Meiji Constitution

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Meiji Constitution

The , more commonly known as the Imperial or Meiji Constitution, was the fundamental law of the Empire of Japan

Empire of Japan

The Empire of Japan was a Japanese political entity that existed during the period from the Meiji Restoration in 1868 until its defeat in World War II in 1945....
from 29 November 1890 until 2 May 1947. Enacted after the Meiji Ishin

Meiji Restoration

The , also known as the Meiji Ishin, Revolution, or Renewal, was a chain of events that led to enormous changes in Japan's political and social structure....
, it provided for a form of constitutional monarchy

Constitutional monarchy

A constitutional monarchy is a form of constitutional government, where in either an elected or hereditary monarch is the head of state, unlike in an absolute monarchy, wherein the king or the queen is the sole source of political power, as he or she is not legally bound by the constitution....
based on the Prussia

Prussia

Emperor of Japan

The of Japan is the symbol of the state and of the unity of the Japanese people. He is the head of the Imperial House of Japan. Under Japan's present constitution, the Emperor is the "symbol of the state and the unity of the people," and is a ceremonial figurehead in a constitutional monarchy ....
was an active ruler and wielded considerable political power, but shared this with an elected diet

Diet (assembly)

In politics, a diet is a formal deliberative assembly. The term is derived from Medieval Latin dietas, and ultimately comes from the Latin dies, "day"....
. After the Meiji Restoration

Meiji Restoration

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The , more commonly known as the Imperial or Meiji Constitution, was the fundamental law of the Empire of Japan

Empire of Japan

Meiji Restoration

Constitutional monarchy

Prussia

Emperor of Japan

Diet (assembly)

In politics, a diet is a formal deliberative assembly. The term is derived from Medieval Latin dietas, and ultimately comes from the Latin dies, "day"....
. After the Meiji Restoration

Meiji Restoration

The , also known as the Meiji Ishin, Revolution, or Renewal, was a chain of events that led to enormous changes in Japan's political and social structure....
, which restored direct political power to the emperor for the first time in over a millennium, Japan underwent a period of sweeping political and social reform and westernization aimed at strengthening Japan, to the level of the nations of the Western world. The immediate consequence of the Constitution was the opening of the first Parliamentary government in Asia.

The Meiji Constitution established clear limits to the power of the executive branch and the absolutism

Absolute monarchy

Absolute monarchy is a monarchy form of government where the king or queen has absolute power over all aspects of his/her subjects' lives. Although some religious authorities may be able to discourage the monarch from some acts and the sovereign is expected to act according to custom, in an absolute monarchy there is no constitution or legal...
of the Emperor. It also created an independent judiciary. However, it was ambiguous in wording, and in many places self-contradictory. The leaders of the government and the political parties

Political Parties

Political Parties: A Sociological Study of the Oligarchical Tendencies of Modern Democracy is a book by sociologist Robert Michels, published in 1911 , and first introducing the concept of iron law of oligarchy....
were left with the task of interpretation as to whether the Meiji Constitution could be used to justify authoritarian or liberal-democratic rule. It was the struggle between these tendencies that dominated the government of the Empire of Japan.

The Meiji Constitution was used as a model for the 1931 Ethiopia

Ethiopia

Ethiopia , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country situated in the Horn of Africa. Ethiopia is bordered by Eritrea to the north, Sudan to the west, Kenya to the south, Somalia to the east and Djibouti to the northeast....
n Constitution by the Ethiopian intellectual Tekle Hawariat Tekle Mariyam

Tekle Hawariat Tekle Mariyam

Tekle Hawariat Tekle Mariyam was an Ethiopian politician and intellectual of the Japanizer school of thought. He was the primary author of Ethiopia's July 16, 1931 Constitution of Ethiopia, which was influenced by the Meiji Constitution....
. This was one of the reasons why the progressive Ethiopian intelligentsia associated with Tekle Hawariat were known as "Japanizers".

Following Japan's defeat and occupation at the end of the Second World War

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global military conflict which involved a Participants in World War II, including all of the great powers, organised into two opposing military alliances: the Allies of World War II and the Axis powers....
, the Meiji Constitution was replaced by a new document, the present 'Constitution of Japan

Constitution of Japan

The has been the founding legal document of Japan since 1947. The constitution provides for a parliamentary system of government and guarantees certain fundamental rights....
', which replaces the imperial system with a form of Western-style liberal democracy

Liberal democracy

Liberal democracy is the dominant form of democracy in the 21st century. During the Cold War, liberal democracies were contrasted with the Communist People's Republics or "Popular Democracies", which claimed an alternative conception of democracy....
.

