The Freedom and People's Rights Movement (自由民権運動, ''Jiyū Minken Undō'') was a Japanese political and social movement for democracy during the
Meiji period
The was an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868, to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonizatio ...
. It pursued the formation of an elected legislature, revision of the
unequal treaties
The unequal treaties were a series of agreements made between Asian countries—most notably Qing China, Tokugawa Japan and Joseon Korea—and Western countries—most notably the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Austria-Hungary, Italy, the Unit ...
with the United States and European countries, the institution of civil rights, and the reduction of centralized taxation. The movement prompted the Meiji government to establish
a constitution in 1889 and
a diet in 1890; on the other hand, it failed to bring the government under parliamentary control, and its authority was ultimately repressed by the
Meiji oligarchy
The Meiji oligarchy was the new ruling class of Meiji period Japan. In Japanese, the Meiji oligarchy is called the .
The members of this class were adherents of '' kokugaku'' and believed they were the creators of a new order as grand as that e ...
.
The movement began with the 1874 submission of the Tosa Memorial, a petition calling for a representative assembly, by a group of former government councillors including
Itagaki Taisuke
Kazoku, Count Itagaki Taisuke (板垣 退助, 21 May 1837 – 16 July 1919) was a Japanese samurai, politician, and leader of the Freedom and People's Rights Movement (自由民権運動, ''Jiyū Minken Undō''), which evolved into Japan's firs ...
,
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 ...
, and
Etō Shimpei. It quickly gained momentum, evolving from local political societies of disaffected samurai into a nationwide movement involving rural landlords, wealthy peasants, and liberal intellectuals. The government responded with a mix of concessions, such as the
Osaka Conference of 1875 and the establishment of prefectural assemblies, and repression, including the passage of restrictive laws on the press and public assembly.
The Political Crisis of 1881 led to the issuance of an Imperial Rescript promising a national assembly by 1890, which marked a major success for the movement and spurred the formation of Japan's first political parties: the
Jiyūtō led by Itagaki and the
Rikken Kaishintō
The was a political party in the Empire of Japan. It was also known as simply the Kaishintō.
The Kaishintō was founded by Ōkuma Shigenobu on 16 April 1882, with the assistance of Yano Ryūsuke, Inukai Tsuyoshi and Ozaki Yukio. It receive ...
led by
Ōkuma Shigenobu
Marquess was a Japanese politician who served as the prime minister of Japan in 1898, and from 1914 to 1916.
Born in the Saga Domain, Ōkuma was appointed minister of finance soon after the Meiji Restoration of 1868, aided by his friendship w ...
. However, the severe economic depression of the early 1880s, caused by the government's deflationary policies, led to internal divisions and radicalization within the movement. A series of peasant uprisings, known as the ''gekka jiken'' (激化事件, 'intensification incidents'), alienated the movement's landowning leadership. Combined with intensified government suppression, this led to the dissolution of the ''Jiyūtō'' in 1884 and the decline of the movement as a cohesive national force.
Despite its ultimate failure to establish a party-based government, the Freedom and People's Rights Movement had a profound and lasting impact on the political development of modern Japan. It was directly responsible for the adoption of the Meiji Constitution and the establishment of the Imperial Diet, and it embedded the concepts of popular sovereignty and civil rights in the Japanese political discourse.
Origins
Post-Restoration discontent and ''Seikanron'' debate

The origins of the movement can be traced to the discontent among the
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 ...
class following 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 ...
of 1868. The samurai, who had been the ruling class under 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 ...
, lost their hereditary stipends and social privileges, causing widespread economic distress and a loss of status. Many former samurai sought an outlet for their frustrations in a more aggressive foreign policy. A proposal for a military expedition to Korea, a debate known as the ''
Seikanron'', gained significant support among this group and their leaders within the government, including
Saigō Takamori
Saigō Takamori (; 23 January 1828 – 24 September 1877) was a Japanese samurai and politician who was one of the most influential figures in Japanese history. He played a key role in the Meiji Restoration, which overthrew the Tokugawa shogunate ...
and
Itagaki Taisuke
Kazoku, Count Itagaki Taisuke (板垣 退助, 21 May 1837 – 16 July 1919) was a Japanese samurai, politician, and leader of the Freedom and People's Rights Movement (自由民権運動, ''Jiyū Minken Undō''), which evolved into Japan's firs ...
