Prolog; Modernization of Japan, 200 years to catch up on

As the era of the Shogun and the Samurai drew to a close, and sovereignty returned to the Emperor in 1868, in what history refers to as the Meiji Restoration, Japan needed to embark on an all out drive to modernize the nation in order to survive and join the ranks of Western powers. This policy was called 富国強兵 (Fukoku Kyouhei, meaning to enrich the nation and strengthen its soldiers/army).

Western style modern industry, Rail Roads, The Constitution, Medical Research, Guns, War ships and so on was what this meant in concrete terms. But first, they needed foreign currency to import modern machinery from the west, and for that Japan had to export.

The key to this was silk that ladies in the west loved to have for their dresses. However, even if you had silk, you still had to get it to Yokohama to get it on ships to the USA, etc and this required a railroad system that could negotiate the mountain range that ran through the center of the Japanese archipelago, much in the same way the Rockies divided the USA in the middle.

The railway to the east and west of this central divide was built without undue difficulty, but a steep mountain pass stood between these two sections. The 28-year old man who was given the job of getting the train through this section was my great grandfather, Sanjiro Kikkawa. He was born into a Samurai family, whose job it was to serve as the personal guard for the Lord of Ogaki, but the end of the Samurai era transformed him into a government employee, more specifically a railroad engineer. He was sent to England to learn about railroad engineering and from there he came to Germany in 1888 to study the new railway they had built to negotiate the steep climb in the Harz Mountains. With this know-how he took home, he was finally able to conquer the notorious Usui pass, and in 1893, the first train chugged across.

The World Expos 1867 and 1873 and the Medals & Orders Development Mandate

I wanted to tell the little story above to show one small facet of what it meant for Japan to be reborn as a modern nation after it had opened itself to the outside world after a national isolation that spanned 200 years. We are talking about 200 years of catching up to do, and this meant that the kind of challenge my great grandfather faced needed to be overcome in myriad fields almost all at once by what must have been hundreds of bright young men with boundless energy, sent around the globe on missions to bring back knowledge that made such breakthroughs possible. Modern Japan was built by the young, who had to shoulder huge responsibilities hard to imagine today. But how does the inexperienced go about judging what was necessary for Japan?

To the fledgling country of Japan, World Expos were a huge source of such inspirations, as these Expos provided an opportunity for Japan to measure itself against other nations, learn of new technologies and make contact with the key people to bring such know-how to Japan. Just like a fledgling militaria collector making his first exciting excursion to the annual militaria shows of Europe and the USA, Japan went to the 1867 Expo in Paris.

Back then, even before the Meiji era, Japan was already relying on France for help in modernizing its army. Thus, the real historical military advisor which inspired the character played by Tom Cruise in the film, “The Last Samurai” was actually a Frenchman by the name of Jules Brunet, and “The Last Shogun”, Yoshinobu Tokugawa even wore a French general’s uniform proudly on occasion, which had been presented to him by Napoleon the Third. However, on occasions like Expos, the Japanese visitors met heavily decorated and bemedaled European dignitaries, and were made keenly aware that Japan was still lacking a western style system for recognizing and awarding military honors which could adorn their uniforms. Some important milestones in the development of Japan’s Medals & Orders were laid at these Expos, which I will not get into, as Expos are only backdrops to the story I wish to relate to you.

By the next World Expo in Vienna of 1873, the balance of power in Europe had shifted, and now Prussia, having defeated France, started to gain the attention of Japan.

In that same year, 1873, in the same manner that my great grandfather was assigned the task of studying western railroads, the government assigned another former 34-year old Samurai, Yuzuru Ogyu to the task of studying the system of how other nations honored meritorious deeds and develop an award system suitable for Japan.