The were an array of economic policies introduced between 1841 and 1843 by the

Tokugawa shogunate The Tokugawa shogunate (, Japanese 徳川幕府 ''Tokugawa bakufu''), also known as the , was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868. Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"''Tokugawa-jidai''"in ''Japan Encyclopedia ...

in Japan. These reforms were efforts to resolve perceived problems in military, economic, agricultural, financial and religious systems. The changes were intended to address problems in local politics, but they were also addressed more broadly to "domestic uneasiness." The perceived need for change led to the arrest of many prominent political figures and writers. The reforms became a precursor of reforms initiated 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 practical imperial rule to Japan in 1868 under Emperor Meiji. Although there were ...

two decades later. The Tenpō Reforms were mostly instituted by

Mizuno Tadakuni was a ''daimyō'' during late-Edo period Japan, who later served as chief senior councilor (''Rōjū'') in service to the Tokugawa shogunate. He is remembered for having instituted the Tenpō Reforms. Biography Mizuno Tadakuni was the second so ...

. Notably, the restrictions on entertainment were enforced solely by him and when he was removed from government in 1845, they ceased to be enforced. Besides this new coinage was issued and commodity price controls were lifted. Immigration to

Edo Edo ( ja, , , "bay-entrance" or "estuary"), also romanized as Jedo, Yedo or Yeddo, is the former name of Tokyo. Edo, formerly a ''jōkamachi'' (castle town) centered on Edo Castle located in Musashi Province, became the ''de facto'' capital of ...

was prohibited and the formation of societies as well as ''

Rangaku ''Rangaku'' (Kyūjitai: /Shinjitai: , literally "Dutch learning", and by extension "Western learning") is a body of knowledge developed by Japan through its contacts with the Dutch enclave of Dejima, which allowed Japan to keep abreast of West ...

'' (Dutch Learning) was banned. An annual calendar ( ''nenjū gyōji'') was set up during this period to bring order to Japanese society. Families were required to register themselves at the nearest

Shinto Shinto () is a religion from Japan. Classified as an East Asian religion by scholars of religion, its practitioners often regard it as Japan's indigenous religion and as a nature religion. Scholars sometimes call its practitioners ''Shint ...

shrine A shrine ( la, scrinium "case or chest for books or papers"; Old French: ''escrin'' "box or case") is a sacred or holy space dedicated to a specific deity, ancestor, hero, martyr, saint, daemon, or similar figure of respect, wherein they ...

annually on the 16th of the first and seventh months. A Shinto festival (''muramura jingi''), meeting (''jingi kasihū'') or pilgrimage (''muramura kamimōde'') was scheduled once a month. The popular

bon festival or just is fusion of the ancient Japanese belief in ancestral spirits and a Japanese Buddhist custom to honor the spirits of one's ancestors. This Buddhist–Confucian custom has evolved into a family reunion holiday during which people retu ...

was rewritten as ''Sensosai'', the Ancestor Festival, and was held twice a year.

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

was written out of this religious calendar, since the government revoked its support for existing Buddhist institutions. This reform movement was related to three others during the Edo period: the

Kyōhō reforms The were an array of economic and cultural policies introduced by the Tokugawa shogunate between 1722–1730 during the Edo period to improve its political and social status. These reforms were instigated by the eighth Tokugawa ''shōgun'' of Ja ...

(1722–1730), the Kansei reforms (1787–1793) and the Keiō Reforms (1864–1867).

Chronology

The shogunate's interventions were only partly successful. Intervening factors like earthquakes, famine and other disasters exacerbated some of the conditions which the shōgun intended to ameliorate. * July 20, 1835 (''Tenpō 6, 14th day of the 6th month''): Earthquake in Sanriku (Latitude: 37.900/Longitude: 141.900), 7.6 magnitude on the

Richter Scale The Richter scale —also called the Richter magnitude scale, Richter's magnitude scale, and the Gutenberg–Richter scale—is a measure of the strength of earthquakes, developed by Charles Francis Richter and presented in his landmark 1935 ...

.Online "Significant Earthquake Database", U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), National Geophysical Data Center (NGDC)...Click link to NOAA/Japan: Significant Earthquake Database
* April 25, 1843 (''Tenpō 14, 26th day of the 3rd month''): Earthquake in Yezo, Kushiro, Nemuro (Latitude: 41.800/Longitude: 144.800), 8.4 magnitude on the Richter Scale.

Notes

References

* Hall, John Whitney and

Marius Jansen Marius Berthus Jansen (April 11, 1922 – December 10, 2000) was an American academic, historian, and Emeritus Professor of Japanese History at Princeton University.Princeton University, Office of Communications"Professor Marius Berthus Jansen, sc ...

. (1991)
''Early Modern Japan: The Cambridge History of Japan.''
Cambridge:

Cambridge University Press Cambridge University Press is the university press of the University of Cambridge. Granted letters patent by King Henry VIII in 1534, it is the oldest university press in the world. It is also the King's Printer. Cambridge University Pr ...

.
OCLC 62064695
* Ketelaar, James Edward. (1990). ''Of Heretics and Martyrs in Meiji Japan: Buddhism and Its Persecution.'' Princeton:

Princeton University Press Princeton University Press is an independent publisher with close connections to Princeton University. Its mission is to disseminate scholarship within academia and society at large. The press was founded by Whitney Darrow, with the financial ...

.
OCLC 20996545
* Traugott, Mark. (1995). ''Repertoires and Cycles of Collective Action.'' Durham, North Carolina:

Duke University Press Duke University Press is an academic publisher and university press affiliated with Duke University. It was founded in 1921 by William T. Laprade as The Trinity College Press. (Duke University was initially called Trinity College). In 1926 ...

. ;
OCLC 243809107

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tenpo Reforms 1844 in Japan Japanese governmental reforms Rangaku