History

Prior to the adoption of the Meiji Constitution Japan was, in practice, a country without a written constitution

Constitution

A constitution is a system for government — often codified as a written document — that establishes the rules and principles of an autonomous political entity....
. In the late Asuka period

Asuka period

The , was a period in the history of Japan lasting from 538 to 710 , although its beginning could be said to overlap with the preceding Kofun period. The Yamato polity evolved much during the Asuka period, which is named after the Asuka, Yamato region, about 25 km south to the modern city of Nara, Nara....
and early Nara period

Nara period

The of the history of Japan covers the years from AD 710 to 794. Empress Gemmei established the capital of Heijo-kyo . Except for 5 years , when the capital was briefly moved again, it remained the capital of Japanese civilization until Emperor Kammu established a new capital, Nagaoka-kyo, in 784 before moving to Heian-kyo , or Kyoto, a decade lat...
, a Chinese-inspired legal system and constitution known as ritsuryo
Ritsuryo

is the historical law system based on the philosophies of Confucianism and Legalism in Japan. The political system in accord to Ritsuryo is called "Ritsuryo-sei" ....
was enacted; it described a government based on an elaborate and theoretically rational meritocratic

Meritocracy

Meritocracy is a -cracy or other organization wherein appointments are made and responsibilities are given based on demonstrated talent and ability , rather than by wealth , family connections , social class privilege , friends , seniority , popularity or other historical determinants of social position and political power....
bureaucracy, serving under the ultimate authority of the emperor

Emperor of Japan

The of Japan is the symbol of the state and of the unity of the Japanese people. He is the head of the Imperial House of Japan. Under Japan's present constitution, the Emperor is the "symbol of the state and the unity of the people," and is a ceremonial figurehead in a constitutional monarchy ....
and organised following Chinese models. In theory the last ritsuryo code, the Yoro Code

Yoro Code

The was one iteration of several codes or governing rules compiled in early Nara period in Classical Japan. Major work on the Yoro Code was completed in 718....
enacted in 752, was still in force at the time of the Meiji Restoration. However, in practice the ritsuryo system of government had become largely an empty formality as early as in the middle of the Heian period

Heian period

The is the last division of classical History of Japan, running from 794 to 1185. It is the period in Japanese history when Confucianism and other Chinese culture were at their height....
in the 10th and 11th centuries, a development which was completed by the establishment of the Kamakura shogunate

Kamakura shogunate

The Kamakura shogunate was a feudal military dictatorship in Japan headed by the shoguns from 1185 to 1333. It was based in Kamakura, Kanagawa....
in 1185. The high positions in the ritsuryo system remained as honorary titles devoid of any power, and the emperor was de-powered and set aside as a symbolic figure who ‘reigned, but did not rule’ (on the theory that the living god should not have to defile himself with matters of earthly government).

The idea of a written constitution had been a subject of heated debate within and without the government since the beginnings of the Meiji government. The conservative Meiji oligarchy

Meiji oligarchy

The Meiji oligarchy, was the name used to describe the new ruling class of Meiji period Japan. The members of this class were adherents of kokugaku and believed they were the creators of a new order as grand as that established by Japan's original founders....
viewed anything resembling democracy

Democracy

Democracy is a form of government in which power is held directly or indirectly by citizens under a free electoral system. It is derived from the Greek language d?????at?a , "popular government" which was coined from d???? , "people" and ???t?? , "rule, strength" in the middle of the 5th-4th century BC to denote the political syst...
or republicanism

Republicanism

Republicanism is the ideology of governing a nation as a republic, where the head of state is appointed by other means than hereditary, often elections....
with suspicion and trepidation, and favored a gradualist approach. The Freedom and People's Rights Movement

Freedom and People's Rights Movement

The was a Meiji period Japanese political and social movement that in the 1870s and 1880s pursued the formation of an elected legislature, revision of the Unequal Treaties with America and European countrys, the institution of civil rights and the reduction of centralized taxation....
demanded the immediate establishment of an elected national assembly

National Assembly

The National Assembly is either a legislature, or the lower house of a bicameral legislature in some countries. The best known National Assembly, and the first legislature to be known by this title, was that established during the French Revolution in 1789, known as the National Assembly ....
, and the promulgation of a constitution.

