History of Japan: Difference between revisions

[[Japan]] has been inhabited since the Upper Paleolithic period. The first written mention of the archipelago appears in a Chinese chronicle finished in the 2nd century. Between the 4th and 9th centuries, the various tribes of Japan unified under the Yamato emperor, with the Imperial Court based in KyotoMiaco. Beginning in the 12th century, political power was held by a series of military dictators (''shōgunxogun'') and feudal lords (''daimyō''), and enforced by a class of warrior nobility (s''amurai'').

==== AzuchiAzutxi-MomoyamaMomojama period (1568-1603) ====

ToyotomiTojotomi HideyoshiHidejoxi and Oda Nobunaga, two prominent Japanese warlords, sought to reunify and strengthen Japan after the decline of the Ashikaga regime. After Nobunaga’s suicide in 1582, HideyoshiHidejoxi completed the unification of Japan. He centralized many Japanese institutions, persecuted Christians, and modernized the economy. In the 1590s, Japan invaded Corea but ultimately failed.

In the aftermath of the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sengoku_period Warring States era], one of Hideyoshi’sHidejoxi’s son’s regents, TokugawaTocugawa Ieyasu - the only former ally of the Oda clan in Hideyoshi’sHidejoxi’s inner circle - sought to unify Japan under his rule. After the Battle of SekigaharaSequigahara, TokugawaTocugawa managed to consolidate his rule by 1603.

The first seventy years of the Edo period were defined by [https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%AD%A6%E6%96%AD%E6%94%BF%E6%B2%BB martial rule] and the formation of the post-HideyoshiHidejoxi political order in Japan. The state had extensive interactions with the Dutch, Chinese pirates, pro-Confucianists, and the Japanese Christian movement.

==== Early years and SakokuSacocu ====

TokugawaTocugawa was deeply concerned about stability and instituted protectionist, centralizing, and systematic policies to ensure national prosperity. The votality of Japanese politics, the [[Spain|Spanish]] conquest of the [[Philippines]], [[Netherlands|Dutch]] entry into East Asia, and several other potential threats led to the gradual institution of the SakokuSacocu doctrine [鎖国, lit. locked nation].

From 1633 to 1636, the Japanese state passed the Four SakokuSacocu Ordinances: to ban Japanese migration, construct Desjima, limiting foreign maritime trade, and expulsion of Portuguese traders.

==== [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shimabara_Rebellion ShimabaraXimabara Rebellion] (1637) ====

At the time, Japan had an estimated 300,000 Christians. Many of these Christians were peasant farmers and the lower classes, who embraced the faith in opposition to oppressive feudal lords. The ShimabaraXimabara rebellion, led by the teenage convert AmakusaAmacusa ShiroXiro, erupted in southern Japan after a raise in taxes. After a few months, it was successfully suppressed with the murder of over 25,000 Catholics and conversions of several more. Many of these Catholics publicly abandoned the faith and became crypto-Christians.

In 1641, the Dutch took over the former Portuguese trading post at NagasakiNagasaqui. They created [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dejima Desjima island] in order to conduct trade with the Japanese. Over a period of time, the Japanese became deeply interested in Dutch culture and science, eventually creating the academic school of [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rangaku RangakuRangacu] (蘭学, lit. Dutch studies).

==== The KeianCeian Affair and the Jōō Massacre ====

In 1651 and 1652,  two incidents occurred where rōnin attempted to overthrow the TokugawaTocugawa state. The [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Keian_Uprising KeianCeian Affair] largely failed and ended with the suicide of mastermind Yui ShōsetsuXoseçu. A year later in 1652, BetsukiBeçuqui ShozaemonXozaemon planned to kill government officials at a memorial service in Edo. A few officials were killed, including [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abe_Tadaaki Abe TadaakiTadaqui] and Kuzo HiroyukiHirojuqui, before the assailants were put down. Chief advisor [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sakai_Tadakiyo SakaiSacai TadakiyoTadakijo] was injured. It is theorized that security was inadequate in Edo that day due to the arrival of the Fukienese from China.