.
The proposal was strongly opposed by key oligarchs such as
Ōkubo Toshimichi
Ōkubo Toshimichi (; 26 September 1830 – 14 May 1878) was a Japanese statesman and samurai of the Satsuma Domain who played a central role in the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He was one of the Three Great Nobles of the Restoration (維新の� ...
and
Iwakura Tomomi
was a Japanese statesman during the Bakumatsu and Meiji period. He was one of the leading figures of the Meiji Restoration, which saw Japan's transition from feudalism to modernism.
Born to a noble family, he was adopted by the influential Iw ...
, who had just returned from the
Iwakura Mission
The Iwakura Mission or Iwakura Embassy (, ''Iwakura Shisetsudan'') was a Japanese diplomatic voyage to Europe and the United States conducted between 1871 and 1873 by leading statesmen and scholars of the Meiji period. It was not the only such m ...
and argued that Japan should focus on internal modernization rather than foreign military adventures. In October 1873, the "peace party" prevailed, and the plan to invade Korea was rejected. In protest, Itagaki, Saigō,
Etō Shimpei,
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 ...
, and other pro-war councillors resigned from their government posts. While Saigō returned to his home domain of
Satsuma and would later lead the armed
Satsuma Rebellion
The Satsuma Rebellion, also known as the , was a revolt of disaffected samurai against the new imperial government of the Empire of Japan, nine years into the Meiji era. Its name comes from the Satsuma Domain, which had been influential in ...
, Itagaki chose to challenge the government through political, rather than military, means, and his group came together to issue a manifesto calling for the establishment of representative government. This decision to organize a political opposition marked the beginning of what would become the Freedom and People's Rights Movement.
Tosa Memorial

On 17 January 1874, Itagaki, together with Gotō, Etō, and six other associates, submitted a memorial to the government calling for the establishment of an elected national assembly. The document, known as the Tosa Memorial, was a skillfully crafted critique of the
Meiji oligarchy
The Meiji oligarchy was the new ruling class of Meiji period Japan. In Japanese, the Meiji oligarchy is called the .
The members of this class were adherents of '' kokugaku'' and believed they were the creators of a new order as grand as that e ...
's monopoly on power. It stated that "the governing power lies not with the Crown... nor with the people... but with the officials alone," and accused the government of arbitrary rule. The memorial argued that to strengthen the nation and promote the people's welfare, a "council-chamber chosen by the people" should be established, allowing for open discussion of public affairs. It further contended that such an assembly would create a sense of national unity, thereby making Japan strong enough to resist foreign encroachment.
The memorial was a direct challenge to the oligarchs' authority. While the government initially dismissed it as the work of disgruntled former officials, its publication in the press sparked a nationwide debate on representative government, popular rights, and constitutionalism. Although the memorial's authors were criticized for initially proposing that voting rights be limited to samurai and wealthy peasants, the underlying democratic implications of their arguments were widely recognized. Itagaki's own commitment to the cause was long-standing; he had endeavoured to persuade his colleague
Kido Takayoshi
, formerly known as , was a Japanese statesman, samurai and ''Shishi (Japan), shishi'' who is considered one of the Three Great Nobles of the Restoration, three great nobles who led the Meiji Restoration.
Early life
Born Wada Kogorō on Augu ...
of the merits of a representative assembly as early as 1871. The Tosa Memorial is considered the foundational document of the Freedom and People's Rights Movement.
Early development (1874–1880)
Formation of political societies
Five days before submitting the memorial, Itagaki's group formed Japan's first political society, the ''
Aikokukōtō'' (Public Patriotic Party), in
Tokyo
Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...
. However, its main leaders soon decided that a national party was not yet practicable and returned to their home domains to build local organizations. In Tosa, Itagaki founded the ''Risshisha'' (Self-Help Society) in April 1874. Although it initially focused on providing economic relief and employment for the local disaffected samurai, the ''Risshisha'' quickly evolved into a political organization dedicated to promoting popular rights and agitating for a national assembly. The ''Risshisha'' served as a model for similar societies that sprang up across the country, such as the ''Jijosha'' (Self-Aid Society) in neighboring Tokushima.
