Tokugawa Ieyasu was the most powerful man in Japan after Hideyoshi had
died in 1598. Against his promises he did not respect Hideyoshi's successor
Hideyori because he wanted to become the absolute ruler of Japan.
In the battle
of Sekigahara in 1600, Ieyasu defeated the Hideyori loyalists and other
Western rivals. Hence, he achieved almost unlimited power and wealth. In 1603,
Ieyasu was appointed Shogun by the emperor and
established his government in Edo (Tokyo). The
Tokugawa shoguns continued to rule Japan for a remarkable 250 years.
Ieyasu brought
the whole country under tight control. He cleverly redistributed the gained
land among the daimyo: more loyal vassals (the ones who supported him already
before Sekigahara) received strategically more important domains accordingly.
Every daimyo was also required to spend every second year in Edo. This meant a
huge financial burden for the daimyo and moderated his power at home.
Ieyasu continued
to promote foreign trade. He established relations with the English and the
Dutch. On the other hand, he enforced the suppression and persecution of Christianity from
1614 on.
After the
destruction of the Toyotomi clan in 1615 when Ieyasu captured Osaka Castle, he
and his successors had practically no rivals anymore, and peace prevailed
throughout the Edo period. Therefore, the warriors (samurai) were
educating themselves not only in the martial arts but
also in literature, philosophy and the arts, e.g. the tea ceremony.
In 1633, shogun
Iemitsu forbade travelling abroad and almost completely isolated Japan in 1639
by reducing the contacts to the outside world to very limited trade relations
with China and the Netherlands in the port of Nagasaki. In
addition, all foreign books were banned.
Despite the
isolation, domestic trade and agricultural production continued to improve.
During the Edo period and especially during the Genroku era (1688 -
1703), popular culture flourished. New art forms like kabuki and ukiyo-e
became very popular especially among the townspeople.
The most
important philosophy of Tokugawa Japan was Neo-Confucianism,
stressing the importance of morals, education and hierarchical order in the
government and society: A strict four class system existed during the Edo period:
at the top of the social hierarchy stood the samurai,
followed by the peasants, artisans and merchants. The members of the four
classes were not allowed to change their social status. Outcasts, people with
professions that were considered impure, formed a fifth class.
In 1720, the ban
of Western literature was cancelled, and several new teachings entered Japan
from China and Europe (Dutch Learning). New nationalist schools that combined
Shinto and Confucianist elements also developed.
Even though the
Tokugawa government remained quite stable over several centuries, its position
was steadily declining for several reasons: A steady worsening of the financial
situation of the government led to higher taxes and riots among the farm
population. In addition, Japan regularly experienced natural disasters and
years of famine that caused riots and further financial problems for the
central government and the daimyo. The social hierarchy began to break down as
the merchant class grew increasingly powerful while some samurai
became financially dependent of them. In the second half of the era,
corruption, incompetence and a decline of morals within the government caused
further problems.
In the end of
the 18th century, external pressure started to be an increasingly
important issue, when the Russians first tried to establish trade contacts with
Japan without success. They were followed by other European nations and the
Americans in the 19th century. It was eventually Commodore Perry in 1853 and
again in 1854 who forced the Tokugawa government to open a limited number of
ports for international trade. However, the trade remained very limited until
the Meiji restoration in 1868.
All factors
combined, the anti-government feelings were growing and caused other movements
such as the demand for the restoration of imperial power and anti western
feelings, especially among ultra-conservative samurai in increasingly
independently acting domains such as Choshu and Satsuma. Many people, however,
soon recognized the big advantages of the Western nations in science and
military, and favoured a complete opening to the world. Finally, also the
conservatives recognized this fact after being confronted with Western warships
in several incidents.
In 1867-68, the
Tokugawa government fell because of heavy political pressure, and the power of Emperor Meiji was restored.