After the 1652 [https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%B1%9F%E4%B8%9C%E6%A1%A5 Battle of Chiangtung Bridge], Koxinga and the Fukien resistance were [[Wahhah Republic#Stabilization%20of%20the%20Qing%20periphery|defeated]] by the Qing. Many refugees fled to the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ryukyu_Kingdom Loetsjoes], southeast Asia, and most notably, Japan. Koxinga himself settled in Hirado with permission from the ShogunateXogunate, after glorifying his own samurai ancestry through his Japanese mother. He went by the name Tagawa FukumatsuFukumaçu and became an active member of Japanese society while maintaining his Ming loyalist roots. Koxinga was granted freedom of movement in KyushuQuiuxu for a month, before it being revoked due to security concerns - he was officially confined to the Hirado lordship thereafter.

The youthful Lord of Hirado, MatsuuraMaçura ShigenobuXigenobu, was worried about Hirado’s economy due to Western trade being limited to Desjima. His father, the late Lord TakanobuTacanobu, was a baptized Catholic and he noticed how the Fukianese community often syncretised Christian, folk, and Buddhist traditions. In the autumn of 1653, the Lord secretly confirmed an agreement with Koxinga and his close ally, the Italian Dominican missionary Vittorio Riccio (who lived in between Amoy, Desjima, and Hirado). The agreement, called the Verboten Collaboratie in Dutch, entailed:

# Covertly profiting from Corean trade in the TsushimaÇuxima Domain, cooperating with collaborationist Dutch traders in Poesjan and Tsjedjoe.

# Covertly profiting from Loetsjoean trade, especially sulfur, in the SatsumaSaçuma Domain, cooperating with the Fukianese [https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%84%AD%E5%BD%A9 Cheng Cai] who lived in Loetsjoe.

# While disobeying the [https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%85%B6%E5%AE%89%E5%BE%A1%E8%A7%A6%E6%9B%B8 Proclamation of Kei’anCeian], smuggle in luxury goods for peasants such as alcohol.

This agreement was safe until the final months of 1654, when smuggling activities were found out by the NagasakiNagasaqui secret police. Two Fukienese men, Vittorio Riccio, and seven Japanese men were arrested. Koxinga was not implicated and the Fukienese men were deported to Formosa as servants. The Japanese men received appropriate punishments, while Riccio was imprisoned near NagasakiNagasaqui.

==== [https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%98%8E%E6%9A%A6 MeirekiMeirequi era] (1655-1658) ====

The MeirekiMeirequi era was defined by the Ōmura Rebellion, the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_fire_of_Meireki Great Fire of Edo], and a key shift in the balance of power in Japanese politics.

The execution of Riccio and 27 Japanese Catholics took place on the 8th of October, when the area was crowded due to the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nagasaki_Kunchi Autumn Festival] in nearby NagasakiNagasaqui. This day was intentionally chosen as a warning to the peasantry. Seconds after the execution, an arquebus fired three shots at the Lord and his family. The Lord’s 29-year-old brother [https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E7%9A%86%E5%B7%9D%E7%A7%80%E9%9A%86 Hidetaka Minagawa] was killed. Hidekata’s assassin was never found.

After word spread, agitation spread north to Hirado and south to AmakusaAmacusa within days. Over the next three months, local domains engaged in skirmishes across KyushuQuiuxu and arrested some 2,000 people. By 1656, it had morphed into a full-scale revolt that centered around the eponymous Ōmura Bay.

At the outset of the main insurgency, [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inoue_Masashige Inoue MasashigeMasaxige], Governor of ChikugoTxicugo, led a sizable TokugawaTocugawa force towards the rebellion while intelligence director [https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E4%B8%AD%E6%A0%B9%E6%AD%A3%E7%9B%9B Masamori Nakane] dispatched agents to the region to quell local insurgencies. Intense battles lasted for a few months before sporadic and guerrilla warfare became more prevalent.

