The Influence of the Meiji Restoration on the Rise of Militarism in Japan: An Analysis of Internal Reforms and External Influences

Before the Meiji Restoration, Japan was experiencing exploitation and oppression from Western imperialism as China did, and Japan was forced to sign a series of unequal treaties with Western countries. The oppression of imperialism made Japan realize the importance of having a strong army, therefore after the Meiji Restoration, the government decided to enhance Japans military capability to win the respect of Western countries and revise the unequal treaties that Japan was previously forced to sign. Later, Japans military power increased significantly due to militarism, which was why Japan defeated China in the First Sino-Japanese War and defeated Russia in the Russo-Japanese War. The victory of these wars made the country gain the respect of Western countries and made the government sure of the importance of a powerful military. The thing that made Japan become a great power was militarism, which was promoted by the Meiji Restoration, and this essay will study how the Meiji Restoration promoted the rise of militarism in Japan. The study has found that the impact of the Meiji Restoration on the rise of militarism in Japan can be divided into two parts. The first part is the internal factors, which are the military reformation exercised by the government and the governments education and publicity towards the people, the second part is the external factor, which is the influence received by the Meiji government from Prussia. These three factors played an important role in the rise of militarism in Japan.