In 1875, Itagaki took a leading role in federating these local groups into a national organization called the ''
Aikokusha'' (Patriotic Society), with the aim of coordinating the petition movement on a nationwide scale. This first attempt at a national organization was short-lived, collapsing due to financial difficulties and Itagaki's own temporary return to the government following the
Osaka Conference of 1875. However, the ''Aikokusha'' was successfully revived in September 1878, after the failure of the
Satsuma Rebellion
The Satsuma Rebellion, also known as the , was a revolt of disaffected samurai against the new imperial government of the Empire of Japan, nine years into the Meiji era. Its name comes from the Satsuma Domain, which had been influential in ...
had demonstrated the futility of armed opposition to the government. The movement's base had also broadened significantly, with numerous societies of wealthy peasants and rural samurai forming, particularly in eastern Japan. By its second convention in November 1880, commoners made up 53% of the delegates, having become the largest element in the movement. At its fourth national convention in March 1880, the ''Aikokusha'' renamed itself the
League for the Establishment of a National Assembly (国会期成同盟, ''Kokkai Kisei Dōmei''). Over the next year, the League and its affiliated societies coordinated a massive petition drive, gathering over 250,000 signatures from thirty-nine prefectures calling for a national assembly.
Government response
The Meiji government's response to the growing movement was twofold: a combination of concessions and repression. On the one hand, the oligarchs attempted to co-opt the movement's leaders. The Osaka Conference of 1875 resulted in Itagaki's brief return to the government and the establishment of new institutions intended to give the appearance of a move toward constitutional government, such as the ''
Genrōin
The was a Government of Meiji Japan#Establishment of a national assembly, national assembly in early Meiji period, Meiji Japan, established after the Osaka Conference of 1875. It is also referred to as the Senate of Japan, being the word used ...
'' (Chamber of Elders) and the Assembly of Prefectural Governors. In 1878, the government also established elected prefectural assemblies (''Fu-Ken Kai''), which, although their powers were limited to advising the prefectural governors, provided an important training ground for future parliamentarians and served as a means to integrate wealthy peasants into the governmental system.
On the other hand, the government also moved to suppress the movement through repressive legislation. Press and
libel
Defamation is a communication that injures a third party's reputation and causes a legally redressable injury. The precise legal definition of defamation varies from country to country. It is not necessarily restricted to making assertions ...
laws were enacted in 1875 to curb criticism of the government. The Regulations for Public Meetings and Associations of April 1880 imposed strict controls on political gatherings, subjecting them to police sanction, denying membership to teachers and students, and prohibiting associations from combining or communicating with each other.
Formation of political parties and decline
Political Crisis of 1881 and the Imperial Rescript

The movement reached a turning point in 1881. A political crisis erupted over two major issues: constitutional reform and the sale of government assets in Hokkaido. On the constitutional question,
Ōkuma Shigenobu
Marquess was a Japanese politician who served as the prime minister of Japan in 1898, and from 1914 to 1916.
Born in the Saga Domain, Ōkuma was appointed minister of finance soon after the Meiji Restoration of 1868, aided by his friendship w ...
, a leading figure in the government, submitted a memorial advocating for the immediate establishment of a British-style parliamentary system with a cabinet responsible to the legislature. His proposal was seen as too radical by his colleagues, particularly
Itō Hirobumi
Kazoku, Prince , born , was a Japanese statesman who served as the first prime minister of Japan from 1885 to 1888, and later from 1892 to 1896, in 1898, and from 1900 to 1901. He was a leading member of the ''genrō'', a group of senior state ...
, who suspected Ōkuma was making a bid for popular support to gain a pre-eminent position in the future government. At the same time, a public scandal erupted over the government's plan to sell the assets of the
Hokkaido Colonisation Commission to a group of politically connected merchants at a fraction of their value. The ensuing public outcry, orchestrated in part by Ōkuma's allies, was seized upon by Itō and other oligarchs as a pretext to purge Ōkuma from the government.
The crisis, however, coupled with the continued pressure from the democratic movement, compelled the government to make a major concession. On 12 October 1881, the government issued an Imperial Rescript promising the establishment of a national assembly in 1890 and simultaneously cancelled the controversial sale of Hokkaido assets. This was a significant victory for the movement, as it committed the government to a clear timeline for the creation of a constitutional government.
