Changing foreign policy and opening
For more than 200 years the Tokugawa government controlled foreign contact. Trade with the Dutch and Chinese went through Nagasaki, with Korea through Tsushima, and with the Ryukyu kingdom through Satsuma. Foreign ships were turned away from other coasts.
Why pressure grew
By the 1800s industrial countries were sending ships across the Pacific to hunt whales, trade and find coal stops. News of China's defeat in the Opium War (1840-42) made Japanese leaders fear that they could be next.
1853 and the treaties
In 1853 US Navy commander Matthew Perry arrived near Edo with warships and a letter asking Japan to open. He returned in 1854. The Convention of Kanagawa (1854) opened two ports (Shimoda and Hakodate) for supplies. In 1858 treaties such as the Harris Treaty opened more ports, including Kanagawa (Yokohama), Nagasaki, Niigata and Hyogo (Kobe), and allowed foreigners to live and trade there.
Why they were called unequal
Foreigners were tried by their own consuls, not Japanese courts (extraterritoriality). Japan could not set its own import taxes (no tariff autonomy). Japan spent decades trying to change this.
Effects of trade
Silk and tea were exported in large amounts. Cheap foreign cotton goods came in. Prices of rice and daily goods rose, and the gold-silver exchange caused a loss of gold. Many ordinary people suffered.
Collapse of the shogunate system
The shogunate had signed the treaties without the emperor's approval. Critics said the shogun had failed to protect the country. A slogan sonno joi ('revere the emperor, expel the barbarians') spread among samurai.
Pressure from inside
The shogunate tried to punish critics (the Ansei Purge, 1858-59), then tried reforms and sought to build a stronger army. But powerful domains, especially Satsuma and Choshu, became rivals. After clashes with foreign ships, Choshu and Satsuma saw how weak old weapons were and switched from 'expel' to 'learn from the West'. In 1866 the two domains formed an alliance.
The end
In late 1867 the last shogun, Tokugawa Yoshinobu, returned his power to the emperor. In January 1868 a new government declared 'Restoration' of imperial rule, and a short civil war (the Boshin War, 1868-69) ended the old order. The shogunate system, 1603 to 1868, was gone.
Why it fell, in short
- Foreign pressure showed the shogun was weak.
- Unequal treaties and price rises caused anger.
- Strong domains and samurai wanted a new leader.
- Money problems of the state and samurai had grown for decades.
Key formulas and definitions
- 1853: foreign warships near Edo; 1854: Convention of Kanagawa (2 ports)
- 1858: treaties open about 5 ports; extraterritoriality, no tariff control
- Sonno joi = revere the emperor, expel the foreigners
- 1866: Satsuma-Choshu alliance; 1867: shogun returns power; 1868: new government
- Pressure from outside + anger inside -> collapse of the shogunate
Worked examples
1. How many years passed between the first foreign warships in 1853 and the end of the shogunate in 1868?
1868 - 1853 = 15 years.
2. Why were the treaties of 1858 called unequal?
Foreigners were judged by their own consuls, not Japanese courts, and Japan could not set its own import taxes. Only Japan had these limits, so the deal was not equal.
3. Explain how trade could cause anger among ordinary people.
Silk and tea were sold abroad in large amounts, so they became scarcer and dearer at home. Prices of daily goods rose, and cheap foreign cloth hurt local weavers. Many people felt worse off and blamed the shogun.
Common mistakes
- Saying Japan was completely closed before 1853. It traded through a few gates, under strict control.
- Mixing up the dates: Kanagawa is 1854, the Harris Treaty 1858, the shogun's return of power 1867.
- Thinking the treaties were signed by Japan as equals. They were unequal.
- Believing foreign pressure was the only cause. Inside Japan, prices, debts and strong domains also mattered.