Oki Takato
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ōki Takatō (大木喬任 Ōki Takatō?); 23 March 1832 - 26 September 1899), was a Japanese statesman during the early Meiji period.
Ōki was born into a samurai family in Saga, in Hizen province (present-day Saga prefecture). He studied at the domain school Kodokan, and promoted reform of the domain administration. During the Boshin War he was a leader in the Saga forces committed to the overthrow of the Tokugawa bakufu.
After the Meiji Restoration, he supervised the transfer of the imperial capital from Kyoto to Tokyo, and was appointed the first Governor or Tokyo.
In 1871, he became Education Minister and is credited with establishing Japan's modern educational system. In 1873, he became sangi (councillor) and in 1876, Justice Minister and was concerned with the punishment of the disgruntled ex-samurai involved in the Hagi Rebellion and the Jimpuren Rebellion. In 1880, he became chairman of the Genroin. He also worked on developing Japan’s civil code as the president of the ‘Civil Code Compiling Council’.
In 1884, he was elevated to the title of hakushaku (count) in the new kazoku system.
From 1888 he served on the Privy Council, becoming chairman in 1889. Later he was appointed Justice Minister under the first Yamagata administration, and the Education Minister under the first Matsukata administration.
[edit] Reference and further reading
- Akamatsu, Paul. Meiji 1868: Revolution and Counter-Revolution in Japan. Trans. Miriam Kochan. New York: Harper & Row, 1972.
- Beasley, W. G. The Meiji Restoration. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1972.
- Jansen, Marius B. and Gilbert Rozman, eds. Japan in Transition: From Tokugawa to Meiji. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1986.
- Keane, Donald. Emperor Of Japan: Meiji And His World, 1852-1912. Columbia University Press (2005). ISBN 0-231-12341-8
- Ravina, Mark. The Last Samurai: The Life and Battles of Saigo Takamori. Whiley (2003). ISBN 0-471-08970-2
