Boshin War (2/2)The Great War that determined the trends of the end of the Edo period and the Meiji Restoration

At a military council held on March 6th, the new government forces decided to carry out a general attack on Edo Castle on March 15th. However, at this point there was pressure from Harry Parkes, the British minister, who was concerned about the impact on trade, to stop the all-out attack on Edo Castle, so there was a certain amount of opposition to the all-out attack. In addition, Atsuhime, the wife of the 13th shogun Iesada Tokugawa and a daughter of the Shimazu family of the Satsuma domain, and Kazunomiya, the wife of the 14th shogun Iemochi Tokugawa and the aunt of Emperor Meiji, launched an all-out attack on Takamori Saigo. I am writing a letter appealing.

Furthermore, Katsu Kaishu and Yamaoka Tesshu from the former Shogunate side met with Saigo Takamori and appealed for an end to the all-out attack. These efforts were successful, and at a meeting held on March 14th, it was agreed that the all-out attack would be halted on the condition that Edo Castle be surrendered. Afterwards, Saigo Takamori returned to Kyoto and the contents of the agreement were once again held at the morning meeting and officially decided. On April 11, 1868, Edo Castle was surrendered bloodlessly, and Edo was prevented from being exposed to war. Regarding Yoshinobu Tokugawa, the former shogunate did not yield to the new government's request to extradite him, and in the end, he was placed under restraint in Mito.

Boshin War ③ Ueno War breaks out, resistance by anti-war factions continues

After the bloodless surrender of Edo Castle, former shogun vassals who were dissatisfied with the treatment of the Tokugawa family continued to resist the new government army, especially those who had advocated a complete war against the new government army. Battles took place in Ichikawa, Funabashi, and Utsunomiya, but the new government forces were victorious in all of them. One of the most famous of these battles was the Ueno War, which pitted the former shogun's Shogitai against the new government forces.

The Shogi-tai was originally a military force formed by former shogunate vassals, mainly retainers of the Hitotsubashi family, to protect Tokugawa Yoshinobu when he fled from Osaka Castle to Edo and was resting in Kan'eiji Temple. They were entrusted with the security of Edo City, and the number of members gradually increased, and it is said that there were over 3,000 members at their peak. After the bloodless surrender of Edo, Kaishu Katsu asked them to disband, but the Shogitai refused and continued to engage in small-scale battles with the new government forces in Edo.

For this reason, the new government forces decided to subjugate the Shogitai. On May 15th, under the command of the commander Masujiro Omura, a samurai of the Choshu clan, a mopping up battle began to annihilate the Shogitai. The 10,000-man new government army attacked the 4,000-man Shogitai using the latest Armstrong guns and other weapons, almost annihilating the Shogitai in just 10 hours. Ueno was almost completely burnt down by the war, and the few survivors who escaped were forced to head north and join the Tohoku War.

In addition, there is one shogun retainer who wanted to draw attention to who advocated a complete war against the new government army. This is Takeaki Enomoto, the key man in the final battle of the Boshin War and vice president of the Navy. On April 11, Takeaki escaped from Shinagawa with his former shogun vassals who opposed the war and led a fleet of eight ships. With the persuasion of Kaishu Katsu, he turned back once, but after continuing to resist the new government forces by secretly supporting the former shogun's vassals, he set sail again on August 19th with eight warships, heading for Tohoku where the war continued. .

Boshin War ④ Aizu War (Tohoku War)

Having wiped out the former shogunate forces in the Kanto region, the new government forces turned their attention to the Aizu and Shonai domains, which had continued to cooperate with Tokugawa Yoshinobu. The Aizu domain was the main force in the Battle of Toba and Fushimi, and the domain's lord, Katamori Matsudaira, served as Kyoto Shugosho at the end of the Edo period and used the Shinsengumi to suppress the Sonno-joi faction. Tadaatsu Sakai, the lord of the Shonai domain, was in charge of subjugating the residences of the Satsuma domain in Edo, and both domains aroused resentment from the new government forces. For this reason, the two domains formed the ``Kaisho Alliance'' to oppose the new government.

The new government army orders the Sendai domain and other Tohoku domains to subjugate the Aizu domain, but the Tohoku domains are sympathetic to the Aizu domain. He appealed to the new government army for pardon from Aizu and the Shonai domain, but it was denied. Therefore, on May 3, 25 domains officially established the Ou Retsu Domain Alliance. On May 6th, the Hokuetsu domain was added, forming the Ou-etsu clan alliance with a total of 31 domains. Thus, in Tohoku, a battle broke out between the former shogunate army (Aizu, Shonai, and Ouetsu clan alliance) and the new government army.

