Ito Hirobumi

Itō Hirobumi
Prime Minister of Japan
In office December 22, 1885 – April 30, 1888
Preceded by	none
Succeeded by	Kuroda Kiyotaka
In office August 8, 1892 – August 31, 1896
Preceded by	Matsukata Masayoshi
Succeeded by	Matsukata Masayoshi
In office January 12, 1898 – June 30, 1898
Preceded by	Matsukata Masayoshi
Succeeded by	Okuma Shigenobu
In office October 19, 1900 – May 10, 1901
Preceded by	Yamagata Aritomo
Succeeded by	Katsura Taro
Born	October 16, 1841 Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan
Died	October 26, 1909
Political party	Rikken Seiyukai

Prince Itō Hirobumi (伊藤 博文) Itō Hirobumi, October 16, 1841–October 26, 1909), also called Hirofumi/Hakubun Shunsuke and Toshisuke in his youth, was one of the Meiji Era’s most famous statesmen, Resident-General of Korea, four times Prime Minister of Japan (the 1st, 5th, 7th and 10th) and genro. Ito was Japan's first prime minister, helped draft the Meiji constitution, and brought about the establishment of a bicameral Japanese national Diet in 1890. He was created a marquess in 1884 and a duke (or prince) in 1907.

Early Life

. His father was the adopted son of a samurai, and. He abandoned his earlier hostility to the West, and on his return, he led negotiations after the English bombardment of Choshu. After the Meiji Restoration, Ito studied Western financial systems and toured the West with other government officials in 1871-1873 as a junior councilor in charge of foreign affairs. He was made full councilor in 1873, and after the assassination of Okubo Toshimichi in 1878 he dominated government as home minister. In 1883, after extensive research on European political systems, he began drafting Meiji Japan's constitution based on that of Prussia. He was chosen to be prime minister of the first cabinet government in 1885, and later began to promote party politics. In 1888 he became head of the privy council, serving four more times as prime minister in 1892-1896, 1898-1899, and 1900-1901, and leading Japan to the status of a world power. After 1903, again head of the privy council, he began annexation of Korea and became first Resident General there in 1906, forcing the Korean sovereign's abdication in 1907. He resigned in 1909, but was assassinated in Manchuria by a Korean nationalist

Prime Minister of Japan

• 1st: 22 December 1885 - 30 April 1888 861 days
• 5th: 8 August 1892 - 31 August 1896 1485 days
• 7th: 12 January 1898 - 30 June 1898 170 days
• 10th: 19 October 1900 - 10 May 1901 204 days

Early Life

Itō Hirobumi was born on October 16, 1841 was born in Hagi, Chōshū (present day Hikari city in Yamaguchi prefecture. He was a student of Yoshida Shoin at the Shoka Sonjuku, and later joined the Sonno joi (“ to revere the Emperor and expel the barbarians”), movement together with Kido Takayoshi, known as Katsura Kogorō (桂小五郎), who became his mentor and was later one of the major leaders in early Meiji Japan. Ito received samurai status in 1863 and was chosen to be one of the “Chōshū Five” who were sent to study Western naval science at University College, London. The experience in Great Britain convinced him of the necessity of Japan adopting Western ways. In 1864, he returned to Japan with fellow student Inoue Kaoru to attempt to warn the Chōshū clan against going to war with England, after the Bombardment of Shimonoseki, over the right of passage through the Straits of Shimonoseki. At that time he met Ernest Satow, later a lifelong friend. for the first time.

Through his connections with Kido and Okubo Toshimichi, another leader of early Meiji Japan, Ito was able to visit the United States on government missions, and went to Europe with the Iwakura Mission (1870, 1871–73) to research matters such as taxation and budgetary systems and treaty revision.

