Parallels With Pre-Meiji Restoration Japan

When Ryoma Sakamoto got the Satsuma and Chosu clans, who had previously been bitter enemies, to unite it was the beginning of the revolution that overthrew the Tokugawa Shogunate which had lasted over 300 years.

The Shogunate had become weak and corrupt, and was relying upon foreign powers to hold on to its control over Japan. This reliance upon and vulnerability to foreign powers repulsed patriots who wanted to return ultimate control of Japan to the Emperor, away from the corrupt Shogunate.

There are a lot of parallels with what happened in Japan during this time and what’s happening now in the USA.

I cannot recommend highly enough watching the taiga drama Ryomaden to people who are interested in studying history and studying how great changes occur. I’ve previously written about it and that it can be found on bittorrent sites, in particular nyaa.

It’s a shame the West has nothing close to the Japanese taiga dramas.