Let's Win！ Fukushima！！

Thursday, 1 November 2012

in secret to ally

Coinciding with the arrival of the commander-in-chief in Kokura (although they may have come together)、the Tokugawa shogunate navy also gathered here、so the morale of this area army was bound to increase.

However、it was always the Choshu clan that went on the offensive against the opposite shore.

Since Takasugi's successful single-ship surprise attack、the actions of the Tokugawa shogunate navy have been lackluster (Takasugi was the commander of the Choshu army in this area).

In fact、Choshu had sea control over this extremely narrow strait、and battles were always fought in Kyushu、and the Tokugawa Shogunate forces in this area were unable to land in Choshu territory until the end.

※I am writing this without doing any research but.

This commander entered Kokura Castle in Kyushu、which faced Choshu territory in Honshu.

I think this was true at the time as well、but if they wanted to come to the port in the castle town, they would have to pass through this narrow strait.

Including it is unclear (I don't know now) whether this port was sufficiently developed to gathering a modern fleet (the Tokugawa Shogunate Navy at the time was Japan's largest modern fleet)、they may have taken a "detour" and gathered near a place on the other side of the mountain from Kokura.

And the area around Shimonoseki may have been the territory of a branch domain of the Choshu clan (although given the circumstances, it probably operated as the "Choshu clan" at this time) - I took a quick look at Japanese Wikipedia. 2023121016:42(japan time).

Ships from Sakamoto's company in Nagasaki also participated in this battle on the Choshu side.

In addition to that Sakamoto met with Takasugi、obtained Takasugi's consent、and Sakamoto vigorously began a campaign to urge each feudal lord in Kyushu to secede from the Shogunate army.

I don't know if it was that clear、but it seems that there was a similar strong request made by the lord of Satsuma (the biggest daimyo in Kyushu) to the lords of Kyushu.

The reality of the Tokugawa shogunate army could be described as an allied army、but it could also be called a hodgepodge army.

They had almost no connection of will or lateral connection.

The largest corps in this area was the Kumamoto clan army.

※At that time、most of present-day Kumamoto Prefecture was the territory of the Hosokawa family.

Kumamoto Castle and Hiroshima Castle are fortifications built during the early years of the Tokugawa shogunate、with the Shimazu and Mori as potential enemies.

Therefore、these two areas were given vast territories by the Tokugawa shogunate.※

"We must cross the strait and launch an attack into the Choshu clan！"

The Tokugawa shogun、who could not bear to see the war situation being unilaterally disadvantageous to them、issued such instructions to them.

However、the Kumamoto clan refused that shogun's order and began retreating from the front lines on their own.

(By the way、although there is probably no direct connection、the main members of the plan that led to the Ikedaya incident were samurai of the Kumamoto clan.)

The lord of Kokura (Ogasawara family)、whose territory was the site of a fierce battle、was extremely confused by this situation.

"Please take immediate steps to improve the situation."

Naturally、he made this request to the regional army commander of the Tokugawa shogunate.

Of course the commander agreed it.

※This commander is also (probably the same) Ogasawara - Karatsu clan. 2023121017:48(japan time).

However、the proposed solution was only abstract and lacked concreteness.

Therefore、a senior vassal of the Kokura clan was scheduled to speak directly to the regional army commander、but he was unable to meet him.

This is because by this time the commander and his staff had secretly fled from Kokura.

The commander and his staff secretly fled the battlefield before anyone else.

It would be strange if the war continued under these circumstances.

Eventually、Kokura Castle also fell to the Choshu army、and the war in this area ended with a complete defeat for the Tokugawa.

Friday, 2 November 2012

cultural enlightenment

Even before this war began、Britain had established close relations with Satsuma and Choshu.

On the other hand、France had a close relationship with the Tokugawa shogunate.

Therefore、to put it in the extreme、the Tokugawa shogunate suspected that Britain was behind the scenes inciting Choshu、and Satsuma and Choshu suspected that the Tokugawa shogunate had already become a puppet of France.

However、judging by the results、there was no such fact.

※"If the Vietnamese want to continue their civil war、they should do it with weapons of their own making."

This is a statement made by Siba san during the Vietnam War.

At that time、large quantities of weapons were being provided (ありがたいです) almost free of charge to North and South Vietnam by major powers on both sides、as if in perpetual motion.※

In other words、perhaps a characteristic of Japan during this period was that everyone、along with Westerners、was seriously thinking about Japan's future (though I may be romanticizing it too much).

The French ambassador to Japan at this time spared no efforts for the final victory of the Tokugawa shogunate.

Of course、he was probably doing this for the benefit of his home country、France (at the time、trade between France and Japan was sluggish、partly due to a late start).

But more than that、he likely believed that the Tokugawa shogunate must win for Japan's future.

Or、simply speaking、his thoughts may have been the same as those of Tokugawa Shogunate officials in his position as a close friend of the Tokugawa Shogunate.

※If I were to write it this way、he would end up sounding like a so-called "国士 kokusi nationalist"、a self-righteous fascist soldier from the early Showa era.

If you are interested、please do your own research on him (lol).

And if you'd like、please do your own research on "国士 kokusi nationalist - patriot" from the early Showa era from various perspectives. 2023121114:54(japan time).

During the construction of Japan's first modern shipyard、which was built in Yokosuka with the cooperation of France、he always responded kindly to inquiries from Tokugawa Shogunate officials.

"We're building this from scratch out of nothing.

Of course、there are many things we don't know. "

It may have been that the officials in charge of the Tokugawa shogunate were also intelligent and good people、but they used to ask him for advice with a smile and candor.

The atmosphere of the Meiji era was certainly present there (Cultural enlightenment).

Of course、after this、the Tokugawa shogunate collapsed.

Oguri、who was one of the people in charge of the shipyard construction、was executed by the new government forces.

I don't know why he was executed.

※"Let's borrow money from France using (present-day) Hokkaido as collateral to finance the war against the Western Army."

That being said、I think this is the biggest reason for Oguri's unpopularity (which continues to this day).※

・・・・・・・・・

This French ambassador was due to return to France due to failing health、but this war started.

He canceled his return to France and instead called his wife and child to Japan.

He worked hard for the victory of the Tokugawa shogunate、and if the Tokugawa shogunate army had adopted the strategy he proposed at this time、the Choshu clan would have been in danger.

※Was it a simultaneous landing operation targeting the rear of each front？

I believe that this corresponded well with the weak points in the Choshu army's total troop deployment.

The above is based on my memory and is quite uncertain.※

By the way、France at this time was under the reign of Napoleon III.

Diplomacy with Japan at the time may have been decided by his personal judgment (すいませんね).

The treaty with the Tokugawa Shogunate was a treaty between the Emperor of France and the King of Japan.

That was the perception in France.

There were definitely those constraints.

※For example (of course、even if the position is reversed)、are there any historical situations in which it would have been possible to annihilate a landing force with the Yamato's main guns if they had known the situation in advance？2023121116:24(japantime).

※If today's Vietnamese people have the ability to make only knives、then they should go to war with those knives.

If the United States had not intervened militarily in Vietnam、Vietnam would have become a communist country by now、and relations with the United States might have improved.

Just as there is no need for a communist state system in the Netherlands or Sweden (for example) today、it just means that some Asian countries do.

In countries that have lagged behind the trend of modernization、if a "clean government" does not carefully nurture the nation's capital、it will soon be exploited by some capitalists (including foreign capital) and the people will be enslaved.

I think Shiba san's argument was something like that (inaccurate・lol). 2023121709:03(japan time).