Edo Period: Pre-conditions for
Industrialization
Nikko Toshogu Shrine (Yomei Gate) :- From the late 12th century through
the 17th century, Japan was ruled by samurais (military leaders) but politics
remained unstable. Internal wars and power shifts were very frequent,
especially during the late 15th century to the end of the 16th century (called Sengoku
Jidai, or warring period).
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Finally, Ieyasu Tokugawa unified
the country after the decisive Battle of Sekigahara (located between Nagoya and
Kyoto, visible from Shinkansen) in 1600 and the attacks on Osaka Castle in 1615
where the rival Toyotomi family perished. Ieyasu established a new government
in Edo and became the first shogun of the Edo Bakufu in 1603. Edo, a sleepy
little town until then, was transformed into a huge political city by
aggressive public works including land reclamation, new canals and clean water
supply systems. The Tokugawa family ruled the country in the next 264 years (15
shoguns in all). Ieyasu Tokugawa was deified and worshiped in Nikko Toshogu
Shrine (even today).
We start the story of Japan's
economic development from the Edo period because pre-conditions for later
industrialization and modernization were created internally during this period
(moreover, quantitative data for earlier periods are very limited). The
following are the pre-conditions that were generated:
(1) Political unity and stability
(2) Agricultural development in terms of both area and productivity
(3) Development of transportation and the existence of nationally unified
markets
(4) The rise of commerce, finance and the wealthy merchant class
(5) The rise of manufacturing (food processing, handicraft, etc)
(6) Industrial promotion by central and local governments (sometimes successful
but not always)
(7) High level of education
These are the features of the Edo
period which are commonly cited by many researchers. The remainder of this
lecture discusses them in detail. Note that some of these conditions are not
achieved even today in some countries. In fact, developing countries that are
equipped with all these conditions are relatively rare.
Here are some
basic terminology for the Edo period:
Edo
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The old name for Tokyo. Edo literally means the
mouth of bay. Incidentally, Tokyo means eastern capital (the western, or the
traditional, capital is Kyoto).
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Daimyo
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Regional samurai ruler. During the Edo period, it
meant the head samurai of a local government (han).
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Shogun
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Originally, the supreme commander of dispatched
army. But it usually means the head of a central military government.
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Bakufu
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Residence of a military ruler. Later it meant the
central military government itself.
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Han
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A local government (like province or prefecture) in
the Edo period.
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Features of the Bakufu-Han System
The basic characteristics of the
Edo society and politics were as follows.
(1) It was a class society: The
ruling class was samurai (military men who were permitted to carry a
sword). Then farmers (ranked no.2), craftsmen (no.3), merchants (no.4). There
was a big gap between the samurai class and other classes. Farmers were officially
placed no.2 because they paid the rice tax, but they were not particularly
respected. Below all of these classes, there were also outcasts (eta and
hinin).
(These four classes were called Shi-Nou-Kou-Shou (from top to bottom).
Historically, Vietnam also had the distinction of Si-Nong-Cong-Thuong (Chinese
characters are the same, only the pronunciation is different). It is clear that
the idea originally came from China. In Vietnam, however, the top class
"Si" meant scholars or literary bureaucrats, not fighting men.
Moreover, it merely showed what types of people were important and respectable
in society without political implication. The Edo government changed this idea
into an ideology that legitimized a class society with samurais on top.)
(2) Politically, it was a
centralized system. The Bakufu (central government) had absolute political
power over the fate of hans (local governments) and could even remove or
abolish them. It was a feudal society in the sense that the shogun gave daimyos
the land to rule. In return, daimyos pledged loyalty to shogun. Any sign of
disobedience was met with sternest punishment (often seppuku (ritual
suicide) and/or the termination of the family).
(3) Economically, it was more
decentralized. The Bakufu was not very capable of (or interested in) imposing
consistent economic policies. Its policies were often unstable and
short-sighted. Each han could decide its tax rates and other economic
regulations, or encourage certain industries (so long as it was not explicitly
prohibited by the Bakufu).
(4) The Bakufu imposed the
following expenses on hans.
