The United States led the Allies in the occupation and rehabilitation of Japan after World War II, enacting widespread military, political, economic, and social reforms between 1945 and 1952. Under General Douglas A. MacArthur, the occupation was almost entirely carried out by U.S. forces. The Second Sino-Japanese War (1937-45) saw China suffer continuous defeats at the hands of the U.S. The occupation supported Japanese remilitarization, led crackdowns on left-wing politicians, and union activists.
For Singapore, the Japanese occupation was a virtual reign of terror with high inflation, limited food supplies, and mass incarceration. The American government believed that establishing democracy in Japan involved change in all areas of Japanese life. Under MacArthur’s guidance, the Japanese government introduced sweeping social reforms and implemented economic reforms that recalled the American “New Deal”.
The most obvious changes were political, as Japan adopted a new constitution (sometimes called the MacArthur Constitution). The events tested the faith of Chamorus in their God or Si Yu’u and challenged their faith in the United States. Food was a scarce resource throughout the war, leaving very little for locals to live off of, leading to many starving.
In the initial stages of the occupation, the Japanese were completely opposed to independence because of possible disruption to the exploitation of the Chinese market. The occupation has aroused much interest over time, defining it as a rich, complicated, and contradictory human story.
📹 How American Occupation Changed Japanese Culture
Our historical documentary series on the history of the Cold War continues with a video on the Japanese culture and social life in …
What was life like in Japan after WWII?
After World War II, Japan suffered significant damage to its large cities, industries, and transportation networks, leading to a severe food shortage. The Allied Powers occupation of Japan began in August 1945 and ended in April 1952, with General MacArthur as its first Supreme Commander. Japan lost all territory acquired after 1894, including the Kurile islands occupied by the Soviet Union and Ryukyu Islands, including Okinawa, controlled by the USA. Okinawa was returned to Japan in 1972, but a territorial dispute with Russia over the Kurile Islands remains unresolved.
What was life like for the Chinese during the Japanese occupation?
During the Japanese occupation, food shortages and daily necessities were prevalent due to the takeover of food import and export businesses by Japanese companies. Local wholesalers and retailers had to obtain approval from the military government to continue operations, leading to rationing and reduced purchasing power. Donated materials, including personal documents and publications, provide valuable insights into the daily lives of people during the occupation years.
How has Japanese culture changed over time?
Modernization in Japan has brought about significant cultural changes, with rationalism, socialism based on Christianity, and Marxism becoming intertwined with everyday Japanese life. Western music is more common in social settings, and Christmas is widely observed as a folk event. Western dress has replaced traditional kimono, and house construction has been significantly altered by Western architectural forms and functions. Contemporary Japanese houses are now more modernistic, using more colors and materials, and are often made of concrete and stucco.
The dual influences of East and West have created a modern Japanese culture that combines familiar elements with a distinctive traditional cultural aesthetic. This aesthetic is best captured in the Japanese concept of shibui, or refined understatement in artistic representation. The ideals of cultivated simplicity and poverty (wabi) and the celebration of old and faded (sabi) are closely related, with the notion of life’s transitory and evanescent nature being central to these ideals.
Japanese tidying expert Marie Kondo incorporates many of these ideals in her “KonMari Method”, which involves simplifying and uncluttering our lives and living spaces by discarding belongings and relationships that no longer bring joy, calm, and beauty to our fleeting lives.
What were the effects of Japanese Occupation?
The Japanese occupation of Filipino society from 1942 to 1945 resulted in significant economic hardship, profound societal changes, and widespread suffering. The exploitation of resources resulted in food shortages and a rise in poverty levels. Despite efforts to impose Japanese culture, Filipinos resisted, resulting in numerous deaths and lasting psychological trauma. This fostered a strong sense of nationalism and resistance movements.
How did the life of an average Japanese person change after World War II?
From 1952 to 1973, Japan experienced two significant changes in its social life: a significant decline in birth rates and a shift from rural to urban centers. Japan was under Allied military occupation from 1945 to 1952, led by the Supreme Commander for Allied Powers (SCAP), U. S. General Douglas MacArthur. The occupation was largely an American affair, with MacArthur developing a large General Headquarters in Tokyo and local military government teams. Japan was not governed directly by foreign troops, but rather by the Japanese government and its bureaucracy.
The occupation represented a period of rapid social and institutional change based on borrowing and incorporating foreign models. General principles for Japan’s governance were outlined in the Potsdam Declaration and U. S. government policy statements. These principles included demilitarization, democratization, and the establishment of an economy that could support a peaceful and democratic Japan.
