A Brief History of Japan
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CONTENTS
If time is short, start at ct. 5
1. Origins and Early Culture (Prehistory – 710 CE)
2. The Classical Age – Nara and Heian (710 – 1185)
3. The Age of the Samurai (1185 – 1603)
4. The Tokugawa Peace (1603 – 1868)
5. Opening and Modernisation – The Meiji Restoration (1868 – 1912)
6. Empire and War (1912 – 1945)
7. Reconstruction and the Economic Miracle (1945 – 1990)
8. The Modern Era (1990 – Present)
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1. Origins and Early Culture (Prehistory – 710 CE)
Japan’s story begins in prehistory with the Jōmon people (from around 14,000 BCE) - hunter-gatherers who left intricate pottery and early evidence of settled life.
They were followed by the Yayoi culture (300 BCE - 300 CE), introducing rice farming, metal tools, and social hierarchy from Korea and China.
By the Kofun period (300 - 710 CE), Japan had emerging regional rulers and burial mounds (kofun), the most famous being Emperor Nintoku’s massive tomb in Osaka.
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2. The Classical Age - Nara and Heian (710 - 1185)
The Nara period (710 - 794) established Japan’s first capital at Nara, modelled on China’s Chang’an.
Buddhism and Confucian administration arrived through Korea and China, blending with native Shinto beliefs.
The Heian period (794 - 1185), centred on Kyoto, saw the flowering of court culture - poetry, calligraphy, and The Tale of Genji by Murasaki Shikibu.
Power shifted from emperors to the noble Fujiwara clan, whose refined aesthetics masked growing provincial unrest.
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3. The Age of the Samurai (1185 - 1603)
In 1185, Minamoto no Yoritomo founded Japan’s first shogunate in Kamakura, marking the rise of the samurai class.
Feudal lords (daimyō) and their warriors dominated under a code of loyalty and honour known later as bushidō.
The Mongol invasions (1274 and 1281) failed, thanks in part to typhoons later called kamikaze (“divine winds”).
Civil wars followed - the Ashikaga shogunate in Muromachi (1336 - 1573) was weak, and by the 1500s Japan fragmented into rival warlord domains.
This chaotic Sengoku period produced legendary unifiers: Oda Nobunaga, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, and Tokugawa Ieyasu.
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4. The Tokugawa Peace (1603 - 1868)
Tokugawa Ieyasu seized power in 1603, establishing the Edo Shogunate, headquartered in today’s Tokyo.
For over 250 years, Japan experienced stability and isolation (sakoku). Foreign trade was limited to a few Dutch and Chinese merchants in Nagasaki.
The rigid social hierarchy kept samurai, peasants, artisans, and merchants in fixed stations.
Culture thrived - ukiyo-e woodblock prints, haiku poetry, Kabuki theatre, and Edo urban life flourished.
Yet isolation bred stagnation, and by the 1850s Japan faced the West’s industrial power.
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5. Opening and Modernisation - The Meiji Restoration (1868 - 1912)
In 1853, Commodore Perry’s “Black Ships” forced Japan to open to foreign trade.
This humiliation spurred internal revolution. The Meiji Restoration of 1868 restored the emperor to power and launched rapid modernisation.
Feudal domains were abolished, the samurai class dismantled, and Western technology, industry, and education embraced.
Japan’s military and economy transformed in a single generation - a feat unmatched in Asia.
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6. Empire and War (1912 - 1945)
The early 20th century saw Japan rise as an imperial power.
Victories over China (1895) and Russia (1905) made it Asia’s dominant force.
By the 1930s, militarism overtook democracy. Japan invaded Manchuria (1931), China (1937), and the Pacific (1941).
The attack on Pearl Harbor triggered war with the United States.
Defeat in 1945, after the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, ended the empire and shattered national pride.
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7. Reconstruction and the Economic Miracle (1945 - 1990)
Under U.S. occupation (1945–52), Japan adopted a new constitution renouncing war.
The post-war decades saw astonishing recovery - the Japanese Economic Miracle.
Exports of electronics, cars, and precision machinery turned Japan into the world’s second-largest economy by the 1980s.
Cultural exports followed - Sony, Toyota, Nintendo, anime, and Zen aesthetics shaped global modernity.
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8. The Modern Era (1990 - Present)
The 1990s asset bubble collapse ended Japan’s long boom, ushering in the “lost decades.”
Population ageing, deflation, and low growth persist, yet Japan remains technologically advanced and socially stable.
Politically cautious, environmentally mindful, and culturally confident, modern Japan balances innovation with tradition - a nation where robots serve tea in temples and cherry blossoms still mark the seasons.
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Summary line
Japan’s journey spans isolation and innovation, feudalism and futurism - a civilisation that re-invented itself repeatedly without losing its soul.
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