(i) sankinkotai, bi-annual commuting between
home and Edo (one year the daimyo must live in Edo, next year in his han, then
Edo, then home, ad infinitum) -- a large number of retainers also moved
with him. This cost a large sum of money and usually constituted the largest
part of han's expenditure.
(ii) public works ordered by the Bakufu, such as
building castles, moats, roads, irrigation ponds and canals, waterworks, etc.
(iii) other ad hoc and arbitrary taxes and charges.
Imposition of these financial
expenses on hans had the effect of weakening the financial capability of hans
so they were unable to build military forces to rebel against the Bakufu.
Agriculture
- The Edo society was agrarian (particularly at the beginning) with about 90% of the population being peasants. Later, the ratio declined somewhat. The basic unit of production was the small family. Previously, one farming household often contained many families plus servants. But official land surveys (kenchi) conducted before and after the beginning of the Edo period dismantled the big family system and created small farming units, with each family guaranteed of the land to cultivate.
- According to the law, peasants had no right to move and were tied to the land as labor force (they were the tax base !) But in reality, some farmers moved to new land, sometimes to avoid a high tax burden, unreasonable policy or famine, but sometimes to look for new land to improve their life. Later, as rural income rose, many well-to-do farmers enjoyed village festivals as well as trips to Ise Shrine and other religious spots (officially for worship, but actually for fun).
- Villages were well organized and permitted autonomy, as long as they paid rice taxes as stipulated. The rice tax was levied on villages (not individual farmers), and village representatives, who were often themselves farmers, allocated rice tax burden among all villagers. In a sense, they played the role of lowest-level tax administration. Thanks to them, the Bakufu and hans could raise tax revenues with little administrative cost. Prof. Keiichi Tanaka (Edo historian) argues that farmers were very dynamic and independent, and they often rejected Bakufu officials and policies which were inconsistent and unreasonable. (Prof. Tanaka thinks that the Bakufu had no long-term vision and their laws and regulations were ad hoc responses to unfolding events.)
- There were two ways to determine the rice tax obligation. One was the kemi (inspection) system where an official inspector came to check the actual yield every year. Naturally, village representatives treated the official with lots of food and gifts. Some officials only had drinking parties and did not actually check the fields. The bribed official happily understated the crop output (often very substantially) so villages paid much less taxes.
- According to Prof. ShinzaburoOishi (historian), such corruption was an important reason for chronic revenue shortage of the government. On the other hand, if the visiting official was arbitrary and uncooperative, he might raise the tax obligation to the chagrin of the farmers.
- Another method was the jomen (fixed amount) system where the rice tax was unchanged for three or five years based on the average output of the preceding years. Under this system, the government could expect a more stable tax revenue and also minimize the inspection cost. Farmers borne a greater risk for crop failure, but incentive to produce was also greater (if they worked hard, additional output was all theirs). According to Prof. Tanaka, farmers often preferred the jomen system because they did not want to cope with corrupt officials every year.
- During the Edo period, agricultural development underwent two phases: from quantitative expansion to qualitative intensification.
- From the mid 15th century to the late 17th century (this includes the previous Sengoku Jidai (warring period) as well as the early Edo period), there was an enormous expansion of farmland (especially rice paddies). Earlier, rice was produced in narrow valleys where mountains ended and plains began--this was the only place where constant water supply was available. But during this period, large-scale water projects were carried out all over Japan by daimyos and private farmers to control floods and use rivers for irrigation. As a result, land under cultivation expanded dramatically. The plains, which had hitherto been uninhabitable marshlands, were turned into productive paddy fields. The population increased rapidly (such population growth was very unusual for a pre-modern society). Prof. ShinzaburoOishi calls this "The Great Age of Opening Fields."
After the late 17th century, land
expansion came to a halt. The rapid growth of farmland in the previous period
also brought some negative effects, including
(i) shortage of labor force;.
(ii) deforestation and frequent occurrence of floods. From this period onward
(even today), Japanese agriculture emphasized intensive cultivation with large
inputs of labor and technology, instead of quantitative expansion.
