Maybe the name of village headman was also listed in that list.

Monday, 19 November 2012

unexpected things happened

The policy of the Tosa clan during this period of drastic change was officially decided to Taiseihōkan(restore the imperial government)、and Goto and other specially formed Tosa clan bureaucrats began preparations to return to Kyoto to carry out this policy.

However、at that time、something unexpected happened to them.

A British sailor was murdered in Nagasaki、and the suspect and key reference was a Tosa man from Sakamoto's company.

Of course、Britain strongly protested to the Tosa clan、and then the British ambassador came to Tosa and strongly demanded that the suspect be handed over to the British side.

※At this time、I don't know whether the suspect、this Tosa man、remained in his ronin status as before、or whether he had been reinstated as a Tosa samurai already、however、if this murdered British sailor was not considered to be on the same level as a samurai、and if there was no clear evidence of his crime、then the Nagasaki Magistrate's Office may not have had the legal authority to detain him. 2024021114:48(japan time).

Goto、who was originally the representative of the Tosa clan in Nagasaki、had to engage in this sudden and serious diplomatic negotiation、and as a result、the Tosa clan's swift move toward realizing the policy of restoring imperial rule came to a standstill.

・・・・・・・・・

"The real culprit is not him、or rather、he is not among the members of Sakamoto's company."

Detailed information sufficient to make this belief had already reached the Tosa clan government.

As soon as the news of this murder case reached Tosa、Sakamoto went to Nagasaki and continued investigating the case himself.

"Our comrade cannot be the culprit in this murder."

Its results、he was convinced so.

Based on this information、the Tosa clan approached diplomatic negotiations with Britain with a bullish attitude from beginning to end.

It seems that there was also a disturbing movement of the Itagaki faction、like the Choshu clan of the past.

In short、these diplomatic negotiations had to be conducted in a state of external tension from start to finish、but on the other hand、this may have calmed the minds of the negotiating parties.

"The Tosa clan will continue to search for the perpetrator of this murder case.

If the culprit is a Tosa person、we cannot hand him over to the British side、but of course we will swiftly and severely punish the culprit.

Even if the British side dispatched someone to Tosa to oversee the punishment、the Tosa clan would gladly accept the request."

The negotiations were thus concluded.

・・・・・・・・・

The true culprit was later revealed、but it was not a Tosa person but a samurai of the Fukuoka clan.

He had already committed suicide (seppuku).

However、being involved in this murder case may not have necessarily been a bad thing for the Tosa clan.

This incident marked the beginning of a close relationship between Britain and the Tosa clan.

※I think there was a joke among Westerners who came to Japan at the time、which was quite untrue: "Japan doesn't need police because all criminals commit seppuku". 2024021116:02(japan time).

※I now don't know what kind of people they were: the sailor of the Icarus who was killed、the Fukuoka clan samurai who killed him and committed seppuku himself、and Sakamoto's comrade who was suspected of being a suspect. 2024021116:06(japan time).

Quiet conversation 2024021207:38(japantime).

"However、Ōmura san、it is possible for our Choshu army alone to take over Osaka Castle as an administrative office and its attached government offices by surprise、but it will be extremely difficult to take control of Osaka Castle as a battle fortress and its attached fortresses.

A carefully planned surprise attack that at first glance seems stupid is more likely to succeed. If we are going to do it、we should do it all at once before the enemy's preparations for battle begin."

"If we have no other choice、I think we have no choice but to do it….

First of all、I have lived in Osaka for several years、and I have to admit that I have a fondness for the city. Let me state that clearly.

Needless to say、Osaka is Japan's economic and distribution center、and that will continue to be the case. In short、there is a high possibility that Osaka、including Kyoto where the Emperor resides、will become the future Edo of the imperial state. Osaka is a city with such potential and functions. It would be extremely foolish for us to destroy such an important city ourselves."

"Yes、that's why I claim this. We need to quickly secure such an important city so that it is not taken hostage by the Tokugawa. I am convinced of that."

"Wouldn't that just make it a good target for the Tokugawa fleet's naval gunfire？Naturally、the city of Osaka would become a sea of fire. 

If we were to launch a surprise attack on the Tokugawa、it would naturally lead to a state of hostility、but there is currently too little material to judge what kind of unexpected situation would occur.

We should avoid such risks while we have other options."

"Can you hear my opinion？"

Okubo started speaking quietly.

"As you all know、the Tosa clan will propose to the Tokugawa shogunate the policy of restoring imperial rule.

This proposal has the implication that 'the restoration of imperial rule is simply a ceremonial procedure in which the Tokugawa government once returns the right to govern Japan to the Emperor、and then the Emperor gives it to them again'.

This is what Sakamoto san and Goto san made clear to me、and this implication will probably remain until the end.

Everyone in the Tokugawa Shogunate must have already realized that it is impossible to maintain the status quo.

Such a peaceful rebirth ritual is probably what they want as well.

This increased the possibility that the Tokugawa shogunate would accept this proposal.

Therefore、the Imperial Court appears to be planning to ask His Majesty the Emperor to declare that a council of feudal lords will be held in Kyoto to discuss the contents of the new government at the same time that the Tokugawa returns the right to govern Japan to the Emperor.

Naturally、the Imperial Court、returned the right to govern Japan to the Emperor and it is expected that Yoshinobu、who himself acknowledged his lack of ability to govern Japan, would never be allowed to participate in this conference.

At the same time、the Imperial Court will probably request the lords to provide soldiers to build up the imperial army.

