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Japan Opposition to the Meiji Oligarchy
The 1873 Korean crisis resulted in the resignation of
militaryexpedition proponents Saigo and Councillor of State Eto
Shimpei
(1834-74). Eto, the founder of various patriotic
organizations,
conspired with other discontented elements to start an
armed
insurrection against government troops in Saga, the
capital of his
native prefecture in Kyushu in 1874. Charged with
suppressing the
revolt, Okubo swiftly crushed Eto, who had appealed
unsuccessfully
to Saigo for help. Three years later, the last major
armed
uprising--but the most serious challenge to the Meiji
government--
took shape in the Satsuma Rebellion, this time with Saigo
playing
an active role. The Saga Rebellion and other agrarian and
samurai
uprisings mounted in protest to the Meiji reforms had been
easily
put down by the army. Satsuma's former samurai were
numerous,
however, and they had a long tradition of opposition to
central
authority. Saigo, with some reluctance and only after more
widespread dissatisfaction with the Meiji reforms, raised
a
rebellion in 1877. Both sides fought well, but the modern
weaponry
and better financing of the government forces ended the
Satsuma
Rebellion. Although he was defeated and committed suicide,
Saigo
was not branded a traitor and became a heroic figure in
Japanese
history. The suppression of the Satsuma Rebellion marked
the end of
serious threats to the Meiji regime but was sobering to
the
oligarchy. The fight drained the national treasury, led to
serious
inflation, and forced land values--and badly needed
taxes--down.
Most important, calls for reform were renewed.
Data as of January 1994
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