The conflict engulfed almost all of KyushuQuiuxu, spilling over into ChūgokuTxugocu, ShikokuXicocu, and even a few Corean and Loetsjoe islands. Around 45,000 people were killed or disappeared due to warfare.

Several structures were damaged, including the castles of KushimaCuxima and Saga. Mirroring the Siege of Hara Castle twenty years ago during the ShimabaraXimabara Rebellion, the insurgents besieged KushimaCuxima Castle - home of the Ōmura lords -  in the summer of 1657. Eventually the castle fell, and the Lord of Ōmura was burned at the stake in an act that shocked the nation.

An epidemic was reported near the town of KumamotoCumamoto ten months into the conflict. It spread as far as Hita, killing less than 4,000, before it was contained by local authorities. A few cases were also documented in HiroshimaHiroxima and Imabari, but it is unclear if these are isolated incidents.

The rebel army still held a considerable area in 1658. However, there were thousands of casualties and a lack of ammunition, sulfur, and medical supplies put a strain on the insurgents. Additionally, the ShogunateXogunate had to devote an unsustainable number of resources to fighting the rebels, leading them to instead switch to a war of attrition. War was still raging on when the MeirekiMeirequi Putsch occurred in the capital, Edo.

After news of the Putsch reached KyushuQuiuxu, the area gradually stabilized over the next two years as willpower and resources declined. The Battle of Uresino was a pivotal defeat for the rebels. After the battle, Koxinga was pursued by a high-ranking retainer to the Lord of ChoshuTxoxu. Near the fishing town of Sasebo, Koxinga was killed. His Japanese-raised brother and ally, Tagawa ShichizaemonXitxizaemon, buried him in his birthplace of Hirado and defended the Hirado domain from TokugawaTocugawa incursions.

25,000 rebels and criminals were arrested, exiled, and/or executed by the TokugawaTocugawa state. An estimated total of 106,000 rebels and their affiliates  were active at one point or another over the span of three years.

===== MeirekiMeirequi Putsch =====

Many details of the Putsch were purged in later records, though commentaries and diary entries on the event do exist. Many samurai,  rōnin, and disgruntled scholars conspired to overthrow the current ministerial administration in order to restore peace. It is said that the Lord of WakayamaWacajama and brother of the ShogunXogun, [https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%BE%B3%E5%B7%9D%E9%A0%BC%E5%AE%A3 TokugawaTocugawa YorinobuJorinobu], played an important role in supporting the Putsch.

HasekuraHasequra TsunenobuÇunenobu, grandson of [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hasekura_Tsunenaga HasekuraHasequra TsunenagaÇunenaga], began stirring up civil disobedience against the Date clan in Sendai in 1658. The area had historically been the epicenter of Christianity in northern Japan. The Lord of Sendai, [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Date_Tsunamune Date TsunemuneÇunemune], was infamously a drunkard and unpopular among the aristocracy. His incompetence and indiscriminate persecutions of Christians and peasants  allowed for the demonstrations to turn into a mutiny. The overpopulated and outdated bureaucracy of the Sendai domain sparked a series of intra-aristocrat conflicts. Eventually, [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tamura_Muneyoshi Tamura MuneyoshiMunejoxi] - relative of the Date clan - took control of Sendai in 1660 and maintained a version of the status quo until the ascension of the young lord Date TsunamuraÇunamura in 1680.

The [[Wahhah Republic#Fate%20of%20the%20House%20of%20Zhu|now-Catholic Zhu family]] of the Ming, surviving in southwestern China, had sent a letter written by [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Empress_Wang_(Southern_Ming) Empress Anne Wang] to the Chinese and Japanese Christians in KyushuQuiuxu via an empathetic Cantonese trader in 1656 to request rescue before the imminent Qing conquest of Kunming.

The events of the MeirekiMeirequi era were documented well by [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hayashi_Razan HayashiHajaxi Razan], a Japanese Confucian philosopher. After his death in 1657, his son HayashiHajaxi Gaho and the wider HayashiHajaxi clan compiled a detailed account and analysis of the era’s events, which were used during the KanbunCanbun Reforms.

