However, the Imperial Army was likewise depleted, and fighting was suspended for several weeks to permit reinforcement. Few would return. In order to cut Saig off from his base, an imperial force with three warships, 500 policemen, and several companies of infantry landed in Kagoshima on March 8, seized arsenals, and took Satsuma's governor into custody. Saigo spent a lot of time soaking in hot springs and strenuously avoiding politics. 0 references. With these deaths, the Satsuma rebellion came to an end. Arguably one of the most influential samurai, especially during the fall of the samurai class during the transition into the Meiji period, he led the Satsuma Rebellion in 1877, which marked the last of a series of uprisings against the new Meiji government. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Names, Romanizations, and Spelling (page 2 of 2), Satsuma Rebellion: Satsuma Clan Samurai Against the Imperial Japanese Army, Organization of Imperial and Satsuma Forces, Imperial Japanese Army General Staff Office, Imperial Rescript to Soldiers and Sailors, Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, German preWorld War II industrial co-operation, International Military Tribunal for the Far East, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Satsuma_Rebellion&oldid=1121217754, Pages with non-numeric formatnum arguments, Short description is different from Wikidata, Articles containing Japanese-language text, Articles with unsourced statements from January 2022, Articles with unsourced statements from April 2021, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Buck, James H. "The Satsuma Rebellion of 1877. However, he soon learned that 50 Tokyo police officers who were Satsuma natives had returned home with instructions to assassinate him in the case of an uprising. Blog. On his return to Kobe on February 12, Hayashi met with General Yamagata Aritomo and It Hirobumi, and it was decided that the Imperial Japanese Army would need to be sent to Kagoshima to prevent the revolt from spreading to other areas of the country sympathetic to Saig. However, the imperial government gradually sent more than 45,000 reinforcements to relieve Kumamoto, finally driving the Satsuma army away with heavy casualties. by W. W. McLaren (page images at HathiTrust) Satire picture of Boshin War, diptych. Over the next several nights, they raided additional arsenals around Kagoshima, stealing weapons and ammunition, and to make matters worse, they discovered that the national police had sent a number of Satsuma natives to the Shigakko as central government spies. He went to the Emperor's court in Kyoto in March and was amazed to meet samurai from other domains who treated him with reverence for his defense of Gessho. Satsuma Rebellion. This was the end of the so-called Satsuma Rebellion. It was believed by some that he had fled to Russia, or ascended to Mars. The accounts of his subordinates claim that he stood up and committed seppuku after his injury or that he requested that his friend Beppu Shinsuke assist his suicide. They resisted the Imperial forces until they were destroyed to the last man. SAIGO's army campaigned as far as Kumamoto and Miyazaki (both in Kyushu), but then returned to Kagoshima in September, where it holed up in Shiroyama. The rebellion lasted from January 29, 1877, until September . News article in Le Monde Illustr, 1877. date= January 29, 1877 to September 24, 1877 place= Kysh, Japan result=Imperial Victory combatant1= Empire of Japan combatant2=Satsuma domain Although Satsuma had been one of the key players in the Meiji Restoration and the Boshin War, and although many men from Satsuma had risen to influential positions in the new Meiji government, there was growing dissatisfaction with the direction the country was taking. OutOfFighters 3 yr. ago. This item is part of a JSTOR Collection. He was succeeded by his 15-year-old son, Mutsuhito, who would later become known as the Meiji Emperor. Saig and his remaining samurai were pushed back to Kagoshima where, in a final battle, the Battle of Shiroyama, Imperial Army troops under the command of General Yamagata Aritomo and marines under the command of Admiral Kawamura Sumiyoshi outnumbered Saig 60-to-1. Author: Augustus Henry Mounsey. From Kagoshima Through the Siege of Kumamoto Castle", This page was last edited on 11 November 2022, at 04:04. The Siege of Kumamoto Castle lasted until April 12, 1877. Two describe a bullet wound to the hip or thigh. This file