MacArthur, an administrator with leadership and charisma, shared the vision of a demilitarized and democratic Japan and was well-suited to the task. He enthusiastically set about creating a new Japan, encouraging an environment for new forces to rise and playing a vital role in Japan’s recovery as a free and independent nation.
How did Japan’s culture change?
Since the Jomon period, Japanese culture has been shaped by ancestral groups like the Yayoi and Kofun, who arrived from Korea and China. These groups introduced rice cultivation and centralized leadership, shaping Japanese culture. Chinese dynasties, particularly the Tang dynasty, also influenced Japanese culture. The Meiji era opened Japan to Western influences, enriching and diversifying Japanese culture.
There are two competing hypotheses explaining the lineage of the Japanese people: the first proposes a dual-structure model, where Japanese populations are descendants of the indigenous Jōmon people and the Yayoi people, who settled in Japan between 1000 BCE and 300 CE. Modern Japanese have an estimated 80 Yayoi and 20 Jōmon ancestry.
What happened to the people during the Japanese occupation?
During the Occupation of Singapore, people had to switch from rice to tapioca flour, leading to an increase in malnutrition-related diseases and a spike in deaths. The combined death rate for men and women more than doubled from 29, 831 to 65, 158 between 1942 and 1945. The Japanese seized food stocks set aside by the British, with a smaller portion reserved for military use. This led to the black market and the enrichment of the Japanese and unscrupulous businessmen.
What struggles did Japanese immigrants face?
Japanese Americans encountered significant obstacles in their pursuit of gainful employment, including exclusion from domestic work, gardening, and unions.
How did Japan change during their occupation?
The Japanese constitution declared that sovereignty rested with the people, not the emperor, establishing democracy as the political basis. The emperor would continue as a symbol of Japanese unity and culture, but without any political authority. The supreme political institution would be Japan’s parliament, the Diet, made up of freely elected representatives. Women were granted equal rights, including the right to vote. Local governments were strengthened to encourage political participation.
The constitution established civil liberties, such as the right to free speech, and weakened the powers of the police. The military forces were abolished, and Article 9 prohibited Japan from maintaining an army or going to war.
To support these political changes, the Americans instituted reforms to make economic power in Japan more democratic. Land reforms took away land from big landlords and redistributed it to farmers, allowing them to own the land they worked on. This increased independence allowed farm families to participate more freely in the new democracy. Additionally, the Americans changed laws to allow free trade unions, with about half of all industrial workers belonging to a union by 1949.
How did society change in Japan?
The postwar constitution in Japan significantly influenced the country’s governance and social changes, including the role of the emperor, the military’s role, and women’s rights. The 1947 constitution elevated the emperor’s status from head of state to symbol of state unity. Three emperors have reigned since: Emperor Hirohito (Showa era), Emperor Akihito (Heisei era), and Emperor Naruhito (Reiwa era).
Emperor Hirohito remained emperor until the Showa era, where his duties became ceremonial, including receiving credentials from foreign ambassadors, sending Japanese ambassadors abroad, and opening Diet sessions.
How was life like during the Japanese occupation?
During the Japanese occupation of Singapore, the scarcity of essential items such as rice, salt, cooking oil, and cloth led to dire living conditions. These items were rationed, contributing to the hardship experienced by the population. In order to address this issue, the practice of recycling and reusing old items became a standard approach.
📹 Life in Edo Japan (1603-1868)
Let’s take a tour of Edo, Japan’s capital (now Tokyo) during the Tokugawa Period. Become a Simple History member: …
I was born in Japan (Tachikawa AFB) during the last year of the Occupation, 1951. As a young Merchant Marine officer I came back in 1972. What a huge difference that 21 years made. I learned this from the many photos and stories my father told of his time there. Comparing that to what I saw as an adult was impressive. They certainly came a long way.
It’s not surprise that there was “no resistance” to the changes after the war because much of those social changes weren’t new for the japanese. In the 1920-1930 western culture was strong in the cities, and after the war the people were tired of the military dictatorship and embraced democracy, again, and the new liberties in the the constitution. Despite all the great changes those ideas weren’t that new and unheard of to the japanese, it’s more like they were finally allowed to have it, IMO.
I first became fascinated with Japanese culture in the mid-’80s when they were said to be poised to buy up everything. That didn’t last long as the Japanese economy got stuck in a decades long slump. But I was hooked. That was a very nice overview of Japanese westernization that I haven’t seen the likes of before. I still struggle to imagine what it must have been like for them. I certainly look forward to hearing more about it from you.
Fun fact: Cannabis usage was completely legal in Japan until the US forcibly made it illegal during the occupation. Also, civilian firearm rights were ALOT more loose before the US implemented strict firearm laws during the demilitarization process. Its ironic because these two things are the topic that I often hear American liberals and conservatives criticize Japan on.
