōjū. The fact that fudai daimyo could hold government positions while tozama, in general, could not was a main difference between the two. Tozama daimyo held large fiefs, with the Kaga han of Ishikawa Prefecture, headed by the Maeda clan, assessed at 1,000,000 koku. Other famous tozama clans included the Mori of Chōshū, the Shimazu of Satsuma, the Date of Sendai, the Uesugi of Yonezawa, and the Hachisuka of Awa. Initially, the Tokugawa regarded them as potentially rebellious, but for most of the Edo period, marriages between the Tokugawa and the tozama, as well as control policies such as sankin kōtai, resulted in peaceful relations.

Treaty of the Bogue

Already during the negotiations in Nanjing, China and Britain agreed that a supplementary treaty be concluded, and on 22 July 1843 the two parties promulgated the "General Regulations of Trade with Britain and China" in Guangzhou. These regulations were included in the "Treaty of the Bogue," which Qiying and Pottinger signed on 3 October 1843 on the Bogue outside Guangzhou. The treaty laid down detailed regulations for Sino-British trade and specified the terms under which Britons could reside in the newly opened ports of Shanghai, Ningbo, Xiamen, Fuzhou and Guangzhou. While Britons were allowed to buy property in the treaty ports and reside there with their families, they were not allowed to travel to the interior of China or carry out trade there. The treaty also granted extraterritorial privileges to British subjects and Most Favored Nation status to the United Kingdom, which meant that Britain would enjoy any privilege granted to other powers. [edit]

"Ee Ja Nai Ka" Movement

Ee ja nai ka (ええじゃないか ?) was a complex of carnivalesque religious celebrations and communal activities, often understood as social/political protests, which occurred in many parts of Japan from June 1867 to May 1868, at the end of the Edo period and the start of the Meiji restoration. The movement originated in the Kansai region, near Kyoto. In West Japan, eijanaika appeared at first in the form of dancing festivals, often related to public works, rain magic, or dances for the dead. When sacred amulets were said to have fallen from heaven, thanksgiving celebrations for these amulets were added that could last for several days and effectively took whole rural and urban communities away from everyday life. Gifts were exchanged, youth groups organized mass dancing including cross-dressing, wearing costumes, or not wearing clothes at all. To express their gratitude towards the gods or buddhas who had given them the amulets, many people went on pilgrimages to local or regional sanctuaries. The term ee ja nai ka was a refrain in popular songs performed during these activities and was therefore later chosen as their title. The phrase's meaning is both defiant and fatalistic, and it translates as "Who cares?", "Why not?", or "What the hell?", along the lines of "'Who cares if we take our clothes off," "Who cares if we have sex.'"[1] The great diversity and rivalry of religious practice in premodern Japan helped shape the range of events. It has been suggested that religious activists, such as priests and itinerant preachers, played a major role in fabricating the "amulet showers," and some suspects were even caught in action by alert officers. Youth interested in celebrating parties, or in becoming spiritual leaders, were also suspected and in some cases convicted. Ee ja nai ka was not linked to any specific political platform, though it is often understood "as a form of political protest when other ways [were] blocked,""[1] in reaction to the crumbling Tokugawa shogunate. Disappointment regarding the lack of governing political leadership, disgust at Western and Christian foreigners, and other signs of social/political critique were frequently displayed. There is no evidence for any coordinated political setup or staging of Ee ja nai ka, although this was also rumoured. The movement spread across Japan, eventually descending leading to mob violence before coming to an end. The end of eijanaika was concurrent with the beginning of the Meiji Restoration and the Western-style modernization of Japan. In 1981, Japanese director Shōhei Imamura produced his film Eijanaika which gives a deliberately historically incorrect interpretation of the events but nevertheless catches the unstable and tense atmosphere of the age. Imamura had previously helped write the 1957 Yuzo Kawashima film on the period, Sun in the Last Days of the Shogunate (幕末太陽傳 Bakumatsu taiyōden?). This era was also depicted in the 1969 Kihachi Okamoto-directed Toshirō Mifune film, Red Lion (赤毛 Akage?).

Commodore Matthew Perry

He played a leading role in the opening of Japan to the West with the Convention of Kanagawa in 1854. Perry was very concerned with the education of naval officers and helped develop an apprentice system that helped establish the curriculum at the United States Naval Academy. With the advent of the steam engine, he became a leading advocate of modernizing the U.S. Navy and came to be considered The Father of the Steam Navy.

Iemitsu

In 1623, when Iemitsu was nineteen, Hidetada abdicated the post of shogun in his favor. Hidetada continued to rule as Ōgosho (retired Shogun), but Iemitsu nevertheless assumed a role as formal head of the bakufu bureaucracy.[3] In 1626, Shogun Iemitsu and retired Shogun Hidetada visited Emperor Go-Mizunoo, Empress Masako (Hidetada's daughter and Iemitsu's sister), and Imperial Princess Meisho in Kyoto. Shogun Iemitsu made lavish grants of gold and money to the court nobles and the court itself. Yet relations with Go-Mizunoo deteriorated after the Purple Clothes Incident (紫衣事件 shi-e jiken?), during which the Emperor was accused of having bestowed honorific purple garments to more than ten priests despite an edict which banned them for two years (probably in order to break the bond between the Emperor and religious circles). The shogunate intervened, making the bestowing of the garments invalid. When the wet nurse of Iemitsu and Masako broke a taboo by visiting the imperial court as a commoner, Go-Mizunoo abdicated, embarrassed, and Meisho became empress. The shogun was now the uncle of the sitting monarch. In Kan'ei 9, on the 24th day of the 2nd month (1632), Ōgosho Hidetada died,[4] and Iemitsu could assume real power. Worried that his brother Tokugawa Tadanaga might assassinate him, however, he ruled carefully until that brother's death by Seppuku in 1633. [edit]Shogun Iemitsu (1632-1651) Hidetada left his advisors, all veteran daimyo, to act as regents for Iemitsu. In 1633, after his brother's death, he dismissed these men. In place of his father's advisors, Iemitsu appointed his childhood friends. With their help Iemitsu created a strong, centralized administration. This made him unpopular with many daimyo, but Iemitsu simply removed his opponents. He is credited with establishing the sankin kōtai system which forced daimyo to reside in Edo in alternating sequence, spending a certain amount of time in Edo, and a certain amount of time in their home provinces. It is often said that one of the key goals of this policy was to prevent the daimyo from amassing too much wealth or power by separating them from their home provinces, and by forcing them to regularly devote a sizable sum to funding the immense travel expenses associated with the journey (along with a large entourage) to and from Edo. The system also involved the daimyo's wives and heirs remaining in Edo, disconnected from their lord and from their home province, serving essentially as hostages who might be harmed or killed if the daimyo were to plot rebellion against the shogunate.[5] In 1637, an armed revolt arose against Iemitsu's anti-Christian policies in Shimabara. This period domestic unrest is known as the Shimabara Rebellion.[1] Thousands were killed in the shogunate's suppression of the revolt and countless more were executed afterwards.[6] Over the course of the 1630s, Iemitsu issued a series of edicts restricting Japan's interactions with the outside world. Japanese, who had since the 1590s traveled extensively in East and Southeast Asia (and, in rare instances, much farther afield), were now forbidden from leaving the country, or returning, under pain of death. Europeans were expelled from the country, with the exception of those associated with the Dutch East India Company, who were restricted to the manmade island of Dejima, in Nagasaki harbor. Japan remained very much connected to international commerce, information, and cultural exchange, though only through four avenues. Nagasaki was the center of trade and interaction with the Dutch East India Company, and with independent Chinese merchants. Satsuma Domain controlled interactions with the Ryūkyū Kingdom (and through Ryūkyū, had access to Chinese goods and information), while Tsushima Domain handled diplomatic and trade relations with Joseon Dynasty Korea, and Matsumae Domain managed interactions with the Ainu, the indigenous people of Hokkaido. Japan in this period has often been described as "closed," or under sakoku (鎖国, lit. "chained country"), but since the 1980s, if not earlier, scholars have argued for the use of terms such as "maritime restrictions" or kaikin (海禁, lit. "maritime restrictions"), emphasizing the fact that Japan was not "closed" to the outside world, but was in fact very actively engaged in interactions with the outside world, albeit through a limited set of avenues.[7] In 1643 Empress Meisho abdicated the throne. She was succeeded by her younger half-brother (Go-Mizunoo's son by a consort) Emperor Go-Komyo, who disliked the shogunate for its violent and barbaric ways. He repeatedly made insulting comments about Iemitsu and his eldest son and heir, Tokugawa Ietsuna. In 1651 Shogun Iemitsu died at the age of 47, being the first Tokugawa shogun whose reign ended with death and not abdication. He was accorded a posthumous name of Taiyūin,[1] also known as Daiyūin.[8] He was succeeded by his eldest son and heir, Tokugawa Ietsuna. [edit]

Marx feudalism

Karl Marx also used the term in political analysis. In the 19th century, Marx described feudalism as the economic situation coming before the rise of capitalism. For Marx, what defined feudalism was that the power of the ruling class (the aristocracy) rested on their control of arable land, leading to a class society based upon the exploitation of the peasants who farm these lands, typically under serfdom.[25] Marx thus defined feudalism primarily by its economic characteristics. Many later Marxist theorists (e.g. Eric Wolf) have generalized this characterization to include non-European societies, grouping feudalism together with Imperial Chinese and pre-Columbian Incan societies as 'tributary.'

Kabuki

Kabuki (歌舞伎 kabuki?) is a classical Japanese dance-drama. Kabuki theatre is known for the stylization of its drama and for the elaborate make-up worn by some of its performers. The individual kanji characters, from left to right, mean sing (歌), dance (舞), and skill (伎). Kabuki is therefore sometimes translated as "the art of singing and dancing". These are, however, ateji characters which do not reflect actual etymology. The kanji of 'skill' generally refers to a performer in kabuki theatre. Since the word kabuki is believed to derive from the verb kabuku, meaning "to lean" or "to be out of the ordinary", kabuki can be interpreted as "avant-garde" or "bizarre" theatre.[1] The expression kabukimono (歌舞伎者) referred originally to those who were bizarrely dressed and swaggered on a street. The history of kabuki began in 1603 when Izumo no Okuni, possibly a miko of Izumo Taisha, began performing a new style of dance drama in the dry riverbeds of Kyoto. It originated in the 17th century.[2] Japan was under the control of the Tokugawa shogunate, enforced by Tokugawa Ieyasu.[3] The name of the Edo period derives from the relocation of the Tokugawa regime from its former home in Kyoto to the city of Edo, present-day Tokyo. Female performers played both men and women in comic playlets about ordinary life. The style was immediately popular, and Okuni was asked to perform before the Imperial Court. In the wake of such success, rival troupes quickly formed, and kabuki was born as ensemble dance and drama performed by women—a form very different from its modern incarnation. Much of its appeal in this era was due to the ribald, suggestive themes featured by many troupes; this appeal was further augmented by the fact that the performers were often also available for prostitution.[1] For this reason, kabuki was also called "遊女歌舞妓" (prostitute-singing and dancing performer) during this period. Kabuki became a common form of entertainment in the ukiyo, or Yoshiwara, the registered red-light district in Edo. A diverse crowd gathered under one roof, something that happened nowhere else in the city. Kabuki theaters were a place to see and be seen as they featured the latest fashion trends and current events. The stage provided good entertainment with exciting new music, patterns, clothing, and famous actors. Performances went from morning until sunset. The teahouses surrounding or connected to the theater provided meals, refreshments, and good company. The area around the theatres was lush with shops selling kabuki souvenirs. Kabuki, in a sense, initiated pop culture in Japan. The shogunate was never partial to kabuki and all the mischief it brought, particularly the variety of the social classes which mixed at kabuki performances. Women's kabuki, called onna-kabuki, was banned in 1629 for being too erotic. Following onna-kabuki, young boys performed in wakashū-kabuki, but since they too were eligible for prostitution, the shogun government soon banned wakashū-kabuki as well. Kabuki switched to adult male actors, called yaro-kabuki, in the mid-1600s.[4] Male actors played both female and male characters. The theatre remained popular, and remained a focus of urban lifestyle until modern times. Although kabuki was performed all over ukiyo and other portions for the country, the Nakamura-za, Ichimura-za and Kawarazaki-za theatres became the top theatres in ukiyo, where some of the most successful kabuki performances were and still are held.[3] [edit]

Manchus

Manchus are the largest branch of the Tungusic peoples and are chiefly distributed throughout China, forming the fourth largest ethnic group and the third largest ethnic minority group in that country and then qing stuff

State Shinto

State Shintō (国家神道 Kokka Shintō?) has been called the state religion of the Empire of Japan, although it did not exist as a single institution and no "Shintō" was ever declared a state religion. Fridell argues that scholars call the period 1868-1945 the "State Shinto period" because, "during these decades, Shinto elements came under a great deal of overt state influence and control as the Japanese government systematically utilized shrine worship as a major force for mobilizing imperial loyalties on behalf of modern nation-building."[1] The term "state Shinto" appears in the Shinto Directive" of 1945, which concerned that part of the Shinto world which it termed "a nonreligious national cult commonly known as State Shinto, National Shinto, or Shrine Shinto."[2] The idea of "State Shinto" was popularized in 1970 by the postwar religious scholar Shigeyoshi Murakami to classify those ideals, rituals and institutions that were created by the government to promote the divinity of the emperor and the uniqueness of Japan (kokutai).[3] Murakami's book was one of the most popular books about religion in postwar Japan. While the concept has since been considered by scholars to be overreaching the actual scope of government interference in religion, it is certain that the government interfered.[4