Drafting

On 21 October 1881, Ito Hirobumi

Ito Hirobumi

Prince was a Japanese statesman, Resident-General of Korea, four time Prime Minister of Japan and genro. Ito was assassinated by An Jung-geun, a Korean nationalist who was against the Annexation of Korea by the Japanese Empire....
was appointed to chair a government bureau to research various forms of constitutional government, and in 1882, Ito led an overseas mission to observe and study various systems first-hand. The United States Constitution

United States Constitution

The Constitution of the United States of America is the supreme law of the United States. It is the foundation and source of the legal authority underlying the existence of the United States of America; the Federal Government of the United States; and all the State & local governments and Territorial Administrative bodies contained therein....
was rejected as "too liberal" and the British

Great Britain

Great Britain is an island lying to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the List of islands by area, and the largest in Europe. With a population of 58.9 million people it is List of islands by population....
system as being too unwieldy and granting too much power to Parliament

Parliament

A parliament is a legislature, especially in those countries whose system of government is based on the Westminster system modeled after that of the United Kingdom....
. The French

France

France , officially the French Republic , is a country whose Metropolitan France is located in Western Europe and that also comprises various Overseas departments and territories of France....
and Spanish

Spain

Spain or the Kingdom of Spain , is a country located in Southern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.The Spanish constitution does not establish any official denomination of the country, even though Espa?a , Estado espa?ol and Naci?n espa?ola are used interchangeably....
models were rejected as tending toward despotism

Despotism

Despotism is a form of government by a single authority, either an autocracy or oligarchy, which rules with absolute political power. In its classical form, a despotism is a state where a single individual wields all the power and authority embodying the state, and everyone else is a subsidiary person....
. The legal structures of Imperial Germany, particularly of Prussia

Prussia

Prussia was, most recently, a historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. This state had for centuries substantial influence on Germany and European history....
proved to be of the most interest to the Constitutional Study Mission.

The Council of State was replaced in 1885 with a cabinet headed by Ito as Prime Minister

Prime minister

A prime minister is the most senior minister of Cabinet in the Executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. The position is usually held by, but need not always be held by, a politician....
. The positions of Chancellor, Minister of the Left

Sadaijin

Sadaijin , most commonly translated as "Minister of the Left", was a government position in Japan in the late Nara period and Heian periods....
, and Minister of the Right

Udaijin

Udaijin , most commonly translated as the "Minister of the Right", was a government position in Japan in the late Nara period and Heian periods....
, which had existed since the seventh century, were abolished. In their place, the Privy Council

Privy Council (Japan)

was an advisory council to the Emperor of Japan that operated from 1888 to 1947.Modeled in part upon the Privy Council of the United Kingdom, this body advised the throne on matters of grave importance including: proposed amendments to the 1889 Imperial Household Law and the Constitution of the Empire of Japan; matters of constitutional interp...
was established in 1888 to evaluate the forthcoming constitution, and to advise the Emperor.

The draft committee included Inoue Kowashi

Inoue Kowashi

Viscount was a statesman in Meiji period Japan....
, Kaneko Kentaro

Kaneko Kentaro

was a statesman and diplomat in Meiji period Japan....
, Ito Miyoji

Ito Miyoji

Count was a statesman in Meiji period Japan....
and Iwakura Tomomi

Iwakura Tomomi

was a Japanese statesman who played an important role in the Meiji Restoration, influencing opinions of the Imperial Court . The former 500 Yen banknote issued by the Bank of Japan carried his portrait....
, along with a number of foreign advisors

O-yatoi gaikokujin

The oyatoi gaikokujin -- sometimes rendered o-yatoi gaikokujin in romaji, were foreign advisors hired by the Japanese government for their specialized knowledge to assist in the modernization of Japan at the end of the Bakufu and during the Meiji Era....
, in particular the German legal scholars Rudolf von Gneist and Lorenz von Stein

Lorenz von Stein

Lorenz von Stein was a Germany economist, sociologist, and public administration scholar from Eckernf?rde. As an advisor to Meiji period Japan, his conservative political views influenced the wording of the Meiji Constitution....
. The central issue was the balance between sovereignty vested in the person of the Emperor, and an elected representative legislature with powers that would limit or restrict the power of the sovereign. After numerous drafts from 1886-1888, the final version was submitted to the Emperor in April 1888. The Meiji Constitution was drafted in secret by the committee, without public debate, and was adopted with a referendum.

