Viscount A viscount ( , for male) or viscountess (, for female) is a title used in certain European countries for a noble of varying status. The status and any domain held by a viscount is a viscounty. In the case of French viscounts, the title is ...

was a Japanese statesman in Meiji period

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

Biography

Kōno was born in Kōchi, Tosa Province (present-day Kōchi Prefecture) as the eldest son of a local low-ranking ''

samurai The samurai () were members of the warrior class in Japan. They were originally provincial warriors who came from wealthy landowning families who could afford to train their men to be mounted archers. In the 8th century AD, the imperial court d ...

''. He was sent to Edo in 1858 where (along with Mutsu Munemitsu) he studied under the noted Confucian scholar, Yasui Sokken. On his return to Tosa in 1861, he joined the movement organized by Takechi Hanpeita and Sakamoto Ryōma and became active in the '' Sonnō jōi'' movement. In 1862, along with 59 other Tosa samurai, he marched on

Kyoto Kyoto ( or ; Japanese language, Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in the Kansai region of Japan's largest and most populous island of Honshu. , the city had a population of 1.46 million, making it t ...

and Edo in an attempt to influence national policy, but was captured by security forces of the

Tokugawa shogunate The Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. The Tokugawa shogunate was established by Tokugawa Ieyasu after victory at the Battle of Sekigahara, ending the civil wars ...

in 1863 and sentenced to six years in prison. Tortured while in prison, he refused to recant and his sentence was extended to life imprisonment. After the

Meiji Restoration The , referred to at the time as the , and also known as the Meiji Renovation, Revolution, Regeneration, Reform, or Renewal, was a political event that restored Imperial House of Japan, imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Althoug ...

, Kōno was freed and was recruited by fellow Tosa countryman

Gotō Shōjirō Count was a Japanese samurai and politician during the Bakumatsu period, Bakumatsu and early Meiji period of Japanese history.Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Gotō Shōjirō" in He was a leader of which would evolve into a political par ...

to assist Etō Shimpei in the administration of

Osaka is a Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan, designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the List of cities in Japan, third-most populous city in J ...

. With the establishment of the Samurai Administration Bureau, he was sent to

Hiroshima is the capital of Hiroshima Prefecture in Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 1,199,391. The gross domestic product (GDP) in Greater Hiroshima, Hiroshima Urban Employment Area, was US$61.3 billion as of 2010. Kazumi Matsui has b ...

in 1874. However, with increasing ex-samurai discontent erupted into open rebellion in various locations, he was assigned to assist Ōkubo Toshimichi in restoration of central government authority in Kyūshū. In this capacity, he faced his former mentor Etō Shimpei in the Saga Rebellion. He treated Etō very roughly during his trial, refusing him a chance to defend his actions in court, and pushing for an early death verdict. Kōno was appointed to the '' Genrōin'' in 1875, becoming its vice-chairman in 1878. In 1880, he was appointed Education Lord under the initial '' Daijō-kan'' system of the Meiji government, and became Agriculture and Commerce Lord under the same system in 1881. Politically, he allied himself with Ōkuma Shigenobu, joining his '' Rikken Kaishintō'' political party as its vice-chairman.Ozaki. ''The Autobiography of Yukio Ozaki''. Page 59 In 1888, he was appointed to the Privy Council. In 1892, Kōno joined the first Matsukata Masayoshi cabinet with overlapping portfolios the Minister of Agriculture & Commerce, Home Minister, Minister of Justice and Minister of Education. He continued to hold the post of Minister of Education under the Second Itō Hirobumi administration. In 1893, Kōno was ennobled with the rank of ''shishaku'' (

viscount A viscount ( , for male) or viscountess (, for female) is a title used in certain European countries for a noble of varying status. The status and any domain held by a viscount is a viscounty. In the case of French viscounts, the title is ...

) in the '' kazoku'' peerage system. He died in 1895, and his grave is at Aoyama Cemetery in Tokyo.

References

* *

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kono, Togama 1844 births 1895 deaths People from Kōchi Prefecture People from Tosa Domain Kazoku People of the Meiji era Government ministers of Japan Rikken Kaishintō politicians 19th-century Japanese politicians Ministers of home affairs of Japan