Daoism

Taoism (modernly: Daoism) is a philosophical and religious tradition that emphasizes living in harmony with the Tao (modernly romanized as "Dao"). The term Tao means "way", "path" or "principle", and can also be found in Chinese philosophies and religions other than Taoism. In Taoism, however, Tao denotes something that is both the source and the driving force behind everything that exists. It is ultimately ineffable: "The Tao that can be told is not the eternal Tao."[1] The keystone work of literature in Taoism is the Tao Te Ching, a concise and ambiguous book containing teachings attributed to Laozi (Chinese: 老子; pinyin: Lǎozi; Wade-Giles: Lao Tzu). Together with the writings of Zhuangzi, these texts build the philosophical foundation of Taoism. This philosophical Taoism, individualistic by nature, is not institutionalized. Institutionalized forms, however, evolved over time in the shape of a number of different schools, often integrating beliefs and practices that even pre-dated the keystone texts - as, for example, the theories of the School of Naturalists, which synthesized the concepts of yin-yang and the Five Elements. Taoist schools traditionally feature reverence for Laozi, immortals or ancestors, along with a variety of divination and exorcism rituals, and practices for achieving ecstasy, longevity or immortality. Taoist propriety and ethics may vary depending on the particular school, but in general tends to emphasize wu-wei (action through non-action), "naturalness", simplicity, spontaneity, and the Three Treasures: compassion, moderation, and humility. Taoism has had profound influence on Chinese culture in the course of the centuries, and clerics of institutionalised Taoism (Chinese: 道士; pinyin: dàoshi) usually take care to note distinction between their ritual tradition and the customs and practices found in Chinese folk religion as these distinctions sometimes appear blurred. Chinese alchemy (especially neidan), Chinese astrology, Zen Buddhism, several martial arts, Traditional Chinese medicine, feng shui, and many styles of qigong have been intertwined with Taoism throughout history. Beyond China, Taoism also had influence on surrounding societies in Asia. After Laozi and Zhuangzi the literature of Taoism grew steadily and used to be compiled in form of a canon - the Daozang, which was at times published at the behest of the emperor. Throughout Chinese history, Taoism was several times nominated as state religion. After the 17th century, however, it fell much from favor. Like all other religious activity, Taoism was suppressed in the first decades of the People's Republic of China (and even persecuted during the Cultural Revolution), but continued to be practised in Taiwan. Today, it is one of five religions recognized in the PRC, and although it does not travel readily from its Asian roots, claims adherents in a number of societies.[2

the ashikaga shogunate

The Ashikaga shogunate (足利幕府 Ashikaga bakufu?, 1336-1573), also known as the Muromachi shogunate (室町幕府 Muromachi bakufu?), [1] The heads of government were the shoguns.[2] Each was a member of the Ashikaga clan.[3] This period is also known as the Muromachi period. It gets its name from the Muromachi district of Kyoto.[1] The third shogun Ashikaga Yoshimitsu established his residence on Muromachi Street. This residence is nicknamed "Hana no Gosho" (花の御所) or "Flower Palace" (constructed in 1379) because of the abundance of flowers in its landscaping The Ashikaga Shogunate is the weakest of the three Japanese bakufu governments. Unlike its predecessor, the Kamakura Shogunate, or its successor, the Tokugawa Shogunate, when Ashikaga Takauji established his bakufu he had little personal territories with which to support his rule. The Ashikaga Shogunate was thus heavily reliant on the prestige and personal authority of its shoguns. The centralized master-vassal system used in the Kamakura system was replaced with the highly de-centralized daimyo (local lord) system, and because of the lack of direct territories, the military power of the shoguns depended heavily on the loyalty of the daimyo. On the other hand, the Imperial Government was no longer a credible threat to military rule. The failure of the Kenmu Restoration have rendered the court weakened and subservient, a situation the Ashikaga Takauji reinforced by establishing within close proximity of the emperor at Kyoto. The authority of the local daimyo greatly expanded from its Kamakura times. In addition to military and policing responsibilities, the bakufu appointed shugos now absorbed the justice, economical and taxation powers of the local Imperial governors, while the government holdings in each province were rapidly absorbed into the personal holdings of the daimyos or their vassals. The loss of both political clout and economic base deprived the Imperial court of much of its power, which were then assumed by the Ashikaga shoguns. This situation reached its peak under the rule of the third Shogun, Ashikaga Yoshimitsu. After Yoshimitsu however, the structural weakness of the Ashikaga bakufu were exposed by numerous succession troubles and early deaths. This became dramatically more acute after the Onin War, after which the bakufu itself became reduced to little more than a local political force in Kyoto. [edit]

The Ever Victorious Army

The Ever Victorious Army (Chinese: 常勝軍; pinyin: cháng shèng jūn; Wade-Giles: Ch'ang2 Sheng4 Chün1) was the name given to an imperial army in late-19th-century China. The Ever Victorious Army fought for the Qing Dynasty against the rebels of the Nien and Taiping Rebellions. The Ever Victorious Army consisted of Chinese soldiers trained and led by a European officer corps. Though the Army was only active for a few years, from 1860 to 1864, it was instrumental in putting down the Taiping Rebellion. It was the first Chinese army which was trained in European techniques, tactics, and strategy. As such, it became a model for later Chinese armies.

edo period

The Edo period (江戸時代 Edo jidai?), or Tokugawa period (徳川時代 Tokugawa jidai?) is the period between 1603 to 1868 in the history of Japan when Japanese society was under the rule of the Tokugawa shogunate and the country's 300 regional Daimyo. The period was characterized by economic growth, strict social orders, isolationist foreign policies, an increase in both environmental protection and popular enjoyment of arts and culture. The shogunate was officially established in Edo on March 24, 1603 by Tokugawa Ieyasu. The period came to an end with the Meiji Restoration on May 3, 1868 after the fall of Edo. A revolution took place in the centuries from the time of the Kamakura shogunate, which co-existed in equilibrium with the Tenno's court, to the Tokugawa, when the bushi became the unchallenged rulers in what historian Edwin O. Reischauer called a "centralized feudal" form of government. Instrumental in the rise of the new bakufu was Tokugawa Ieyasu, the main beneficiary of the achievements of Oda Nobunaga and Toyotomi Hideyoshi. Already powerful, Ieyasu profited by his transfer to the rich Kantō area. He maintained 2.5 million koku of land, new headquarters at Edo, a strategically situated castle town (the future Tokyo), and also had an additional two million koku of land and thirty-eight vassals under his control. After Hideyoshi's death, Ieyasu moved quickly to seize control from the Toyotomi family. Ieyasu's victory over the western daimyo at the Battle of Sekigahara (October 21, 1600, or in the Japanese calendar on the 15th day of the ninth month of the fifth year of the Keichō era) gave him virtual control of all Japan. He rapidly abolished numerous enemy daimyo houses, reduced others, such as that of the Toyotomi, and redistributed the spoils of war to his family and allies. Ieyasu still failed to achieve complete control of the western daimyo, but his assumption of the title of shogun helped consolidate the alliance system. After further strengthening his power base, Ieyasu installed his son Hidetada (1579-1632) as shogun and himself as retired shogun in 1605. The Toyotomi were still a significant threat, and Ieyasu devoted the next decade to their eradication. In 1615, the Tokugawa army destroyed the Toyotomi stronghold at Osaka. The Tokugawa (or Edo) period brought 250 years of stability to Japan. The political system evolved into what historians call bakuhan, a combination of the terms bakufu and han (domains) to describe the government and society of the period.[1] In the bakuhan, the shogun had national authority and the daimyo had regional authority. This represented a new unity in the feudal structure, which featured an increasingly large bureaucracy to administer the mixture of centralized and decentralized authorities. The Tokugawa became more powerful during their first century of rule: land redistribution gave them nearly seven million koku, control of the most important cities, and a land assessment system reaping great revenues. The feudal hierarchy was completed by the various classes of daimyo. Closest to the Tokugawa house were the shinpan, or "related houses". They were twenty-three daimyo on the borders of Tokugawa lands, daimyo all directly related to Ieyasu. The shinpan held mostly honorary titles and advisory posts in the bakufu. The second class of the hierarchy were the fudai, or "house daimyo", rewarded with lands close to the Tokugawa holdings for their faithful service. By the eighteenth century, 145 fudai controlled such smaller han, the greatest assessed at 250,000 koku. Members of the fudai class staffed most of the major bakufu offices. Ninety-seven han formed the third group, the tozama (outside vassals), former opponents or new allies. The tozama were located mostly on the peripheries of the archipelago and collectively controlled nearly ten million koku of productive land. Because the tozama were least trusted of the daimyo, they were the most cautiously managed and generously treated, although they were excluded from central government positions. The Tokugawa not only consolidated their control over a reunified Japan, they also had unprecedented power over the emperor, the court, all daimyo and the religious orders. The emperor was held up as the ultimate source of political sanction for the shogun, who ostensibly was the vassal of the imperial family. The Tokugawa helped the imperial family recapture its old glory by rebuilding its palaces and granting it new lands. To ensure a close tie between the imperial clan and the Tokugawa family, Ieyasu's granddaughter was made an imperial consort in 1619. A code of laws was established to regulate the daimyo houses. The code encompassed private conduct, marriage, dress, types of weapons and numbers of troops allowed; required feudal lords to reside in Edo every other year (the sankin kōtai system); prohibited the construction of ocean-going ships; proscribed Christianity; restricted castles to one per domain (han) and stipulated that bakufu regulations were the national law. Although the daimyo were not taxed per se, they were regularly levied for contributions for military and logistical support and for such public works projects as castles, roads, bridges and palaces. The various regulations and levies not only strengthened the Tokugawa but also depleted the wealth of the daimyo, thus weakening their threat to the central administration. The han, once military-centered domains, became mere local administrative units. The daimyo did have full administrative control over their territory and their complex systems of retainers, bureaucrats and commoners. Loyalty was exacted from religious foundations, already greatly weakened by Nobunaga and Hideyoshi, through a variety of control mechanisms. The San Juan Bautista is represented in Claude Deruet's painting of Hasekura Tsunenaga in Rome in 1617, as a galleon with Hasekura's flag (red swastika on orange background) on the top mast. Itinerary and dates of the travels of Hasekura Tsunenaga View of Dejima island as a Dutch trading post in Nagasaki, 1897 [edit]

"The Great Divergence" (Pommeranz)

The Great Divergence, a term coined by Samuel Huntington[2] (also known as the European miracle, a term coined by Eric Jones in 1981[3]), refers to the process by which the Western world (i.e. Western Europe and the parts of the New World where its people became the dominant populations) overcame pre-modern growth constraints and emerged irrefutably during the 19th century as the most powerful and wealthy world civilization of the time, eclipsing Qing China, Mughal India, Tokugawa Japan, and the Ottoman Empire.

Imperial Rescript on Education

The Imperial Rescript on Education (教育ニ関スル勅語 Kyōiku ni Kansuru Chokugo?) was signed by Emperor Meiji of Japan on 30 October 1890 to articulate government policy on the guiding principles of education on the Empire of Japan. The 315 character document was read aloud at all important school events, and students were required to study and memorize the text.

Qing empire

The Qing Dynasty, also Empire of the Great Qing or Great Qing, was the last imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1644 to 1912 with a brief, abortive restoration in 1917. It was preceded by the Ming Dynasty and followed by the Republic of China. The dynasty was founded by the Jurchen Aisin Gioro clan in contemporary Northeastern China. The Aisin Gioro leader, Nurhachi, who was originally a vassal of the Ming emperors, began unifying the Jurchen clans in the late sixteenth century. By 1635, Nurhachi's son Hong Taiji could claim they constituted a single and united Manchu people and began forcing the Ming out of Liaoning in southern Manchuria. In 1644, the Ming capital Beijing was sacked by a peasant revolt led by Li Zicheng, a former minor Ming official who became the leader of the peasant revolt, who then proclaimed the Shun dynasty. The last Ming ruler, the Chongzhen Emperor, committed suicide when the city fell. When Li Zicheng moved against Ming general Wu Sangui, the latter made an alliance with the Manchus and opened the Shanhai Pass to the Manchurian army. Under Prince Dorgon, they seized control of Beijing and overthrew Li Zicheng's short-lived Shun Dynasty. Complete pacification of China was accomplished around 1683 under the Kangxi Emperor. Over the course of its reign, the Qing became highly integrated with Chinese culture. The imperial examinations continued and Han civil servants administered the empire alongside Manchu ones. The Qing reached its height under the Qianlong Emperor in the eighteenth century, expanding beyond China's prior and later boundaries. Imperial corruption exemplified by the minister Heshen and a series of rebellions, natural disasters, and defeats in wars against European powers gravely weakened the Qing during the nineteenth century. "Unequal Treaties" provided for extraterritoriality and removed large areas of treaty ports from Chinese sovereignty. The government attempts to modernize during the Self-Strengthening Movement in the late 19th century yielded few lasting results. Losing the First Sino-Japanese War of 1894-1895 was a watershed for the Qing government and the result demonstrated that reform had modernized Japan significantly since the Meiji Restoration in 1867, especially as compared with the Self-Strengthening Movement in China. The 1911 Wuchang Uprising of the New Army ended with the overthrow of the Empress Dowager Longyu and the infant Puyi on February 12, 1912. Despite the declaration of the Republic of China, the generals would continue to fight amongst themselves for the next several decades during the Warlord Era. Puyi was briefly restored to power in Beijing by Zhang Xun in July 1917, and in Manchukuo by the Japanese between 1932 and 1945

Ezo

The Republic of Ezo (蝦夷共和国 Ezo Kyōwakoku?) was a short-lived state established by former Tokugawa retainers in what is now known as Hokkaidō, the large but sparsely populated northernmost island in modern Japan.After the defeat of the forces of the Tokugawa Shogunate in the Boshin War (1869) of the Meiji Restoration, a part of the former Shogun's navy led by Admiral Enomoto Takeaki fled to the northern island of Ezo (now known as Hokkaidō), together with several thousand soldiers and a handful of French military advisors and their leader, Jules Brunet. Enomoto made a last effort to petition the Imperial Court to be allowed to develop Hokkaidō and maintain the traditions of the samurai unmolested, but his request was denied.[1] [edit]

song dynasty

The Song Dynasty (Chinese: 宋朝; pinyin: Sòng Cháo; Wade-Giles: Sung Ch'ao; IPA: [sʊ̂ŋ tʂʰɑ̌ʊ̯]) was a ruling dynasty in China between 960 and 1279; it succeeded the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period, and was followed by the Yuan Dynasty. It was the first government in world history to nationally issue banknotes or true paper money, and the first Chinese government to establish a permanent standing navy. This dynasty also saw the first known use of gunpowder, as well as first discernment of true north using a compass. The Song Dynasty is divided into two distinct periods: the Northern Song and Southern Song. During the Bei (Northern) Song (Chinese: 北宋, 960-1126),[1] the Song capital was in the northern city of Bianjing (now Kaifeng) and the dynasty controlled most of inner China. The Nan (Southern) Song (Chinese: 南宋, 1127-1279),[1] refers to the period after the Song lost control of northern China to the Jin Dynasty. During this time, the Song court retreated south of the Chang Jiang 長江 (Yangtze River) and established their capital at Lin'an (now Hangzhou). Although the Song Dynasty had lost control of one of three traditional birthplaces of Chinese culture, that being the Yangshao and Longshan cultures (ca. 3500 BCE) themselves having derived from the Peilignang (Peiligang) Culture (ca. 7000 BCE) along the central Huang Hu 黃河 (Yellow River) region,[2] the Song economy was not in ruins; they retained 60 percent of China's population and a majority of the most productive agricultural land.[3] The Southern Song Dynasty considerably bolstered its naval strength to defend its waters and land borders and to conduct maritime missions abroad. To repel the Jin, and later the Mongols, the Song developed revolutionary new military technology augmented by the use of gunpowder. In 1234, the Jin Dynasty was conquered by the Mongols, who took control of northern China, maintaining uneasy relations with the Southern Song. Möngke Khan, the fourth Great Khan of the Mongol Empire, died in 1259 while besieging the city of Chongqing. His younger brother Kublai Khan was proclaimed the new Great Khan, though his claim was only partially recognized by the Mongols in the west. In 1271, Kublai Khan was proclaimed the Emperor of China.[4] After two decades of sporadic warfare, Kublai Khan's armies conquered the Song Dynasty in 1279. China was once again unified, under the Mongol Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368).[5] The population of China doubled in size during the 10th and 11th centuries. This growth came through expanded rice cultivation in central and southern China, the use of early-ripening rice from southeast and southern Asia, and the production of abundant food surpluses.[6][7] The Northern Song census recorded a population of roughly 50 million, much like the Han and Tang dynasties. This data is found in the Standard Histories. However, it is estimated that the Northern Song had a population of some 100 million people, and 200 million by the time of the Ming Dynasty.[8] This dramatic increase of population fomented an economic revolution in premodern China. The expansion of the population was partially the cause for the gradual withdrawal of the central government from heavily regulating the market economy. A much larger populace also increased the importance of the lower gentry's role in grassroots administration and local affairs. Appointed officials in county and provincial centers relied upon the scholarly gentry for their services, sponsorship, and local supervision. Social life during the Song was vibrant; social elites gathered to view and trade precious artworks, the populace intermingled at public festivals and private clubs, and cities had lively entertainment quarters. The spread of literature and knowledge was enhanced by the earlier invention of woodblock printing and the 11th-century invention of movable type printing. Pre-modern technology, science, philosophy, mathematics, engineering, and other intellectual pursuits flourished over the course of the Song. Philosophers such as Cheng Yi and Zhu Xi reinvigorated Confucianism with new commentary, infused with Buddhist ideals, and emphasized a new organization of classic texts that brought out the core doctrine of Neo-Confucianism. Although the institution of the civil service examinations had existed since the Sui Dynasty, it became much more prominent in the Song period. This became a leading factor in the shift of an aristocratic elite to a bureaucratic elite.

