Japanese History
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Although stone tools dating back 10,000 to 30,000 years have been found, there is no definite proof as to when humans first settled in Japan. According to tradition, the country was founded in 660 BCE with the accession of the first Emperor Jimmu to the throne, but historical sources say that the first unified state, the Yamato Court, appeared at the end of the 4th century or the beginning of the 5th century. During this Yamato period, Buddhism was introduced to Japan via the Korean Peninsula. For the next few centuries, Japan was heavily influenced by Chinese culture. In the 8th century, imperial courts imitating the Chinese were established in Nara and then Kyoto. However, in the 9th century, Japan began to cut ties with the continent and began to adapt what it had learned. Politically, the emperor gradually became subordinate to his courtiers. Among them, the powerful Fujiwara clan maintained enormous power throughout the 11th century. At the same time, however, the samurai class was on the rise in the provinces and was accumulating exclusive political power. In 1192, Minamoto no Yoritomo established the Kamakura Shogunate, the first samurai government. This government system lasted until 1867, despite several internal conflicts along the way. During the Kamakura period (1192-1333), Mongol invasions occurred twice, in 1274 and 1281, but were repelled by coincident typhoons. However, the burden of preparing for these invasions led to the collapse of the Kamakura Shogunate. The Muromachi period (1336-1573) that followed, under the rule of the Ashikaga clan, was characterized by conflicts between powerful clans and the coexistence of the Northern and Southern Courts. The political unification initiated by Oda Nobunaga was achieved by Toyotomi Hideyoshi in 1590. However, complete national unification was not achieved until after Hideyoshi's death, and only after Tokugawa Ieyasu's victory in the Battle of Sekigahara (1600). During the Edo period (1603-1867), the shogunate adopted a policy of external isolation. After the Jesuit Francis Xavier arrived in Japan in 1549, domestic Christians who had converted were persecuted, foreigners were expelled, and Japanese were banned from traveling abroad. The stability of the government brought peace to Japan for the first time in centuries. Isolation from the outside world (sakoku) allowed a unique culture to flourish, but it also brought about social stagnation. In particular, the emerging merchant class could no longer tolerate the restrictions. By the mid-19th century, the shogunate was no longer able to drive away Western traders, and support for the government collapsed. In 1868 (Meiji 1), the restoration of imperial rule (the Restoration of Imperial Rule) was proclaimed, and Emperor Meiji ascended to the throne. However, real political power was held by a group of young leaders from the southwest. In search of new ideas and technologies, they sent missions throughout Western Europe, and Japan's political, economic, and social systems were systematically modernized, following the Western European model. This culminated in the promulgation of the Constitution of the Empire of Japan in 1889. Japan then strengthened its imperialistic tendencies, and went on to war with China (Sino-Japanese War, 1894-1895) and Russia (Russo-Japanese War, 1904-05), and even annexed Korea (Japan-Korea Annexation, 1910). The global economic difficulties of the 1930s further strengthened Japan's tendency toward military dictatorship internally and aggression externally. In 1931, Japan seized control