- From the 18th century onward, the area of cultivation and population remained relatively stable, but rice output continued to grow thanks to increased productivity. Contributing factors included double cropping, new species of rice, fertilizer (dried fish was popular), and invention of new farming tools. Many guidebooks were published to teach farmers how to produce crops more effectively and efficiently.
- At the beginning of the Edo period (17th century), peasants produced mainly for family consumption. They ate what they produced and their living standards were at subsistence levels. However, from the middle Edo period, as productivity rose, agricultural surplus was created and peasants began to sell their rice and other crops to the market (which was nationally integrated). Cash crops increased and commercial agriculture began.
- Officially, all farmers were supposed to belong to (or be tied to) pre-assigned land. But in the 19th century as landless farmers increased, the landlord-tenant relationship began to emerge.
- Farmers' uprisings (ikki) frequently occurred, especially at the time of famine and toward the end of the Edo period. They were unhappy with taxes, inflation, famine, corrupt officials, or government policies.
Budget
and money
The Bakufu's revenue sources
included the following:
--Rice tax from land directly held
by Bakufu (land not distributed to other daimyos)
--Monopoly on mining, foreign trade and minting money
--Direct control on major cities (Edo, Kyoto, Osaka, Nagasaki, Sakai, etc)
--Financial contributions from merchants in exchange for monopoly & cartel
permission
--Charges on and borrowings from rich merchants (sometimes not repaid)
--In addition, the Bakufu assigned hans to various public works, as noted above
Hans' revenue included the
following:
--Rice tax from its territory
--Revenues from local industries (if industrial promotion was successful)
The entire fiscal system was based
on the rice tax. The unit of fiscal account was "koku" (about 180
liters of rice). The han's economic size was measured in koku and samurai's
salaries were paid in rice (but of course they had to convert it to cash to buy
things). Rice was physically collected from each village and transported to the
major rice markets (Osaka was the most important national rice market), then
redistributed to the rest of the country. The "koku" size of each han
was based on cultivated areas at the beginning, but as new fields were opened
and productivity rose, the official "koku" size and the actual
"koku" size of each han deviated.
This rice-based system had the
following consequences:
(1) Since rice had to be actually
shipped across regions, this tax system required a nationally unified
transportation and distribution mechanism. Private merchants provided such
services but the Bakufu and han governments often guided and supported them.
Land transportation (on horseback) was very costly and inefficient, so sea and
river transportation was mainly used.
(2) Economic activity gradually
shifted from subsistence farming to commercial agriculture and handicraft
industries. But the government's tax base basically remained on rice. There
were some taxes on commerce but this did not become the reliable tax base. As a
result, the Bakufu and han governments faced fiscal crisis while farmers and
merchants were allowed to increase their income and wealth.
(3) Faced with chronic fiscal
crisis, the Bakufu responded in the following ways: monetary debasement
(similar to printing money, which leads to inflation), spending cuts, tax
increases, price controls, administrative reforms. Some commercial policies
were tried, including providing certain merchants with the exclusive right to
market a product (i.e. monopoly) in exchange for financial contribution to the
government.
Money consisted of both gold and
silver. Gold was popular in Edo and silver was mainly used in Osaka. Copper
money was also used for small transactions. Hans could also issue local paper
money. Inflation rose at the time of famine and accelerated toward the end of
the Edo period (especially after international trade was resumed).
Transportation and commerce
Tokaido
"Highway"
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- The Bakufu designated five official highways and opened major sea lanes. But private inns, restaurants, shippers, baggage carriers, etc. provided the necessary service. Farming villages near the highway were required to provide horses when necessary (part of their nontax obligation). Sankinkotai (bi-annual commuting by daimyos) also stimulated the development of the road system. At the same time, due to military reasons, Bakufu did not encourage free movement of people and merchandise. At major check points, sekisho (passport controls) were created. Some rivers were left without bridges, intentionally and for military reasons. Hans were not allowed to build ships or maintain navy.