I am Japanese. What I am going to say may be imprudent. I presume many Japanese should be grateful to American Ocuupation. Before WW2, Japan didn’t had freedom of speech and academic freedom. However, we enjoy them and our country has flourishes with supported by United States. If Japan had been occupied by USSR, Japan would be like China or North Korea. This would be dystopia. I love USA. Thank you for giving us democracy.
My grandfather was in every US war and occupation from 1944-1950s ending up in macv Saigon before US troops were heavily involved. He rebuilt bridges in Japan in particular after starting by building them under fire for Patton. The first engineers he called for in Japan thought they were being called to be executed and only one scared one showed up. He had very good relations with locals and quickly established that he was not there to do what the IJA might have been doing in their occupations. My half uncle was born in Osaka. Great show!
I wish you at least mentioned the fact that there’s still American bases in Japan. I lived in Sasebo and the presence of the American Naval Base is ever present. It’s weird because the American influence is used as a touristic element as this place you can see Americans around but they actually mostly stay in their own Neighborhoods so it kinda feels autosegregated for some reason.
I remember there is explanation why they love curry rice in japan, they got it from joint army relations with British Navy, one of favorite menu of British Navy is Curry (which influenced by British colonization of India and India immigrants) and Japanese Navy also implemented Curry recipe in their diet, some of retiring Navy open up some curry restaurants based from Japanese Navy recipe and boom it gain popularity with Japanese people
I remember as a kid, just after WW2 it was a joke to see anything made in japan. At that time all they could make was little things like the little prize in the box of “Cracker Jacks.” Soon that would change. Later, in the 1950s, as a young man, I was so fortunate to be in Tokyo, Haneda Airport working with the Japanese on a very critical US contract with Japan Airlines. I was very young and the Japanese guys were much older than me, they taught me so much. Seeing all these great qualities of the Japanese people I predicted the success of Japan. Soon, I seen Zenith and RCA televisions simply put out of business by Sony.,, on and on many other companies,, customers loved the quality of Japanese products. the Japanese quality of products simply KILLED their competition… Great people,,,,, + the most honest people on earth.
I think the initial quote is a bit mistranslated. I believe it should be “gods” or “spirits” rather than “God” in the Western sense. Shinto does not believe in a single God, but rather spirits that inhabit things like rivers, mountains, homes, etc. The confusion in translation probably comes from the fact that Japanese words don’t have a plural form like English words. “Kami” is both singular and plural. Someone coming from a Western background would likely assume the word was singular, when it more likely referred to the countless kami that exist in Shinto.
It could be argued that, had Americans not given their culture to Japan the way they did, Japan would not become one of the leading tech giants the way they are today. From electric cars to friendly energy to article games to animation software, we owe a lot of modern day trivialities to Japan, not to mention how much this Japanese growth influenced other countries as well.
There is a fascinating film trilogy I discovered perusal Turner Classic Movies called “The Human Condition”, directed by Masaki Kobayashi that I believe might be the best piece of Japanese cinema I’ve ever seen. It’s incredible because it’s anti-war, but it paints the Japanese army as the inhuman vehicle that it was during the 1930s and World War 2, and it handles the subject so well. I recorded the last part last night (each part is over 3 hours long, and is almost ten hours overall), and I look forward to perusal it. It was filmed and released between 1959 and 1961, so it covers the time period you’re talking about here.
Some years ago, in a conversation with some middle aged and older Japanese women, we came to the conclusion that if Japan had worked to build up manufacturing and exports instead of trying to become a colonial power in Asia, it could’ve avoided all the horrors of World War II and ended up where it eventually did, only earlier, and without the deaths of millions of people.
Japan is such an interesting nation. They’ve seen so much change and adaptation over the centuries, and they’re still going all these many years later. Thank you for this very nifty article! I would like to see more about the occupations immediately after WW2. Stay well out there everybody, and God bless you, friends. ✝️ 🙂
I think it’s the same in Germany. West Germany is highly influenced by American Culture too and now because of the internet more but this fact changes a bit since the Youth in Germany adores German Rappers with a Middle Eastern Background (of course they copy American Rappers but they act like they invented Hip Hop) so I think future generations maybe won’t have a strong connection to the USA anymore they might still watch the American Series / Movies but they also consume more and more Local content in German (German YouTubers, German Rap articles) what smartphones belong they prefer the Chinese Brands like Xiaomi.