contains additional information such as Exif metadata which may have been added by the digital camera, scanner, or software program used to create or digitize it. Then, Japan attacked forcing the Joseon king to sign an unequal treaty, which eventually led to the outright annexation of Korea in 1910. By 7 o' clock that morning, all of the Satsuma samurai lay dead. The Commandant of Kumamoto Castle Major General Tani Tateki had 3,800 soldiers and 600 policemen at his disposal. The division of feeling which existed in several of the clans following the Meiji Restoration was most conspicuous in Satsuma, Choshiu and Mito. HOME > Initial Steps toward a Constitutional State > b. The Imperial Guard (mostly ex-samurai) was always maintained at wartime strength. On January 30, 1877, the central government launched a raid on the arms and ammunition storage areas in Kagoshima, without any prior warning to the Satsuma authorities. Saigo Takamori was born on January 23, 1828, in Kagoshima, Satsuma's capital, the oldest of seven children. In this rebellion, Saigo Takamori, one of the veteran statesmen of the Restoration, who enjoyed a wide popularity and was well versed in military tactics, acted as the head of the insurrection. Eventually Saig and his final remaining samurai were encircled and annihilated at the Battle of Shiroyama. While the year 1868 was crucial to the fall of the shogunate and the establishment of a new government . Located on the southern tip of Kyushu Island, more than 800 miles south of Tokyo, the Satsuma domain had existed and governed itself for centuries with very little interference from the central government. In the final battle, the Battle of Shiroyama, 30,000 imperial troops bore down upon Saigo and his few hundreds of surviving rebel samurai. Author: Mounsey, Augustus Henry. In July, the Emperor's army encircled Saigo's men, but the Satsuma army fought its way free with heavy casualties. Economic effects of the Satsuma Rebellion resulted in the passing of the Act of February 4, 1877, which reduced the land tax from 3% to 2.5%. Szczepanski, Kallie. Details; Description; Szczepanski, Kallie. Satsuma Rebellion Part of the ShizokuRebellions Map of the campaign Belligerents Empire of Japan Satsuma Domain Commanders and leaders Emperor Meiji Prince Arisugawa Yamagata Aritomo Kuroda Kiyotaka Tani Tateki Saig Takamori Kirino Toshiaki Beppu Shinsuke Strength 227,000 10 warships 25,000-35,000 Casualties and losses On September 24, 1877, at 3:45 am, the Emperor's army launched its final assault in what is known as the Battle of Shiroyama. Ravina prefers the English name "War of the Southwest."[12]. The decision in 1938 At the start of the Satsuma Rebellion, the Imperial Japanese Army (including the Imperial Guard) numbered approximately 34,000 men. Public apprehension found free expression in the Press, which said that the nation was divided into two parties, one being for the Government, the other for Satsuma, and asked what could be done to preserve peace. After centuries of samurai rule, however, many members of the warrior class were understandably reluctant to give up their status and power. She has taught at the high school and university levels in the U.S. and South Korea. Saig met the noted British diplomat Ernest Satow in the 1860s, as recorded in the latter's A Diplomat in Japan, and Satow was present at the unveiling as recorded in his diary. . All three accounts report that the body was decapitated. Saigo suspected that the Koreans might assassinate him, but felt that his death would be worthwhile if it gave Japan a truly legitimate reason to attack its neighbor. Saigo's nearly bloodless victory won him national fame, eventually leading to his appointment as an elder of Satsuma in September of 1866. [6] The costs of pacifying the former samurai led to the Meiji government becoming virtually bankrupt; the government was forced to sell off state-owned enterprises such as factories and mines to politically-connected merchants and former officials at low prices, leading to the instant formation of large industrial firms or zaibatsu. Just four days after his return, he had an audience with the daimyo, Hisamitsu, who shocked him by appointing him commander of the Satsuma army in Kyoto. Saigo soon noted that he had "fallen into their trap and taken the bait" of settling into a siege. On the night of April 8, a force from Kumamoto castle made a sortie, forcing open a gap in the Satsuma lines and enabling desperately needed