- As noted above, from the beginning, the Edo tax system presupposed a nationally unified rice market. Development of cash crops and handicrafts also stimulated nationwide commerce. Osaka was the commercial center with many rich merchants and money lenders, while Edo was a political center and consumption city. Naturally, the sea lane between the two cities was well developed. In Osaka, the futures market in rice emerged (this is said to be the first futures market in the world).
- The Bakufu's policy towards commerce and industry was variable and inconsistent. Sometimes the central government tried to control and tax private businesses. Other times free economy was permitted. Cartels were sometimes imposed and other times prohibited. Among historians, opinions differ as to whether the Edo economy was more dynamic under free market policy or pro-cartel policy. Prof. Tetsuji Okazaki (Tokyo University) tries to show that estimated GDP grew faster during the time when cartels were permitted than when they were banned. He argues that trade cartels were a positive factor for the development of the Edo economy rather than an impediment. However, his data and regressions may be too crude to be decisive.
- Toward the end of the Edo period, many hans and local cities developed economically. As a result, direct trading among them (without the intervention of Osaka merchants) began. The center of economic activity gradually moved eastward, from Kansai (Osaka, Kyoto) to Edo and Eastern Japan. Many markets (not just rice, but almost everything) were nationally integrated.
Industry
As agriculture and commerce grew,
pre-modern manufacturing (handicrafts, food processing) also began to develop.
For example, the following products were produced:
tea, tobacco, wax, indigo, salt,
knives, sword, pottery, lacquer ware, silk, cotton, soy sauce, sake, paper,
stone cutting, medicine, chemicals.
In order to enrich local population
and increase tax revenue, many hans promoted local industries, and some even
succeeded (S. Nishikawa and M. Amano, 1989). For example,
Tokushima han (indigo): Farmers produced indigo along the Yoshino River and their
output gradually grew. But indigo distribution was monopolized by Osaka
merchants who imposed high interest on loans. In order to protect local farmers
and encourage local merchants, the han government created an indigo exchange
and provided financial and distribution services. But the Bakufu objected to
this move, prohibiting such official support (the Bakufu wanted to protect
Osaka merchants who contributed financially to the central government). So the
han privatized the indigo exchange and other services.
Takamatsu han (sugar): The Takamatsu government issued han's paper money to promote
various industries but failed, and its money depreciated. After many such
failed attempts, the han finally succeeded in research on sugar production
(from sugar beets) and commercialized the technology. As sugar production
greatly increased, the han promoted inter-han trade (direct trade between
hans). But again, the Bakufu tried to discourage such trade not brokered by
Osaka merchants.
Satsuma han (military technology): This han in southern Kyushu imported new technology from the
West and produced blast furnace, cannons and western ships. It was also engaged
in illegal trade with Ryukyu (Okinawa), which was very profitable. By
increasing wealth and military capability, Satsuma han later played the key
role in toppling the Bakufu government and establishing the Meiji government.
These are just a few examples. Many
other hans were engaged in industrial promotion, including Choshuhan (paper,
wax), Yonezawahan (safflower, lacquer wax), Akita han (silk and silk dress),
Hizenhan (pottery, coal), Higo han (lumber, silk), and so on. But we should not
forget that there were many hans which were less successful and deeply in debt.
They borrowed money from big private merchants but never repaid.
Education
The popularity of education in the
Edo period is often cited as the cause of fast industrialization in later
periods. Education in this period ranged from the recondite study of Chinese
philosophy and literature at public schools to children's primary education at
private schools. More specifically, four types of learning institutions were
important.
(1) Bakufu schools
The bakufu's schools mainly taught Confucianism, an ancient Chinese
philosophy started by Confucius in the 6th to 5th century BC. It emphasized
social order, proper rituals, the way of good political leader, and respect for
elderly and superior. The Edo government vigorously promoted Confucianism as an
ideology to legitimize and maintain the class society. Seika Fujiwara and Razan
Hayashi were the leading bakufu scholars. Students had to memorize and
interpret ancient Chinese books. How to modify this foreign doctrine to fit the
Japanese reality was one of the important theoretical questions. There were
also bakufu schools for European language (Dutch) and technology (medicine,
navigation, military technology, etc).