tang dynasty

The Tang Dynasty, with its capital at Chang'an (present-day Xi'an), which at the time was the most populous city in the world, is generally regarded as a high point in Chinese civilization—equal to, or surpassing that of, the earlier Han Dynasty—a golden age of cosmopolitan culture. Its territory, acquired through the military campaigns of its early rulers, rivaled that of the Han Dynasty. In two censuses of the 7th and 8th centuries, the Tang records estimated the population by number of registered households at about 50 million people.[2][3] Yet, even when the central government was breaking down and unable to compile an accurate census of the population in the 9th century, it is estimated that the population had grown by then to about 80 million people.[4][5][a] With its large population base, the dynasty was able to raise professional and conscripted armies of hundreds of thousands of troops to contend with nomadic powers in dominating Inner Asia and the lucrative trade routes along the Silk Road. Various kingdoms and states paid tribute to the Tang court, while the Tang also conquered or subdued several regions which it indirectly controlled through a protectorate system. Besides political hegemony, the Tang also exerted a powerful cultural influence over neighboring states such as those in Korea, Japan, and Vietnam. The Tang Dynasty was largely a period of progress and stability, except during the An Lushan Rebellion and the decline of central authority in the later half of the dynasty. Like the previous Sui Dynasty, the Tang Dynasty maintained a civil service system by drafting officials through standardized examinations and recommendations to office. This civil order was undermined by the rise of regional military governors known as jiedushi during the 9th century. Chinese culture flourished and further matured during the Tang era; it is considered the greatest age for Chinese poetry.[6] Two of China's most famous poets, Li Bai and Du Fu, belonged to this age, as did many famous painters such as Han Gan, Zhang Xuan, and Zhou Fang. There was a rich variety of historical literature compiled by scholars, as well as encyclopedias and geographical works. There were many notable innovations during the Tang, including the development of woodblock printing. Buddhism became a major influence in Chinese culture, with native Chinese sects gaining prominence. However, Buddhism would later be persecuted by the state and decline in influence. Although the dynasty and central government were in decline by the 9th century, art and culture continued to flourish. The weakened central government largely withdrew from managing the economy, though the country's mercantile affairs stayed intact and commercial trade continued to thrive regardless.

treaty of nanjing

The Treaty of Nanking (or Nanjing) was signed on 29 August 1842 to mark the end of the First Opium War (1839-42) between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and the Qing Dynasty of China. It was the first of what the Chinese called the unequal treaties because Britain had no obligations in return.[1] In the wake of China's military defeat, with British warships poised to attack the city, representatives from the British and Qing Empires negotiated aboard HMS Cornwallis anchored at Nanjing. On 29 August 1842, British representative Sir Henry Pottinger and Qing representatives, Qiying, Yilibu, and Niujian, signed the treaty. It consisted of thirteen articles and ratification by Queen Victoria and the Daoguang Emperor was exchanged nine months later. The fundamental purpose of the treaty was to change the framework of foreign trade which had been in force since 1760 (Canton System). The treaty abolished the monopoly of the Thirteen Factories on foreign trade (Article V) in Canton and instead five ports were opened for trade, Canton (Shameen Island until 1943), Amoy (Xiamen until 1930), Foochowfoo (Fuzhou), Ningpo (Ningbo) and Shanghai (until 1943),[2] where Britons were to be allowed to trade with anyone they wished. Britain also gained the right to send consuls to the treaty ports, which were given the right to communicate directly with local Chinese officials (Article II). The treaty stipulated that trade in the treaty ports should be subject to fixed tariffs, which were to be agreed upon between the British and the Qing governments (Article X). [edit]Reparations and demobilization The Qing government was obliged to pay the British government six million silver dollars for the opium that had been confiscated by Lin Zexu in 1839 (Article IV), 3 million dollars in compensation for debts that the Hong merchants in Canton owed British merchants (Article V), and a further 12 million dollars in war reparations for the cost of the war (VI). The total sum of 21 million dollars was to be paid in installments over three years and the Qing government would be charged an annual interest rate of 5 percent for the money that was not paid in a timely manner (Article VII). The Qing government undertook to release all British prisoners of war (Article VIII) and to give a general amnesty to all Chinese subjects who had cooperated with the British during the war (Article IX). The British on their part, undertook to withdraw all of their troops from Nanking and the Grand Canal after the emperor had given his assent to the treaty and the first instalment of money had been received (Article XII). British troops would remain in Gulangyu and Zhoushan until the Qing government had paid reparations in full (Article XII). [edit]Cession of Hong Kong In 1841, a rough outline for a treaty was sent for the guidance of Plenipotentiary Charles Elliot. It had a blank after the words "the cession of the islands of _____". Pottinger sent this old draft treaty on shore, with the letter s struck out of islands and the words Hong Kong placed after it.[3] Robert Montgomery Martin, treasurer of Hong Kong, wrote in an official report: The terms of peace having been read, Elepoo the senior commissioner paused, expecting something more, and at length said "is that all?" Mr. Morrison enquired of Lieutenant-colonel Malcolm if there was anything else, and being answered in the negative, Elepoo immediately and with great tact closed the negotiation by saying, "all shall be granted—it is settled—it is finished."[3] The Qing government agreed to make Hong Kong Island a crown colony, ceding it to the British Queen "in perpetuity" (常遠 in Chinese version) to provide British traders with a harbour where they could unload their goods (Article III). Pottinger was later appointed the first governor of Hong Kong. In 1860, the colony was extended with the Kowloon peninsula and in 1898, the Second Convention of Peking further expanded the colony with the 99-year lease of the New Territories. In 1984, the governments of the United Kingdom and the People's Republic of China (PRC) concluded the Sino-British Joint Declaration on the Question of Hong Kong, under which the sovereignty of the leased territories, together with Hong Kong Island and Kowloon (south of Boundary Street) ceded under the Convention of Peking (1860), was transferred to the PRC on 1 July 1997. [edit]

Townsend Harris

Townsend Harris (October 3, 1804 - February 25, 1878) was a successful New York City merchant and minor politician, and the first United States Consul General to Japan. He negotiated the "Harris Treaty" between the US and Japan and is credited as the diplomat who first opened the Empire of Japan to foreign trade and culture in the Edo period.

Tokugawa Ieasu

Tokugawa Ieyasu (徳川 家康?, January 31, 1543 - June 1, 1616) was the founder and first shogun of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan, which ruled from the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600 until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. Ieyasu seized power in 1600, received appointment as shogun in 1603, abdicated from office in 1605, but remained in power until his death in 1616. His given name is sometimes spelled Iyeyasu, according to the historical pronunciation of we.[1][2] Ieyasu was posthumously enshrined at Nikkō Tōshō-gū with the name Tōshō Daigongen (東照大権現?). Hideyoshi, after three more months of increasing sickness, died on September 18, 1598. He was nominally succeeded by his young son Hideyori but as he was just five years old, real power was in the hands of the regents. Over the next two years Ieyasu made alliances with various daimyo, especially those who had no love for Hideyoshi. Happily for Ieyasu, the oldest and most respected of the regents died after just one year. With the death of Regent Maeda Toshiie in 1599, Ieyasu led an army to Fushimi[disambiguation needed] and took over Osaka Castle, the residence of Hideyori. This angered the three remaining regents and plans were made on all sides for war. It was also the last battle of one of the most loyal and powerful retainer of Ieyasu, Tadakatsu Honda . Opposition to Ieyasu centered around Ishida Mitsunari, a powerful daimyo but not one of the regents. Mitsunari plotted Ieyasu's death and news of this plot reached some of Ieyasu's generals. They attempted to kill Mitsunari but he fled and gained protection from none other than Ieyasu himself. It is not clear why Ieyasu protected a powerful enemy from his own men but Ieyasu was a master strategist and he may have concluded that he would be better off with Mitsunari leading the enemy army rather than one of the regents, who would have more legitimacy.[7] Nearly all of Japan's daimyo and samurai now split into two factions—Mitsunari's group and the anti-Mitsunari Group. Ieyasu supported the anti-Mitsunari Group, and formed them as his potential allies. Ieyasu's allies were the Date clan, the Mogami clan, the Satake clan and the Maeda clan. Mitsunari allied himself with the three other regents: Ukita Hideie, Mori Terumoto, and Uesugi Kagekatsu as well as many daimyo from the eastern end of Honshū. In June 1600, Ieyasu and his allies moved their armies to defeat the Uesugi clan who was accused of planning to revolt against Toyotomi administration (Led by Ieyasu, top of Council of Five Elders). Before arriving to Uesugi's territory, Ieyasu had got information that Mitsunari and his allies moved their army against Ieyasu. Ieyasu held a meeting with daimyo, and they agreed to ally with Ieyasu. He then led the majority of his army west towards Kyoto. In late summer, Ishida's forces captured Fushimi. Ieyasu and his allies marched along the Tōkaidō, while his son Hidetada went along the Nakasendō with 38,000 soldiers. A battle against Sanada Masayuki in Shinano Province delayed Hidetada's forces, and they did not arrive in time for the main battle. Main article: Battle of Sekigahara This battle was the biggest and likely the most important battle in Japanese history. It began on October 21, 1600 with a total of 160,000 men facing each other. The Battle of Sekigahara ended with a complete Tokugawa victory.[8] The Western bloc was crushed and over the next few days Ishida Mitsunari and many other western nobles were captured and killed. Tokugawa Ieyasu was now the de facto ruler of Japan. Immediately after the victory at Sekigahara, Ieyasu redistributed land to the vassals who had served him. Ieyasu left some western daimyo un-harmed, such as the Shimazu clan, but others were completely destroyed. Toyotomi Hideyori (the son of Hideyoshi) lost most of his territory which were under management of western daimyo, and he was degraded to an ordinary daimyo, not a ruler of Japan. In later years the vassals who had pledged allegiance to Ieyasu before Sekigahara became known as the fudai daimyo, while those who pledged allegiance to him after the battle (in other words, after his power was unquestioned) were known as tozama daimyo. Tozama daimyo were considered inferior to fudai daim

Han Dynasty

206 BC - 220 AD The Han Empire was divided into areas directly controlled by the central government, known as commanderies, and a number of semi-autonomous kingdoms These campaigns expanded Han sovereignty into the Tarim Basin of Central Asia and helped establish the vast trade network known as the Silk RoadSpanning over four centuries, the period of the Han Dynasty is considered a golden age in Chinese history.[3] To this day, China's majority ethnic group refers to itself as the "Han people" and the Chinese script is referred to as "Han characters".[4] The Han Dynasty was an age of economic prosperity and saw a significant growth of the money economy first established during the Zhou Dynasty (c. 1050-256 BC). The coinage issued by the central government mint in 119 BC remained the standard coinage of China until the Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD). To pay for its military campaigns and the settlement of newly conquered frontier territories, the government nationalized the private salt and iron industries in 117 BC. These government monopolies were repealed during the Eastern Han period, and the lost revenue was recouped through heavily taxing private entrepreneurs. The emperor was at the pinnacle of Han society. He presided over the Han government but shared power with both the nobility and appointed ministers who came largely from the scholarly gentry class. From the reign of Emperor Wu onward, the Chinese court officially sponsored Confucianism in education and court politics, synthesized with the cosmology of later scholars such as Dong Zhongshu. This policy endured until the fall of the Qing Dynasty in 1911 AD. Science and technology during the Han period saw significant advances, including papermaking, the nautical steering rudder, the use of negative numbers in mathematics, the raised-relief map, the hydraulic-powered armillary sphere for astronomy, and a seismometer employing an inverted pendulum.