==== The [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kanbun_(era) KanbunCanbun] Reforms ====

After national order was restored in 1660, a series of edicts and policies were enacted during the twelve-year KanbunCanbun era.

Each Japanese family, part of a wider ''[https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/%E9%96%A5#Japanese batsubaçu]'', had to register with a local Buddhist temple since the start of the TokugawaTocugawa era - for purposes of administration and social control. In ordinances passed in 1663 and 1668, handpicked loyal domains with a (semi-)Christian aristocracy could allow for families to instead register with local churches. This allowed for churches to be centers of community life, for the public display of faith to become normalized, and for Christian institutions to assimilate into Japanese life under pressure from the local populationlocals. A majority of the domains and fiefdoms who chose to give churches such a position were located in KyushuQuiuxu and the TōhokuTohocu area. In Japanese, it was known as ShusōXusō Hansō (主宗藩宗, lit. ''Lord’s faith, fief’s faith'').

Xenophobia and otherisation largely increased due to the MeirekiMeirequi era. The people of southern KyushuQuiuxu were often referred to as the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hayato_people HayatoHajato], Japan’s own ‘southern barbarians’. Confucian scholars in the service of the TokugawaTocugawa state often commented on how uncivilized the HayatoHajato were, and pointed to the Ōmura Rebellion as proof. As a result, numerous Confucian institutes were constructed in cities such as FukuokaFuquoca, NagasakiNagasaqui, and Hinata.

The TokugawaTocugawa government also intensified their patronage of the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edo_neo-Confucianism ShushiXuxi school] of Neo-Confucianism, which they used to justify their centralization and reformist measures. The HayashiHajaxi family, devout Confucians, became increasingly influential in TokugawaTocugawa society and led the implementation of Confucian practices in everyday life.

The last eighty years of the Edo period was defined by the introduction of [https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%96%87%E6%B2%BB%E6%94%BF%E6%B2%BB civil governance], Dutch and Russian incursions into Japanese politics, and the 1754 succession crisis. The two most notable imperial eras of the period were [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genroku GenrokuGenroqu] and [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ky%C5%8Dh%C5%8D KyōhoCioho].

==== TakeshimaTaquexima dispute ====

The islands of [https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E9%AC%B1%E9%99%B5%E5%B3%B6#%E5%90%8D%E7%A7%B0 TakeshimaTaquexima] and [https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E7%AB%B9%E5%B3%B6#%E6%97%A5%E6%9C%AC%E3%81%A7%E3%81%AE%E5%90%8D%E7%A7%B0 MatsushimaMaçuxima], both uninhabited since 1438, became a major focus of Corea-Japan relations in the late 17th century. Japanese from [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oki_District,_Shimane OkiOqui] entered into a serious dispute with Corean fishermen in the 1690s, when they abducted two Coreans and brought them to Japan to protest their fishing rights. Petrus Hoekstra, a VOC employee in Poesjan, reported the diplomatic dispute to officials in Desjima in 1694 and advocated Dutch intervention.

After several aristocrats and sailors under the Lord of Tottori ignored a TokugawaTocugawa ban on fishing near TakeshimaTaquexima, Hoekstra wrote to a Poesjan magistrate, saying that “...the audacious Japanese attitude is an insult to the nation… the Wa-djin must be disciplined…”. When negotiations resumed in 1696 through the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/S%C5%8D_clan Lord of TsushimaÇuxima], an Dutch ship accompanying the Corean delegation intentionally veered off course, heading towards the MatsushimaMaçuxima and OkiOqui isles.  

The Dutch ship, manned by Petrus Hoekstra, fired upon Japanese sailors as they headed towards TakeshimaTaquexima ([https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ulleungdo Oelloeng-to]) and threatened to personally report the Tottori estate for disobedience against the ShogunXogun. A Japanese sailor from OkiOqui was captured and brought back to Corea, where he later was coerced to testify to the corruption in the Tottori domain. As a result, the Tottori domain was placed under the authority of the Lord of Tottori’s rival, the [https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%B1%A0%E7%94%B0%E7%B6%B1%E6%94%BF Lord of OkayamaOkajama], due to the former being incompetent and having no children to succeed him.