(2) Han schools
Hans also established schools to educate their young samurais. The
curriculums were basically the same as bakufu schools with Confucianism at the
center of learning. Toward the end of the Edo period, han schools were expanded
to emphasize practical skills such as military training and foreign language.
Some even accepted non-samurai students. Many han schools were transformed into
education institutions in the following Meiji period.
(3) Private professional schools
An eminent scholar often established his school and recruited students.
Depending on the instructor, various subjects were taught: Confucianism,
research on ancient Japanese literature (later leading to nationalism and
anti-foreigner movement), Western language (Dutch, later also English),
medicine, science, technology, and so on. These schools accepted both samurai
and non-samurai students. In the late Edo period, they often attracted talented
and hot-hearted young people with the desire to contribute to the country.
Their eyes were opened to the international situation and Japan's precarious
position in it. A large number of national leaders in the late Edo period and
the early Meiji period came from such professional schools.
(4) Terakoya (private
primary schools)
These schools were run by local teachers for teaching 3Rs -- reading,
writing, and arithmetic (abacus) -- to small children, usually starting from
six years old. The popularity of terakoya all over Japan contributed to the
very high literacy among the general public.
Proto-industrialization and
population dynamics
Economic historians have noticed
that certain areas of Europe (say, Flanders in Belgium and Lancashire in
England) were "industrialized" in the 17th-18th centuries, even
before the Industrial Revolution began in the UK. This industrialization was
characterized by rural, family-based production of textile and garment without
modern machinery (often brokered by urban merchants).
The concept of proto-industrialization
was proposed to explain why this happened, and why it was observed in certain
areas only (proto means primitive or early). The proponents advance a
hypothesis to explain rural industrialization from the unique interaction among
agriculture, population and commerce. Population growth is often considered
given in economic modeling. But in the hypothesis of proto-industrialization,
population dynamics is a crucial endogenous factor. F.F. Mendels and P. Deyon,
who proposed this idea, define proto-industrialization as the phenomenon
satisfying the following three conditions:
--It is a manufacturing activity
for market sale, not for home consumption.
--It is undertaken by peasants in a rural area (where soil is poor and plots
are small).
--It is located near an area of commercial agriculture with large farm size and
high productivity.
Proto-industrialization begins as a
side job in villages where agricultural productivity is low. They can sell
cloth and garments to nearby rich villages where agricultural productivity is
high. It is a sort of specialization (or division of labor) within a relatively
small geographical area: villages with fertile soil produce farm products and
villages with poor soil produce manufactured goods, and they exchange output
with each other (they also sell products to the outside world too).
Furthermore, the hypothesis of
proto-industrialization is demographically dynamic, as follows:
(1) For some reason, villages with
poor soil face a population increase, leading to food shortage.
(2) Poor peasants engage in the production of garments for sale to relieve
population pressure.
(3) This increases their income, and they start to get married sooner and have
more children.
(4) Population growth continues to keep the peasants just as poor as before
even though they are more "industrialized."
(5) Supply of cheap labor is increased in this way, and rich farming villages
and urban merchants continue to accumulate wealth.
(This widening income gap may possibly generate capitalists and landless
farmers which leads to industrialization under full-fledged capitalism.
However, such historical linkage is not convincingly proven statistically.)
According to Prof. Osamu Saito
(Hitotsubashi University), Japanese data in the Edo period does not support the
hypothesis of proto-industrialization as stated above. There is no evidence of
systematic population change in the areas where peasants engaged in pre-modern
manufacturing. On the contrary, it is said that farmers practiced birth control
(sometimes even killing new-born babies) to cope with the population pressure.
At any rate,
proto-industrialization seems to assume a rather peculiar population dynamics
which may be applicable to certain European regions in certain periods, but not
in the rest of the world or other periods. However, the idea of population
growth responding to the process of early industrialization is an interesting one.