Taisei Hokan
Taisei Hōkan. The next day, the Emperor accepted Yoshinobu’s petition via imperial sanction.
Overview
During the Edo period, the Tokugawa shoguns served as the de facto rulers of Japan. However, the concept that the Emperor had delegated governance to the shogunate—the so-called theory of imperial delegation of government authority —was broadly accepted.In the Bakumatsu period, the Imperial Court reemerged as an autonomous political actor. Due to increasing discord between the Court and the shogunate, especially regarding foreign affairs, the legitimacy of the shogunate was increasingly called into question. As a result, the shogunate began seeking formal reaffirmation from the Court of its delegated authority.
In 1863 and 1864, during the Bunkyū and Genji eras, partial reaffirmations of delegated authority were granted by the Court. This marked a significant institutionalization of what had previously been an unwritten custom.
It was in this political context that Tokugawa Yoshinobu, without first resigning as shogun, presented his petition to return political authority to the Emperor in the 10th month of Keiō 3. Yoshinobu would later submit his formal resignation on the 24th day of the same month. However, the shogunate was not officially abolished until the Proclamation of the Restoration of Imperial Rule on the 9th day of the 12th month.
The objective of Taisei Hōkan was to avoid civil war by modifying the shogunate’s autocratic rule and establishing a new council-based polity, led primarily by the Tokugawa house and other major domains. However, before such a political structure could be implemented, pro-imperial factions led by Satsuma Domain initiated armed conflict, seeking the complete abolition of the shogunate.
'''Note: All dates below refer to the traditional lunisolar calendar unless otherwise stated.'''
Historical Development
Union of Court and Shogunate (Kōbu Gattai) and the Taisei Hōkan Movement
During the late Edo period, debates over national opening and the signing of trade treaties fractured political consensus. Tensions between the Court and the shogunate surfaced most clearly in 1858, when the imperial court bypassed the shogunate to issue the Secret Imperial Edict of the Year of the Earth Horse to the Mito Domain. Subsequently, the shogunate was pressured to initiate political reforms and execute the imperial Court's anti-foreign edicts.In response, the shogunate sought to re-legitimize its authority by promoting the concept of Kōbu Gattai—unity between the Court and the shogunate. The ultimate goal was for shogunal directives to carry the authority of imperial command, thereby reinforcing centralized rule.
At the same time, figures such as Yokoi Shōnan, Ōkubo Ichio, and Katsu Kaishū—reformist retainers and domain officials—began advocating for the peaceful return of government authority to the Emperor. However, the shogunate continued pursuing Kōbu Gattai policies, sidelining these early calls for Taisei Hōkan.
Conceptualization in the Tosa Domain
Initially supporting Kōbu Gattai, the Satsuma Domain grew increasingly alienated from the shogunate following the collapse of the Council of Four Lords in 1867. On the 21st day of the 5th month, pro-reform samurai from the Tosa Domain, including Itagaki Taisuke and Tani Tateki, formed a secret alliance with Satsuma figures Saigō Takamori and Yoshii Tomozane at the Kyoto residence of Kōmatsu Tatewaki.In contrast, Gotō Shōjirō, senior counselor of Tosa, advocated for a peaceful transition via Taisei Hōkan. Although sometimes attributed to Sakamoto Ryōma, the so-called "Eight-Point Plan Aboard Ship" allegedly presented to Gotō in the 6th month, is now widely regarded as apocryphal.
Gotō convinced his fellow Tosa officials and negotiated a joint Satsuma–Tosa agreement on the 22nd day of the 6th month. The plan entailed the shogunate returning authority to the Court, establishing a national assembly, and selecting officials through broad-based meritocracy across classes.
Satsuma's agreement was largely tactical—its leadership expected Yoshinobu to reject the plan, providing a pretext for armed revolt. However, under pressure, the provision to abolish the shogunal title was later removed from the Tosa petition.
Satsuma, meanwhile, pursued secret military alliances with Chōshū Domain and Hiroshima Domain. The agreement with Tosa was dissolved by the 7th day of the 9th month.
