The Shogunate system of government came into effect in Japan in a period of strife and conflict. This was after the warlords popularly known as daimyo had overthrown the Japanese emperor. Before the Shogunate age, a Japanese emperor ruled from Kyoto. However, by most accounts, he was powerless and relevant. Real and practical power was wielded by the military men popularly referred to as the Samurai. As a result, the 200 different warlords exercised their authority according to their military might (Gordon, 2012) . The imperial court and its military had lost central power. Their warlords controlled their territories without interference from the Japanese emperor. In a bid to expand their territory , the war was common, and hence some warlords became very powerful by virtue of the size of their standing army and the territory under their control. Oda Nobunaga was one such powerful warlord.
The Rise of the Tokugawa Shogunate
Nobunaga was the warlord in the Owari territory of central Honshu. Through strategic alliances and military shrewdness, Nobunaga was able to bring about a third of Japan under his control. However, he did not successful quash the conflicts and wars that were common in the emperor period. Consequently, Nobunaga was assassinated in 1582 (McGurty, 2014) . Nobunaga was succeeded by Toyotomi Hideyoshi, one of his most able generals. Hideyoshi came from a humble peasant background, but as a result of his talent and ambition, he was able to rise and become one of the most capable military men during Nobunaga’s reign. Upon his ascension to the throne, Hideyoshi was able to bring the entire country under his control by 1590 through the exceptional military as well as political tactics (Yonemoto, 2008) . Similar to his predecessor, Hideyoshi could not consolidate power and create a centralized system of government. Hideyoshi’s reign was therefore plagued by his inability to produce an heir in good time and his belief that his power was unlimited. As a result, his two failed attempts to invade Korea and Japan weakened his hold on power. Consequently, upon his death in 1597 power was supposed to be transferred to his infant heir. Before death, he had entrusted his son’s future and that of the Toyotomi clan to his five trusted allies. Of the five allies , Tokugawa Ieyasu was the most powerful.
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Ieyasu hailed from the Tokugawa clan and controlled a large territory in northeastern Japan with his headquarter at Edo, now present-day Tokyo. Barely three years after Hideyoshi’s death, Ieyasu turned on the Toyotomi clan and defeated them in battle in 1600. Consequently, Ieyasu established a new Shogunate under his clan’s name in 1603 (Dolan & Worden, 1992) . In 1615, Ieyasu went back to battle completely wiping out the remaining members of the Toyotomi clan and their allies. Consequently, under the leadership of Ieyasu and his heirs Hidetada and Iemitsu, the Tokugawa clan was able to maintain power 253 years without war and conflict hence bringing peace and stability to Japan.
The Tokugawa Shogunate was built on the same shrewd authoritarian rule synonymous with both Hideyoshi and Nobunaga to cut off any likelihood of rebellion. As a result, Iemitsu cut off ties between Japan and the external world to prevent seeds of dissent being planted by external forces. To cap it all, Iemitsu expelled Spanish and Catholic missionaries and traders from Japan in 1630 (Ohno, 2005) . This was because many of the warlords who had converted to Christianity had not pledged their allegiance to the Tokugawa Shogunate. Subsequently, the expulsion of foreigners from Japan enabled Iemitsu to neutralize the political threat posed by the converted warlords. Further, the warlords were expected to commute between Edo and their home territories because their wives and children were based in the capital. The warlords were also expected to seek approval before marrying.
Tokugawa’s rule was characterized by a mix of resourcefulness, practicality, and forethought. Unlike their predecessors, the Tokugawa clan was not dictatorial. This was evident in how the Tokugawa clan chose to redistribute land, which was the most valuable possession in Japan during that period. The clan retained only 25% of the land available for redistribution, redistributing 10% to close blood relations, 26% to their longtime allies and the remaining portion to their newfound allies (Gordon, 2013) . Also , Tokugawa did not impose direct taxes unto the warlords. The warlords were however expected to contribute labor and materials to build roads, castles, and ports among others. The warlords were also free to run the affairs of their territories as they saw fit. Some went as far as printing and circulating their currency. The Tokugawa Shogunate could only interfere in territorial affairs only on the invitation of the resident warlord. The Tokugawa reign was a balanced mix of autonomy and authority.
Economic and Social Change
By and large, Tokugawa leaders viewed the economy in simplistic terms. As a result, during their reign, agriculture remained the primary economic activity. While land belonged to the ruling class, primary production was a preserve of the peasants. The ruling class imposed significant taxes on the peasants wh o were paid them using harvests. The peasants who were not farmers became artisans (Ohno, 2005) . The role of artisans in Tokugawa Japan was to craft basic non-food items. Finally, merchants were allowed to trade in whatever could not be procured from peasant farmers and artisans.
