WE ARE ALL MEN．And I entrust things that is troublesome to the lower classes.

Wednesday, 21 November 2012

should be resolved peacefully

"It's pointless now."

They understood that fact very well.

Above all、Yoshinobu understood it better than anyone else.

"To be honest、there is no doubt that most of the human resources needed for Japan's future reside in the lower classes.

And there is no doubt that there is an urgent need for drastic reform of the shogunate system so that they can smoothly use their abilities for the benefit of society.

However、the reality is that I am a representative of the feudal lords of Japan、and the feudal domains and the social order that accompany them strictly exist.

I cannot ignore their existence、and to ignore them would be far too irresponsible as a real politician.

Self-righteous reforms and rapid changes in the social system may only bring chaos to Japan."

Yoshinobu was torn between reality and his political ideals.

　

・・・・・・・・・　　

"The reality of Japan is that it has reached the end of a dead-end road leading to colonization and virtual enslavement by Western powers (in reality、this includes the method in which they use the Tokugawa Shogunate、which is currently increasingly monopolizing overseas trade profits、as their stooge).

The worst option for us during this period is to take no action.

For the sake of Japan's future、we must create chaos in this country that breaks down the dead-end wall."

That was the way Saigo、Okubo、and others thought.

However、it is certain that this would give the impression of arbitrary decisions and rash execution、not only to the enemy but also to those around them.

Even within Satsuma、there were a considerable number of opponents of the armed uprising within the lord's entourage.

※Saigo had always been a clear follower of the late Nariakira、while Okubo was more of a favorite of Hisamitsu.

(This probably has something to do with their age difference and when they "entered society".)

When Okubo heard that Hisamitsu liked Go、he practiced Go desperately from then on、aiming for a chance to get to know Hisamitsu.

I think the Go teacher (the temple's chief priest) was Hisamitsu's friend.

It was a long time ago from this point、but when Saigo、who did not hide his contempt for Hisamitsu、was exiled due to Hisamitsu's anger、there was a desperate intercession by Okubo to have his sentence reversed.※

※After the Meiji Restoration、an unknown young man came to Okubo's mansion (there may have been many such people、but it is currently unknown whether he was a retainer of the Satsuma clan. 2024021921:26/japan time).

"If you have political ideals、please try to flatter me.

That's right、use me for your ideals."

Okubo said so.

Of course、Okubo's Go anecdote may have been quite widespread at the time.※

"The possibility of realizing the restoration of imperial rule has not yet disappeared."

Goto never gave up in Kyoto、where the situation was becoming more and more tense by the minute.

"I believe that the current political turmoil should be resolved peacefully. Above all、we must avoid large-scale civil wars that could allow military intervention by other countries."

"If we have a strategy in our hands to resolve this political problem peacefully、we should try to implement it first. Don't you think so？"

The atmosphere in the Kyoto political situation was beginning to show signs that the policy of restoring imperial rule would become the majority、thanks to Goto's energetic activities.

At that time、it became clear to Goto that Sakamoto was actively participating in Itagaki's plan to raise an army for the Tosa domain.

"It's a clear betrayal of a comrade."

Goto did not hide his anger towards Sakamoto.

Thursday, 22 November 2012

shall be moved

"Considering the current situation in Japan、above all in order to smoothly transition to a new national system、I think it would be okay to return Japan's sovereignty to Kyoto、but I think we would need to be very careful about how we do that.

For the last 700 years、Kyoto's aristocrats had no real power in governing Japan.

Even if we were to suddenly hand over the right to rule Japan to them、I highly doubt that they would have the ability to grasp it and execute it smoothly.

We must not cause any trouble to His Majesty the Emperor、and as a ruler's responsibility to the Japanese people、we must adopt gradualism in all cases to avoid unnecessary confusion.

This is a natural conclusion.

Therefore、Tokugawa's presence will continue to be an important one、and it must remain so for the sake of the Japanese nation."

Yoshinobu's thoughts were like this、and many of his close aides may have had the same thoughts.

・・・・・・・・・

"I don't care at all even if Tokugawa don't change the position of them."

Sakamoto explained to Goto.

"However、in any case、they must admit one thing.

That is、the Imperial Court will move Edo's Ginza to Kyoto."

※This ginza is the Mint.

"We will take away all control of gold and silver in Japan from Tokugawa.

If that happens、their titles won't matter."

Of course、this meant that Japan's financial resources would be transferred from the Tokugawa Shogunate to the Emperor's court.

"The short answer is that the Tokugawa shogunate will lose all rights to mint coins.

This is enough to reduce the power of the Tokugawa shogunate to nothing."

Sakamoto was already formulating a realistic vision of the new government to come、but at the same time he predicted that the Tokugawa would not be able to accept this.

"Eventually、a war will begin."

・・・・・・・・・　

　

As mentioned by Sakamoto and his colleagues as part of their eight policy in the ship、the problems caused by the difference in the value of gold and silver between Japan and the West were too serious for Japanese society.

"If we do nothing about this problem、it will result in all the gold disappearing from Japan in the next few decades."

Such calculations by a group of Tokugawa economic bureaucrats with serious consequences already existed at the time.

Sakamoto was also a trader and would have been well versed in this matter (as Katsu's number one disciple、I believe he also had connections with the Tokugawa economic bureaucracy group).

If Japan is to aim for prompt reform、it cannot afford to leave Japan in the hands of the Tokugawa.

Maybe he thought so from that perspective.

(They are samurai.)

※As I remember、when Tokugawa changed the gold content of koban、there were severe complaints from Western countries (naturally、the exchange rate could not be changed、and the sudden introduction of a large amount of bad currency into the market caused chaos in the domestic market and caused extreme inflation).

If the Tokugawa shogunate had continued as the Japanese government、negotiations to change exchange rates with other countries might have been hopeless.※