Decades ago, young Japanese took American Ivy League style clothing (men’s) and made it their own and now that influence in clothing is seen back in the USA if you know where to look. Denim is another clothing sector they have made their own: now that the last domestic factory making denim fabric the way it used to be made closed a few years ago in America, most of the high-end selvedge jeans manufactured in the USA is made from fabric that comes from looms in located Japan.
Learning how Japan went from a military dictatorship to a full-fledge democracy seemingly overnight was one of the best things that happened in the 20th century. It sucks such a miracle can’t happen twice today with other countries whose people still suffer from living in an autocratic society, or how all-out civil war always happens when an autocratic state is decapitated because a power vacuum forms.
Not just hamburgers, bread itself became a regular part of the Japanese diet due in large part to the massive quantities of wheat the US shipped over after the war to combat starvation, followed up by helping build tens of thousands of communal ovens across the country to bake the bread. As an aside the US actually offered to ship rice initially, only for the Japanese who tried it to almost universally reject American long grain rice.😂
Humanity Declaration “The ties between Us and Our people have always stood upon mutual trust and affection. They do not depend upon mere legends and myths. They are not predicated on the false conception that the Emperor is divine, and that the Japanese people are superior to other races and fated to rule the world.” – Hirohito
15:04 What an interesting pop-culture reference. I don’t remember ever hearing about any Turkish TV show before (not counting TRT). By mentioning it as something we should know, you imply this one is pretty internationally popular, though, unless you just mentioned in a previous article, are targeting Turkish and circum-Turkish people (which is unlikely, since you used the English name), are trying to get us to look it up to get the reference, or just didn’t think that hard about it, and it’s just something you watched.
7:33 The fact that 90% of Japanese people considered themselves “middle class” in the 1970s says more about their mentality than about the economy. There is no universally known or accepted definition of “middle class”, so such a self-reporting study just shows that 1970s Japanese people liked to group themselves together as part of an economically “normal” group and not to group themselves with the poorest or the richest people. Japanese culture is known for promoting normalness and not wanting to be abnormal, so that’s not a surprise. Trying to get people to think of themselves as middle class IS supposed to be a classic goal of capitalist indoctrination, though, and it also does mean they’d overcome any desire of people to group themselves into subgroups or feudal classes (which I think were formally abolished in the 1867 Meiji Restoration, so clearly not all attributable to the US, though you did indicate a pseudo-feudal system developed after 1867 anyway).
It’s literally a article on how USA made japan as its own image …. By destroying imperial japan and replacing it with democratic japan : Japan went beginning with Banzai from the totalitarian imperials to Hentai from the democrats republicans Democracy and liberty gave us animes, isn’t that beautiful ?
Japan is THE poster child of triumphant America. But th success to rebiuld Japan, Germany and Italy as democracies (when they had already known and to an extent practiced the concept, only to reject it in favor of dictatorship during… interesting times) gave Americans dangerous illusions about the possibility of repeating the feat at will anywhere on much more resistant and far different, or less Western-fascinated cultures. See Vietnam, Iraq or Afghanistan later.
You are incorrect about the creation of the Japanese Constitution. While America did have influence over its creation and did impose several things like human rights for women (written and added by a 21-year-old female immigrant) the part of the Constitution where it says the Japanese people renounce war was written and added by the Japanese delegation that had veto power over everything that went into the Constitution. America tried to talk Japan out of renouncing war because America (like you stated earlier) wanted Japan to be a bulwark against communism but the word BULWARK was incorrect they wanted to use the Japanese military as a VANGUARD against communism and the next steps in the war. Much like how you mentioned, by 1945 the Japanese people were tired of war and its consequences and it was a a commonly shared belief that war was bad and they didn’t want to be part of it anymore. This is misinformation that is spread in Japan now so that people can convince the Japanese people to vote against that amendment to their constitution repeal it and allow Japan once more to create war. The founders of the Japanese Constitution were very adamant that Japan was to be peaceful from then on; it had nothing to do with America’s wants or needs at the time.
Japan’s development over the years has been such a miracle, especially during the post war era. the fact that the US was uncharacteristically willing to help change a culture for the benefit of its people and the fact that the Japanese were very characteristically tired of their military government and eager to import and synthesize new cultures led to nothing short of the most civil and positive post-war interaction in all of history. I’m so thankful for their economic and cultural miracle and think everywhere should take an example from their rejection of military spending and focus on education and infrastructure, and I’m sad that Japan has recently been moving away somewhat from their commitment to peace in article 9.
To some extent heavy use of Western instead of Modern is arguable. Did West have burgers before 1900 or jeans or women rights? For most part whatever is modern much of it was developed first recently by West as they were ahead in development and industrialization than most of the world but there is nothing Western about TV, films etc. Outside the West I guess there are very loud arguments about what is modern vs Western. Generally when things are perceived as Western they are opposed (at least politically) but modernization is not so opposed. Hence we should be careful with the words ‘Westernization’ and ‘modernization’.