The TakeshimaTaquexima incident was the first official instance of Dutch intercession in Corean political affairs. It contributed to the generally positive Corean perspective of the Dutch, which eventually led to the Corean state allowing the formation of the Dutch territory at Poesjan in 1710. Hoekstra became the first administrator of the territory and remained influential until his death in 1719. He was known in Japan for his harsh policy on Japanese traders and the dismissal of a petition to expand Poesjan’s immigrant quarters.

Rapid expansion of Dutch influence in Asia was regarded negatively by other European powers. The French named the phenomenon the Poussée Hollandais''poussée-hollandais'', or ‘Dutch Rush’ in English.

In the economically declining [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dewa_Province Dewa province], the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yonezawa_Domain YonezawaJonezawa] and [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sh%C5%8Dnai_Domain ShōnaiXonai] domains, ruled by the Uesugi and SakaiSacai respectively, competed for a head start in Russian trade relations. Both fought over the key port of [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sakata,_Yamagata#History SakataSacata]. The Lord of YonezawaJonezawa won militarily, but failed to establish relations with the Russians due to infighting and corruption in the Uesugi family. [https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%A3%AE%E5%88%A9%E7%9C%9F#%E5%8F%B0%E9%A0%AD Mori ToshimaToxima], a guard employed by the Uesugi, defected to the SakaiSacai family and offered his skills. The Lord of Shōnai’sXonai’s relatives in Obama offered to lend him the port of Maizuru, which was granted to the SakaiSacai in 1666.

1755 marked the year in which Russian merchants began routinely trading in Maizuru, threatening Dutch monopolies. The Russo-Japanese Trading Company (RYT)  formed in 1756. The Lord of ShōnaiXonai also owned the trading post of [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teshio,_Hokkaido TeshioTexio] in northwestern Ezo, which became a port of call for Russian traders.

==== KyōhoCioho Reforms ====

ShogunXogun [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tokugawa_Yoshimune TokugawaTocugawa YoshimuneJoximune] introduced a series of separate reforms and policies starting in 1716 in order to restore the financial well-being of the state and consolidate TokugawaTocugawa supremacy. Several controls and restrictions were imposed on Japanese society in an effort to increase tsū''çu'' (sophistication). Yoshimune’sJoximune’s former regent, the Lord of Owari [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tokugawa_Yoshimichi TokugawaTocugawa YoshimichiJoximichi], actively criticized the shogunate’sxogunate’s new reforms, creating an intense polarization in the court and undermining the authority of the ShogunXogun.

Increasing revenue in the traditional manner had failed due to the absence of new land surveys and weakening of shogunalxogunal authority in the countryside, leading to thousands of kokucocu being unreported to the state. In the government, two factions emerged with differing opinions on raising revenue: one advocating land reclamation with the help of the Dutch, while the other supporting a more  income-based tax system (''komononaricomononari''). The ShogunXogun eventually decided on an income-based tax system after strong Confucian opposition to utilizing Dutch technological knowledge.

This attempted reform led to extensive peasant revolts, led by village leaders. A policy where if the lords donated an additional 2% of taxes to the state, they would be able to live in their domains for half the year instead of residing in the capital every day. Domain officials had to travel to OsakaOsaca or Edo to exchange rice for money in order to pay taxes, creating a financial crisis and a shortage of coins.

Several domains were in debt since the mid-17th century. Lords took loans from merchants and businessmen and often couldn’t pay them back, leading to several lawsuits against samurai families. In 1720, the state passed the Mutual Settlement Ordinance which relieved the samurai of their debts owed to Japanese merchants. However, it did not cover loans (often obtained illegally) taken from foreign merchants - most notably Dutchmen, Chinese, and a few Coreans. Lords and retainers had to cut costs and increase taxes to secretly pay back these debts, not drawing the attention of the ShogunXogun. This increased the dissatisfaction of the peasantry and stalled important infrastructure projects.

