The is the name of several

liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

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

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

Empire of Japan The also known as the Japanese Empire or Imperial Japan, was a historical nation-state and great power that existed from the Meiji Restoration in 1868 until the enactment of the post-World War II 1947 constitution and subsequent fo ...

prior to 1945.

Liberal Party of 1881

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

Itagaki Taisuke Count was a Japanese politician. He was a leader of the "Freedom and People's Rights Movement" and founded Japan's first political party, the Liberal Party. Biography Early life Itagaki Taisuke was born into a middle-ranking ''samurai'' ...

and other members of the

Freedom and People's Rights Movement The (abbreviated as ) or Popular Rights Movement was a Japanese political and social movement for democracy in the 1880s. It pursued the formation of an elected legislature, revision of the Unequal Treaties with the United States and European c ...

(

League for the Establishment of a National Assembly The , later called the Great Japan Public Association of Volunteers for the Establishment of a National Assembly (大日本国会期成有志公会), was a Japanese political organization that played a central role during the Meiji period in the ...

) 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 repre ...

, with a membership based on the ideals of

liberal democracy Liberal democracy is the combination of a liberal political ideology that operates under an indirect democratic form of government. It is characterized by elections between multiple distinct political parties, a separation of powers into diff ...

under a

constitutional monarchy A constitutional 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 decision making. Constitutional monarchies dif ...

. It attracted a wide following of former ''

samurai were the hereditary military nobility and officer caste of medieval and early-modern Japan from the late 12th century until their abolition in 1876. They were the well-paid retainers of the '' daimyo'' (the great feudal landholders). They h ...

'' 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 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 party. Early life ...

Baba Tatsui was a Japanese legislative reformer during the Meiji period. Early life Baba was born in Kochi in Japan to a samurai family. In 1864, he began local schooling, learning Chinese classics, fencing, and European military training. In 1865 he was c ...

, Tetchō Suehiro,

Ueki Emori was a Japanese revolutionary democrat active in the Freedom and People's Rights Movement and one of the founders of the , which was a political party and joined the League for the Establishment of a National Assembly. Ueki was the son of a mi ...

, 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 Japan ...

. 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 o ...

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

republicanism Republicanism is a political ideology centered on citizenship in a state organized as a republic. Historically, it emphasises the idea of self-rule and ranges from the rule of a representative minority or oligarchy to popular sovereignty. It ...

. 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. This group 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 supplemen ...

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 The Constitutionalist Liberal Party ( es, Partido Liberal Constitucionalista, PLC) is a political party in Nicaragua. At the Nicaraguan general election of 5 November 2006, the party won 25 of 92 seats in the National Assembly. However, the pa ...

, 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, and affiliated with Columbia University. It is currently directed by Jennifer Crewe (2014–present) and publishes titles in the humanities and sciences, including the fiel ...

.
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

Liberal Party of 1881

See also

Notes

References