Whenever I hear or read anything about the American occupation of Japan, I immediately recall a story I heard from my parents about something they witnessed at a swap meet in the Vancouver area of Canada about 20 years ago. Many vendors at the swap meet sold bone china, some of which was stamped “Made In Occupied Japan.” A small group of Japanese men went table to table buying up anything labelled “Made In Occupied Japan.” Once they had a fairly large haul, the men took everything to the area where the big garbage dumpsters were. Piece by piece, with visible anger on their faces, the men began throwing everything they had just bought to the ground, smashing everything into little bits. Once all of the bone china was destroyed, the Japanese men calmly walked away, with many people (my parents included) just perusal them, stunned at what they had seen.
Scholar of Japanese politics, culture, and history who has lived my entire adult life in Japan here… and this was a weird watch. As a simplistic overview, it’s a good introduction. It’s about what is expected for cramming this many years into 18 minutes. However, unsurprisingly, I find myself quibbling here and there, considering certain assertions to be overstated or not quite accurate, and some of the pronunciation of terms is off. I would encourage those who watch this to use it as a springboard, a very cursory introduction, and not take everything in this article as telling the full story. There’s so much context missing, and yet… Could I have done better in only 18 minutes? Probably not. An hour maybe, but not 18 minutes.
My take on post-war Japan (but i may be wrong), is that the Emperor surrendering completely toppled their caste system upside down. Before, it was : – Emperor – Warriors – Pesants – Artisans – Merchants Now completely reverse it and we have a clear picture of modern Japan don’t we ? With large companies on top, the military reduced to a skeleton army, and the Emperor merely a symbol. Does that make sense ? 🤔
The usual american bunkam, the only thing meriky did of note was to murder thousands of innocent people with those bombs. The Dutch and other Europeans were trading and had bases for such in Japan long before the US. Yes after the war, they did help the Japanese build up again as they did with Germany. All this for the good of the US. I spent a lot of time there over the last two decades and have seen a lot of this first hand.
I’m disappointed you talk about American living standards and consumer goods but not about Japanese industry’s push to become world leading in the 1960s and the penetration of Japanese consumer goods (from cars to televisions) and inventions into the US market. As the US felt spurred to compete by Sputnik, it’s said Japanese industry felt embarrassed that their exports were cheap, flimsy goods and wanted to catch up and even exceed the given standard. Also I’m uncomfortable with the conflation of modernization and Westernization. Concrete block lowrise buildings were invented in the 20th century and often considered “faceless” throughout the world for the lack of ornamentation and not respecting vernacular building styles. The development of modern architecture is a worldwide conversation, just as film was, since you alluded to Kurosawa. Kurosawa had a profound effect on certain American filmmakers.
Hi, this is an excellent article, thanks for posting. I am trying to find out more about the mode and morale of the Japanese population in 1945, especially during Spring and Summer of 1945: just how tired of war were they, and just how disillusioned not only with the military government but also even with the Imperial System were they. I’ve heard that one of the major drivers for Emperor Hirohito forcing his cabinet to accept the Potsdam Declaration was as much the fear of a popular uprising that would do away with the Imperor altogether as much as it was a fear of a 3rd atomic bomb and even a Russian invasion. I would be grateful if anyone could recommend any books or research on the subject.
These traditional elements also impacted the Japanese political environment, resulting in the emergence of koenkai, factional politics and especially the 1955 political system. The liberal democratic system the GHQ imposed on Japan in 1947 could not change Japanese mentality. They could not change the Japanese people. That’s why Japan is based.
In Japanese culture they believe that godS ARE everywhere. In Japanese custom religions there is not one god, there are many true shinto and buddhist gods, and yes there are gods in buddhism. However, these days christianity is more popular religion but not the most popular view on religion in Japan.
Without sounding arrogant and un sensitive to the horrific amount of death and pain WW2 brought the Japanese.. is it safe to say the the defeat of Japan by USA amd the USA influence after the war was the best thing to happen to Japan, it’s economy, standard of living and freedom of democracy and now being one or the world leading economies, they’re a huge advocate to free democratic way of life and up holding those freedoms and standing in alliance with the civilized democracies of the world!! It definitely sounds like after all the pain and suffering that was inflicted on Japan by its evil rulers in ww2 that there was definitely something very positive after the war!! One things the USA never gets enough credit for is things like this and the huge amount of money and recourses they put into Countries like Japan to make them into what they are today!! Japan, South Korea, Germany, Italy, Taiwan, Guam !! they never had to do that they could of just left and went home like most armies had done in history and let the people of the defeated nations suffer in there defeat but not they doudble down and rebuild there country and economy, introduce a free democracy and a way better standard of living!! So much hate is always through at them for recent failures like Afghanistan, Iraq amd Vietnam but look how many counties they saved and made them great democratic civilized nations!! I know with Germany and Italy they was a lot of help from other allied nations but the US was allows the leader and they do not get near enough credit for it!