Political career

After the Meiji Restoration, Itō was appointed governor of Hyogo Prefecture, junior councilor for Foreign Affairs, and sent to the United States in 1870 to study western currency systems. Returning to Japan in 1871, he established Japan’s taxation system. Later in 1871, he was sent on the Iwakura Mission around the world as vice-envoy extraordinary, during which he won the confidence of Okubo Toshimichi, another leader of the Meiji Restoration. In 1873, Itō was made a full councillor, Minister of Public Works, and (in 1875) chairman of the first Assembly of Prefectural Governors. His political career In 1878, Okubo, the most powerful figure in the government, was assassinated, and Ito took over the post of Home Minister and secured a central position in the Meiji government. His advancement brought him into conflict with the equally talented and ambitious statesman Okuma Shigenobu. In a series of masterful political strokes, Ito forced Okuma Shigenobu to resign in 1881, leaving himself in unchallenged control. He persuaded the government to adopt a constitution which was proclaimed by the Emperor proclaimed in 1889, and in 1890 the bicameral national Diet was established. Ito, then an important person in the Meiji government, and other officials spent nearly eighteen months (1882–83) in Europe, particularly in Germany, studying under leading constitutional scholars. The Meiji constitution, Ito's greatest project, was modeled on the Prussian government. It has been criticized for perpetuating authoritarian rule, because of the restrictions placed on guarantees of civil rights and the powers of the Diet. Considering the samurai background of the Meiji leaders and the political difficulties they faced, however, the acknowledgment in writing of basic rights and the establishment of the Diet were progressive and enlightened acts. While working on a constitution for Japan, Ito also wrote the first Imperial Household Law and established the Japanese peerage system (kazoku) in 1884. In 1885, he negotiated the Convention of Tientsin with Li Hung-chang, normalizing Japan’s diplomatic relations with the Chinese Qing Dynasty.

As Prime Minister

Also in 1885, based on European ideas, Itō established a cabinet system of government, replacing the Dajō-kan as the decision-making state organization, and on December 22, 1885, he became the first Prime Minister of Japan.

On April 30, 1888, Itō resigned as Prime Minister, but headed the new Privy Council to maintain power behind the scenes. In 1889, when the Meiji Constitution was promulgated, he also became the first genro. Itō remained a powerful force while Kuroda Kiyotaka and Yamagata Aritomo were Prime Ministers.

File:Ito Hirobumi and Mutsu Munemitsu.jpg

Ito (left) and Mutsu at Shimonoseki

During Itō’s second term as Prime Minister, (August 8, 1892 – August 31, 1896) he supported the First Sino-Japanese War. As prime minister, he helped Japan negotiate the Anglo-Japanese Treaty of Commerce and Navigation of 1894, removing some of the onerous unequal treaty clauses that had plagued Japanese foreign relations since the start of the Meiji period. Under the agreement British nationals in Japan became subject to Japanese law by 1899. This agreement was followed by treaties with other major Western nations. After Japan's victory over China in 1895, Itō negotiated the Treaty of Shimonoseki in March 1895 together with his ailing foreign minister Mutsu Munemitsu. These accomplishments were the first clear indications that Japan, alone among non-Western nations, had achieved success in modernization and a strong influence on East Asian affairs.

Domestic Problems

During Itō’s third term as Prime Minister (January 12, 1898 –June 30, 1899), Itō encountered problems with party politics. He perceived, along with other genro, that party politicians were incapable of dealing dispassionately with Japan's welfare and destiny. The powers guaranteed by the new Meiji constitution enabled the political parties to impede government programs in the Diet. Ito unhappily, but with characteristic flexibility, continually worked out compromises with the parties, until by 1900 no cabinet could be formed without their tacit consent. The parties had been cooperating with the government in return for cabinet positions and laws favoring party growth. When both the Jiyuto and the Shimpoto parties opposed his proposal for new land taxes, Ito dissolved the Diet in retaliation, and called for new elections. The two parties merged into the Kenseito, won a majority of the seats, and forced Ito to resign. This lesson taught Ito the need for a pro-government political party, so he organized the Rikken Seiyukai in 1900, based on an older antigovernment party, the Kenseito (“Constitutional Association”). The Seiyukai became the first party to control an absolute majority in the House of Representatives during a Diet session, leading Itō to believe that he had finally created the right conditions for smooth passage of government programs. Itō returned to office as Prime Minister for a 4th term from October 19,1900 –May 10, 1901; this time facing political opposition from the House of Peers. The conservative members of the House of Peers, which Itō had originally created to balance the less responsible House of Representatives, were unhappy with Itō 's party alliances and began to use obstructive tactics. Weary of political back-stabbing, Itō resigned in 1901, but remained as head of the Privy Council as the premiership alternated between Saionji Kimmochi and Katsura Taro. Finding that dealing with individual party members, each with promoting his own constituency, was more difficult than working with a handful of genro (elder statemen) who all shared from the same background and vision, he resigned as president of the Rikken Seiyukai in 1903. As a consequence of his activities, Itō lost the loyalty of the genro, and soon Yamagata Aritomo, founder of the modern Japanese army, became the leading power. Itō, however, had succeeded in establishing cooperation between high-ranking bureaucrats and party politicians and ending polarization of these two groups.

