Abolition of the han system
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In 1871, the abolition of the han system and establishment of the prefecture system (廃藩置県, haihan-chiken; hai abolish + han + chi set down + ken prefecture) was an act to replace the traditional han system and introduce new local government. "Han system" is also translated as "feudal clan system" or "daimyo system."
In an attempt to wipe out feudalism in Japan, the new Meiji government, which replaced the Tokugawa shogunate, abolished hundreds of feudal domains or han. In their place it established a new local government scheme based on geographically defined prefectures. This system is still in effect today, although the number of prefectures, and their boundaries, have changed. It brought the shogunate and domain system or bakuhan taisei to a formal end, though it did not remove it completely.
Makino Nobuaki, a student member of the Iwakura mission was to remark in his memoirs: Together with the abolition of the han system, dispatching the Iwakura Mission to America and Europe must be cited as the most important events that built the foundation of our state after the Restoration.
Initially there were over 300 prefectures, corresponding to the number of han, but this number was reduced to 72 by the end of 1871, and the present 47 by 1888.