Today senior citizens die in Japan and nobody learns about their death until their bodies rot, young people live lonely lives in tiny box cabins in internet cafes, family system is destroyed. All this might work for Westerners but it miserable failed at the social level in Japan. Educational and technological modernization was alright but meddling with their social structure and specially religion was true practice of fascist colonialism. There is a lot that Western narrative and biased historical accounts hide under the rug. Today’s Japan may be a colorful modern mirage but socially its a rotten to its core. Most people judge Japan from the general economic point of view nobody really cares what the social life of an individual is in Japan where broken social fabric has traumatized its people.
Technically is the American Occupation really over? Maybe it was officially declared over, but the United States still has military forces stationed in Japan. And it was revealed the 1990’s by The New York Times that the Liberal Democratic Party that practically runs Japan was funded by the CIA from the 1950s to the 1970s. The same LDP that is very friendly with the United States. Now, yes Japan is willingly allowing these American forces to stay in Japan for security reasons, but how long until the anti-foreign military sentiments of the Okinawans spreads to mainland Japan? And when that happens, will the United States be willing to leave? Even after the American evacuation of Afghanistan, I have my doubts that when Japan finally decides it doesn’t need the United States, the US isn’t leaving so easily. Honestly, I’m don’t think American politicians understand Japanese culture since they kept trying to get Japan involved in the Persian Gulf War, the War on Terror, and even created the JSDF despite the citizens of Japan not wanting this. The only one I can excuse is the creation of the JSDF since every nation needs its own military to defend itself, but America is still very influential of Japanese politics. I don’t know about you all, but I don’t think it should be considered normal anymore given how far Japan has come. And before anybody accuses me of being pro-China, I am supportive of socialism, not communism. And I’m no fool knowing how China is a threat to peace in the South Pacific.
David, thankyou for another excellent production. It really resonated with me, as both my great-grand-parents were Salvation Army Officers in Japan from 1888 to (early) 1941. my two great-aunts departed Yokohama on the last Shell Oil tanker which departed one week before Pearl Harbour! for the rest of their lives (they both survived into their 90’s) they spoke English and 1941 Japanese. my great-grandmother (and one of her sons, who died in infancy) is buried in the Gaijin Bochi (Foreigner’s Cemetary) on the headland overlooking Yokohama Bay (home of the main Japanese Naval Base). this is a very interesting cemetery, as for many centuries, it was the only location that non-Japanese could be interred, so it contains the remnants of many Counts, Earls, Barons, von Graffs etc, from Britain, America, Portugal, Russia, Germany, Sweden, America etc my grandfather (born in Yokohama) used to tell me the story about how he was sailing in Yokohama Bay with a Japanese friend one day in 1919, and a fog set in. When the fog lifted, they discovered that they had inadvertently sailed into the middle of the Japanese Naval Base. My grandfather was allowed to leave, but his friend suffered dreadfully at the hands of the Japanese Naval security force, who suspected him of being a spy. he and his brother departed Japan in 1920 to travel to Sydney for Study, and never returned.
Sometimes I wonder if it’s healthy that Japan took to Idealised Hollywood FICTION Outside of Documentaries as the American standard and not the Reality of what America really is that’s the only real issue I take from all of this I wonder if Japan could wake up to the Real American Standard of Today of the hard-working class getting things done instead of always showing off although we do have that mentality to thank for the likes of Manga and Anime today so it’s not all bad its just all a matter of a greater international understanding between nations
Sakamoto is all over the map due to his versitility – but I found his 1987 lounge pop Neo Geo a fave. For the inclusion in the opener, here’s his collab with Iggy Pop : youtu.be/o2f4tR63WRA and a more obscure example of his soundtrack work from 1989’s ‘Black Rain’ : youtu.be/wL8AVyU45Cg plus – why resist the occupiers when the Soviets are breathing down their neck, and the US and Japan were allies in WWI. Among a litany of other reasons.
This life never imagined in the Joseon Dynasty of Korea. During that time people have suffered the destruction of the three wars, flood, drought, disease, and exploited by corrupted local landlords, governors, and royalties. The peasants and farmers devote their lands and become slaves to pay their depth. This is tragedy and dark history of the Joseon Dynasty of Korea.