Shogun

A shogun (将軍 shōgun?) [ɕoː.gu͍ɴ] listen (help·info) (literally, "military commander") was one of the (usually) hereditary military dictators of Japan from 1192 to 1867.[1] In this period, the shoguns, or their shikken regents (1203-1333), were the de facto rulers of Japan though they were nominally appointed by the emperor. When Portuguese explorers first came into contact with the Japanese (see Nanban period), they described Japanese conditions in analogy, likening the emperor, with great symbolic authority but little political power, to the Pope, and the shogun to secular European rulers, e.g. the King of Spain. In keeping with the analogy, they even used the term "emperor" in reference to the shogun/regent, e.g. in the case of Toyotomi Hideyoshi, whom missionaries called "Emperor Taicosama" (from Taiko and the honorific sama). The modern rank of shōgun is equivalent to a generalissimo. Although the original meaning of "shogun" is simply "a general", as a title, it is used as the short form of seii taishōgun (征夷大将軍), the governing individual at various times in the history of Japan, ending when Tokugawa Yoshinobu relinquished the office to the Meiji Emperor in 1867.[2] A shogun's office or administration is known in English as the "office". In Japanese it was known as bakufu (幕府?) which literally means "tent office", and originally meant "house of the general", and later also suggested a private government. Bakufu could also mean "tent government" and was the way the government was run under a shogun.[3] The tent symbolized the field commander but also denoted that such an office was meant to be temporary. The shogun's officials were as a collective the bakufu, and were those who carried out the actual duties of administration while the Imperial court retained only nominal authority

meiji constituion

After the Meiji Restoration in 1868, it provided for a form of constitutional monarchy based on the Prusso-German model, in which the Emperor of Japan was an active ruler and wielded considerable political power (over foreign policy and diplomacy) which was shared with an elected Diet. The Diet primarily dictated domestic policy matters. After the Meiji Restoration, which restored direct political power to the emperor for the first time in over a millennium, Japan underwent a period of sweeping political and social reform and westernization aimed at strengthening Japan to the level of the nations of the Western world. The immediate consequence of the Constitution was the opening of the first Parliamentary government in Asia.[1] The Meiji Constitution established clear limits on the power of the executive branch and the Emperor. It also created an independent judiciary. Civil rights and civil liberties were guaranteed, though in many cases they were subject to limitation by law. However, it was ambiguous in wording, and in many places self-contradictory. The leaders of the government and the political parties were left with the task of interpretation as to whether the Meiji Constitution could be used to justify authoritarian or liberal-democratic rule. It was the struggle between these tendencies that dominated the government of the Empire of Japan. The Meiji Constitution was used as a model for the 1931 Ethiopian Constitution by the Ethiopian intellectual Tekle Hawariat Tekle Mariyam. This was one of the reasons why the progressive Ethiopian intelligentsia associated with Tekle Hawariat were known as "Japanizers".[2] By the surrender on 2 September 1945, the Empire of Japan was deprived of sovereignty by the Allies, and the Meiji Constitution was suspended. During the Occupation of Japan, the Meiji Constitution was replaced by a new document, the postwar Constitution of Japan, which replaced the imperial rule with a form of Western-style liberal democracy. Meiji Constitution promulgation by Toyohara Chikanobu [edit]

Bakumatsu Period

Bakumatsu (幕末 bakumatsu?, "Late Tokugawa Shogunate"), literally "end of the curtain", are the final years of the Edo period when the Tokugawa shogunate came to an end. It is characterized by major events occurring between 1853 and 1867 during which Japan ended its isolationist foreign policy known as sakoku and transitioned from a feudal shogunate to the Meiji government. The major ideological/political divide during this period was between the pro-imperialist ishin shishi (nationalist patriots) and the shogunate forces, including the elite Shinsengumi (newly selected corps) swordsmen. Although these two groups were the most visible powers, many other factions attempted to use the chaos of Bakumatsu to seize personal power.[1] Furthermore there were two other main driving forces for dissent: first, growing resentment on the part of the tozama daimyo (or outside lords), and second, growing anti-western sentiment following the arrival of Matthew C. Perry. The first related to those lords who had fought against Tokugawa forces at the Battle of Sekigahara (in 1600) and had from that point on been excluded permanently from all powerful positions within the shogunate. The second was to be expressed in the phrase sonnō jōi, or "revere the Emperor, expel the barbarians". The turning point of the Bakumatsu was during the Boshin War and the Battle of Toba-Fushimi when pro-shogunate forces were defeated.[2]

Treaties of Tianjin

Britain, France, Russia, and the United States would have the right to station legations in Beijing (Peking, a closed city at the time). Eleven more Chinese ports would be opened for foreign trade, including Newchwang, Tamsui (Taiwan), Hankou and Nanjing. The right of foreign vessels including warships to navigate freely on the Yangtze River. The right of foreigners to travel in the internal regions of China for the purpose of travel, trade or missionary activities. Religious liberty to all Christians in China. China was to pay an indemnity to Britain and France in 2 million taels of silver respectively, and compensation to British merchants in 3 million taels of silver. Official letters and other documents exchanged between China and Britain are to be banned from referring to British Officials and Subjects of the Crown by the character "夷" (yí), meaning "barbarian". [edit]

Buddhism

Buddhism is a religion indigenous to the Indian subcontinent that encompasses a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, who is commonly known as the Buddha (meaning "the awakened one" in Sanskrit and Pāli). The Buddha lived and taught in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent between the 6th and 4th centuries BCE.[1] He is recognized by Buddhists as an awakened or enlightened teacher who shared his insights to help sentient beings end suffering (dukkha) through eliminating ignorance (avidyā) by way of understanding and seeing dependent origination (pratītyasamutpāda) and eliminating craving (taṇhā), and thus attain the highest happiness, nirvāņa.[2] Two major branches of Buddhism are generally recognized: Theravada ("The School of the Elders") and Mahayana ("The Great Vehicle"). Theravada has a widespread following in Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia (Cambodia, Laos, Thailand, Myanmar etc.). Mahayana is found throughout East Asia (China, Korea, Japan, Vietnam, Singapore, Taiwan etc.) and includes the traditions of Pure Land, Zen, Nichiren Buddhism, Tibetan Buddhism, Shingon, and Tiantai (Tendai). In some classifications, Vajrayana—practiced mainly in Tibet and Mongolia, and adjacent parts of China and Russia—is recognized as a third branch, while others classify it as a part of Mahayana. While Buddhism remains most popular within Asia, both branches are now found throughout the world. Estimates of Buddhists worldwide vary significantly depending on the way Buddhist adherence is defined. Conservative estimates are between 350-750 million.[3][4][5] Higher estimates are between 1.2 - 1.7 billion.[6][7][8] It is also recognized as one of the fastest growing religions in the world.[9][10][11][12] Buddhist schools vary on the exact nature of the path to liberation, the importance and canonicity of various teachings and scriptures, and especially their respective practices.[13] The foundations of Buddhist tradition and practice are the Three Jewels: the Buddha, the Dharma (the teachings), and the Sangha (the community). Taking "refuge in the triple gem" has traditionally been a declaration and commitment to being on the Buddhist path, and in general distinguishes a Buddhist from a non-Buddhist.[14] Other practices may include following ethical precepts; support of the monastic community; renouncing conventional living and becoming a monastic; the development of mindfulness and practice of meditation; cultivation of higher wisdom and discernment; study of scriptures; devotional practices; ceremonies; and in the Mahayana tradition, invocation of buddhas and bodhisattvas.

confucianism

Confucianism is an ethical and philosophical system developed from the teachings of the Chinese philosopher Confucius (孔夫子 Kǒng Fūzǐ, or K'ung-fu-tzu, lit. "Master Kong", 551-479 BC). Confucianism originated as an "ethical-sociopolitical teaching" during the Spring and Autumn Period, but later developed metaphysical and cosmological elements in the Han Dynasty.[1] Following the abandonment of Legalism in China after the Qin Dynasty, Confucianism became the official state ideology of the Han. The disintegration of the Han in the second century C.E. opened the way for the spiritual and otherworldly doctrines of Buddhism and Daoism to dominate intellectual life and to become the ruling doctrines during the Tang dynasty. In the late Tang, Confucianism absorbed many of these challenging aspects and was reformulated Neo-Confucianism. This reinvigorated form was adopted as the basis of the imperial exams and the core philosophy of the scholar official class in the Song dynasty. Neo-Confucianism turned into sometimes rigid orthodoxy over the following centuries. In popular practice, however, the three doctrines of Confucianism, Buddhism, and Daoism were often melded together. The abolition of the examination system in 1905 marked the end of official Confucianism. The New Culture intellectuals of the early twentieth century blamed Confucianism for China's weaknesses. They searched for imported doctrines to replace it, such as the "Three Principles of the People" with the establishment of the Republic of China, and then Communism under the People's Republic of China. In the late twentieth century, Confucianism was credited with the rise of the East Asian economy and revived both in the People's Republic and abroad. The core of Confucianism is humanism, or what the philosopher Herbert Fingarette calls "the secular as sacred." The focus of spiritual concern is this world and the family, not the gods and not the afterlife. [2] Confucianism broadly speaking does not exalt faithfulness to divine will or higher law. [3] This stance rests on the belief that human beings are teachable, improvable and perfectible through personal and communal endeavor especially self-cultivation and self-creation. Confucian thought focuses on the cultivation of virtue and maintenance of ethics, the most basic of which are ren, yi, and li.[4] Ren is an obligation of altruism and humaneness for other individuals within a community, yi is the upholding of righteousness and the moral disposition to do good, and li is a system of norms and propriety that determines how a person should properly act within a community.[4] Confucianism holds that one should give up one's life, if necessary, either passively or actively, for the sake of upholding the cardinal moral values of ren and yi.[5]

Daimyo

Daimyo (大名 daimyō?, Pronunciation (help·info)) (dah-ee-myoh) is a generic term referring to the powerful territorial lords[1] in pre-modern Japan who ruled most of the country from their vast, hereditary land holdings. In the term, "dai" (大?) literally means "large", and "myō" stands for myōden (名田?), meaning private land.[2] Subordinate only to the shogun, daimyo were the most powerful feudal rulers from the 10th century to the middle 19th century in Japan. From the shugo of the Muromachi period through the Sengoku to the daimyo of the Edo period, the rank had a long and varied history. The term "daimyo" is also sometimes used to refer to the leading figures of such clans, also called "lord". It was usually, though not exclusively, from these warlords that a shogun arose or a regent was chosen. Daimyo often hired samurai to guard their land and they paid the samurai in land or food. Relatively few daimyo could afford to pay samurai in money. The daimyo era came to an end soon after the Meiji restoration when Japan adopted the prefecture system in 1871.

canton systerm

Despite Chinese efforts to restrict European traders and citizens to Macau, European trade spread throughout China. The Canton System supported European traders' with China. It also forced large amounts of direct trade between European merchants and Chinese civilians. Instead, the Europeans, generally employees of major trading companies (most importantly the British East India Company) had to trade with an association of Chinese merchants known as the Cohong. The emperor appointed an official called the Hoppo (the spelling at the time of 戶部, Hubu, which was short for 粵海關部, Yuehaiguanbu), to take charge and collect taxes from the goods traded. The position also overlook whether the trades went accordingly. The hoppo was responsible for merchant relations on behalf of the Qing court. It was an important position since Western merchants were not allowed to communicate with the emperor directly. The European (and soon the American) presence was restricted to the Thirteen Factories on the harbour of Canton (Guangzhou) during the trading season, but the foreign traders were permitted to remain on Chinese soil at Macau in the off-season (a mitigation of earlier Chinese restrictions on trade, which had banned foreign residence in the off-season). The first trade that existed with China was for silks, porcelain ("fine china") and most lucratively tea. It was the incredible financial deficit caused by European demand for tea that spurred the British to begin shipping opium to China from its colonies in India. (While only silver was allowed for trading, opium was initially tolerated. See First Opium War - Background.) Despite Britain's growing apprehension at the Canton System, revenue from opium eased British resentment, and the system remained intact until the Opium Wars, which established "treaty ports" in accordance with the Treaty of Nanjing. Each of these ports was governed, not by Chinese laws, but rather the laws of the country controlling the port.

Cixi

Empress Dowager Cixi1, or Empress Dowager Tzu-hsi (Chinese: 慈禧太后; pinyin: Cíxǐ Tàihòu; Wade-Giles: Tz'u2-hsi3 T'ai4-hou4; Mandarin pronunciation: [tsʰǐɕì tʰâɪ̯ xɤ̂ʊ̯]; Manchu: Tsysi taiheo; 29 November 1835 - 15 November 1908), of the Manchu Yehenara clan, was a powerful and charismatic woman who unofficially but effectively controlled the Manchu Qing Dynasty in China for 47 years, from 1861 to her death in 1908. Selected by the Xianfeng Emperor as an imperial concubine in her adolescence, she gave birth to his son, who became the Tongzhi Emperor upon Xianfeng's death. Cixi ousted a group of regents appointed by the late emperor and assumed regency over her young son with the Empress Dowager Ci'an. Cixi then consolidated control over the dynasty when, at the death of the Tongzhi Emperor, contrary to the rules of succession, she installed her nephew as the Guangxu Emperor in 1875. Although she refused to adopt Western models of government, she nonetheless supported the technological and military Self-Strengthening Movement. Cixi rejected the Hundred Days' Reforms of 1898 as impractical and detrimental to dynastic power and placed the Guangxu Emperor under house arrest for supporting reformers. After the Boxer Rebellion and the invasion of Allied armies, external and internal pressures led Cixi to effect institutional changes of just the sort she had resisted and appoint reform-minded officials. The dynasty collapsed in 1911, three years after her death (with the new Republican Era commencing January 1st, 1912). Historians both in China and abroad have generally portrayed her as a despot and villain responsible for the fall of the Dynasty, while others have suggested that her opponents among the reformers succeeded in making her a scapegoat for problems beyond her control, that she stepped in to prevent disorder, that she was no more ruthless than other rulers, and that she was even an effective if reluctant reformer in the last years of her life.[1]

foot binding

Foot binding (simplified Chinese: 缠足; traditional Chinese: 纏足; Mandarin Pinyin: chánzú; Jyutping: gwo2 goek3; literally "bound feet" or Chinese: 縛腳; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: pa̍k-kha, "Lotus feet") is the custom of applying painfully tight binding to the feet of young girls to prevent further growth. The practice possibly originated among upperclass court dancers in the early Song dynasty, but spread and eventually became common among all but the lowest of classes. Eventually foot binding became very popular because men thought it to be highly attractive. Even today in China (Guangzhou), there are families with "lotus foot ancestry". In Guangzhou in the late 19th century, for example, it was usual to bind the feet of the eldest daughter of a lower-class family who was intended to be brought up as a lady. Her normal-footed sisters would grow up to be bond-servants or domestic slaves, and, when old enough, the concubines of rich men or the wives of laboring men - able to work in the fields alongside them. In contrast, the tiny narrow feet of the "ladies" were considered beautiful and made a woman's movements more feminine and dainty. It was assumed these eldest daughters would never need to work. Although reformers challenged the practice, it was not until the early 20th century that footbinding began dying out, partly from changing social conditions and partly as a result of anti-footbinding campaigns.[1] Foot-binding resulted in lifelong disabilities for most of its subjects, and some elderly Chinese women still survive today with disabilities related to their bound feet

Frederick Townsend Ward

Frederick Townsend Ward (29 November 1831 -21 September 1862) was an American sailor and soldier of fortune famous for his military victories for Imperial China during the Taiping RebellionCredit for the concept of training Chinese in Western military tactics and arming them with the best available weaponry is sometimes given to Ward, other times to Li Hongzhang, a local Imperial commander "ordered to cooperate with — and keep an eye on — Ward's unruly contingent" and other times to Burgevine, who according to some began the training while Ward was recuperating, having been inspired by the sight of a Chinese gun crew acting under French direction.[13] Perhaps another factor in the reconsideration of local Chinese troops was the changing mood of the local peasantry. Where before they had been unwilling to fight for Manchu primacy, they were now constantly threatened and in some cases occupied by Taiping forces that were, despite their "heavenly" origin, ruthless in their treatment of local populations. Indeed, in many cases informal militias were formed to drive Taiping forces out, and conduct guerilla operations.[14] Regardless of the concept's true origin, Ward became its champion and after his untimely death, no other commander could quite repeat his success. Ward's decision to turn to local Chinese forces would ensure his place in history, and help to end the Taiping rebellion.

