Scribd
Upload
572 views2 pages

Charter Oath 1868

The Charter Oath was issued in 1868 after the Meiji Restoration to establish goals and priorities for the new Japanese government. It called for deliberative assemblies, public discussion of policy, unity among the people, and breaking from past customs to strengthen the foundations of imperial rule. However, its commitment to democracy was unclear and its pledges were only partially fulfilled.

Uploaded by

scribed32198
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
572 views2 pages

Charter Oath 1868

The Charter Oath was issued in 1868 after the Meiji Restoration to establish goals and priorities for the new Japanese government. It called for deliberative assemblies, public discussion of policy, unity among the people, and breaking from past customs to strengthen the foundations of imperial rule. However, its commitment to democracy was unclear and its pledges were only partially fulfilled.

Uploaded by

scribed32198
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 2

Primary Source Document with Questions (DBQs) THE CHARTER OATH (OF THE MEIJI RESTORATION), 1868

Introduction The Charter Oath was a short but very important public document issued in April 1868, just months after the Meiji Restoration brought an end to the Tokugawa shogunate and installed a new Japanese government. Issued in the name of the Emperor Meiji (who was only 15 years old at the time), the text was written by a group of the young samurai, mainly from domains in southwestern Japan, who had led the overthrow of the Tokugawa and the restoration of imperial rule. The Charter Oath appeared at a time of considerable uncertainty in Japanese society, as people throughout the country were unsure of the intentions and priorities of the new regime governing Japan.

Document Excerpts with Questions


From Sources of Japanese Tradition, edited by Wm. Theodore de Bary, Ryusaku Tsunoda, and Donald Keene, 1st ed., vol. 2 (New York: Columbia University Press, 1964), 137. 1964 Columbia University Press. Reproduced with the permission of the publisher. All rights reserved.

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

Questions: 1. Why did the leaders of the Meiji Restoration feel it necessary to issue the Charter Oath? 2. How would you have reacted to this document as a Japanese samurai at the time? What if you were a warrior from the Tokugawa clan? What if you had been a peasant or urban merchant?

Primary Source Document with Questions (DBQs) on THE CHARTER OATH (OF THE MEIJI RESTORATION), 1868 3. What do you think the authors of this document meant by deliberative assemblies and public discussion? Does this suggest a commitment to democratic rule? 4. What did the authors of the Charter Oath believe to be the evil customs of the past? 5. From your further study of the history of Meiji Japan, did the new government live up to the goals established in the Charter Oath?

Asia for Educators l Columbia University l http: //afe.easia.columbia.edu

Page 2 of 2

You might also like