Formation of the ''Jiyūtō'' and ''Kaishintō''
The promise of a national assembly spurred the movement's leaders to form political parties to contest the upcoming elections. In October 1881, Itagaki and his followers transformed the ''Kokkai Kisei Dōmei'' into the
''Jiyūtō''. The ''Jiyūtō'' drew its main support from rural landowners and advocated for a political system based on French models of popular sovereignty.
In March 1882, Ōkuma Shigenobu founded a rival party, the
''Rikken Kaishintō'' (Constitutional Progressive Party). The ''Kaishintō'' was more moderate, advocating for a British-style constitutional monarchy, and drew its support from the urban intellectual and business elite, including the
Mitsubishi
The is a group of autonomous Japanese multinational companies in a variety of industries.
Founded by Yatarō Iwasaki in 1870, the Mitsubishi Group traces its origins to the Mitsubishi zaibatsu, a unified company that existed from 1870 to 194 ...
zaibatsu. The rivalry between these two parties, exacerbated by personal and ideological differences, often prevented a united front against the government. Party affiliation was often determined less by ideology than by local rivalries, with prominent figures from competing districts (''gun'') aligning with opposing national parties.
Matsukata Deflation and radicalization
The early 1880s were marked by a severe economic depression caused by the deflationary policies of Finance Minister
Matsukata Masayoshi
Prince was a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan from 1891 to 1892, and from 1896 to 1898. Born in the Satsuma Domain to a samurai family, Matsukata served as finance minister for 15 of the 20 years between 1881 and 1901, ...
. The "Matsukata Deflation" led to a sharp drop in rice and silk prices and widespread rural distress, bankrupting many of the small landowners and tenant farmers who formed the backbone of the ''Jiyūtōs support and increasing the rate of tenancy to over 40% in some areas.
Economic hardship led to the radicalization of the movement. A series of peasant uprisings, known as the ''gekka jiken'' (intensification incidents), erupted across the country, most notably the
Chichibu Incident of 1884. These revolts, which often involved demands for debt relief and violent attacks on landlords and government offices, alienated the landowning leadership of the ''Jiyūtō'' and provided the government with a pretext for intensified repression.
Decline and dissolution
Faced with growing government suppression, internal divisions between its moderate leadership and radicalized base, and the loss of financial support due to the depression, the ''Jiyūtō'' leadership decided to dissolve the party on 29 October 1884. The ''Kaishintō'' also suffered from internal strife and the resignation of Ōkuma, effectively losing its national influence. The dissolution of the major parties marked the decline of the Freedom and People's Rights Movement as a cohesive and organized national force, though political debate and local activism continued.
Legacy
The Freedom and People's Rights Movement is a pivotal chapter in the history of modern Japan. Although it failed to achieve its immediate goal of establishing a government responsible to an elected legislature, its impact was profound and enduring.
The movement's most significant achievement was to force the Meiji oligarchy to enact a written constitution and establish a national assembly. The promulgation of the
Meiji Constitution
The Constitution of the Empire of Japan ( Kyūjitai: ; Shinjitai: , ), known informally as the Meiji Constitution (, ''Meiji Kenpō''), was the constitution of the Empire of Japan which was proclaimed on February 11, 1889, and remained in ...
in 1889 and the convening of the first
Imperial Diet in 1890 were direct consequences of the political pressure exerted by the movement. While the constitution was a conservative document that preserved the emperor's sovereignty and the oligarchy's power, it also established a legal framework for political participation and enshrined certain civil rights, providing what Itagaki and his followers saw as an "entering wedge" into the domain of public power.
The movement also laid the foundations for Japan's modern party system. The ''Jiyūtō'' and ''Kaishintō'' were the country's first modern political parties, and despite their short-lived existence in the 1880s, they established a tradition of political opposition and parliamentary politics that would continue throughout the pre-war period. The experience gained in organizing political societies, drafting petitions, and contesting elections created a generation of politicians who were skilled in the arts of parliamentary maneuvering.
Furthermore, the movement was instrumental in introducing and popularizing Western political concepts such as liberty, equality, popular sovereignty, and natural rights in Japan. Through the translation of works by thinkers like
John Stuart Mill
John Stuart Mill (20 May 1806 – 7 May 1873) was an English philosopher, political economist, politician and civil servant. One of the most influential thinkers in the history of liberalism and social liberalism, he contributed widely to s ...