Whenever I watch articles on the edo period, I always remember the Shinsengumi samurai. Best knows for breaking down the “born a Samurai” idea and would hire and train men from all walks of life to serve the shogun as samurai. The 3 highest ranking men in Shinsengumi were all from farming families but attained their rank through sheer skill with a sword.
During the Tokugawa era, the Nihonbashi was the center of five kaido that began in 1601. The major highways of today’s Japan roughly follow the route of the kaido (Route 1, 2, etc), collectively known as Edo Five Routes. There was the Tokaido that connected Edo to Kyoto and had 53 stations (and had an artistic interpretation by Utagawa Hiroshige). It merged with Nakasendo (hitting the center of Honshu, has 69 stations). Then there was the Koshu Kaido with 44 stations that ended at modern Yamanashi before merging with Nakasendo, then the Oshu terminating at Mutsu Province (today’s Fukushima Prefecture, had 27 stations), and the Nikko Kaido that terminated at modern Tochigi Prefecture with 21 stations. These routes’ stations had border control functions. Also, today’s Tokaido Shinkansen follows roughly the Tokaido route.
Edo folks would have totally dug this take on their lifestyle! 😊 They had a great sense of humor and a sharp eye for social details. I love how the article highlights the constant fires in Edo—it’s amusing yet historically significant. Those fires really made the firemen some of the most admired men in town. Wow!
Yes Japan has isolated itself from the rest of the world. However, not completely. China and Netherlands have trade connection with Japan during that period, they are selected because they were considered they never try to spread Christian faith. From this limited access, Japan get knowledge from the overseas, also exports huge amount of sophisticated pottery and china to European aristocrats.
The old customs are introduced in detail. It was better if I introduced a school called Terakoya and a newspaper called Kawaraban. It would be nice if there was a detailed explanation of the Taisei Houkan (the shogun returned the administration to the emperor) from the Edo period to the Meiji period.
In 1600, The biggest war Sekigahara was ended of Toyotomi government. Tokugawa won. And many unemployed warriors lost how do they live with their skill of fighting. Soon Netherland recruited mercenary for South east Asia, and the Samurais fought against Spain in South east Asia as mercenary of Netherland. Eventually Netherland won to Spain by samurais. This information is discovered in Leiden university in Netherland recently with many letters from Japan and Indonesia.
theres a series on netflix about sengoku period japan during the 1500s i its called “age of samurai battle for japan” these guys basically just constantly battled for a 100 or so years straight but three guys during the 1500s did things nobody else could pull off trying to control all of japan and end the civil wars the end of that show is where this article picks up at
Stop? ya’ll know damn well all those higher ups and politicians were in brothels😂😂😂😂🤣🤣🤣stop with the false Propaganda. The Japanese are the same ones who would tell you Comfort Women were volunteers and didn’t exist!! 🧐🧐🧐🤨🤨🤨Then again it the winners that tell the history. I love the Japanese though.
Do you know why Japan only traded with Holland? The first Europeans to come to Japan were the Portuguese. The next was the Dutch, and the next was the British. Until the time of Ieyasu Tokugawa, Japan was on good terms with all countries. But the Portuguese were planning to occupy Japan. The Portuguese missionaries sent a letter to the king asking how they could rule Japan. However, the Dutch pirated this ship. It’s well known that the Netherlands was a pirate nation at that time. They found the letter and told the shogun, and the Portuguese were driven out of Japan, leaving only the Dutch. The British were so busy ruling the world that they lost interest in the little country and backed off.
Hi your movies are genius. Made me cry learning more truths about my Australian history. And the Ethiopian, Somali and the Italians. Very educational. Again made me cry. If you could would you please look into do one about The democratic Republic of Congo, Patrice Lumba, Rwanda and My Nyrigongo. If you already have I hope to find it soon. Live your work 🙏❤️💛🖤
Now by all means, I’d rather live in this peaceful period than the feuding mess of the warring states, but wouldn’t it suck to become a samurai around this time? Think about it, whether you were only a samurai for a few years or just became one, you would then be hit with the reality that you were useless in this era. Shame really
Yes, it’s a great history I have read about. Unfortunately, if the country is not strong, they cannot know their history and spread their culture, for example, America always publishes and applauds its history in the time of the Cowboy, even though it is really nothing compared to other dates and civilizations. If it becomes strong, it will win even with history. There are a lot of countries and people who have a very impressive history and culture, but unfortunately either is not widely recorded in history unlike Japanese history it is preserved and detailed to them. . We do not know much about history. The age of mankind compared to our knowledge of history is negligible. As a German who loved history and read a lot about it, I expect that the greatest civilizations that I do not know much about are Egyptian and Arab civilization.
knock knock, it’s the United States, with huge boats, with guns (gunboats) USA : open the country, stop, having it be closed. moments later Russia UK USA and Japan sign a contract that let Americans, Britons and Russians visit Japan whenever they want since there was nothing else to do. Chōshū and Satsuma hated this チョ種 and 薩摩 (Chōshū and Satsuma) : this sucks!
