Meiji Period

In 1867 Mutsuhito succeeded to the throne. He was known as Meiji Tenno (Emperor of the Era of Enlightened Rule). The following year samurai military forces supporting the emperor forced Shogun Tokugawa Keiki to resign. The emperor's throne was moved from Kyoto to Tokyo. The ruling oligarchy, in the name of the emperor, made revolutionary reforms. Feudalism was abolished, the daimyo were stripped of their domains, and the samurai-warrior army was replaced with a modern army conscripted from the peasantry. Many Japanese were sent to the West to study customs and institutions. A system of compulsory education was introduced and modern industries were started.

With the adoption of a constitution in 1889, a Diet (parliament) was formed. All power, however, was in the hands of the oligarchy. The latter part of the 19th century saw the country become industrialized and emerge an important power in Asia.