13 Factories

In 1684, the Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty allowed foreigners to trade with China in four cities, including Guangzhou.[3] In 1686, Westerners were allowed to also live in the area of the factories in Canton, at the head of the Pearl River. In 1757, the Emperor Qianlong limited Westerners to the port of Canton, and no other area. In 1793, attempts were made by King George III who sent representative Lord George Macartney to request that ports in northern China be opened to trade. Emperor Qianlong refused[2] the request. The Thirteen Factories gradually lost importance after the First Opium War (1839-42), a conflict after China banned the import of British opium. The Qing court was defeated by the United Kingdom and as a consequence of the Treaty of Nanking (1842), was forced to open five ports to foreigners and to cede Hong Kong Island to the UK. The Thirteen Factories was no longer the sole place for foreigners to trade and live in China. The factories burned down in 1856 during the Second Opium War and the western traders relocated to warehouses across the Pearl River on Honam until the British succeeded in claiming the site of a sandbar (Shamian Island) in 1859, and it was developed to become a foreign enclave.[1] [edit]

Choson/Joseon Dynasty

Joseon (Korean: 조선 Hanja: 朝鮮; July 1392 - October 1897) (also Chosŏn, Choson, Chosun, Cho-sen), was a Korean state founded by Taejo Yi Seong-gye that lasted for approximately five centuries. It was founded following the aftermath of the overthrow of the Goryeo Dynasty in what is today the city of Kaesong. Early on, Korea was retitled and the capital was relocated to modern-day Seoul. The kingdom's northernmost borders were expanded to the natural boundaries at the Amnok and Duman rivers through the subjugation of the Jurchens. Joseon was the last dynasty of Korean history and the longest-ruling Confucian dynasty. During its reign, Joseon consolidated its effective rule over the territory of current Korea, encouraged the entrenchment of Korean Confucian ideals and doctrines in Korean society, imported and adapted Chinese culture, and saw the height of classical Korean culture, trade, science, literature, and technology. However, the dynasty was severely weakened during the late 16th and early 17th centuries, when invasions by the neighboring states of Japan and Qing nearly overran the peninsula, leading to an increasingly harsh isolationist policy for which the country became known as the Hermit Kingdom. After the end of invasions from Manchuria, Joseon experienced a nearly 200-year period of peace. However, whatever power the kingdom recovered during its isolation further waned as the 18th century came to a close, and faced with internal strife, power struggles, international pressure and rebellions at home, the Joseon Dynasty declined rapidly in the late 19th century. The Joseon period has left a substantial legacy to modern Korea; much of modern Korean etiquette, cultural norms, societal attitudes towards current issues, and the modern Korean language and its dialects derive from the culture and traditions of Joseon.

Kokutai

Kokutai (Kyūjitai: 國體, Shinjitai: 国体, literally "national body/structure") is a politically loaded word in the Japanese language, translatable as "sovereign", "national identity; national essence; national character" or "national polity; body politic; national entity; basis for the Emperor's sovereignty; Japanese constitution". "Sovereign" is perhaps the most simple translation.[citation needed] For example, in pre-World War II Japan, the Emperor alone was sovereign, while in other countries sovereignty is held or shared by the people collectively, legislature and/or monarch. In a related but distinct sense, a kokutai is a naval aviation unit, comparable to a group or wing in other air services (see also sentai).

Li Hongzhang

Li Hongzhang (formerly rendered in English as Li Hung Chang), GCVO, (February 15, 1823 - November 7, 1901) was a politician, general, and diplomat of the late Qing Empire. He quelled several major rebellions and served in important positions of the Imperial Court, including the premier viceroyalty of Zhili. Although he was best known in the West for his generally pro-modern stance and importance as a negotiator, Li antagonized the British with his support of Russia as a foil against Japanese expansionism in Manchuria and fell from favor with the Chinese after their loss in the 1894 Sino-Japanese War. His image in China remains controversial, with criticism on one hand for political and military mistakes and praise on the other for his success against the Taiping Rebellion, his diplomatic skills defending Chinese interests in the era of unequal treaties, and his role pioneering China's industrial and military modernization. For his life's work, the British Queen Victoria made him a Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order.After his death, Li's reputation hit both highs and lows. He was generously but groundlessly credited, for instance, with inventing Chop suey during his 1896 visit to the United States, and in 1913 William Francis Mannix published a fabricated Memoirs of Li Hung Chang [14] which received widespread praise before being exposed as a forgery in 1923. [15] On a more weighty level, one American biographer summed up Li's contributions by saying he "did perhaps all he could for a land where the conservatism of the people, a reactionary officialdom, and unrestrained international rivalry made each step forward a matter of great difficulty," and went on to praise him: "always progressive, yet patient and conciliatory, it was his fate to bear blame for failures which might have been avoided if he had had his way." [16] Less charitable were some Chinese comments. Liang Qichao's 1902 biography blamed Li for China's woes and set the tone for further castigation of Li as the chief culprit of the pro-imperialist and anti-mass Self-Strengthening Movement. Liang Qichao's son, Liang Sicheng in 1951 denounced Li as "selling out" the country. It was not until the 1980s that mainland historians began a serious debate of the sort which had been taking place in Taiwan. [

Neo-Confucianism

Neo-Confucianism (simplified Chinese: 宋明理学; traditional Chinese: 宋明理學; pinyin: Sòng-Míng Lǐxué often shortened to 理學) is a moral, ethical, and metaphysical Chinese philosophy influenced by Confucianism, and originated with Han Yu and Li Ao (772-841) in the Tang Dynasty, and became prominent during the Song and Ming dynasties. Neo-Confucianism was an attempt to create a more rationalist and secular form of Confucianism by rejecting superstitious and mystical elements of Daoism and Buddhism that had influenced Confucianism during and after the Han Dynasty.[1] Although the Neo-Confucianists were critical of Daoism and Buddhism,[2] the two did have an influence on the philosophy, and the Neo-Confucianists borrowed terms and concepts from both. However, unlike the Buddhists and Daoists, who saw metaphysics as a catalyst for spiritual development, religious enlightenment, and immortality, the Neo-Confucianists used metaphysics as a guide for developing a rationalist ethical philosophy

Oda Nobunaga

Oda Nobunaga (織田 信長 Oda Nobunaga (help·info)?, June 23, 1534 - June 21, 1582) was the initiator of the unification of Japan under the shogunate in the late 16th century, which ruled Japan until the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was also a major daimyo during the Sengoku period of Japanese history. His work was continued, completed and finalized by his successors Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Tokugawa Ieyasu. He was the second son of Oda Nobuhide, a deputy shugo (military governor) with land holdings in Owari Province.[1] Nobunaga lived a life of continuous military conquest, eventually conquering a third of Japan before his death in 1582. His successor, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, a loyal Oda supporter, would become the first man to unify all of Japan, and was thus the first ruler of all Japan since the Ōnin W

Onnagata

Onnagata or oyama (Japanese: 女形・女方, "woman-role"), are male actors who impersonate women in Japanese kabuki theatre. The modern all-male kabuki was originally known as yarō kabuki (man kabuki) to distinguish it from earlier forms. In the early 17th century, shortly after the emergence of the genre, many kabuki theaters had an all-female cast (onna kabuki), with women playing men's roles as necessary. Wakashū kabuki (adolescent-boy kabuki), with a cast composed entirely of attractive young men playing both male and female roles, and frequently dealing in erotic themes, originated circa 1612.[1](p90) Both onnagata and wakashū (or wakashū-gata), actors specializing in adolescent male roles (and usually adolescents themselves), were the subject of much appreciation by both male and female patrons, and were often prostitutes. All-male casts became the norm after 1629, when women were banned from appearing in kabuki due to the prevalent prostitution of actresses and violent quarrels among patrons for the actresses' favors.[1](pp90-91) This ban failed to stop the problems, however, since the young male (wakashū) actors were also fervently pursued by patrons[citation needed]. In 1642, onnagata roles were forbidden, resulting in plays that featured only male characters. These plays continued to have erotic content and generally featured many wakashū roles, often dealing in themes of nanshoku (male homosexuality); officials responded by banning wakashū roles as well.[1](p92) The ban on onnagata was lifted in 1644, and on wakashū in 1652, on the condition that all actors, regardless of role, adopted the adult male hairstyle with shaved pate. Onnagata and wakashū actors soon began wearing a small purple headscarf (murasaki bōshi or katsura) to cover the shaved portion, which became iconic signifiers of their roles and eventually became invested with erotic significance as a result.[1](p132) After authorities rescinded a ban on wig-wearing by onnagata and wakashū actors, the murasaki bōshi was replaced by a wig and now survives in a few older plays and as a ceremonial accessory.[2] After film was introduced in Japan at the end of the 19th century, the oyama continued to portray females in movies until the early 1920s. At that time, however, using real female actresses was coming into fashion with the introduction of realist shingeki films. The oyama staged a protest at Nikkatsu in 1922 in backlash against the lack of work because of this. Kabuki, however, remains all-male even today.[3] Oyama continue to appear in Kabuki today, though the term onnagata has come to be used much more commonly. [edit]

Orientalism (said)

Orientalism is a book published in 1978 by Edward Said that has been highly influential and controversial in postcolonial studies and other fields. In the book, Said effectively redefined the term "Orientalism" to mean a constellation of false assumptions underlying Western attitudes toward the Middle East. This body of scholarship is marked by a "subtle and persistent Eurocentric prejudice against Arabo-Islamic peoples and their culture." He argued that a long tradition of romanticized images of Asia and the Middle East in Western culture had served as an implicit justification for European and American colonial and imperial ambitions. Just as fiercely, he denounced the practice of Arab elites who internalized the US and British orientalists' ideas of Arabic culture.

Rangaku

Rangaku (Kyūjitai: 蘭學/Shinjitai: 蘭学, literally "Dutch Learning", and by extension "Western learning") is a body of knowledge developed by Japan through its contacts with the Dutch enclave of Dejima, which allowed Japan to keep abreast of Western technology and medicine in the period when the country was closed to foreigners, 1641-1853, because of the Tokugawa shogunate's policy of national isolation (sakoku). A meeting of Japan, China, and the West, Shiba Kōkan, late 18th century. Through Rangaku, Japan learned many aspects of the scientific and technological revolution occurring in Europe at that time, helping the country build up the beginnings of a theoretical and technological scientific base, which helps to explain Japan's success in its radical and speedy modernization following the opening of the country to foreign trade in 1854.

Sakoku

Sakoku (鎖国?, "locked country") was the foreign relations policy of Japan under which no foreigner could enter nor could any Japanese leave the country on penalty of death. The policy was enacted by the Tokugawa shogunate under Tokugawa Iemitsu through a number of edicts and policies from 1633-39 and remained in effect until 1853 with the arrival of the Black Ships of Commodore Matthew Perry and the forcible opening of Japan to Western trade. It was still illegal to leave Japan until the Meiji Restoration (1868). The term Sakoku originates from the manuscript work Sakoku-ron (「鎖国論」?) written by Japanese astronomer Shizuki Tadao (志筑忠雄) in 1801. Shizuki invented the word while translating the works of the 17th century German traveller Engelbert Kaempfer concerning Japan.[1] Japan was not completely isolated under the sakoku policy. It was a system in which strict regulations were applied to commerce and foreign relations by the shogunate, and by certain feudal domains (han). The policy stated that the only European influence permitted was the Dutch factory at Dejima in Nagasaki. Trade with China was also handled at Nagasaki. Trade with Korea was limited to the Tsushima Domain (today part of Nagasaki Prefecture). Trade with the Ainu people was limited to the Matsumae Domain in Hokkaidō, and trade with the Ryūkyū Kingdom took place in Satsuma Domain (present-day Kagoshima Prefecture). Apart from these direct commercial contacts in peripheral provinces, trading countries sent regular missions to the shogun in Edo.

Samurai

Samurai (侍?) [bu͍.ɕi̥] were the military nobility of pre-industrial Japan. According to translator William Scott Wilson: "In Chinese, the character 侍 was originally a verb meaning to wait upon or accompany persons in the upper ranks of society, and this is also true of the original term in Japanese, saburau. In both countries the terms were nominalized to mean "those who serve in close attendance to the nobility," the pronunciation in Japanese changing to saburai. According to Wilson, an early reference to the word "samurai" appears in the Kokin Wakashū (905-914), the first imperial anthology of poems, completed in the first part of the 10th century.[1] By the end of the 12th century, samurai became almost entirely synonymous with bushi (武士), and the word was closely associated with the middle and upper echelons of the warrior class. The samurai followed a set of rules that came to be known as bushidō. While they numbered less than 10% of Japan's population,[2] samurai teachings can still be found today in both everyday life and in modern Japanese martial arts.

Sankin kotai

Sankin-kōtai ("alternate attendance") was the system whereby the Tokugawa forced all daimyo to spend every other year at the Tokugawa court in Edo, and maintain their family members in Edo when they returned to their han. This increased political and fiscal control over the daimyo by Edo. As time went on in the Tokugawa period, many other systems of controlling the daimyo were put into place, such as mandatory contributions to public works such as road building. In addition, daimyo were forbidden to build ships and castles, and other shows of military power were often tightly controlled. Upset by these controls, and often in bad economic situations because of things like sankin-kōtai, forced support of public works, and extravagant spending, several daimyo sided against the Tokugawa Shogunate during the Meiji Restoration. [edit]

Sejong the great

Sejong the Great (May 15, 1397 - April 8, 1450, r. 1418-1450) was the fourth king of Joseon. Born with family name Yi (이; 李), given name Do (도; 祹), family origin Jeonju (전주; 全州), sobriquet Wonjung (원정; 元正). Posthumous name is Sejong (세종; 世宗). Posthumous title, abbreviated, is JangHun Great King (장헌대왕; 莊憲大王),[3] and official title is SejongJangHunYungMoonYaeMooInSungMyungHyo Great King (세종장헌영문예무인성명효대왕; 世宗莊憲英文睿武仁聖明孝大王).[4] He is the third son between King Taejong and Queen-Consort Min. He was designated as heir-apparent, Grand Prince, after his older brother Jae was stripped of his title. He ascended to the throne in 1418. During the first four years of his reign, Taejong governed as regent, and this was when his father-in-law, Shim Ohn, and his close associates were executed. Sejong reinforced Confucian policies and executed major legal amendments (공법; 貢法). He also oversaw the creation of Hangul, encouraged advancements of scientific technology, and instituted many other efforts to stabilize and improve prosperity. He dispatched military campaigns to the north and installed SaMin Policy (사민정책; 徙民政策) to attract new settlers to the region. To the south, subjugated Japanese raiders and captured Demado. During his reign from 1418 to 1450, he governed from 1418 to 1442 and governed as regent with his son Grand Prince MoonJong until his death from 1442 to 1450. Sejong is one of only two Korean rulers posthumously honored with the appellation "the Great", the other being Gwanggaeto the Great of Goguryeo.[5]