of Manchuria from China and made it independent, allied with Nazi Germany (Japan-Germany Axis), and in 1941 declared war on the United States and Great Britain, entering the Pacific War, attacking American forces in Hawaii and the Philippines and occupying European colonies in Southeast Asia. Although the Japanese army was successful in the early stages of the war, it was gradually pushed back by the United States and the Allied forces. In 1945, the United States dropped atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, reducing both cities to ashes. Shortly thereafter, Japan surrendered to the Allied Powers. The postwar occupation by the United States led to the creation of the Japanese Constitution in 1947 and the democratization of Japan. A long-term trade policy that combined the public and private sectors gave Japanese manufacturing an advantage in all overseas markets, including Europe and the United States. However, in the 1980s, trade imbalances began to cause tensions with the West. Meanwhile, in the 1970s, Japan's economic growth temporarily slowed due to high imported oil prices and a global recession. Continued growth in the 1980s allowed Japan to continue to increase its exports in the 1990s. By this point, Japan was already the second largest economy in the world after the United States. However, after the collapse of the bubble economy in the late 1980s, growth slowed and the country became politically unstable, with the Liberal Democratic Party, which had been driving growth, falling into opposition. Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica Concise Encyclopedia About Encyclopaedia Britannica Concise Encyclopedia Information |
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日本にいつ頃から人類が定住し始めたかについては，1～3万年前の石器が発見されているものの確証はない。伝承では前660年，初代の神武天皇の即位をもって建国のときとしているが，史料では最初の統一国家である大和朝廷が出現したのは 4世紀末，あるいは 5世紀初頭である。この大和期に仏教が朝鮮半島を経由して伝来した。以後数世紀の間，日本は中国文化から強い影響を受けた。8世紀には中国を模倣した宮廷が奈良，続いて京都に誕生した。しかし 9世紀になると日本は大陸とのつながりを断ち始め，学んだものを翻案するようになった。政治的には，天皇はしだいに廷臣たちに従属するようになった。なかでも有力貴族の藤原氏は 11世紀を通じて絶大な勢力を保った。 しかし同時に，地方では武士階級が勃興し，排他的な政治力を蓄えつつあった。建久3（1192）年，源頼朝は初の武家政権である鎌倉幕府を樹立した。この政体が，途中幾度かの内部抗争を経ながらも慶応3（1867）年まで続くことになる。鎌倉時代（1192～1333）の文永11（1274）年と弘安4（1281）年の 2度にわたるモンゴルの侵略（元寇）は，偶然の台風によって撃退されたが，この侵攻に備えるための負担が鎌倉幕府の倒壊につながった。続く将軍足利氏による室町時代（1336～1573）は有力氏族による抗争と南北両朝の並立を特徴とする。織田信長によって緒についた政治的統一は天正18（1590）年，豊臣秀吉によって達成された。しかし，完全な意味での国家の統一は秀吉の死後，徳川家康の関ヶ原の戦い（1600）での勝利を待って実現した。 江戸時代（1603～1867），幕府は対外的孤立政策をとり，天文18（1549）年，イエズス会のフランシスコ・ザビエルが渡来して以来改宗した国内のキリスト教徒は迫害され，外国人は追放され，日本人の海外渡航も禁止された。政府の安定は数世紀ぶりに日本に平和をもたらした。海外との隔絶（鎖国）は固有の文化を開花させたが，それは一方で社会の停滞をもたらした。ことに勃興する商人階級が制約に耐えきれなくなった。19世紀の中頃には幕府はもはや欧米の貿易商人たちを追い払うことができなくなり，政権への支持も崩壊した。 明治1（1868）年，天皇の支配権回復（王政復古）が宣言され，明治天皇が即位した。しかし，実際の政治権力は南西部出身の一群の若い指導者たちが掌握していた。彼らは新しい理念と技術を求めて，西ヨーロッパ世界のいたるところに視察団を派遣し，日本の政治・経済・社会制度は西ヨーロッパを模範として体系的に近代化された。その頂点を画するのが 1889年の大日本帝国憲法公布である。 日本はその後，帝国主義的傾向を強め，中国（日清戦争，1894～1895），ロシア（日露戦争，1904～05）との戦争さらには朝鮮併合（日韓併合，1910）へと突き進んだ。1930年代の世界的な経済困難は，日本の対内的には軍の独裁，対外的には侵略という傾向をいっそう強めた。日本は 1931年，中国から満州の支配権を奪ってこれを独立させ，ナチス・ドイツと同盟し（日独枢軸），1941年にはアメリカ合衆国，イギリスに宣戦布告し太平洋戦争に突入，ハワイとフィリピンのアメリカ軍を攻撃するとともに東南アジアのヨーロッパ諸国植民地を占領した。緒戦では成功を収めたが，日本軍はアメリカならびに連合軍によって徐々に押し戻された。1945年，アメリカは広島と長崎に原子爆弾を投下，両都市は灰塵に帰した。その直後，日本は連合国に降伏した。 アメリカによる戦後の占領により 1947年日本国憲法が与えられ，日本の民主化が進められた。官民一体となった長期的視点に立った通商政策により，日本の製造業は欧米を含むあらゆる海外市場で優位に立った。しかし，1980年代には，貿易不均衡が欧米諸国との緊張を引き起こし始めた。この間，1970年代に日本の経済成長は輸入石油価格の高騰と世界的な景気後退とによって一時的に鈍化した。1980年代の継続的な成長により，日本は 1990年代にも輸出を増加させ続ける。この時点で，日本はすでにアメリカに次ぐ世界第2位の経済大国になっていた。しかし 1980年代末のバブル経済の崩壊後，成長は緩慢となり，成長を牽引してきた自由民主党が野に下るなど，政治的にも不安定となった。 出典 ブリタニカ国際大百科事典 小項目事典ブリタニカ国際大百科事典 小項目事典について 情報 |
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