The Taika Reforms (大化改新, Taika no Kaishin^?) were a set of doctrines established by Emperor Kōtoku in the year 646. They were written shortly after the death of Shōtoku Taishi, and the defeat of the Soga clan, which united Japan. Crown Prince Naka no Ōe (who would later reign as Emperor Tenji), Nakatomi no Kamatari, and Emperor Kōtoku jointly embarked on the details of the Reforms. Emperor Kōtoku then took the name "Taika" (大化), or "Great Reform". Emperor Kōtoku (孝徳天皇 Kōtoku Tennō) (596?- October 10, 654)1 was the 36th imperial ruler of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. ... Events Byzantines reconquer Alexandria from the Muslims. ... Sculpture of Prince Shotoku in Asuka Dera, Asuka, Nara Prince Shōtoku (聖徳太子 574-622) was a regent and a politician of the Imperial Court in Japan. ... The Soga clan was one of the most powerful clans in Yamato Japan. ... ... Fujiwara no Kamatari (藤原鎌足, 614–669 A.D.) was the founder of the Fujiwara clan in Japan. ...

The Reform began with land reform, based on Confucian ideas from China, but the true aim of the reforms was to bring about greater centralization and to enhance the power of the Imperial Court, which was also based on the governmental structure of China. Envoys and students were dispatched to China to learn seemingly everything from the writing system, religion, literature, and architecture, to even dietary habits at this time. Even today, the impact of the reforms can still be seen in Japanese cultural life.

Background

The regency of Shōtoku Taishi was followed by a coup against the ruling Soga clan, from which Shōtoku's ancestry was derived. The new emperor Kōtoku, together with the Imperial Prince Naka no Ōe, issued a series of reform measures that culminated in the Taika Reform Edicts in 645. These edicts were written and sponsored by Confucian scholars in the Yamato court and in essence founded the Japanese imperial system and government. The ruler, according to these edicts, was no longer a clan leader, but Emperor (in Japanese, Tennō) that ruled by the Decree of Heaven and exercised absolute authority. Events End of the reign of Empress Kogyoku of Japan Emperor Kotoku ascends to the throne of Japan Byzantines recapture Alexandria from the Arabs Births Empress Jito of Japan Categories: 645 ... Sage Confucius——孔子 Confucianist temple Thian Hock Keng in Singapore Confucianism (Chinese: å„’å­¦, Pinyin Rúxué‚, lit. ... History of Japan Paleolithic Jomon Yayoi Yamato period ---Kofun period ---Asuka period Nara period Heian period Kamakura period Muromachi period Azuchi-Momoyama period ---Nanban period Edo period Meiji period Taisho period Showa period ---Japanese expansionism ---Occupied Japan ---Post-Occupation Japan Heisei The Yamato period (大和) (better known as the Kofun... His Majesty Emperor Akihito of Japan The Emperor of Japan (天皇 tennō) is a constitutionally-recognized symbol of the Japanese nation and the unity of its people. ...

Prior to the accession of Emperor Kōtoku, Japan was divided among many clans and warlords. These reforms were needed to bring all of these recently conquered and united people and lands under the control of the Emperor. In essence, they established the basics of the feudal system, under which lords could hold power within their lands, and could still exercise hereditary rights to land and titles, but under which all land ultimately belonged to the Emperor, and all loyalties were to the Emperor above all other lords and masters. To set an example to other nobles, the Crown Prince surrendered his own private estates to the public domain (the Emperor's control). His Majesty Emperor Akihito of Japan The Emperor of Japan (天皇 tennō) is a constitutionally-recognized symbol of the Japanese nation and the unity of its people. ... His Majesty Emperor Akihito of Japan The Emperor of Japan (天皇 tennō) is a constitutionally-recognized symbol of the Japanese nation and the unity of its people. ... His Majesty Emperor Akihito of Japan The Emperor of Japan (天皇 tennō) is a constitutionally-recognized symbol of the Japanese nation and the unity of its people. ...

The Reform Edicts demanded that all government officials undergo a Chinese-style civil service examination. It also severely curtailed the independence of regional officials and constituted the imperial court as a place of appeal and complaint for the people. In addition, the last edicts attempted to end certain social practices, in order to bring Japanese society more in line with Chinese social practices. Japan, however, was still largely a Neolithic culture; it would take centuries for the conceptual ideal of the Chinese-style emperor to take root. The imperial examinations (科舉; pinyin: kējǔ) in dynastic China determined positions in the civil service based on merit and education, which promoted upward mobility among the population for centuries. ... The Neolithic (or New Stone Age) was a period in the development of human technology that is traditionally the last part of the Stone Age. ...

Summary of the Four Articles of the Reforms

• Article I abolished private ownership of land & workers, deriving from "namesake", succession, or other means of appropriation.
• Article II established a central capital metropolitan region, called the Kinai (畿内), or Inner Provinces. A capital city was to be built there, and governors would be appointed.
• Article III established population registers, as well as the redistribution of rice-cultivating land equitably. It also provided for the appointment of rural village heads.
• Article IV abolished the old forms of taxes, and established a new system.

References

• Sansom, George (1958). 'A History of Japan to 1334'. Stanford, California: Stanford University Press.

See also

• Shoen - the form of Japanese fiefdom that developed after the Taika Reforms.