Ishin Shishi

Shishi (志士; sometimes known as 維新志士 Ishin-shishi) was a group of Japanese political activists of the late Edo period. The term shishi literally translates as "men of high purpose."[1] While it is usually applied to the anti-shogunate, pro-sonnō jōi (尊王攘夷; "Revere the Emperor, Expel the Barbarian[s]") samurai primarily from the southwestern clans of Satsuma, Chōshū, and Tosa, the term shishi is also used by some with reference to supporters of the shogunate who held similar sonnō jōi views. There were many different varieties of shishi. Some, such as the assassins Kawakami Gensai, Nakamura Hanjirō, Okada Izō, and Tanaka Shinbei, opted for a more violent approach in asserting their views. Kawakami Gensai, in particular, is recalled as the assassin of Sakuma Shōzan, a renowned pro-Western thinker of the time.[2] Other more radical shishi, such as Miyabe Teizō, plotted large-scale attacks with little regard for public safety. Miyabe himself was one of the ringleaders of the plot, foiled by the Shinsengumi at the Ikedaya Incident, to burn Kyoto at the height of the Gion Festival.[3] As mentioned above, shishi were not necessarily in support of bringing down the shogunate. Shishi from Mito were responsible for the death of the shogunal grand councilor Ii Naosuke, who was a signatory to treaties that favored foreign nations, and who had placed an underaged boy on the shogunal throne. Other Mito men and women arose in the Tengu-tō revolt, over the next several years. While these were definitely actions against the shōgun's government, they did not oppose the shōgun himself—indeed, the Mito shishi, who were retainers of a relative of the shōgun, believed they were only helping him.[4] Other shishi had more scholastic leanings. A prime example of this was the scholar Yoshida Shōin of Chōshū. He founded the Shokason-juku school, and educated many of the future government leaders of Meiji era Japan. Yoshida had connections to many prominent figures of the Bakumatsu era: Kawai Tsugunosuke, Katsu Kaishū, the aforementioned Sakuma Shōzan, and others.[citation needed] The more radical shishi from Chōshū and Satsuma went on to form the core leadership of the nascent Meiji Government. Some, such as Itō Hirobumi and Yamagata Aritomo, remained prominent figures in Japanese politics and society until the early decades of the 20th century.[citation needed] [edit]

Small Sword Society

Small Swords Society (simplified Chinese: 小刀会; traditional Chinese: 小刀會; pinyin: Xiăo Dāo Huì) was a political and military organisation active in Shanghai, China and neighbouring areas during the Taiping Rebellion. The organization was founded in the 1850s during the upheavals of the Taiping Rebellion. It was one of a number of rebel groups to arise during this period, either affiliated with or proclaiming support for the Taiping administration. The name ("Small Swords") refers to daggers used by warriors or martial artists in close combat. It is believed to be linked to triads. The society consisted mainly of natives from Guangdong and Fujian, including Li Shaoqing, Li Xianyun and Pan Yiguo, directors of some of the huiguan or native place associations of Shanghai. In 1853,[citation needed] the Society occupied the walled (Chinese) city of Shanghai, and occupied most of the Chinese sections of the city. They did not, however, invade the foreign concessions. Large numbers of Chinese refugees from surrounding areas flooded into the foreign concessions in this period, dramatically increasing the population there and giving rise to the prevalent "Nongtang", "Lilong", or "Shikumen"-style housing which came to dominate Shanghai by the early 20th Century.[1] The Society's headquarters were in the Yuyuan Gardens of Shanghai, at the heart of the old city and today a popular tourist attraction and shopping district. There is a small museum displaying artefacts of the Society in the gardens. Conflict broke out between the Fujian and Guangdong factions, over whether they should leave with the loot they had acquired. At first, the British and American authorities remained neutral, while the French supported the imperial government. However, some British and American sailors joined up with the Small Swords Society. When French troops were sent in to support Qing imperial troops, this caused the situation of whites fighting whites which was only embarrassing if considered from a racist angle. The British and American authorities then declared the sailors' actions illegal and joined in support for the imperial armies. [edit]

Azuchi-Momoyama Period

The Azuchi-Momoyama period (安土桃山時代 Azuchi-Momoyama jidai?) or the Shokuho period (織豊時代 Shokoho jidai?) at the end of the Warring States Period(also known asSenngoku period (戦国時代 Sengoku jidai?)) in Japan, when the political unification that preceded the establishment of the Tokugawa shogunate took place. It spans the years from approximately 1573 to 1603, during which time Oda Nobunaga and his successor, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, imposed order upon the chaos that had pervaded since the collapse of the Ashikaga Shogunate. Although a start date of 1573 is often given, in more broad terms, this period begins with Nobunaga's entry into Kyoto in 1568, when he led his army to the imperial capital in order to install Ashikaga Yoshiaki as the 15th, and ultimately final, shogun of the Ashikaga shogunate, and lasts until the coming to power of Tokugawa Ieyasu after his victory over supporters of the Toyotomi clan at the Battle of Sekigahara in 1600.[1] During this period, a short but speculatar epoch, Japanese society and culture underwent the transition from the medival era to the early modern era. The name of this period is taken from Nobunaga's castle, Azuchi Castle, in the present-day town of Azuchi, Shiga Prefecture and Hideyoshi's castle, Momoyama Castle (also known as Fushimi Castle), in Kyoto.[1

Boshin War

The Boshin War (戊辰戦争 Boshin Sensō?, "War of the Year of the Yang Earth Dragon")[2] was a civil war in Japan, fought from 1868 to 1869 between forces of the ruling Tokugawa Shogunate and those seeking to return political power to the imperial court. The war found its origins in dissatisfaction among many nobles and young samurai with the shogunate's handling of foreigners following the opening of Japan during the prior decade. An alliance of western samurai (particularly the domains of Chōshū, Satsuma and Tosa) and court officials secured control of the imperial court and influenced the young Emperor Meiji. Tokugawa Yoshinobu, the sitting shogun, realizing the futility of his situation, abdicated political power to the emperor. Yoshinobu had hoped that by doing this, the Tokugawa house could be preserved and participate in the future government. However, military movements by imperial forces, partisan violence in Edo, and an imperial decree promoted by Satsuma and Choshu abolishing the house of Tokugawa led Yoshinobu to launch a military campaign to seize the emperor's court at Kyoto. The military tide rapidly turned in favor of the smaller but relatively modernized imperial faction, and after a series of battles culminating in the surrender of Edo, Yoshinobu personally surrendered. Those loyal to the Tokugawa retreated to northern Honshū and later to Hokkaidō, where they founded the Ezo republic. Defeat at the Battle of Hakodate broke this last holdout and left the imperial rule supreme throughout the whole of Japan, completing the military phase of the Meiji Restoration. Around 120,000 men were mobilized during the conflict, and of these about 3,500 were killed.[1] In the end, the victorious imperial faction abandoned its objective to expel foreigners from Japan and instead adopted a policy of continued modernization with an eye to eventual renegotiation of the Unequal Treaties with the Western powers. Due to the persistence of Saigō Takamori, a prominent leader of the imperial faction, the Tokugawa loyalists were shown clemency, and many former shogunate leaders were later given positions of responsibility under the new government. The Boshin War testifies to the advanced state of modernization already achieved by Japan barely fourteen years after its opening to the West, the already high involvement of Western nations (especially Britain and France) in the country's politics, and the rather turbulent installation of Imperial power. Over time, the war has been romanticized by Japanese and others who view the Meiji Restoration as a "bloodless revolution," despite the number of casualties.

commercial revolution

The Commercial Revolution was a period of European economic expansion, colonialism, and mercantilism which lasted from approximately the 16th century until the early 18th century. It was succeeded in the mid-18th century by the Industrial Revolution. Beginning with the Crusades, Europeans rediscovered spices, silks, and other commodities rare in Europe. This development created a new desire for trade, and trade expanded in the second half of the Middle Ages. European nations, through voyages of discovery, were looking for new trade routes in the 15th and 16th centuries, which allowed the European powers to build vast, new international trade networks. Nations also sought new sources of wealth. To deal with this new-found wealth, new economic theories and practices were created. Because of competing national interest, nations had the desire for increased world power through their colonial empires. The Commercial Revolution is marked by an increase in general commerce, and in the growth of financial services such as banking, insurance, and investing.

mccartney embassy

The Macartney Embassy, also called the Macartney Mission, was a British embassy to China in 1793. The Mission ran from 1792 to 1794.[1] It is named for the first envoy of Great Britain to China, George Macartney, who led the endeavour. The goal of the embassy was to convince Emperor Qianlong of China to ease restrictions on trade between Great Britain and China by allowing Great Britain to have a permanent embassy in Beijing, possession of "a small unfortified island near Chusan for the residence of British traders, storage of goods, and outfitting of ships," and reduced tariffs on traders in Guangzhou. The mission failed badly in its attempt to win the trust over the Chinese authorities.

Ming Dynasty

The Ming Dynasty, also Empire of the Great Ming, was the ruling dynasty of China for 276 years (1368-1644) following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan Dynasty. The Ming, described by some as "one of the greatest eras of orderly government and social stability in human history",[5] was the last dynasty in China ruled by ethnic Han Chinese. Although the primary capital of Beijing fell in 1644 to a rebellion led by Li Zicheng (who established the Shun Dynasty, soon replaced by the Manchu-led Qing Dynasty), regimes loyal to the Ming throne - collectively called the Southern Ming - survived until 1662. The Hongwu Emperor (ruled 1368-98) attempted to create a society of self-sufficient rural communities ordered in a rigid, immobile system that would guarantee and support a permanent class of soldiers for his dynasty:[6] the empire's standing army exceeded one million troops and the navy's dockyards in Nanjing were the largest in the world.[7] He also took great care breaking the power of the court eunuchs[8] and unrelated magnates, enfeoffing his many sons throughout China and attempting to guide these princes through published dynastic instructions. This failed spectacularly when his teen-aged successor attempted to curtail his uncles' power, prompting the uprising that placed the Prince of Yan upon the throne as the Yongle Emperor in 1402. The Yongle Emperor established Yan as a secondary capital and renamed it Beijing, constructed the Forbidden City, and restored the Grand Canal and the primacy of the imperial examinations in official appointments. He rewarded his eunuch supporters and employed them as a counterweight against the Confucian scholar-bureaucrats. One, Zheng He, led seven enormous voyages of exploration into the Indian Ocean as far as Arabia and the coast of Africa. The rise of new emperors and new factions diminished such extravagances; the capture of the Zhengtong Emperor during the 1449 Tumu Crisis ended them completely. The imperial navy was allowed to fall into disrepair while forced labor constructed the Liaodong palisade and connected and fortified the Great Wall of China into its modern form. Wide-ranging censuses of the entire empire were conducted decennially, but the desire to avoid labor and taxes and the difficulty of storing and reviewing the enormous archives at Nanjing hampered accurate figures.[6] Estimates for the late-Ming population vary from 160 to 200 million,[9] but necessary revenues were squeezed out of smaller and smaller numbers of farmers as more disappeared from the official records or "donated" their lands to tax-exempt eunuchs or temples.[6] Haijin laws intended to protect the coasts from "Japanese" pirates instead turned many into smugglers and pirates themselves. By the 16th century, however, the expansion of European trade - albeit restricted to islands near Guangzhou like Macao - spread the Columbian Exchange of crops, plants, and animals into China, introducing chili peppers to Sichuan cuisine and highly-productive corn and potatoes, which diminished famines and spurred population growth. The growth of Portuguese, Spanish, and Dutch trade created new demand for Chinese products and produced a massive influx of Japanese and American silver. This abundance of specie allowed the Ming to finally avoid using paper money, which had sparked hyperinflation during the 1450s. While traditional Confucians opposed such a prominent role for commerce and the newly rich it created, the heterodoxy introduced by Wang Yangming permitted a more accommodating attitude. Zhang Juzheng's initially successful reforms proved devastating when a slowdown in agriculture produced by the Little Ice Age was met with Japanese and Spanish policies that quickly cut off the supply of silver now necessary for farmers to be able to pay their taxes. Combined with crop failure, floods, and epidemic, the dynasty was considered to have lost the Mandate of Heaven and collapsed before the rebel leader Li Zicheng and a Manchurian invasion.

the muromachi period

The Muromachi period (室町時代 Muromachi jidai?, also known as the Muromachi era, the Ashikaga era, or the Ashikaga period) is a division of Japanese history running from approximately 1337 to 1573. The period marks the governance of the Muromachi or Ashikaga shogunate (Muromachi bakufu or Ashikaga bakufu), which was officially established in 1338 by the first Muromachi shogun, Ashikaga Takauji, two years after the brief Kemmu restoration (1333-1336) of imperial rule was brought to a close. The period ended in 1573 when the 15th and last shogun of this line, Ashikaga Yoshiaki, was driven out of the capital in Kyoto by Oda Nobunaga. From a cultural perspective, the period can be divided into the Kitayama and Higashiyama periods (later 15th - early 16th). The early years from 1336 to 1392 of the Muromachi period are known as the Nanboku-chō or Northern and Southern Court period. This period is marked by the continued resistance of the supporters of Emperor Go-Daigo, the emperor behind the Kemmu restoration. The years from 1465 to the end of the Muromachi period are also known as the Sengoku period or Warring States period. Contact with the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) China was renewed during the Muromachi period after the Chinese sought support in suppressing Japanese pirates in coastal areas of China. Japanese pirates of this era and region were referred to as wokou, by the Chinese (Japanese wakō). Wanting to improve relations with China and to rid Japan of the wokou threat, Yoshimitsu accepted a relationship with the Chinese that was to last for half a century. In 1401 he restarted the tribute system, describing himself in a letter to the Chinese Emperor as "Your subject, the King of Japan". Japanese wood, sulfur, copper ore, swords, and folding fans were traded for Chinese silk, porcelain, books, and coins, in what the Chinese considered tribute but the Japanese saw as profitable trade.[citation needed] During the time of the Ashikaga bakufu, a new national culture, called Muromachi culture, emerged from the bakufu headquarters in Kyoto to reach all levels of society. Zen Buddhism played a large role in spreading not only religious but also artistic influences, especially those derived from painting of the Chinese Song (960-1279), Yuan, and Ming dynasties. The proximity of the imperial court to the bakufu resulted in a commingling of imperial family members, courtiers, daimyō, samurai, and Zen priests. Art of all kinds—architecture, literature, Noh drama, comedy, poetry, the tea ceremony, landscape gardening, and flower arranging—all flourished during Muromachi times.

Silk Road

The Silk Road (from German: Seidenstraße) or Silk Route is a modern term referring to a historical network of interlinking trade routes across the Afro-Eurasian landmass that connected East, South, and Western Asia with the Mediterranean and European world, as well as parts of North and East Africa. Extending 4,000 miles (6,500 km), the Silk Road gets its name from the lucrative Chinese silk trade along it, which began during the Han Dynasty (206 BC - 220 AD). The central Asian sections of the trade routes were expanded around 114 BC by the Han dynasty,[1][not in citation given] largely through the missions and explorations of Zhang Qian,[2] but earlier trade routes across the continents already existed. Trade on the Silk Road was a significant factor in the development of the civilizations of China, India, Persia, Europe and Arabia. Though silk was certainly the major trade item from China, many other goods were traded, and various technologies, religions and philosophies, as well as the bubonic plague (the "Black Death"), also traveled along the Silk Routes. The main traders during Antiquity were the Indian and Bactrian traders, then from the 5th to the 8th century the Sogdian traders, then afterward the Arab and Persian traders.