==== HōrekiHorequi Coup ====

The domains of the cadet branches of the TokugawaTocugawa family - the Owari, KiiKi, and Mito - were valued at 1.6 million kokucocu. The current ShogunXogun was from the KiiKi family. The Owari and Mito branches, embarrassed and dissatisfied with his rule, collaborated to overthrow him and install [https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%BE%B3%E5%B7%9D%E5%AE%97%E6%98%A5#%E7%B5%8C%E6%AD%B4 TokugawaTocugawa Muneharu] of the Owari family as ShogunXogun with [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mito_Domain#Mito_School Mito Confucianism] as the state ideology.

In 1750, the Mito-Owari coalition successfully deposed ShogunXogun YoshimuneJoximune. YoshimuneJoximune died shortly after. ShogunXogun Muneharu declared and implemented the articles of his political manifesto, the ''[https://escholarship.org/uc/item/4nn6p372#page=66 OnchiOntxi seiyōseijo]''. However, huge budget deficits and political opposition arose and decimated widespread efforts at reform. Four years later in 1754, he was assassinated with no male heir. His death is considered as the end of true TokugawaTocugawa rule. Despite his short rule, Muneharu’s ideas and policies were the basis for the establishment of modern Japan.

== MaruokaMaruoca-Odawara period (1754-1809) ==

MaruokaMaruoca Castle and Odawara Castle, belonging to the SakaiSacai and SayamaSajama clans respectively, gave their name to this era, mimicking the naming of the AzuchiAzutxi-MomoyamaMomojama period. The events of this timeframe have an abundance of foreign interventions which had disastrous consequences.

A series of disturbances plagued Japan after the diminution of shogunalxogunal power in the 1750s and 1760s. A riot broke out on NakasendoNacasendo highway due to high taxes, amassing 250,000 peasants. Several fires broke out in Edo and OsakaOsaca, while hordes of samurai and merchant guilds vied for supremacy. The Lord of Niigita was overthrown and a [https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E6%96%B0%E6%BD%9F%E6%98%8E%E5%92%8C%E9%A8%92%E5%8B%95#%E8%97%A9%E3%81%A8%E3%81%AE%E5%AF%BE%E7%AB%8B peasant republic] ruled the domain for several months.

Several samurai, lords, & scholars, dissatisfied with the current state of the nation, conspired with the powerful Emperor Momozono to gradually restore de facto imperial rule on the islands. The movement was supported by the proto-nationalist Mito School of Confucianism, the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Komagawa_Kaishin-ry%C5%AB#The_Meiwa_incident KomagawaComagawa martial arts school], and several merchant and peasant associations.

Several domains de jure recognized and revered imperial rule by 1759, yet de facto operated independently. The imperial court only had true power in the Three Cities (OsakaOsaca, KyotoMiaco, and Edo), which had newly appointed civilian administrations enacting policies in accordance with Mito Confucianism and the benevolent ideology of TokugawaTocugawa Muneharu. Imperial rule was nominally recognized until 1803, when the SakaiSacai shogunatexogunate murdered the sitting Emperor.

==== SatsumaSaçuma loses the Loetsjoe ====

A [https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%B0%9A%E7%A9%86%E7%8E%8B 1771 tsunamiçunami] devastated the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ryukyu_Kingdom Loetsjoe kingdom], an island monarchy subject to China and the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Satsuma_Domain Lord of SatsumaSaçuma] simultaneously. Several officials in [[Tauland|Dutch Formosa]] privately encouraged interference and annexation of the Loetsjoe kingdom in order to prevent piracy (as many pirates sought refuge in OkinawaOquinawa), control key shipping lanes, and to control the sulfur trade. From 1772, Dutch ships began to obstruct Loetsjoean shipping lanes. During a Dutch embassy to the capital of [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shuri,_Okinawa Sjoeri] in 1775, a Dutch official was forcibly installed in [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yaeyama_Islands Jema County] to ‘assist with reconstruction’ after the tsunamiçunami.

