The Diary of Kido Takayoshi: 1868-1871 - Hardcover

Takayoshi, Professor Kido

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0860083284 ISBN 13: 9780860083283

Publisher: University of Tokyo Press, 1983

Synopsis

Kido Takayoshi, also called Kido Kōin, one of the heroes of the Meiji Restoration, the overthrow of the 264-year rule by the Tokugawa family and return of power to the Japanese emperor. After the imperial restoration of 1868, Kido became one of the most effective officials in the new government. Born into an influential warrior family, Kido early became active in the politics of his han, or fief, of Chōshū. As a student of Yoshida Shōin, he was close to the group of Chōshū leaders who were to lead the movement for the overthrow of the Tokugawa. The radical elements in Kido's han began to rise in power, and, in 1862, Kido became one of Chōshū's leading officials. Kido's diary reveals an intense internal conflict between his loyalty to his home domain, Chōshū, and the greater interest of the country. He wrote often of having to fight rumors at home that he had betrayed his old friends; the idea of a nation was still relatively new in Japan and so the majority of samurai cared more for securing privileges for their own domain. Together with Saigō Takamori and Okubo Toshimichi, he is counted among what was known as the Ishin-no-Sanketsu, which means, roughly, "three great nobles of the restoration"

About this title

Language Notes:

Text: English, Japanese (translation)

About this edition

• Publisher: University of Tokyo Press
• Publication date: 1983
• ISBN 10: 0860083284
• ISBN 13: 9780860083283
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 546