| 日本の歴史概観（４世紀から今日までの政権構造の推移） 前の頁 |
【４世紀から７世紀】 Around the 4th century Japan began to take shape as a unified state, and by the 7th century, a centralized state with the emperor at its center was established. 【9世紀から１２世紀】 When we look back at Japan’s history, we can see that, as time passed, political power shifted from the emperors to others. From the 9th to the 12th century, powerful aristocratic families controlled the government. The emperor was still the highest authority, but the aristocrats had much of the actual political power. 【１２世紀後半から19世紀後半】 And from the late 12th century to the late 19th century, for about 700 years, Japan was largely ruled by the samurai rather than the imperial court. Originally, samurai were warriors who served and protected powerful aristocrats. Over time, however, they became powerful enough to take control of the government themselves. During this period, there were three major military governments, known as shogunates: the Kamakura Shogunate, the Ashikaga Shogunate, and theTokugawa Shogunate. A shogunate was a military government headed by a shogun, or military leader. In those days, the top of samurai in those days was given by the emperor the title of shogun. And then he exerted his political power as a shogun.The emperor still remained the supreme figure and had great authority. But he had no military forces and did not engage in political activities. The first military government was the Kamakura Shogunate, which was based in Kamakura, near present-day Tokyo. It was established in the late 12th century and lasted for about 150 years. The second was the Ashikaga Shogunate, which was based in Kyoto, in the Muromachi district. It lasted for more than 200 years. The third was the Tokugawa Shogunate, which was based in Edo, present-day Tokyo. It was established in 1600 and lasted for more than 250 years until the late 19th century. During this period, the centers of samurai power moved from Kamakura to Kyoto, and finally to Edo, which is present-day Tokyo. 【1868年以降現代まで】 About 160 years ago, to be more exact, in 1868, Japan ended its feudal system and established a new government with the emperor once again at its center. At the same time, Japan’s modernization began, opening the country to the outside world. This period lasted, for about 80 years, until 1945, when Japan was defeated in the Second World War. Then Japan adopted a new constitution. Under the new constitution, the emperor is defined as the symbol of the state and the unity of the people. That means the emperor has no political power at present. Today, political power is largely held by the prime minister, who is elected by the Diet. Japan’s current prime minister is a woman, the first woman ever to hold the office in Japan’s political history. Her name is Sanae Takaichi.
By the way, my guests have sometimes asked me about the relationship between
the shogun and the emperor. They asked me, “Which was greater, the shogun or the emperor?” The answer is very, very clear to Japanese people. The emperor was greater
than the shogun. Let’s imagine the situation in which the emperor and the shogun meet somewhere.
The shogun would kneel down before the emperor. 前の頁 |