Ahh isolationist Japan aka the Tokugawa era… a land of rampant xenophobia, religious intolerance and persecution, racist policies, and forceful suppression of any dissent by the all powerful military leader. And it continues to be romanticised to this day. But hey it was never successfully invaded by a foreign country and made a colony so…. I guess that is great.
The driving force that made US approach Japan was the demand from the whaling industries. As they expand their operation to the Asia, they needed Japanese ports for logistic purpose(in order to obtain firewoods and fresh water. After the fall of Tokugawa Regime(Edo Bakufu), there were 2-step transition of power from Samurai Class to the new government. First, they surrendered nationwide political rule(sovereignty). Then Samurais gave up all the land they used to hold during the Edo Period. Under the new laws of post-Tokugawa regime, everyone in Japan was deemed equal. However, they also created new Aristocrat Class(entitled to generous annual govenment payout) called Kazoku. They were mostly high-ranking samurais(Daimyou Lords and their close aides) & royal family members. These people are give privilege for smooth power transiton from the old to the new ruler of Japan. In some cases, high ranking military officers(e.g.generals) are also added to the class of Kazoku(new aristocrats) due to their merit at war. World famous admiral Heihachiro Togo(beaten Russian fleet in the battle of Japan Sea 1905)was also given the title of marquis for his outstanding attainment in Russo-Japan war.
Ahhh This era…. If only the US had left the Japanese alone instead of forcing trade on them. The european nations would still have colonies in Asia still… When the Japanese ended their isolationism they saw what was happening to their neighbors and knew they had to modernize themselves to stand up and against these other european nations that one day may decide to colonize them. But a group of Tokugawa Samurai didn’t want to change and wanted to stay the isolationist that they were which sparked the Boshin civil war. In the end the Tokugawa shogunate is over thrown and imperial Japan rises in it’s place. Then comes the Russo-Japanese conflict and Japans colonialism in Korea, Mancharia and then WWII and you know the rest.
We always talked about the edo period japan, but we never explain why Japan became isolated, like it is some hidden history. Thanks to European christians destroying Buddhist temples without consent and selling Japanese wives, Japan expelled all Europeans, except Dutch, and became isolated. If the Europeans were a little more friendly, the Edo Period wouldn’t have existed.
Hum. The political explanation seems inaccurate to me. Ieyasu didn’t “choose” Edo; Hideyoshi forced him to exchange his home provinces for those formerly of the Hojo clan. I’d also say that less than any temporary loyalty what was crucial during the Edo period was the division of daimyos into fudai and tozama allies – basically traditional allies and those that weren’t (as decided by which side you were on during Sekigahara). And despite everything some of the tozama were quite powerful daimyos, ie the Shimazu and Mori were basically the one that brought the Meiji era about. I’d also disagree with Christianity being the main cause of isolationism. Rather, it’s the tozama daimyos that had access to overseas trade, making them exceptionally rich. This clearly wasn’t something the central government liked, thus they basically kneepcapped the tozama by their isolationist policies. The whole Christianity struggle seems more like a side-effect to me.
Ehhh the crackdown on christianity was less to do with anything about christianity itself and had a lot to do with the fact that the jesuits and other factions were trying to literally conquer japan. Japan would’ve been willing to tolerate christianity (they certainly had no issue incorporating Buddhism before, and Christianity is certainly tolerated now) and history would’ve been a lot different had the missionaries not been such dicks. An issue not exclusive to Japan, either. China had such a problem with missionaries that they weren’t even a consideration when England was negotiating trade with them. Basically, the Catholic church was trying to get power over other nations, and due to a freak accident involving a ship running ashore, the Japanese caught on and gave the whole religion the boot. This is also why they booted out all foreigners except the Dutch from Japan during the period. Oh by the way, the only reason the Dutch got to stick around in Nagasaki was cuz they supported the Tokugawa’s rise to power. They were no more or less Christian than the British, Portuguese, or Spanish…they just weren’t dicks about it. Also the Meiji Restoration…hoo boy is that a fun topic. Did you know part of Japan went to war with the British Empire during that point in history? Yeah, no one ever talks about that cuz the whole era was a mess.