The Battle of Shirakawaguchi occurred around the time of the alliance. On April 20, the Aizu army and the Sendai army occupied Shirakawa Castle in Mutsu Province (Shirakawa City, Fukushima Prefecture), a key location on the Oshu Kaido, which was under the direct control of the Shogunate. Afterwards, Shinsengumi captain Jiro Yamaguchi (Hajime Saito) and others defended the castle from the new government forces, but Shirakawa Castle was recaptured by the new government forces on May 1st due to increased numbers and new guns. It's gone. After that, the former Shogunate army fought hard to regain Shirakawa Castle until July, but was unable to recapture it.

Behind the scenes of this Aizu War, the Hokuetsu War is being fought over Niigata Port, a military strategic point of the Nagaoka Domain (Nagaoka City, Niigata Prefecture).Niigata Port is a source of weapons for the Ou-etsu clan alliance. Furthermore, as it was a place that needed to be held as a route for attacking Aizu, it was well protected by the former Shogunate army. However, the new government attacked Nagaoka Castle and captured it in May. The former shogunate forces regained the castle once, but the new government forces reoccupied Nagaoka Castle at the end of July. After that, the new government's army took control of Echigo, and some of the participating clans of the Ouetsu Domain Alliance defected to the new government.

The former shogunate forces were forced to capture Nihonmatsu Castle and other areas against the new government forces, which gained momentum as a result of these battles. On August 23rd, a battle will take place over Aizuwakamatsu Castle, and the suicides of women at Saigo Yorimo's residence and the deaths and suicides of young soldiers such as Byakkotai are known as tragedies. . After that, a fierce battle raged in Aizuwakamatsu for a month, but the area fell into a predicament as other domains began surrendering to the new government's forces one after another. The Aizu War ended with the surrender of the Aizu domain on September 22nd.

After the war, the remnants of the former Shogunate army, including the former Shinsengumi led by Toshizo Hijikata, escaped from Aizu. Then, on August 26, they met up with Takeaki Enomoto and others who were anchored at a port within the Sendai domain, and traveled by ship to Ezochi (Hokkaido) with a total of approximately 2,000 people. They will continue to rebel against the new government forces.

Boshin War ⑤ The final battle, Hakodate War

The last battle of the Boshin War was the Hakodate War, which took place in Hakodate (Hakodate City, Hokkaido). As the new government army defeated the former Shogunate army one after another, the remaining former Shogunate army led by Takeaki Enomoto crossed into Ezochi on October 21st, attacked Goryokaku, where Hakodate prefecture is located, and captured Hakodate on October 26th. occupied. After that, Toshizo Hijikata and others captured Matsumae Castle and subdued the Ezo region.

After the Ezoji court was closed, Takeaki Enomoto submitted a petition to the new government. They requested permission to have their former shogunate retainers settle in Ezo, develop the area, and take on the role of defense against Russia, but the new government refused. On December 15th, the former shogunate army established the Hakodate government. Takeaki Enomoto, who was elected by a vote of officers, was appointed as the president. The Republic of Ezo began to engage in diplomatic relations with Britain and France, making moves worthy of the common name ``Republic of Ezo.''

On the other hand, the new government set up a base in Aomori and began preparations for attacking Ezochi. There was a skirmish with the former Shogunate army, but on April 9th, they landed at Otobe (Otobe Town, Ershi District, Hokkaido) and began fighting against the former Shogunate army. The new government army numbered 9,500 in total, while the former shogunate army numbered only around 3,500. In addition to the difference in numbers, the former Shogunate army gradually begins to be pushed back against the new government's cutting-edge weapons.

The troops led by Toshizo Hijikata sometimes repulsed the new government forces, but they were outnumbered. On May 11th, Hijikata Toshizo was shot during the new government's all-out attack on Hakodate from both land and sea, and on May 18th, Takeaki Enomoto and others surrendered, and Goryokaku was surrendered. Thus, the Hakodate War, the last battle of the Boshin War, came to an end, and Japan was unified by a new government. After that, with the abolition of feudal domains and the establishment of prefectures on July 14, 1871 (August 29, 1871), Japan was on the path to becoming a centralized state.