Promulgation

The new constitution was promulgated by Emperor Meiji on 11 February 1889 but came into effect on 29 November 1890. The first Imperial Diet

Diet of Japan

The is Japan's bicameral legislature. It is composed of a lower house, called the House of Representatives of Japan, and an upper house, called the House of Councillors....
, a new representative assembly

Representative assembly

A representative assembly is a political institution in which a number of persons representing the population or privileged orders within the population of a state come together to debate, negotiate with the executive and legislate....
, convened on the day the Meiji Constitution came into force. The organizational structure of the Diet reflected both Prussian and British influences, most notably in the inclusion of the House of Peers

House of Peers

The was the upper house of the Diet of Japan as mandated under the Constitution of the Empire of Japan .Ito Hirobumi and the other Meiji period leaders deliberately modeled the chamber on the United Kingdom House of Lords, as a counterweight to the popularly elected House of Representatives of Japan ....
(which resembled the Prussian Herrenhaus
Herrenhaus

The German language term Herrenhaus is equivalent to the English language House of Lords and describes roughly similar institutions as the English House of Lords in German-speaking countries....
and the British House of Lords

House of Lords

The House of Lords is the second house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom and is also commonly referred to as "the Lords". The Parliament comprises the British monarchy, the British House of Commons , and the Lords....
), and in the formal Speech from the Throne

Speech from the Throne

A speech from the throne is an event in certain monarchies in which the monarch reads a prepared speech to a complete session of parliament, outlining the government's agenda for the coming year....
delivered by the Emperor on Opening Day. The second chapter of the constitution, detailing the rights of citizens, bore a resemblance to similar articles in both European and North American constitutions of the day.

Main provisions

Structure
The Meiji Constitution consists of 76 articles in seven chapters, together amounting to around 2,500 words. It is also usually reproduced with its Preamble, the Imperial Oath Sworn in the Sanctuary in the Imperial Palace, and the Imperial Rescript on the Promulgation of the Constitution, which together come to nearly another 1,000 words. The seven chapters are:

I. The Emperor (1-17)
II. Rights and Duties of Subjects (18-32)
III. The Imperial Diet (33-54)
IV. The Ministers of State and the Privy Council (55-56)
V. The Judicature (57-61)
VI. Finance (62-72)
VII. Supplementary Rules (73-76)

Imperial sovereignty
Unlike its modern successor, the Meiji Constitution was founded on the principle that sovereignty resided in person of the Emperor, by virtue of his divine ancestry "unbroken for ages eternal", rather than in the people. Article 4 states that the "Emperor is the head of the Empire, combining in Himself the rights of sovereignty". The Emperor, nominally at least, united within himself all three branches (executive
Executive (government)

Sorry, no overview for this topic
, legislative and judiciary
Judiciary

In law, the judiciary is the system of courts which administer justice in the name of the Sovereignty or state, a mechanism for the dispute resolution....
) of government, albeit subject to the "consent of the Imperial Diet". Laws were issued and justice administered by the courts "in the name of the Emperor".

Separate provisions of the Constitution are contradictory as to whether the Constitution or the Emperor is supreme. While Article 4 binds the Emperor to exercise his powers "according to the provisions of the present Constitution", Article 3 declares him to be "sacred and inviolable", a formula which was construed by hard-line monarchists to mean that he retained the right to withdraw the constitution, or to ignore its provisions. Article 55, however, confirmed that the Emperor’s commands (including Imperial Ordinance, Edicts, Rescripts, etc.) had no legal force within themselves, but required the signature of a “Minister of State”. On the other hand, these “Ministers of State” were appointed by (and could be dismissed by), the Emperor alone, and not by the Prime Minister or the Diet.

Rights and Duties of Subjects

Duties: The constitution asserts the duty of Japanese subjects to uphold the constitution (preamble), pay taxes (Article 21) and serve in the armed forces if conscripted (Article 20).
Qualified rights: The constitution provides for a number of rights that subjects may enjoy only where the law does not provide otherwise. These included the right to:

Freedom of movement (Article 22).
Not have one's house searched or entered (Article 25).
Privacy of correspondence (Article 26).
Private property (Article 27)
Land Tax Reform (Japan 1873)

The Japanese Land Tax Reform of 1873, or was started by the Meiji Government in 1873, or the 6th year of the Meiji era. It was a major restructuring of the previous land taxation system, and established the right of private land ownership in Japan for the first time....
.
Freedom of speech
Freedom of speech

Freedom of speech is the freedom to speak freely without censorship or limitation. The synonymous term freedom of expression is sometimes used to denote not only freedom of verbal speech but any act of seeking, receiving and imparting information or ideas, regardless of the medium used....
, assembly
Freedom of assembly

Freedom of assembly, sometimes used interchangeably with the freedom of association, is the individual right to come together with other individuals and collectively express, promote, pursue and defend common interests....
and association
Freedom of association

Freedom of association is the individual right to come together with other individuals and collectively express, promote, pursue and defend common interests....
(Article 29).