,
Jean-Jacques Rousseau
Jean-Jacques Rousseau (, ; ; 28 June 1712 – 2 July 1778) was a Republic of Geneva, Genevan philosopher (''philosophes, philosophe''), writer, and composer. His political philosophy influenced the progress of the Age of Enlightenment through ...
, and
Herbert Spencer
Herbert Spencer (27 April 1820 – 8 December 1903) was an English polymath active as a philosopher, psychologist, biologist, sociologist, and anthropologist. Spencer originated the expression "survival of the fittest", which he coined in '' ...
, and through the tireless agitation of its leaders and intellectuals, the movement sparked widespread public debate on the principles of government and embedded these ideas into the Japanese political discourse, where they would continue to influence political thought and action for decades to come.
Related people
*
Chiba Takusaburō, author of the "
Itsukaichi constitution" (五日市憲法), a draft constitution for the Empire of Japan
*
Etō Shinpei
*
Fukuda Hideko
*
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 ...
*
Ido Reizan
*
Inoue Kaoru
*
Itagaki Taisuke
Kazoku, Count Itagaki Taisuke (板垣 退助, 21 May 1837 – 16 July 1919) was a Japanese samurai, politician, and leader of the Freedom and People's Rights Movement (自由民権運動, ''Jiyū Minken Undō''), which evolved into Japan's firs ...
, founder of the first
Jiyūtō, and former leader of the
Jinshotai assault force
*
Yamamoto Yae
*
Nakae Chōmin
*
Ōkuma Shigenobu
Marquess was a Japanese politician who served as the prime minister of Japan in 1898, and from 1914 to 1916.
Born in the Saga Domain, Ōkuma was appointed minister of finance soon after the Meiji Restoration of 1868, aided by his friendship w ...
*
Shimizu Shikin
*
Soejima Taneomi
*
Yamaji Motoharu, former Jinshotai commander
*
Tokutomi Sohō
, born , was a Japanese journalist, publisher and historian. He advocated commoner Europeanism and Europeanization, established ''Min'yū-sha'', and launched the magazines '' Kokumin no Tomo'' and the newspaper '. He was the older brother of note ...
*
Ueki Emori
*
Soeda Azenbō, prolific
enka
is a Japanese music genre considered to resemble traditional Japanese music stylistically. Modern ''enka'', however, is a relatively recent musical form which adopts a more traditional musical style in its vocalism than ''ryūkōka'' music, pop ...
lyricist and street performer
*
Saionji Kinmochi
Kazoku, Prince was a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan, prime minister of Japan from 1906 to 1908, and from 1911 to 1912. As the last surviving member of the ''genrō'', the group of senior statesmen who had directed pol ...
, one of the last
Meiji period
The was an era of Japanese history that extended from October 23, 1868, to July 30, 1912. The Meiji era was the first half of the Empire of Japan, when the Japanese people moved from being an isolated feudal society at risk of colonizatio ...
democrats, who later tried to prevent the
Tripartite Pact
The Tripartite Pact, also known as the Berlin Pact, was an agreement between Germany, Italy, and Japan signed in Berlin on 27 September 1940 by, respectively, Joachim von Ribbentrop, Galeazzo Ciano, and Saburō Kurusu (in that order) and in the ...
See also
*
Liberalism in Japan
Japanese liberalism formed in the nineteenth century as a reaction against traditional society. In the twentieth century 'liberal' gradually became a synonym for conservative, and today the main conservative party in the country is named . The ...
*
Japanese dissidence during the Shōwa period
Political dissidence in the Empire of Japan covers individual Japanese dissidents against the policies of the Empire of Japan.
Dissidence in the Meiji and Taishō eras High Treason Incident
Shūsui Kōtoku, a Japanese anarchist, was critica ...
*
Taisho Democracy
*
General Election Law - the law which granted all males aged 25 and over suffrage, enacted in 1925.
References
Works cited
*
*
*
{{Authority control
Political organizations based in Japan
Politics of the Empire of Japan
1880s in Japan
Democracy movements
Liberalism in Japan
Electoral reform in Japan