Formal Submission of Taisei Hōkan
The painting is stored at the Meiji Memorial Picture Gallery and is one of the series depicting the life of Emperor Meiji. It was donated by Tokugawa Yoshimitsu. Although it is often believed to show Tokugawa Yoshinobu announcing the Taisei Hōkan to the senior retainers of various domains in the Great Hall on the 13th day of the 10th month, it actually depicts the events of the previous day, the 12th, when Yoshinobu informed government officials and domain lords of the plan in the Kuroshoin. The Great Hall at Nijō Castle has pine tree wall paintings, whereas cherry blossoms, as seen in the “Taisei Hōkan” painting, are found in the Kuroshoin.On October 3, Yamauchi Yōdō submitted a written proposal for the return of political power to the Emperor through Rōjū Itakura Katsukiyo. Yoshinobu accepted the plan and moved forward with returning power to the Emperor before the pro-Imperial Satchō Alliance could overthrow the shogunate.
From October 11, notices were sent to the retainers of domains with more than 100,000 koku who were staying in Kyoto, summoning them to Nijō Castle at noon on the 13th for a matter of national importance. On the night of October 12, a secret letter expressing Yoshinobu’s intentions was received by Yamada Hōkoku, an advisor to Itakura in Bitchū-Matsuyama Domain. Hōkoku then gave a draft petition to a secret envoy to be returned to Kyoto. Also on this day, the shogunate communicated its intention of Taisei Hōkan to government officials and domain lords from Aizu Domain, Kuwana Domain, and others.
On October 13, about 50 senior retainers from 40 domains gathered in the Great Hall of Nijō Castle. Rōjū Itakura Katsukiyo handed out three documents, informing the retainers that those with an opinion should report directly to the Shogun. Then, Ōmetsuke Togawa Tadayoshi and Metsuke Shitara Iwajirō gave them documents including Hōkoku’s draft petition, and told those with opinions to stay and meet Yoshinobu. Six representatives—Gotō Shōjirō and Fukuoka Takachika from Tosa Domain, Komatsu Tatewaki from Satsuma Domain, Tsuji Igao from Hiroshima Domain, Tsuzuki Atsushi from Uwajima Domain, and Makino Gonrokurō from Okayama Domain—met Yoshinobu in person. Others wrote their agreement on the documents and returned them. This made the shogunate’s intention to return power officially known.
The wording of the draft petition was later changed from "I" to "Your subject, Yoshinobu," and finalized as "October 14, Yoshinobu." On the next day, October 14, Yoshinobu sent Ōsawa Motohisa to the imperial court with the official petition for Taisei Hōkan and urged for its acceptance. Although Regent Nijō Nariyuki and other high-ranking court members were perplexed, the strong influence of Komatsu and Gotō led to the acceptance on October 15. Yoshinobu was given an official reply, stating that further discussion would determine the nation’s future and the fate of the shogunate’s land. On the same day, the court ordered all lords with more than 100,000 koku to come to Kyoto.
Although the Taisei Hōkan was meant to preempt the pro-Imperial factions and rob them of their cause, the petition did not mention Yoshinobu’s resignation as shogun. He retained his authority as head of the samurai. On October 14, Yoshinobu told Komatsu that resigning would upset his retainers. However, following Komatsu’s advice, he submitted his resignation as Seii Taishōgun on October 24.
The shogunate believed the court had neither the ability nor the structure to govern. Even if power was nominally returned, the Tokugawa clan, with its overwhelming influence, could continue leading the government under the Emperor. As expected, on October 22, the court conditionally allowed the shogunate to handle urgent matters until a national policy could be established, and Yoshinobu continued as de facto ruler.
The court had no ability to handle foreign affairs and on October 23, officially allowed the shogunate to continue diplomacy. The shogunate postponed the opening of ports in Edo and Niigata on November 19, and signed a new tariff treaty with Russia on November 28.
Although the court entrusted Yoshinobu with general administration and summoned the lords to Kyoto, many declined to come, waiting to see how things would unfold. Only the lords of Satsuma, Hiroshima, Owari, and Echizen came during November, and Yamauchi Yōdō of Tosa arrived only on December 8. The Restoration of Imperial Rule was proclaimed the next day, December 9. During this time, the Tosa Domain, including Sakamoto Ryōma, worked to promote the idea of a representative government.