supplies to reach the garrison. Modern Asian Studies, Volume 28, Issue 3, Cambridge University Press, July 1994. This fighter's primary weapon is a percussion rifle, and the only other 'modern' element of his D: THE SATSUMA REBELLION, 1877 appearance is a white crossbelt supporting a cap pouch on D1: Highranking samurai, rebel army his chest and a cartridge pouch behind his right hip. Saig was a strong proponent of war with Korea in the Seikanron debate of 1873. Initial Steps toward a Constitutional State, Preview of [Report of the Artillery Attack Against (Saigo Forces) in Shiroyama], Larger image of [Report of the Artillery Attack Against (Saigo Forces) in Shiroyama], Next ( Petition by Risshisha to Establish a National Assembly ), Chapter1 Initial Steps toward a Constitutional State, a. Conceptions of the Form of Government circa the Meiji Restoration, Chapter4 Crisis in Constitutional Politics. It did not bother him, thoughhe welcomed the opportunity to die for his principles. After two days of fruitless attack, the Satsuma forces dug into the rock-hard icy ground around the castle and tried to starve the garrison out in a siege. Saigo privately cheered on the rebels in other provinces, but stayed at his country house rather than returning to Kagoshima for fear that his presence might spark yet another rebellion. This rebellion was led by the restoration hero Saig Takamori and lasted six months. Satsuma Rebellion. He funded but was not directly involved with the schools, so did not know that the students were becoming radicalized against the Meiji government. There, the situation was complicated by the existence of no less than three parties two conservative groups led, respectively, by the old noble Shimadzu, the father of the young ex-daimio, and by the elder Saigo, the latter being at once the most influential and most numerous; and a thirdthe party of reformwhich looked for guidance, among other prominent men, to Okubo, Kuroda, Matsugata, Kawamura and the younger Saigo. 0 Reviews. Here he had established an institution which, in order to disguise its object, was called a "private school." In either case, his retainer, Beppu Shinsuke, cut off his head to ensure that Saigo's death was honorable. There are no published reports by eyewitnesses. Who are Satnamis? On this Wikipedia the language links are at the top of the page across from the article title. On September 1, Saigo and his 300 surviving men moved to Shiroyama mountain above Kagoshima, which was occupied by 7,000 imperial troops. The Satsuma advance guard, 4,000 strong, set out on February 15, marching north. [1], Saig Kokichi ( ) was born in Kajiya, Kagoshima, Satsuma Domain, the eldest son of samurai squire (koshkumi) Saig Kichib and his wife Masa. Over the next three days, more than 1000 students staged raids on the naval yards and other arsenals.[3]. The second crisis, the Satsuma Rebellion of 1877, was even . . Tensions with the government mounted after members of the private-school faction raided an ammunitions depot in early 1877 (Meiji 10), and secret agents were dispatched by the government to Kagoshima to spy on them. Not being allowed to travel by sea, he went back to Satsuma by land, following the historic route he and other nobles had so often taken before. The work is generally accurate and has much of . Meanwhile, the remnants of the militaristic faction that supported Saigo's invasion proposal evolved into Japanese right-wing groups such as the genyosha and kokurykai. image. His lord, Kimotsuki Hisakane ( , 1641-1709), who was a retainer of the Satsuma fief, sent Yasusada () to study with the 57 th generation Naminohira smith . [citation needed], In English, the most common name for the war is the "Satsuma Rebellion". Updates? French newsmagazine Le Monde Illustr / Wikimedia Commons / Public Domain. After Saig rejected a letter dated September 1 from Yamagata drafted by a young Suematsu Kench asking him to surrender, Yamagata ordered a full frontal assault on September 24, 1877. Saigo, however, had no regard for the conscripted farm boys who made up the imperial army. The Rebellion reduced Japan's yearly expenditure from 13,700,000 to 10,250,000, and it raised Japan's national debt from 28,000,000 to 70,000,000. A lot of time soaking in hot springs and strenuously avoiding politics this Wikipedia the language links are the! 15, marching north cut off his head to ensure that saigo 's death was.! 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