The 122nd Emperor Meiji ruled the Land of the Rising Sun for about 45 years, until 1912 (that is, until his death). And this time became the time of global political, social and cultural changes in Japan. As a result, this island nation has become the most advanced power in the Pacific. Many Japanese are proud of the events of the Meiji era, and, of course, they have the right to do so.
Meiji's rise to power and some important reforms
Emperor Meiji was the son of Emperor Komei by one of his maids of honor. He was born in November 1852. And eight months later, the "black ships" arrived in Edo Bay under the command of the famous American navigator Matthew Perry. Perry's squadron consisted of two thousand sailors and was armed with cannons that fired explosive bombs.
The Japanese, seeing these ships, realized that in many aspects they lagged behind the "gaijins" (as foreigners are called in Japan). And this, in fact, predetermined the appearance of such a figure as Meiji. He ascended the so-called chrysanthemum throne on February 3, 1867 - this was the most important day not only for his personal biography, but also for the history of the entire state. At first, Meiji's reign was purely formal and symbolic, but then he was able to achieve full power and made a significant contribution to the reform of Japan.
In 1869, Meiji signed a decree to move the capital from Kyoto to Edo, and then renamed Edo Tokyo. By 1871, the emperor got rid of all daimyo who claimed independence (daimyo - the largest feudal lords, rulers of the provinces). And he turned the provinces themselves into prefectures, which now had to strictly obey the central authorities.
Then an agrarian reform was carried out, establishing private ownership of land plots, a parliament was created, universal military service was introduced, regardless of class, and so on. The country was rapidly modernizing. In 1872, the first railroad was built in Japan with the participation of Western engineers. The locomotives were brought from the Old World, and work on the project of the station building was carried out in the States. The emperor himself was the first to try the new transport.
Meiji - a ruler who is not like the others
After 1873, the emperor's appearance changed noticeably. He changed into a uniform tailored according to the European model, cut his hair short and grew a mustache. Following him, the courtiers also changed their clothes and image. Meiji became the first ruler to allow two of his portraits to be painted. In addition, he personally attended some of the public ceremonies. The emperors of the past did not do this: it was believed that it was dangerous for mere mortals to look at them, the descendants of ancient deities, as if they could go blind.
Meiji also differed from his predecessors in that he appeared at social receptions only with his legal wife. Once he even walked arm in arm with his wife, in accordance with Western etiquette and contrary to Japanese etiquette. But one should not think that Meiji was a one-man - he kept a whole harem of concubines.
And Meiji was very fond of poetry, and all his life he wrote poetry in the genres traditional for the Land of the Rising Sun. The best examples of his poetic creativity have their fans today.
Meiji as a ruler in general was dearly loved by his people. This is evidenced by the following fact: when the emperor died (and this happened in July 1912), millions of people from all over Japan went to the capital to say goodbye to Meiji. This was the first such case in the history of the state: earlier, only those close to them were present at the funerals of rulers.