Less conditional rights

Right to "be appointed to civil or military or any other public offices equally" (Article 19).
'Procedural' due process
Due process

Due process is the principle that the government must respect all of the legal rights that are owed to a person according to the law of the land, instead of respecting merely some or most of those legal rights....
(Article 23).
Right to trial before a judge (Article 24).
Freedom of religion
Freedom of religion

Freedom of religion is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or community, in public or private, to manifest religion or belief in religious education, practice, worship, and observance....
(Guaranteed by Article 28 "within limits not prejudicial to peace and order, and not antagonistic to their duties as subjects").
Right to petition
Right to petition

The right to petition the government is the freedom of individuals to petition their government for a correction or repair of some form of injustice without fear of punishment for the same....
government (Article 30).

Organs of government

The Emperor of Japan had the right to exercise executive authority, and to appoint and dismiss all government officials. The Emperor also had the sole rights to make war, make peace, conclude treaties, dissolve the lower house of Diet, and issue Imperial ordinances in place of laws when the Diet was not in session. Most importantly, command over the Imperial Japanese Army

Imperial Japanese Army

The Imperial Japanese Army , or literally Army of Empire of Greater Japan was the official ground based armed force of Imperial Japan from 1867 to 1945....
and Imperial Japanese Navy

Imperial Japanese Navy

The origins of the Imperial Japanese Navy trace back to early interactions with nations on the Asia, beginning in the early history of Japan#Feudal Japan and reaching a peak of activity during the 16th and 17th centuries at a time of cultural diffusion with European power during the Age of Discovery....
was directly held by the Emperor, and not the Diet. The Meiji Constitution provided for a cabinet consisting of Ministers of State who answered to the Emperor rather than the Diet, and to the establishment of the Privy Council

Privy Council (Japan)

Genro

was an unofficial designation given to certain retired elder Japanese statesmen, considered the "founding fathers" of modern Japan, who served as informal extraconstitutional advisors to the emperor, during the Meiji period and Taisho period periods in History of Japan....
, an inner circle of advisors to the Emperor, who wielded considerable influence.

Under the Meiji Constitution, a legislature was established with two Houses. The Upper House, or House of Peers

House of Peers

The was the upper house of the Diet of Japan as mandated under the Constitution of the Empire of Japan .Ito Hirobumi and the other Meiji period leaders deliberately modeled the chamber on the United Kingdom House of Lords, as a counterweight to the popularly elected House of Representatives of Japan ....
consisted of members of the Imperial Family, hereditary peerage and members appointed by the Emperor. The Lower House, or House of Representatives was elected by direct male suffrage (with property qualifications). Legislative authority was shared with the Diet, and both the Emperor and the Diet had to agree in order for a measure to become law. On the other hand, the Diet was given the authority to initiate legislation, approve all laws, and approve the budget.

Amendments

Amendments to the constitution were provided for by Article 73. This stipulated that to become law a proposed amendment had first to be submitted to the Diet by the Emperor, by means of an imperial order or rescript. To be approved by the Diet an amendment had to be adopted in both chambers by a two-thirds majority of the total number of members of each (rather than merely two-thirds of the total number of votes cast). Once it had been approved by the Diet an amendment was then promulgated into law by the Emperor, who had an absolute right of veto. No amendment to the constitution was permitted during the time of a regency. Despite these provisions, no amendments were made to the imperial constitution from the time it was adopted until its demise in 1947. When the Meiji Constitution was replaced, in order to ensure legal continuity, its successor was adopted in the form of a constitutional amendment, in full compliance with the terms of Article 73.

Gallery

Reference and further reading

Akamatsu, Paul. Meiji 1868: Revolution and Counter-Revolution in Japan. Trans. Miriam Kochan. New York: Harper & Row, 1972.
Akita, George. Foundations of constitutional government in modern Japan, 1868-1900. Cambridge, Harvard University Press, 1967
Beasley, W. G. The Meiji Restoration. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1972.
Beasley, W. G. The Rise of Modern Japan: Political, Economic and Social Change Since 1850. St. Martin's Press, New York 1995.
Craig, Albert M. Choshu in the Meiji Restoration. Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1961.
Jansen, Marius B. and Gilbert Rozman, eds. Japan in Transition: From Tokugawa to Meiji. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1986.
Jansen, Marius B. The Making of Modern Japan. Cambridge: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2000.