This year is the 150th anniversary of the Meiji Restoration of 1868, when Japan catapulted virtually overnight from feudal rule under the shoguns to a modern western state. It was the climax of fifteen years of extraordinary turmoil in Japan, culminating in 1868 with a series of dramatic battles.
I’ll be marking the anniversary throughout the year with blog posts commemorating the events of the entire 15 year period and also specific events that occurred in 1868.
Writing the four novels of the Shogun Quartet and later lecturing on the Meiji Restoration I spent a great deal of time imagining myself back to Kagoshima. It was Princess Atsu’s home town, from where she set out on her fateful journey to Edo, the story I told in The Shogun’s Queen. It was also … Read more
On July 8th 1853 four warships appear at the mouth of Edo Bay, threatening Edo, the shogun’s capital, today known as Tokyo. Their leader is the American Commodore Matthew Perry, on a mission to open Japan, which has been closed to foreigners for 250 years. Their arrival sparks civil war between north and south … … Read more