Taiping Rebellion

The Taiping Rebellion was a massive civil war in southern China from 1850 to 1864, against the ruling Manchu-led Qing Dynasty. It was led by Hong Xiuquan, who announced that he had received visions in which he learned that he was the younger brother of Jesus Christ. About 20 million people died, mainly civilians, in one of the deadliest military conflicts in history.[4] Hong established the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom with its capital at Nanjing. The Kingdom's army controlled large parts of southern China, at its height ruling about 30 million people. The rebel agenda included social reforms such as shared "property in common," equality for women, and the replacement of Confucianism, Buddhism and Chinese folk religion with their form of Christianity. Because of their refusal to wear the queue, Taiping troops were nicknamed "Longhairs" (simplified Chinese: 长毛; traditional Chinese: 長毛; pinyin: Chángmáo) by the Qing government, which besieged the Taiping armies throughout the rebellion. The Qing government eventually crushed the rebellion with the aid of French and British forces. In the 20th century, Sun Yat-sen, founder of the Chinese Nationalist Party, looked on the rebellion as an inspiration, and Chinese leader Mao Zedong glorified the Taiping rebels as early heroic revolutionaries against a corrupt feudal system.[5]

Arquebus

The arquebus (pron.: /ˈɑrkɨbʌs/ ark-ə-bus or /ˈɑrkwɨbʌs/ ar-kwə-bus) (sometimes spelled harquebus, harkbus or hackbut; from Dutch haakbus, meaning "hook gun"[1]), or "hook tube", is an early muzzle-loaded firearm used in the 15th to 17th centuries. In distinction from its predecessor the hand cannon, it has a matchlock. Like its successor the musket, it is a smoothbore firearm, but was initially lighter and easier to carry.[2] It is a forerunner of the rifle and other longarm firearms. An improved version of the arquebus, the caliver, was introduced in the early 16th century. The word is derived from the English corruption of calibre as this gun was of standard bore, increasing combat effectiveness as troops could load bullets that would fit their guns (before, they would have to modify shot to fit, force it in, or cast their own before the battle). Heavy arquebuses mounted on wagons were called arquebus à croc. These carried a ball of about 3.5 ounces (99 g).[3] east asian countries loved it people want to trade with it

Baku-Han System

The bakuhan taisei (幕藩体制) was the feudal political system in the Edo period of Japan. Baku, or "tent," is an abbreviation of bakufu, meaning "military government" — that is, the shogunate. The han were the domains headed by daimyo. Vassals held inherited lands and provided military service and homage to their lords. The Bakuhan Taisei split feudal power between the shogunate in Edo and provincial domains throughout Japan. Provinces had a degree of sovereignty and were allowed an independent administration of the Han in exchange for loyalty to the Shogun, who was responsible for foreign relations and national security. The shogun and lords were all daimyo: feudal lords with their own bureaucracies, policies, and territories. The Shogun also administered the most powerful han, the hereditary fief of the House of Tokugawa. Each level of government administered its own system of taxation. The Shogun had the military power of Japan and was more powerful than the emperor, who was a religious and political leader. The shogunate had the power to discard, annex, and transform domains. The sankin kōtai system of alternative residence required each daimyo would reside in alternate years between the han and attendance in Edo. In their absence from Edo it was also required that they leave family as hostages until their return. The huge expenditure sankin-kotai imposed on each han helped centralize aristocratic alliances and ensured loyalty to the Shogun as each representative doubled as a potential hostage. Tokugawa's descendants further ensured loyalty by maintaining a dogmatic insistence on loyalty to the Shogun. Fudai daimyo were hereditary vassals of Ieyasu, as well as of his descendants. Tozama, or "outsiders", became vassals of Ieyasu after the battle of Sekigahara. Shinpan, or "relatives", were collaterals of Tokugawa Hidetada. Early in the Edo period, the shogunate viewed the tozama as the least likely to be loyal; over time, strategic marriages and the entrenchment of the system made the tozama less likely to rebel. In the end, it was the great tozama of Satsuma, Chōshū and Tosa and to a lesser extent Hizen that brought down the shogunate. These four states are called the Four Western Clans or Satchotohi for short.[6] The number of han (roughly 250) fluctuated throughout the Edo period. They were ranked by size, which was measured as the number of koku that the domain produced each year. One koku was the amount of rice necessary to feed one adult male for one year. The minimum number for a daimyo was ten thousand koku; the largest, apart from the shogun, was a million. [edit]

Lijin Tax

The likin or lijin[n 1] was a form of internal tariff in the Chinese Empire and Republic, which was first introduced as a means of financing the largely locally-recruited armies to suppress the Taiping Rebellion. The likin tax was first[citation needed] introduced in 1853 by censor Lei Yixian in the area around Yangzhou as a way of raising funds in the campaigns against local rebels. As the central government was short of revenue, the imperial court sanctioned the tax and it quickly became an important source of funds for the campaign against the Taiping and Nian rebellions. The tax was levied on an ad valorem basis on goods in transit between provinces and on shops,[citation needed] with rates ranging from 2 to 10 per cent.[1] After the Taipings were suppressed in 1864, the likin became a permanent feature of the Chinese tax system and it became an important source of revenue for local government, as China had lost its external tariff autonomy after the conclusion of the Treaty of Nanking. In many ways, the tax signified the decentralization of state authority in the wake of the Taiping rebellion. Foreign merchants in the treaty ports believed that the likin tax, as a form of tariff acting against western as well as local goods, was a violation of the treaties which China had concluded with the West. Consequently, foreign merchants made a number of unsuccessful attempts to pressure the Chinese government to abolish it. It survived the fall of the Qing dynasty into the Warlord Era and was not ended until 1 January 1931.

Bakafu

The term bakufu originally meant the dwelling and household of a shogun, but in time it came to be generally used for the system of government of a feudal military dictatorship, exercised in the name of the shogun; and this is the meaning that has been adopted into English through the term 'shogunate'. The shogunate system was originally established under the Kamakura shogunate by Minamoto no Yoritomo. Although theoretically the state, and therefore the Emperor, held ownership of all land of Japan, the system had some feudal elements, with lesser territorial lords pledging their allegiance to greater ones. Samurai were rewarded for their loyalty with agricultural surplus, usually rice, or labor services from peasants. In contrast to European feudal knights, samurai were not land owners.[13] The hierarchy that held this system of government together was reinforced by close ties of loyalty between samurai and their subordinates. Each shogunate was dynamic, not static. Power was constantly shifting and authority was often ambiguous. The study of the ebbs and flows in this complex history continues to occupy the attention of scholars. Each shogunate encountered competition. Sources of competition included the emperor and the court aristocracy, the remnants of the imperial governmental systems, the shōen system, the great temples and shrines, the shugo and the jitō, the kokujin and early modern daimyo. Each shogunate reflected the necessity of new ways of balancing the changing requirements of central and regional authorities.[14]

Treaty of Amity and Commerce

The treaty followed the 1854 Convention of Kanagawa, which granted coaling rights for U.S. ships and allowed for a U.S. Consul in Shimoda. Although Commodore Matthew Perry secured fuel for U.S. ships and protection for U.S. sailors, he left the important matter of trading rights to Townsend Harris, another U.S. envoy who negotiated with the Tokugawa Shogunate; the treaty is therefore often referred to as the "Harris Treaty". It took two years to break down Japanese resistance, but with the threat of looming British demands for similar privileges, the Tokugawa government eventually capitulated. Texts of the Treaties of Amity and Commerce between Japan and Holland, England, France, Russia and the United States, 1858. The most important points were:[1] exchange of diplomatic agents Kanagawa, Kobe, Nagasaki, Niigata, and Hakodate's opening to foreign trade as ports ability of United States citizens to live and trade in those ports a system of extraterritoriality that provided for the subjugation of foreign residents to the laws of their own consular courts instead of the Japanese law system fixed low import-export duties, subject to international control right of missionary operations and teaching The agreement served as a model for similar treaties signed by Japan with other foreign countries in the ensuing weeks. These Unequal Treaties curtailed Japanese sovereignty for the first time in its history; more importantly, it revealed Japan's growing weakness, and was seen by the West as a pretext for possible colonisation of Japan. The recovery of national status and strength became an overarching priority for the Japanese, with the treaty's domestic consequences being the end of Bakufu (Shogun) control and the establishment of a new imperial government. [edit]\

Imjin War

The two Japanese invasions of Korea took place from 1592 to 1598. Toyotomi Hideyoshi led the newly unified Japan into the first invasion (1592-1596) with the professed goal of conquering Joseon Dynasty Korea, and subsequently Ming Dynasty China,[7] and the European Merchants (Nanban, 南蛮[8][9]). The second invasion (1597-1598) was aimed as a retaliatory offensive against Joseon Dynasty Korea and Ming Dynasty China as its ally.[7] The invasions are also known as Hideyoshi's invasions of Korea, the Seven Year War (in reference to its span), the Imjin Waeran (Hangul: 임진왜란, Hanja: 壬辰倭亂 - lit. Japanese Invasion of the Imjin Year), in reference to the "Imjin (壬辰)" year of the sexagenary cycle in Korean,[10] and Bunroku Keichō no eki (Japanese: 文禄・慶長の役).

Yangban Class

The yangban were part of the traditional ruling class or nobles of dynastic Korea during the Joseon Dynasty. The yangban were either landed or unlanded aristocracy who comprised the Korean Confucian idea of a "scholarly official." Basically, they were administrators and bureaucrats who oversaw ancient Korea's traditional agrarian bureaucracy until the ancien regime of Joseon Dynasty ended in 1894. In a broader sense, office holder's family and descendents as well as country families who claimed such descendence were also socially accepted as yangban.

Yoshinobu

Tokugawa Yoshinobu (徳川 慶喜?) (also known as Keiki; October 28, 1837 - November 22, 1913) was the 15th and last shogun of the Tokugawa shogunate of Japan. He was part of a movement which aimed to reform the aging shogunate, but was ultimately unsuccessful. After resigning in late 1867, he went into retirement, and largely avoided the public eye for the rest of his life.

Toyatomi Hideyoshi

Toyotomi Hideyoshi (豊臣 秀吉?, February 2, 1536 or March 26, 1537 - September 18, 1598) was a daimyo, warrior, great general and politician of the Sengoku period.[1] He unified the political factions of Japan. He succeeded his former liege lord, Oda Nobunaga, and brought an end to the Sengoku period. The period of his rule is often called the Momoyama period, named after Hideyoshi's castle. He is noted for a number of cultural legacies, including the restriction that only members of the samurai class could bear arms. Hideyoshi is regarded as Japan's second "great unifier".[2]Toyotomi Hideyoshi changed Japanese society in many ways. These include imposition of a rigid class structure, restriction on travel, and surveys of land and production. Class reforms affected commoners and warriors. During the Sengoku period, it had become common for peasants to become warriors, or for samurai to farm due to the constant uncertainty caused by the lack of centralized government and always tentative peace. Upon taking control, Hideyoshi decreed that all peasants be disarmed completely.[26] Conversely, he required samurai to leave the land and take up residence in the castle towns.[27][28] This solidified the social class system for the next 300 years. Furthermore, he ordered comprehensive surveys and a complete census of Japan. Once this was done and all citizens were registered, he required all Japanese to stay in their respective han (fiefs) unless they obtained official permission to go elsewhere. This ensured order in a period when bandits still roamed the countryside and peace was still new. The land surveys formed the basis for systematic taxation.[29] In 1590, Hideyoshi completed construction of the Osaka Castle, the largest and most formidable in all Japan, to guard the western approaches to Kyoto. In that same year, Hideyoshi banned "unfree labor" or slavery;[30] but forms of contract and indentured labor persisted alongside the period penal codes' forced labor.[31] Hideyoshi also influenced the material culture of Japan. He lavished time and money on the tea ceremony, collecting implements, sponsoring lavish social events, and patronizing acclaimed masters. As interest in the tea ceremony rose among the ruling class, so too did demand for fine ceramic implements, and during the course of the Korean campaigns, not only were large quantities of prized ceramic ware confiscated, many Korean artisans were forcibly relocated to Japan.[32] Inspired by the dazzling Golden Pavilion in Kyoto, he also constructed a fabulous portable tea room, covered with gold leaf and lined inside with red gossamer. Using this mobile innovation, he was able to practice the tea ceremony wherever he went, powerfully projecting his unrivaled power and status upon his arrival. Politically, he set up a governmental system that balanced out the most powerful Japanese warlords (or daimyo). A council was created to include the most influential lords. At the same time, a regent was designated to be in command. Just prior to his death, Hideyoshi hoped to set up a system stable enough to survive until his son grew old enough to become the next leader.[33] A Council of Five Elders (五大老 go-tairō?) was formed, consisting of the five most powerful daimyo. Following the death of Maeda Toshiie, however, Tokugawa Ieyasu began to secure alliances, including political marriages (which had been forbidden by Hideyoshi). Eventually, the pro-Toyotomi forces fought against the Tokugawa in the Battle of Sekigahara. Ieyasu won and received the title of Seii-tai Shogun two years later. Hideyoshi is commemorated at several Toyokuni Shrines scattered over Japan. Ieyasu left in place the majority of Hideyoshi's decrees and built his shogunate upon them. This ensured that Hideyoshi's cultural legacy remained. In a letter to his wife, Hideyoshi wrote:

Ukiyo-e

Ukiyo-e (浮世絵 literally "pictures of the floating world"?) (Japanese pronunciation: [ukijo.e] or [ukijoꜜe]) is a genre of Japanese woodblock prints (or woodcuts) and paintings produced between the 17th and the 20th centuries, featuring motifs of landscapes, tales from history, the theatre, and pleasure quarters. It is the main artistic genre of woodblock printing in Japan. Usually the word ukiyo is literally translated as "floating world" in English, referring to a conception of an evanescent world, impermanent, fleeting beauty and a realm of entertainments (kabuki, courtesans, geisha) divorced from the responsibilities of the mundane, everyday world; "pictures of the floating world", i.e. ukiyo-e, are considered a genre unto themselves. The contemporary novelist Asai Ryōi, in his Ukiyo monogatari (浮世物語 "Tales of the Floating World", c. 1661?), provides some insight into the concept of the floating world: ... Living only for the moment, turning our full attention to the pleasures of the moon, the snow, the cherry blossoms and the maple leaves; singing songs, drinking wine, diverting ourselves in just floating, floating; ... refusing to be disheartened, like a gourd floating along with the river current: this is what we call the floating world...[1] The art form rose to great popularity in the metropolitan culture of Edo (Tokyo) during the second half of the 17th century, originating with the single-color works of Hishikawa Moronobu in the 1670s. At first, only India ink was used, then some prints were manually colored with a brush, but in the 18th century Suzuki Harunobu developed the technique of polychrome printing to produce nishiki-e. Ukiyo-e were affordable because they could be mass-produced. They were mainly meant for townsmen, who were generally not wealthy enough to afford an original painting. The original subject of ukiyo-e was city life, in particular activities and scenes from the entertainment district. Beautiful courtesans, bulky sumo wrestlers and popular actors would be portrayed while engaged in appealing activities. Later on landscapes also became popular. Political subjects, and individuals above the lowest strata of society (courtesans, wrestlers and actors) were not sanctioned in these prints and very rarely appeared. Sex was not a sanctioned subject either, but continually appeared in ukiyo-e prints. Artists and publishers were sometimes punished for creating these sexually explicit shunga.

