Britannica
Sources used in this answer
Which Japanese domains supplied many of the leaders of the Meiji Restoration?
Created from Britannica articles
using AI.
AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
Empire of Japan
The Empire of Japan, 1870–1942.
The Meiji government was primarily dominated by leaders from the domains of Satsuma and Chōshū. These two domains formed a critical alliance that utilized their familiarity with Western weaponry to overthrow the Tokugawa shogunate and restore imperial rule.12
To broaden support for their policies and build a unified national government, these leaders also enlisted the cooperation of influential figures from other domains, most notably Tosa, Saga, and Echizen.1
While the movement had its genesis in the powerful fiefs of the southwest, the resulting Meiji administration sought to centralize power and modernize Japan by ending the feudal system, a process that eventually led to the dissolution of the samurai class itself.31