World history concepts · AP World History: Modern
Meiji Restoration
Meiji Restoration: The 1868 restoration of imperial rule in Japan, which launched rapid modernization and industrialization.
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What it means
After the arrival of U.S. warships under Commodore Matthew Perry in 1853 forced Japan to open to trade, Japanese reformers overthrew the Tokugawa shogunate. The new government adopted Western technologies and institutions, built industry and a modern military, and abolished the samurai class's privileges.
Japan became an industrial and imperial power, defeating China in 1895 and Russia in 1905.
Example
The Meiji government sent missions abroad to study Western governments, schools and industries.
On the exam
The Meiji Restoration is a standard example of state-led industrialization and of non-Western responses to imperialism.