The exponential growth of the agricultural sector was experienced during the reign of the Tokugawa. This growth resulted in the expansion of merchant related activities. Overall, the growth in the economy led to increase in the Japanese population and the concentration of people from rural to urban centers. The economic growth experienced during the Tokugawa led to the abolishment of the hierarchical four-class system. Under this system, the Japanese were not supposed to change class. The end of the four-class system resulted into a wealthy, educated and influential commoner population (Saito, 2009) . This was facilitated by Tokugawa policies which forbid the ruling class from taking advantage of the economic growth and the Samurai from engaging in economic activities.
Growth in Agriculture
Between 1450 and 1600, agricultural production in Japan grew by an estimated 70%. This growth continued into the Tokugawa reign. Agricultural growth was facilitated by the enactment of favorable policies by the Tokugawa clan. The end of the longstanding war and conflict brought with it peace. Due to peace , the local communities and peasants could invest more resources into farming. Also , Tokugawa agricultural policies encouraged reclamation of land and clearing of forested land . This resulted in more land being available for agricultural production. Further, cropping and fertilizer application information was readily available to farmers hence increased peasant productivity (Yonemoto, 2008) .
Growth in agricultural production resulted to the betterment of the general wellbeing of the Japanese people. For instance, their right to land ownership was strengthened at the expense of the ruling class. Also, agricultural growth influenced the increase in the Japanese population. It is estimated that in the first 100 years of the Tokugawa reign, the Japanese population grew from an approximated 12 million in 1600 to 31 million in 1720 (Gordon, 2013) . The population growth stabilized in the 18 th century as a result of imposed and voluntary family planning among the peasants. Despite this, the economy continued to thrive resulting into a surplus which subsequently became the key driver of the rapid industrialization of Japan experienced in the 19 th and 20 th centuries.
Growth in Trade
Growth in agricultural production and population stimulated growth in trade activities. The Tokugawa Shogunate facilitated the growth of trade by establishing an efficient transportation system. The road system was improved, and its coverage expanded. Regional and territorial capitals were linked by good roads hence facilitating the mushrooming of smaller market towns. Shipping routes were also extended enabling the connection of ports in Eastern Japanese ports to those on the west. This promoted the shipping of goods throughout Japan. The Tokugawa reign also encouraged the use of money as the primary medium of exchange. Ieyasu and his immediate successor worked at minting and circulating a standardized coinage in Japan during their reign. Combined, the Tokugawa approach to trade resulted in the creation of an integrated Japanese economy as is the case in modern times (Ohno, 2005) .
Growth of Cities
The growth of cities in Japan was motivated by the tendency of warlords to gather their armies around their fortified castles which acted as the base of their operations. Hideyoshi and Ieyasu formalized this trend by declaring that warlords should be based in capital cities as opposed to their home territories. Consequently, about 90 towns emerged between 1572 and 1590 (Gordon, 2012) . This trend continued during the reign of Tokugawa Shogunate. Thus, construction of castles and cities spurred economic growth. This was because such construction endeavors required assembling, equipping, supervising, feeding and housing a large number of laborers and technical experts. Further, the Samurai under the warlords moved next to the castles consequently forcing the peasants under their service to relocate to surrounding areas. The combination of these factors resulted to urbanization.
Despite the fact that urbanization had favorable impacts on the Japanese economy, it had disproportionate impacts on different members of the society. Merchants directly benefited from the increase in trade activities as a result of urbanization. However, urbanization marked the beginning of the decline of the Samurai in Japan. This is because the Samurai were forbidden from engaging in all forms of economic activities (McGurty, 2014) . Also , they were paid through a fixed ration of rice that did not change to reflect economic changes. The introduction of standardized currency further put the Samurai at the mercy of merchants resulting to the former being indebted to the latter. The Samurai’s position was further weakened by their inability to control their land due to urbanization and empowerment of the peasants
The Cultural Transformation and Education of the Commoner
Urbanization resulted in the creation of the urban commoners. Mostly, these were wealthy merchants who had capitalized on economic growth to amass property. Unlike the rural commoners, the urban commoners were not political. They willingly submitted to the rule of the Shogunate. They, however, used their newly found wealth to create a new lifestyle of their own (Saito, 2009) . They built large houses and developed an appetite for the finer things in life. This was done to the extent that they dressed and lived better than the Samurai. The urban classes were a friendly people obsessed with making and spending money. Consequently, their flamboyance resulted to the rapid evolution of art and culture in Japan during the Tokugawa Shogunate.