The Dutch launched an invasion in 1779, first taking Jema County and the city of Ishigatsjie. By the end of the year, [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I%C5%8Dtorishima King ShōXo BokuBoqu] accepted an EIC protectorate. Many senior officials were ousted from their positions and were replaced by Loetsjoean traitors, Coreans, and Dutchmen. The sulfur-producing island of TorishimaTorixima was annexed directly by Formosa. In 1783, the native [https://zh.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E7%90%89%E7%90%83%E7%A7%91%E5%BE%8B Criminal Code] was reformed and replaced with a legal system fusing Loetsjoean, Chinese, and Dutch law.

In response, the SatsumaSaçuma domain launched expeditions against the Formosans over the next few decades, all of which failed to bring Loetsjoe back under their rule. The SatsumaSaçuma had previously relied on the sugar industry in the Amami islands, trade route profits, and other forms of maritime business. By 1800the end of the century, their annual revenue was 400,000 kokucocu - a 45% decrease from 1750. As a consequence, the Lords increased revenue by sponsoring Confucian institutes in KagoshimaCagoxima and establishing tea and sweet potato plantations. A large number of samurai and peasants also illegally emigrated overseas and were employed by the Dutch East India Company.

Ainu began fleeing south to Kunashir and the Apasiri area in 1770, when Russia began taking over fishing grounds in the northern Kurils. The sudden influx of Russian traders and the northern Ainu to Ezo created tensions on the island. The [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matsumae_clan MatsumaeMaçumae clan], responsible for most of Ezo, alerted the officials in Edo of a possible Russian naval invasion. The economic and social strain put on the Ainu culminated in a revolt in 1773, starting in the lakeside village of [https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%BC%9F%E5%AD%90%E5%B1%88%E7%94%BA#%E7%94%BA%E5%90%8D%E3%81%AE%E7%94%B1%E6%9D%A5 Tescaca] and fueled by 3,000 Ainu soldiers. Russian mercenaries were hired by Ainu chieftains, bringing with them European military techniques.

Eventually in 1775, the TokugawaTocugawa central administration decided to directly rule Ezo in place of indirect rule via the MatsumaeMaçumae clan. Thousands of Japanese soldiers contained the rebellion and the Russian mercenaries to the rural north of Ezo, massacring or expelling Ainu populations in the south. As the MatsumaeMaçumae lost their power, they started to look for allies elsewhere. They became friendly towards the Russians and their various Japanese allies - such as the rising SakaiSacai clan.

==== KanseiCansei Reunification ====

SakaiSacai TadamichiTadamitxi, Lord of [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obama_Domain Obama] and prominent member of the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sakai_clan SakaiSacai clan], rose to prominence as the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tair%C5%8D Tairō] in the imperial court in 1779. After the disaster that followed the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Tenmei_famine Tenmei famine], several clans allied with the SakaiSacai in order to reunify Japan. The [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matsumae_clan MatsumaeMaçumae], [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mito_Domain Mito], [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sendai_Domain Date], [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sayama_Domain SayamaSajama], [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Satsuma_Domain ShimazuXimazu] and [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hirado_Domain MatsuuraMaçura] - were the earliest to form an alliance with the SakaiSacai by 1785, and would eventually become the new state’s ''[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fudai_daimy%C5%8D fudai]''. Notably, Russian merchants and most Japanese Christian lords supported this coalition.

The Dutch, on the other hand, opposed the reunification of Japan and took measures to provide for their allies in Japan, such as the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uesugi_clan UyesugiUesugi], [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matsudaira_clan MatsudairaMaçudaira], most crucially the uber-wealthy [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hosokawa_clan HosokawaHosocawa clan]. HosokawaHosocawa ToshitsuneToxiçune, of the KumamotoCumamoto lordship, became the archrival of SakaiSacai TadamichiTadamitxi and claimed the position of ShogunXogun for himself, based on the Hosokawa’sHosocawa’s direct descent from [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seiwa_Genji Emperor Seiwa].