Resident-General of Korea

In November 1905, following the Russo-Japanese War, the Korean government signed the Eulsa Treaty, making Korea a Japanese protectorate. Itō became the first Resident-General of Korea on December 21, 1905. He urged the Korean King Gojong, to abdicate in 1907 in favor of his son King Sunjong. He was unable to prevent the annexation favored by leaders in Japan, and pushed through the Japan-Korea Annexation Treaty of 1907 giving Japan control over Korean internal affairs. Unable to gain the trust and confidence of the Koreans, he resigned on June 14, 1909.

Ito was assassinated in October 1909 at Harbin train station in Manchuria by a Korean nationalist An Jung-geun. His last words, on being told that he was the victim of a political assassination, were, “Baka na yatsu ja!” (“He is a fool!”). Ito probably meant that the Korean had killed the one Japanese leader who had supported, and would have continued to support, an even-handed Korea policy.

Trivia

• Itō Hirobumi was on the 1000 yen note of Japan from 1963 until a new series was issued in 1984.

• Suematsu Kencho was Itō’s son-in-law, having married his second daughter, Ikuko.

• Itō Hirobumi’s house is preserved as a museum near the Shoin Jinja, in Hagi city, Yamaguchi prefecture. However, the actual structure was Itō’s second home, formerly located in Shinagawa, Tokyo.

• Itō Hirobumi’s womanizing was a popular theme in editorial cartoons and in parodies by contemporary comedians.

• Ito received an honorary doctorate from Yale University.

References

ISBN links support NWE through referral fees

• Hamada, Kengi. Prince Ito (Japan Studies: Studies in Japanese History and Civilization). University Publications of America; Reprint edition, 1979.
• Ito, Hirobumi. A maker of new Japan: Marquis Ito's experience. The Gwaikokugo Kyojusho, 1904.
• Ito, Hirobumi. Commentaries on the Constitution of Japan. University Publications of America; 2nd edition, 1979.
• Oka, Yoshitake; Fraser, Andrew. Murray, Patricia. Five Political Leaders of Modern Japan: Ito Hirobumi, Okuma Shigenobu, Hara Takashi, Inukai Tsuyoshi, and Saionji Kimmochi. University of Tokyo Press, 1986.

External links

• Template:Japanese prime ministers-NDL
• Biographical material at the Notable Names Database.

Preceded by: (none) or Emperor of Korea Yi Ch'ok	Japanese Resident-General in Korea 1905–1909	Succeeded by: Viscount Sone Arasuke
Preceded by: Three great nobles of the Meiji Restoration	Prime Minister of Japan 1885-1888	Succeeded by: Kuroda Kiyotaka
Preceded by: Matsukata Masayoshi	Prime Minister of Japan 1892-1896	Succeeded by: Kuroda Kiyotaka
Preceded by: Matsukata Masayoshi	Prime Minister of Japan 1898	Succeeded by: Okuma Shigenobu
Preceded by: Yamagata Aritomo	Prime Minister of Japan 1900-1901	Succeeded by: Katsura Taro

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