The Declaration of the Republic of Kyushu, also known as Kyōwakoku no Sengen (共和国 の 宣言, "Declaration of the Republic") was an event occurring on March 18, 1865. The Council of Satsuma decreed that the lands of Kyushu, in their entirety, were to be forfeited by the Hosokawa Shogunate and would instead be considered an independent sovereign state, nominally the "Republic of Kyushu". The domains encompassed by the Republic would be: Satsuma, Kumamoto, Nobeoka, Fukuoka, Hirado, Oka and Saga. Whilst no direct declared intent of war was made, the following months were characterised by conflict against pro-Shogunate forces at Kijo, Tsuno and Yatsushiro.
Considered the most fundamental event in modern Japanese history, the declaration would ultimately lead to the outbreak of the Nōmin War, which would last another fifteen years. The Republic itself would only last another nine years, being remodelled into the Republic of Japan on February 9, 1874.
Background[]
The Hosokawa Shogunate had assumed power by 1809, with the son of Hosokawa Tsunemoto being named shōgun in September of that year. Considering the nature of their usurpation, the Hosokawa Clan was never as powerful as the previous Urakami Shogunate and a series of inept rulers led to increasing autonomy amongst the daimyō of outlying domains, most especially those in the Kantō and Chūgoku regions. This autonomy would eventually reach a climax at the Kuwana-Yatomi Incident, whereby a number of independent daimyō denied Shogunate forces access to Owari Province and refused to concede to the demands of the shōgun. The immediate after effects were profound with numerous other daimyō began to break away from the central bakufu and establish their own fiefdoms.
Simultaneously, trade with the west had begun to spread the concept of democracy in Kyushu and western Shikoku, leading to a failed insurrection in Shikoku. However, in Kyushu, the notion of Republicanism had spread even to the ruling figures of Satsuma domain. Shimazu Hisamitsu, the daimyō of Satsuma, had grown despondent with the Shogunate. Having been heavily influenced by Saxon and British traders, Hisamitsu began gathering allies from around his domain. Most of those he managed to recruit were "Taoreta ichizoku" or "Fallen Clans", figures who had been negatively affected by the ascension of Hosokawa Tsunemoto and his subsequent "purges" of the older clans.
Throughout the 1850s and early 1860s, Hisamitsu and his allies encouraged the act of "Gakushū", literally "study" but specifically of western ideas. British and Saxon officers, engineers and even ex-politicians were invited to Satsuma in order to help modernise the domain. Hisamitsu began the introduction of democracy by establishing a primitive voting system within the domain by which nominated officials ("Mura no kuchi" or literally "mouth of the village") would in turn elect regional chiji for districts. Upon the occurrence of the Kuwana-Yatomi Incident, Hisamitsu began to encourage the movement of Republican propaganda amongst the lower classes of neighbouring domains. This was mostly enacted by the shiyōnin and by 1865, large scale underground movements had begun to undermine Shogunate authority across Nobeoka and Kumamoto domains. Thus in 1865, Hisamitsu and his allies made the declaration.
Contents[]
The entirety of the declaration read as follows:
Japanese - "最近の出来事に照らして、私たちは現職の将軍の権威とリーダーシップが九州の多くの人々の支配に不十分であると考えました。 したがって、将軍は薩摩、延岡、岡、熊本、平戸、福岡、佐賀の領域を独立していると見なします。 この日からそして永遠にもっと。 これらの土地は、人々によって、人々のために、したがって人々に害がもたらされないように支配されるべきです。 宣戦布告、暴力的な干渉、または悪意があると見なすことができる行為は、共和国に対する暴力であると同時に、日本人に対する暴力でもあります。"
Hepburn - "Saikin no dekigoto ni terashite, watashitachiha genshoku no shōgun no ken'i to rīdāshippu ga Kyūshū no ōku no hitobito no shihai ni fujūbundearu to kangaemashita. Shitagatte, shōgun wa Satsuma, Nobeoka, Oka, Kumamoto, Hirado, Fukuoka, Saga no ryōiki o dokuritsu shite iru to minashimasu. Kono Ni~Tsu kara soshite eien ni motto. Korera no tochi wa, hitobito ni yotte, hitobito no tame ni, shitagatte hitobito ni gai ga motarasa renai yō ni shihai sa rerubekidesu. Sensen fukoku, bōryoku-tekina kanshō, matawa akui ga aru to minasu koto ga dekiru kōi wa, kyōwakoku ni taisuru bōryokudearu to dōjini, nihonjin ni taisuru bōryoku demo arimasu."
English - "In the light of recent events, we have considered the authority and leadership of the incumbent Shōgun to be inadequate for the control of the many in Kyushu. Therefore, the Shōgun must consider the territories of Satsuma, Nobeoka, Oka, Kumamoto, Hirado, Fukuoka, and Saga to be independent. From this day and forever more. These lands should be ruled by people for their own sake and therefore without harm to them. Declaration of war, violent interference, or acts that can be considered malicious are both violence against the Republic and violence against the Japanese."