The is the name of several liberal

political parties A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular area's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific ideological or p ...

in the history of Japan, two of which existed in the

Empire of Japan The Empire of Japan, also known as the Japanese Empire or Imperial Japan, was the Japanese nation state that existed from the Meiji Restoration on January 3, 1868, until the Constitution of Japan took effect on May 3, 1947. From Japan–Kor ...

prior to 1945.

Liberal Party of 1881

The first Liberal Party of Japan was formed on October 18, 1881, by

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 ...

and other members of the

Freedom and People's Rights Movement 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 era, Meiji period. It pursued the formation of an elected legislature, revision of the ...

( League for the Establishment of a National Assembly) to agitate for the establishment of a

national assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the repr ...

, with a membership based on the ideals of

liberal democracy Liberal democracy, also called Western-style democracy, or substantive democracy, is a form of government that combines the organization of a democracy with ideas of liberalism, liberal political philosophy. Common elements within a liberal dem ...

under a

constitutional monarchy Constitutional monarchy, also known as limited monarchy, parliamentary monarchy or democratic monarchy, is a form of monarchy in which the monarch exercises their authority in accordance with a constitution and is not alone in making decisions. ...

. It attracted a wide following of former ''

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 ...

'' who were discontent because they were no longer an elite class and no longer received stipends from the government. The ''Jiyūtō'' also aimed for suffrage for samurai and an elected assembly in each prefecture. Itagaki was party president, with Nakajima Nobuyuki as vice-president. Other notable members included

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 ...

, Baba Tatsui, Tetchō Suehiro, Ueki Emori, and

Nakae Chōmin was the pen-name of a journalist, political theorist and statesman in Meiji-period Japan. His real name was . His major contribution was the popularization of the egalitarian doctrines of the French philosopher Jean-Jacques Rousseau in Japa ...

. The

Meiji government The was the government that was formed by politicians of the Satsuma Domain and Chōshū Domain in the 1860s. The Meiji government was the early government of the Empire of Japan. Politicians of the Meiji government were known as the Meiji ...

viewed the growth of the ''Jiyūtō'' with misgivings, suspecting it of harboring tendencies towards

republicanism Republicanism is a political ideology that encompasses a range of ideas from civic virtue, political participation, harms of corruption, positives of mixed constitution, rule of law, and others. Historically, it emphasizes the idea of self ...

. The party was also made vulnerable due to peasant uprisings in rural areas led or inspired by local ''Jiyūtō'' members. The ''Jiyūtō'' voted to dissolve itself on October 29, 1884, on the eve of the Chichibu Incident. In 1887, Gotō Shojirō regrouped some members of the former ''Jiyūtō'' into a proto-party called the ''Daidō Danketsu'' Movement. The ''Daidō Danketsu'' split into two groups (Daidō Club led by

Kōno Hironaka was a politician and cabinet minister in the Empire of Japan. Biography Kōno was a native of Mutsu Province (modern-day Fukushima Prefecture), where his father, Iwamura Hidetoshi, was a samurai in the service of Miharu Domain, who supplement ...

and Daidō Kyōwakai led by

Ōi Kentarō Ōi may refer to: Japanese geography * Ōi, Fukui * Ōi, Kanagawa * Ōi, Saitama * Ōi District, Fukui * Ōi River, Shizuoka Prefecture * Ōi River (Kyoto Prefecture), part of the Katsura River People with the surname * Katsushika Ōi (c. 1800 ...

and Nakae Chōmin ) in March 1889. In 1890, they were merged by Itagaki Taisuke to form the Constitutional Liberal Party, which was later renamed the Liberal Party. Some politicians who supported Gotō didn't join this party and formed National Liberal Party.

Notes

References

* Jansen, Marius B. (2000). ''The Making of Modern Japan.'' Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
OCLC 44090600
* Keene, Donald. (2002). ''Emperor of Japan: Meiji and His World, 1852–1912.'' New York:

Columbia University Press Columbia University Press is a university press based in New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's la ...

.
OCLC 46731178
*Sims, Richard. (2001). ''Japanese Political History Since the Meiji Renovation 1868–2000.'' New York: Palgrave Macmillan. ;
OCLC 45172740
{{Authority control Liberal parties in Japan Japan 1881 Political parties established in 1881 1890s disestablishments in Japan Defunct political parties in Japan 1881 establishments in Japan Political parties in the Empire of Japan

Liberal Party of 1881

See also

Notes

References