Prince Gong

Yixin (Manchu: ᡳ ᡥᡳᠨ I Hin; 11 January 1833 - 29 May 1898), better known as Prince Gong (or Prince Kung in Wade-Giles) or formally Prince Gong of the First Rank (恭親王), was a prince and statesman of the Qing Dynasty. He was the sixth son of the Daoguang Emperor and a half brother of Daoguang's successor, the Xianfeng Emperor. He served as regent during the reign of Xianfeng's son and successor, the Tongzhi Emperor. Having established the Zongli Yamen (a government body in charge of foreign affairs) in 1861, Yixin is best remembered as a proponent of maintenance of friendly relations between the Qing government and the foreign powers, as well as for his attempts to modernise China in the late 19th century. Commonly referred to as the "Sixth Prince" (六王爺) in his time, Yixin was nicknamed "Devil Number Six" (鬼子六) by conservatives in the Qing imperial court, in reference to his frequent contacts with westerners (gweilo; literally "foreign devils", a colloquialism for westerners).

Zaibatsu

Zaibatsu (財閥?, literally financial clique) is a Japanese term referring to industrial and financial business conglomerates in the Empire of Japan, whose influence and size allowed control over significant parts of the Japanese economy from the Meiji period until the end of World War II.

queue

a hairstyle, frequently used in reference to men, in which the hair is worn long and gathered up into a pigtail, often braided. Manchu hairstyle was forcefully introduced to Han Chinese by haris in the early 17th century. Nurhaci achieved the creation of Aisin Gioro dynasty, later becoming the Qing Dynasty of China, after having defeated the Ming forces in southern Manchuria. Once firmly in power, Nurhaci commanded all men in the areas he had conquered to adopt the Manchu hairstyle. The Manchu hairstyle was significant because it was a symbol of Ming Chinese submission to Qing rule. The queue also aided the Manchus in identifying those Chinese who refused to accept Qing dynasty domination. [edit]

First Opium War

he First Anglo-Chinese War (1839-42), known popularly as the First Opium War or simply the Opium War, was fought between the United Kingdom and the Qing Dynasty of China over their conflicting viewpoints on diplomatic relations, trade, and the administration of justice.[3] Chinese officials wished to control the spread of opium, and confiscated supplies of opium from British traders. The British government, although not officially denying China's right to control imports, objected to this seizure and used its military power to violently enforce redress.[3] In 1842, the Treaty of Nanking—the first of what the Chinese later called the unequal treaties—granted an indemnity to Britain, the opening of five treaty ports, and the cession of Hong Kong Island, thereby ending the trade monopoly of the Canton System. The failure of the treaty to satisfy British goals of improved trade and diplomatic relations led to the Second Opium War (1856-60).[4] The war is now considered in China as the beginning of modern Chinese history.[5][6]

Meiji Restoration

he Meiji Restoration (明治維新 Meiji Ishin?), also known as the Meiji Ishin, Revolution, Reform or Renewal, was a chain of events that restored imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. The goals of the restored government were expressed by the new emperor in the Charter Oath. The Restoration led to enormous changes in Japan's political and social structure, and spanned both the late Edo period (often called Late Tokugawa shogunate) and the beginning of the Meiji period. The period spanned from 1868 to 1912 and was responsible for the emergence of Japan as a modernized nation in the early twentieth century. There were many causes to the Meiji Restoration. The Japanese knew that they were behind the rest of the world when American Commodore Matthew C. Perry came to Japan to try to issue a treaty that would open up Japanese ports to trade. Perry came to Japan in large warships with armament and technology that far outclassed those of Japan at the time. The leaders of the Meiji Restoration, as this revolution came to be known, acted in the name of restoring imperial rule in order to strengthen Japan against the threat represented by the colonial powers of the day. The word "Meiji" means "enlightened rule" and the goal was to combine "western advances" with the traditional, "eastern" values.[3] The main leaders of this were: Itō Hirobumi, Matsukata Masayoshi, Kido Takayoshi, Itagaki Taisuke, Yamagata Aritomo, Mori Arinori, Ōkubo Toshimichi, and Yamaguchi Naoyoshi. Under the leadership of Mori Arinori, a group of prominent Japanese intellectuals went on to form the Meiji Six Society in 1873 in order to continue to "promote civilization and enlightenment" through western ethics and ideas. However, during the restoration, political power simply moved from the Tokugawa Shogunate to an oligarchy consisting of these leaders, mostly from the Satsuma Province (Ōkubo Toshimichi and Saigō Takamori), and Chōshū Province (Itō Hirobumi, Yamagata Aritomo, and Kido Takayoshi). This reflected their belief in the more traditional practice of imperial rule, whereby the Emperor of Japan serves solely as the spiritual authority of the nation and his ministers govern the nation in his name. [edit]Effects Main articles: Meiji Period, Government of Meiji Japan, Meiji Constitution, and Abolition of the han system Allegory of the New fighting the Old in early Meiji Japan, circa 1870. The Meiji Restoration accelerated industrialization in Japan, which led to its rise as a military power by the year 1905, under the slogan of "Enrich the country, strengthen the military" (富国強兵 fukoku kyōhei?). The Meiji oligarchy that formed the government under the rule of the Emperor first introduced measures to consolidate their power against the remnants of the Edo period government, the shogunate, daimyo, and the samurai class. In 1868, all Tokugawa lands were seized and placed under "imperial control", thus placing them under the prerogative of the new Meiji government. In 1869, the daimyo of the Tosa, Hizen, Satsuma and Chōshū domains, who were pushing most fiercely against the shogunate, were persuaded to 'return their domains to the Emperor'. Other daimyo were subsequently persuaded to do so, thus creating, arguably for the first time, a central government in Japan which exercised direct power through the entire 'realm' (天下). Finally, in 1871, the daimyo, past and present, were summoned before the Emperor, where it was declared that all domains were now to be returned to the Emperor. The roughly 300 domains (han) were turned into prefectures, each under the control of a state-appointed governor. By 1888, several prefectures had been merged in several steps to reduce their number to 75. The daimyo were promised 1/10 of their fiefs' income as private income. Later, their debts and payments of samurai stipends were to be taken over by the state. The oligarchs also endeavoured to abolish the four divisions of society. The Tokyo Koishikawa Arsenal was established in 1871. Throughout Japan at the time, the samurai numbered 1.9 million. (For comparison, this was more than 10 times the size of the French privileged class before the 1789 French Revolution. Moreover, the samurai in Japan were not merely the lords, but also their higher retainers—people who actually worked.) With each samurai being paid fixed stipends, their upkeep presented a tremendous financial burden, which may have prompted the oligarchs to action. Whatever their true intentions, the oligarchs embarked on another slow and deliberate process to abolish the samurai class. First, in 1873, it was announced that the samurai stipends were to be taxed on a rolling basis. Later, in 1874, the samurai were given the option to convert their stipends into government bonds. Finally, in 1876, this commutation was made compulsory. To reform the military, the government instituted nationwide conscription in 1873, mandating that every male would serve in the armed forces upon turning 21 for four years; followed by three more years in the reserves. One of the primary differences between the samurai and peasant class was the right to bear arms; this ancient privilege was suddenly extended to every male in the nation. Furthermore, samurai were no longer allowed to walk about town bearing a sword or weapon to show their status as in former times. This led to a series of riots from disgruntled samurai. One of the major riots was the one led by Saigō Takamori, the Satsuma Rebellion, which eventually turned into a civil war. This rebellion was, however, put down swiftly by the newly formed Imperial Japanese Army, trained in Western tactics and weapons, even though the core of the new army was the Tokyo police force, which was largely composed of former samurai. This sent a strong message to the dissenting samurai that their time was indeed up. There were fewer subsequent samurai uprisings and the distinction became all but a name as the samurai joined the new society. The ideal of samurai military spirit lived on in romanticized form and was often used as propaganda during the early 20th century wars of the Empire of Japan. However, it is equally true that the majority of samurai were content despite having their status abolished. Many found employment in the government bureaucracy, which resembled an elite class in its own right. The samurai, being better educated than most of the population, became teachers, gun makers, government officials, or military officers. While the formal title of samurai was abolished, the elitist spirit that characterized the samurai class lived on. The oligarchs also embarked on a series of land reforms. In particular, they legitimized the tenancy system which had been going on during the Tokugawa period. Despite the bakufu's best efforts to freeze the four classes of society in place, during their rule villagers had begun to lease land out to other farmers, becoming rich in the process. This greatly disrupted the clearly defined class system which the bakufu had envisaged, partly leading to their eventual downfall. The military of Japan was also strengthened, and they showed themselves as a growing world power by winning both the Sino-Japanese war, and the Russo-Japanese war. The victory against Russia was the more shocking as it was the first time since the Mongol invasion of Europe that an Asian nation had obtained a major victory against a European power. Besides drastic changes to the social structure of Japan, in an attempt to create a strong centralized state defining its national identity, the government established a dominant national dialect that replaced local and regional dialects called hyojungo, which was based on patterns of the Tokyo's samurai classes that has eventually become the norm in the realms of education, media, government and business.[4] [edit]

Tongzhi Emperor

he Tongzhi Emperor (Wade-Giles: Tung-chih Emperor; 27 April 1856 - 12 January 1875), born Zaichun (Wade-Giles: Tsai-chun) of the Manchu Aisin Gioro clan, was the tenth emperor of the Qing Dynasty, and the eighth Qing emperor to rule over China. His reign, from 1861 to 1875, which effectively lasted through his adolescence, was largely overshadowed by the rule of his mother Empress Dowager Cixi. Although he had little influence over state affairs, the events of his reign gave rise to what historians call the "Tongzhi Restoration", an unsuccessful attempt to stabilise and modernise China.

second opium wars

n 1856, Chinese soldiers boarded The Arrow, a Chinese-owned ship registered in Hong Kong flying the British flag and suspected of piracy, smuggling and of being engaged in the opium trade. They captured 12 men and imprisoned them. Though the certificate allowing the ship to fly a British flag had expired, there was still an armed response. The British and French sent gunboats under the command of Admiral Sir Michael Seymour to capture the Taku Forts in May 1858. In June 1858, at the end of the first part of the Second Opium War, the Treaties of Tianjin were signed, which opened Tianjin to foreign trade. In 1859, after China refused to allow the setting up of foreign legations in Beijing, a naval force under the command of British Admiral Sir James Hope attacked the forts guarding the mouth of the Peiho river. During the action US Navy Commodore Josiah Tattnall came to the assistance of the British gunboat HMS Plover,- commanded by Lt William Hector Rason, who was killed in the action [1]- offering to take off their wounded. Plover's commander, Hope, accepted the offer and a launch was sent to take off the wounded. Later, Tattnall discovered that some of his men were black from powder flashes. When asked, the men replied that the British had been short handed with the bow gun. His famous report sent to Washington claimed "Blood is thicker than water". This was the first time the British troops needed American assistance after suffering major casualties from the Taku cannon barrage, and the first time that British and American troops fought side by side. In 1860, an Anglo-French force gathered at Hong Kong and then carried out a landing at Pei Tang on August 1, and a successful assault on the Taku Forts on August 21 after which Hospital Apprentice A. Fitzgibbon of the Indian Medical Establishment became the youngest recipient of the Victoria Cross at the age of 15 years and 3 months.[2] The forts were severely mauled and General Sengge Rinchen's troops were forced to withdraw. On September 26, the force arrived at Beijing and had captured the city by October 13. [edit]

Conventions of Beijing

n the Convention, the Emperor of China ratified the Treaty of Tientsin (1858). The area known as Kowloon was originally leased in March 1860. The Convention of Peking ended the lease, and ceded the land formally to the British on 24 October 1860.[3] Article 6 of the Convention between China and the United Kingdom stipulated that China was to cede the part of Kowloon Peninsula south of present day Boundary Street, Kowloon, and Hong Kong (including Stonecutters Island) in perpetuity to Britain. Article 6 of the Convention between China and France stipulated that "the religious and charitable establishments which were confiscated from Christians during the persecutions of which they were victims shall be returned to their owners through the French Minister in China".[4] Main article: Amur Annexation The treaty also ceded parts of Outer Manchuria to the Russian Empire. It granted Russia the right to the Ussuri krai, a part of the modern day Primorye, the territory that corresponded with the ancient Manchu province of East Tartary. See Treaty of Aigun (1858), Treaty of Nerchinsk (1689) and Russian-Manchu border conflicts. In China, the treaty is labelled an unequal treaty. [edit]

Genro

was an unofficial designation given to certain retired elder Japanese statesmen, considered the "founding fathers" of modern Japan,[citation needed] who served as informal extraconstitutional advisors to the emperor, during the Meiji, Taishō and early Shōwa periods in Japanese history. The institution of genrō originated with the traditional council of elders (Rōjū) common in the Edo period; however, the term genrō appears to have been coined by a newspaper only in 1892. The term is sometimes confused with the Genrōin (Chamber of Elders), a legislative body which existed from 1875-1890; however, the genrō were not related to the establishment of that body or its dissolution. Experienced leaders of the Meiji Restoration were singled out by the Emperor as genkun, and asked to act as Imperial advisors. With the exception of Saionji Kinmochi, all the genrō were from medium or lower ranking samurai families, four each from Satsuma and Chōshū, the two former domains that had been instrumental in the overthrow of the former Tokugawa shogunate in the Boshin War of the Meiji Restoration of 1867-1868. The genrō had the right to select and nominate Prime Ministers to the Emperor for approval. The first seven genrō were all formerly members of the Sangi (Imperial Council) which was abolished in 1885. They are also sometimes known to historians as the Meiji oligarchy, although not all of the Meiji oligarchs were genrō. The institution expired in 1940, with the death of the last of the genrō, Saionji Kinmochi. [edit]

Yuan dynasty

was the empire established by Kublai Khan, leader of the Mongolian Borjigin clan, after he conquered Southern Song dynasties in China. Although the Mongols had ruled territories, which included today's northern China for decades, it was not until 1271 that Kublai Khan officially proclaimed the dynasty in the traditional Chinese style.[2] His realm - the Great Yuan Empire (t 大元帝國, s 大元帝国, p Dà Yuán Dìguó) - was by this point isolated from the other khanates and controlled only most of present-day China and its surrounding areas including modern Mongolia.[3] It was the first foreign dynasty to rule all of China and lasted until 1368, after which its remnants in Mongolia were known as the Northern Yuan. The Yuan is considered both a successor to the Mongol Empire and as an imperial Chinese dynasty. In official Chinese histories, the Yuan Dynasty bore the Mandate of Heaven, following the Song Dynasty and preceding the Ming Dynasty. Although the dynasty was established by Kublai Khan, he placed his grandfather Genghis Khan on the imperial records as the official founder of the dynasty as Taizu. In addition to Emperor of China, Kublai Khan also claimed the title of Great Khan, supreme over the other successor khanates: the Chagatai, the Golden Horde, and the Ilkhanate. As such, the Great Yuan Empire was also sometimes referred to as the Empire of the Great Khan. However, although this claim of the emperors of the Yuan Dynasty was at times recognized by the western khans, their subservience was merely nominal and they each continued their own separate development.[4][5][6]