In 1795, the Netherlands was invaded by [[France]] in the [[History of Europe#French%20Revolution%20and%20the%20Augustine%20Wars%20(1780s-1814)|Augustine Wars]] and subsequently lost their ability to project power in eastern Asia. Subsequently, the SakaiSacai coalition hired Russian mercenaries, Yellow Sea pirates, and hordes of discontented rōnin to push for the unification of Japan under their rule. Several notable battles include the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Takashima,_Shiga Battle of TakashimaTacaxima], the Second [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nara_(city) Siege of Nara], the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arakawa_River_(Uetsu) Battle of ArakawaAracawa River], and the collective [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hizen_Province Battles of HishuHixu].

Eventually in 1808, the SakaiSacai had established their influence over most of Japan. However, the TokugawaTocugawa clan still maintained power in [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Oshima_Province OshimaOxima] after expelling the MatsumaeMaçumae clan from their historic territories. Northern Ezo was ruled by Ainu chiefs with small enclaves ruled by Japanese lords. Several fiefs in central and western Japan also held out, protecting their own territories as well as Desjima.

By 1809, the SakaiSacai were able to establish order in the cities of Edo, OsakaOsaca, and KyotoMiaco. The Emperor had also recognized SakaiSacai TadamichiTadamitxi as the new ShogunXogun. The Tairō, rebranded in Western records as the ‘Prime Minister‘Chancellor of Japan’, was occupied by the Shogun’sXogun’s cousin, SakaiSacai ChikatsuTxikaçu.

== KumohamaCumohama period (1809-1895) ==

The era’s name (meaning ‘cloud beach’) was taken from the coastal [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Obama_Castle_(Wakasa_Province) Unpin Castle], which belonged to the Lord of Obama of the SakaiSacai clan. While Japan began to modernize during this period, the country was hampered by political unrest, economic strife, and foreign intervention.

The [https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%B0%8F%E7%94%B0%E5%8E%9F%E8%97%A9#%E5%A4%A7%E4%B9%85%E4%BF%9D%E5%AE%B6_2 Odawara domain] was still in a state of rebellion in 1809, being ruled by the MatsudairaMaçudaira-loyalist OkuboOqubo clan. A Russian flotilla under Admiral Gunin Ermilov approached the [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Izu_Province Idzu peninsula] in order to expel the OkuboOqubo from the province. Russia had established a small post in Itō in 1744 exclusively for shipbuilding purposes. After the OkubaOqubo samurai were expelled from Idzu, Admiral Ermilov did not leave the peninsula when the ShogunXogun ordered him to. The SakaiSacai clan were in debt to Russian merchants and had refused to pay them back instantaneously.

A few months later, the Imperial Russian Navy seized the ports of Maizuru and TeshioTexio as well, which they had been trading at since 1755. Naval battles broke out between the Japanese and Russian fleets, with the Japanese fleet eventually succumbing to Russian demands in 1815 with the Treaty of [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shizuoka_(city)#Pre-modern_Shizuoka Sunpu]. In 1824, the Russians officially stated their claim on the Sakhalin and Kuril Islands. In 1825, Japan established diplomatic relations with France.

In 1835, the SakaiSacai military captured HakodateHacodate and executed the TokugawaTocugawa Governor of OshimaOxima, reinstating the semi-autonomous MatsumaeMaçumae government on the peninsula. The SakaiSacai army established themselves as far north as [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sorachi_Subprefecture SorachiSoratxi] by 1837 when Russian troops declared their support for an independent Ainu state, pushing the Japanese back down to the OshimaOxima peninsula. Diplomatic ties were cut with Russia soon after, and a brief crisis ensued until 1844 when tensions subsided. The [[Russia#The Russian Succession Crisis & modernization period|Russian Succession Crisis]] in 1868 marked a turning point in Russian foreign policy. Two years later, the Russians annexed the Ainu state as a semi-autonomous entity.