Literacy levels in the Tokugawa Shogunate varied according to class, occupation, gender and geographic location. Commoner intellectuals, the ruling class, and Buddhist and Shinto clergymen were very learned. They were well versed in Japanese and Chinese philosophy and literature. Tokugawa policies resulted in the sporadic spread of literacy within the commoner population to the extent that they formed the primary consumers of literary works towards the end of the 18 th century. During this period, formal education moved from the confines of religious institutions and private academies to publicly accessible venues. Commoner children would attend these venues where they would be taught using books. Initially, Buddhist and Confucian texts were used in education (McGurty, 2014) . However, with growth education, poetry, art, nonfiction manuals, encyclopedias, and almanacs gained more popularity. The rapid literacy of the commoner population experienced in the Tokugawa era served to catalyze industrial transformation synonymous with modern Japan.
The Overthrow of the Tokugawa Shogunate
As opposed to other societies where increased literacy of the commoners creates dissent, the end of Tokugawa reign came from different quarters. On the one hand, the urban commoners were apolitical. On the other hand, the rural ones only revolted a couple of times towards the end of the 18 th century. This was in protest to the failure of the Shogunate to shield them from the impacts crop failure caused by adverse weather conditions. Ultimately, the end of the Tokugawa reign came in the hands of the ruling class itself. The Samurai, for whom the Shogunate had been established , overthrew the Tokugawa rule restoring Japan to the imperial governance (McGurty, 2014) .
Economic growth during the reign of the Tokugawa resulted in the deterioration of the status of the Samurai. The adverse impacts of this were more felt by the lower ranking members. Rank and ascension of office in the Samurai eventually took the same direction as governance; it became hereditary as opposed to being merit-based (Dolan & Worden, 1992) . As a result, the low cadres of the Samurai became disillusioned by the fact that they were being led by people without military prowess and experience by virtue of being born into the right families and they were not afraid to voice their concerns. External ones further worsened Tokugawa's domestic problems .
Under Tokugawa, the Japanese had successfully defended from foreign invasion in the 1790s, early 1800s and 1820s by Russians and British respectively. This time, however, the Americans were consolidating their power in Asia. In the 1940s , Commodore Matthew C. Perry arrived in Japan with an ultimatum from the American government for the former to enter into trade and diplomatic relations with the latter (Gordon, 2013) . Despite the fact that the Tokugawa Shogunate declined the offer, the warlords went ahead and signed the treaty based on their belief that the Tokugawa leaders could not deal with both domestic and external threats.
The alliance of Japan and America proved to be the last straw. As a result, plans to overthrow the Tokugawa Shogunate and restore an imperial system gathered momentum in the 1860s . This resulted from the Samurai attacking foreigners in Japan forcing retaliation from the West. Western forces attacked the territories of Satsuma and Choshu with devastating effects. To ward them off, the Satsuma and Choshu were forced to combine forces. In early January 1868, the combined army marched to Kyoto and overthrew the Tokugawa regime (Yonemoto, 2008) . The reigning shogun, Tokugawa Yoshinobu, was forced to retreat to Edo where he held power for a few months before resigning in April of the same year. The warlords and court officials took over the reins of power in an imperial system. The imperial system inherited a rich political, cultural and economic legacy created by the Tokugawa Shogunate. This legacy became the building block for the industrialization of Japan.
References
Dolan, R. E., & Worden, R. L. (1992). Japan, a country study . Headquarters, Dept. of the Army.
Gordon, A. (2013). A modern history of Japan: From Tokugawa times to the present (Third edition ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Gordon, A. D. (2012). Consumption, consumerism, and Japanese modernity. In F. Trentmann, The Oxford Handbook of the History of Consumption (pp. 485-504). Oxford: Oxford University Press.
McGurty, K. A. (2014). The Tokugawa samurai: Values & lifestyle transition. Student Publications, 283 , http://cupola.gettysburg.edu/student_scholarship/283
Ohno, K. (2005). The path traveled by Japan as a developing country: Economic growth from Edo to Heisei. Tokyo: Yuhikaku Publishing Co. Ltd.
Saito, O. (2009). Land, labour and market forces in Tokugawa Japan. Continuity and change , 24 (1), 169-196.
Yonemoto, M. (2008). Tokugawa Japan: An Introductory Essay. The Program for Teaching East Asia . University of Colorado at Boulder.