Of course、that would include your Lord Mori kou and our Lord Shimazu kou.

And although this is unconfirmed information、it appears that if the Tokugawa Shogunate rejects this proposal、it would be a serious insult to the Emperor, and the Imperial Court is determined to strip the Tokugawa Shogunate of its right to govern Japan."

"In that case···."

"At this time the concept of the restoration of imperial rule would be widely presented to the nation as a public opinion of the Tosa clan already.

Yes、nothing will change about the schedule after that."

"I don't want Kyoto Osaka to become a battlefield."

Of course、I am afraid that we can ask His Majesty the Emperor to issue such a proclamation.

"No、war is inevitable、so it's better not to do it.

Instead、we should strengthen our efforts to strongly encourage the lords、including the Tokugawa branch clans、to join our side.

We are by no means trying to become the next power after Tokugawa、and it's time to make that clear through our actions."

At this meeting、Kido (Katsura) spoke for the first time.

"Yes、I agree with you、because we are all just babies to His Majesty the Emperor.

By the way、Omura san、I too have always thought that Osaka would be a suitable capital for an imperial nation.

However、just recently、there was an anonymous message that said、"Osaka's urban functions are too focused on the economy、and adding a new Japanese governance function to it would inevitably cost a huge amount of money and times. The capital of the government must be Edo、where all the functions of governing Japan are already fully equipped".

So I casually asked Konoike's general manager for his opinion on this matter、and he agreed, saying、"We can do business with peace of mind only if the country's politics are solid".

"Okubo san、is that your opinion as the Satsuma clan？"

"At the very least、there is no problem in thinking that Saigo agrees with me."

※"Kido san."

Okubo continued speaking.

"Our clan organized a new national finance research group centered on Godai.

In the near future、this group will hold a study group on the new nation's finances together with the Osaka business community、and we hope that the Choshu clan will also participate in this study group.

Naturally、we promise to provide our full support regarding the safety of the Choshu feudal retainers."

"Understood、let's dispatch Inoue and Ito to Osaka.

And Yamagata-kun、please go to Osaka with them."

"Me？

I think there are people who are far more qualified than me to research national finances."

"No、if a war breaks out、Omura san won't be able to move from headquarters、and if Osaka becomes a battlefield、you will definitely be the combat commander.

From you to the people of Osaka、although this may only be the heavyweights of the economic world、please clearly convey the possibility that Osaka will become a battlefield.

Even if Osaka remains unscathed、if nothing changes as a result of the current situation、that would be the worst possible outcome.

If everyone in Osaka is safe、Osaka will definitely recover、no matter how much time and cost it takes.

Please tell them that the Choshu clan believes so."

"Okay、then let's take a closer look at the city and people of Osaka."

"We apologize to you、but although the situation has improved considerably、we Satuma may not be able to guarantee your safety regarding your free movement in Osaka."

"Yes、I understand it.

When I returned to my hometown after participating in Takasugi san's coup d'état、I found it completely in ruins. It was a fierce battleground. I understand the pain of losing one's hometown.

I want to remember the city and people of Osaka in order to make calm decisions during battle." 2024021417:27(japan time). ※

※I don't know when it happened、but I think it was Maejima Hisoka who gave this anonymous advice to Okubo (later、Maejima himself confessed this fact to Okubo). 2024021807:44(japan time).

Tuesday, 20 November 2012

that no longer meaningless

However、in the end、the Tosa clan may have wasted their time.

When the incident was resolved diplomatically、the situation in Japan had already become even more difficult for Tosa's policy.

"Satsuma's policy has already decided on an armed uprising against the Shogunate.

Now、why is there not a single Tosa clan soldier in Kyoto right now？

Wasn't it our promise based on faith that Tosa would also send soldiers to Kyoto to defeat the shogunate？"

 

Saigo questioned Goto harshly.

Yes、Goto had come to Kyoto without any soldiers.

"Thanks to the Tokugawa clan、the Yamanouchi clan、which was a small daimyo with around 60,000 goku、became a great daimyo with over 200,000 goku.

And for the past 250 years、the Yamanouchi clan has received so much kindness from the Tokugawa that it simply cannot repay it.

If we forget this fact、the Yamanouchi family is no longer samurai.

I don't want to fight with Tokugawa."

Yamanouchi Yodo's strong will as a samurai was there.

・・・・・・・・・

Around the same time、Okubo of Satsuma was visiting Choshu.

"If we waste any more time、we will only continue to cause too much damage to our Empire.

Even if only Satsuma、we will raising an army."

He made this clear to the lord of Choshu.

"The Tosa clan should not abandon the option of an armed uprising、even if it goes against the Tosa clan's official policy."

Under these circumstances、Sakamoto said so and spared no effort in cooperating with the rapid modernization of the Tosa clan's armament and the plan to dispatch troops to Kyoto.

At the same time、although his actions seemed to contradict it、he continued to do his best to achieve the "return of imperial rule".

The connections he had built up over the years、including powerful people in the Tokugawa shogunate、were extremely useful for this purpose.

He was even willing to meet secretly with key figures of the Tokugawa shogunate.

They、too、were eager to meet Sakamoto.

"Even if I meet a person who only has a title、it is meaningless any longer."

They were well aware.

Feudalism is ”title”.

※Of course they are one of them.　

"That's meaningless now."　

Yes、they were well aware.　

※According to my memory、the ship on which the killed sailor was riding is "Ikaros".