Meanwhile, within Aizu, Kuwana, Kishū Domain, and among Tokugawa retainers, resentment grew that the Taisei Hōkan had been orchestrated by the Satsuma and Tosa Domains. A movement arose demanding that power be returned to the shogunate.
Response of the Anti-Shogunate Faction
On the same day as the submission of the Taisei Hōkan petition, a secret Imperial Order to Overthrow the Shogunate was secretly issued by Iwakura Tomomi to the Satsuma Domain and Chōshū Domain. This imperial order was highly irregular—it lacked the Emperor's signature, date, and formal approval, meaning it did not follow the official format of a proper imperial edict. There were strong suspicions that it was a forged decree created by the anti-shogunate faction.At the time of the Taisei Hōkan, Iwakura and the other pro-Imperial kuge had not yet gained control within the imperial court. After the death of Emperor Kōmei in December of the previous year, the 15-year-old Emperor Meiji ascended the throne on January 9. However, the kampaku Nijō Nariyuki, who supported the shogunate, was appointed sesshō and held actual power. Meanwhile, radical pro-Chōshū nobles like Sanjō Sanetomi had remained in exile from Kyoto since the August 18 Coup of 1863.
In other words, at that time, the imperial court was still dominated by pro-shogunate senior nobles such as Regent Nijō and Prince Kuni Asahiko. Even after the Taisei Hōkan, it was expected that any new government formed under such a court would naturally be led by Tokugawa Yoshinobu. For that reason, the Satsuma-Chōshū alliance and anti-shogunate nobles like Iwakura believed it necessary to carry out a coup d'état: abolishing traditional court offices like Sesshō and Kampaku, removing the pro-shogunate faction from power, and establishing direct control over the imperial court.
The secret imperial order to overthrow the shogunate was a desperate measure planned by the Satsuma and Chōshū factions together with middle- and lower-ranking nobles like Iwakura, who still lacked formal authority in the court. It was intended to counter Yoshinobu’s expected dominance over the new government.
However, the unexpected announcement of the Taisei Hōkan caused confusion among the anti-shogunate faction. Some, like Komatsu Tatewaki, Yoshii Tomozane, and Iwakura Tomomi himself, even praised Yoshinobu’s decision. As a result, the Satsuma Domain—which had been preparing for an armed uprising—decided to wait and observe the situation.
On October 21, the imperial court held a consultation on whether to entrust government affairs to the shogunate until a national council of daimyō could be convened. Satsuma agreed with this proposal. However, pro-military members of the Satsuma faction, such as Ōkubo Toshimichi and Saigō Takamori, remained distrustful of Yoshinobu. Eventually, the domain united around the policy of overthrowing the shogunate by force.
On November 29, the domain lord Shimazu Mochihisa marched to Kyoto with troops, setting the stage for the Restoration of Imperial Rule on December 9.
National Structure Plans after the Taisei Hōkan
On October 13, the day before submitting the Taisei Hōkan petition, Tokugawa Yoshinobu consulted with Nishi Amane, a shogunate official and professor at the Kaiseijo, regarding the parliamentary system of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.In November, after the formal acceptance of the Taisei Hōkan, Nishi submitted a written proposal titled "Draft Agenda" to Yoshinobu’s close aide Hirayama Seisai. Other national reform proposals also existed around Yoshinobu at the time, including Tsuda Mamichi’s "General System of the State of Japan", written in September of the same year.
In his proposal, Nishi outlined a concrete government structure centered on the Tokugawa clan. He introduced a form of separation of powers modeled after Western political systems, albeit partially and formally. The executive power would be held by a "Public Office", which would also temporarily serve judicial functions. Legislative power would be assigned to a Legislative Council composed of daimyō and samurai from various domains. The Emperor would hold a symbolic position.
The head of the Public Office was to be called the "Taikun," a title to be held by the head of the Tokugawa house. This Taikun would also serve as president of the Upper House and have the authority to dissolve the Lower House.
In terms of military affairs, domains would retain their own forces for the time being, but the military was to be unified under central authority within a few years. The proposal also assumed that the territories held by daimyō would remain unchanged, and the structure of the new government would be consciously modeled after the old shogunate system, making it a highly pragmatic plan.
Additionally, on November 27, Nagai Naoyuki, a senior shogunate official, informed Gotō Shōjirō that Yoshinobu intended to implement a prefectural system in the future.