Sakamoto Ryoma was born in the Tosa domain in 1836. Tosa samurai, unlike those of other domains, were split into two classes, Joshi (upper samurai) and Kashi (lower samurai). Lower samurai faced intense (and sometimes violent) discrimination by the upper class. The Joshi were connected to the Yamauchi Clan, which ruled Tosa, with Yamauchi Yodo as the daimyo (lord) of the Tosa domain.
The Sakamoto household were lower samurai, but because they were originally merchants, they were a very well off family. When Commodore Perry arrived in Edo bay to open Japan (by gunpoint), Ryoma was a person I can really relate to:
Ryoma was a spoiled, rich brat from a well off family, using the privilege/support of his family to study abroad in Edo. lol
Keep in mind that at the time, each domain was referred to as a "country," and studying in Edo, which was a month's travel from Tosa, was the equivalent of studying abroad. Japan hadn't opened its doors to the outside world in centuries, and the average Japanese would have been shocked (or outraged) by the site of a world map (which showed Japan being so small).
Perry's arrival shook the foundation of the country. And Japan was faced with the serious threat of possible invasion. The western powers were certainly to be feared.
"I visited Shanghai. Truly, it was a miserable sight. The Shinkokujin (Chinese) were treated little different from cows or horses, and the Brittish have them beat into submission. I felt on my very skin, the terror of foreign invasion." --Takasugi Shinsaku, Choshu Domain
Ryoma witnessed Perry's fleet along with Choshu samurai Katsura Kogoro, whom he had befriended in Edo. The sight of the black ships of America terrorized the Japanese, and Ryoma, who saw them personally, was shaken to the core. It would grant him an understanding of foreign power, and shaped the way he viewed Japan's future. Faced by the barrels of America's cannons, the Shogunate could do little but open trade routes under "unfair treaties" of America's design, which were soon copied by Brittain, France, and many other western countries.
Under the threat of foreign invasion, question of Japanese sovereignty and the need to protect the country, two broad schools of thought emerged amongst the Japanese: (1) Kaikoku believed that the country must be opened to survive, and Japan needed to do its best to not make war with foreign countries (2) Sonno Joi "Revere the Emperor, expel the barbarians". Followers of Joi believed that the Japanese must forcefully expel foreigners from the country.
With centuries of samurai indoctrination and tradition, the ruling class believed themselves a warrior people, and the vast majority of samurai, ignorant of the power of western technology, could not imagine that their warrior valor and honed swordsmanship could lose against foreign powers. They did not understand the gap in weaponry, nor the vastness of the world. Because of this, Joi flourished, especially amongst young hot-headed Samurai, and many cried for blood and were outraged at "the desecration of Japanese soil, and the cowardice of the Shogun."
Ryoma's closest friends in Tosa, lead by Takechi Hanpeita, banded together to form the Tosa Kinnoto (Tosa Loyalty Party), which politically maneuvered to use the Emperor's power to force the Shogun to execute Joi (basically, command the various domains to wage war against foreign ships).
Ryoma could not agree with Hanpeita, being a pacifist at heart (despite being an incredible swordsman), while also understanding the futility of Joi by force. Initially he joined the party in order to try an be a voice of reason, trying to quell the forcefulness of the party. He worried deeply about his friends in the party, including Hanpeita, who was a childhood friend.
But, Hanpeita forced Ryoma's beloved fiance, Kao, to leave him and become a spy in Kyoto (by using the life of her older brother, who was one of his followers). When Hanpeita organized the assassination of Tosa's most important administers, Yoshida Toyo, Ryoma, broken hearted by the change in his friend, left the party, and deserted his domain in order to seek out "my own Joi." In the following years, Hanpeita would instigate countless notorious assassinations of anti-Joi men. One of his men, Okada Izo (another of Ryoma's closest friends), was twisted by his loyalty to Hanpeita into becoming one of the most notorious
hitokiri of the Bakamatsu (anyone read Rurouni Kenshin?).
Ryoma found his answer when he became the disciple of Katsu Rintaro, an outspoken man of the Bakufu who espoused Kaikoku (open the country), but for the purpose of gaining foreign technology in order to make a strong and independent nation. Ryoma and Katsu wanted to use trade and education to create a Japanese navy, strong enough to discourage foreign invasion. Ryoma had found his way to "expel the barbarians"
without going to war. With America in the midst of the Civil War, Katsu cried there was no better time for Japan to build a modern naval force.
By a sad twist of fate, Katsu's philosophy of a united Japan (instead of various squabbling domains), and willingness to take in Rounin (lordless samurai like Sakamoto who had deserted their domains), lead to the Shogunate commanding the disband of his naval academy.
Meanwhile, Joi failed-- while the Shogun was forced to promise Joi to the Imperial court, it allowed "each domain" to decide "for themselves" whether to execute Joi. Only the adamant Choshu domain fired their cannons at the western powers, and were in turn decimated. With Joi failing, the powerful Satsuma domain and the Shogunate banded together to devastate the Choshu forces in Kyoto, and send them packing back to their domain. Satsuma and Choshu became warring rival domains, with a deep grudge.
In Tosa, Yamauchi Yodo (lord of Tosa) was thrilled at the crumbling of Joi. Despite Hanpeita's continued cries of loyalty to the lord, Yamauchi himself was disgusted by the Tosa loyalist party. Yamauchi was close friends with the Shogun, Tokugawa Yoshinobu, and the Yamauchi clan itself was deeply indebted to, and loyal to the Shogun family. Making Tosa a "Joi domain," pretending to be loyal to Yamauchi, and despite being lowly Kashi, having the nerve to become direct vassals of the emperor-- Yamauchi hated everything about Hanpeita. Most of all, he held a deep grudge against Hanpeita for assassinating Yoshida Toyo, who was one of Yamauchi's most trusted advisers. Yamauchi "called back home" all of the Tosa Loyalist part, where he destroyed them, and forced Hanpeita to commit Seppuku.
Ryoma had done everything in his power to stop Hanpeita and his friends from going back to their domain, but Hanpeita had a samurai's honor, and was loyal to his lord until the end. It was an era where the samurai's swords were useless, and their faith in their lords misguided, and everything--HAD to change, for the sake of Japan.
Having lost his beloved Kao, having lost Hanpeita and his closest friends, having lost his teacher and dream of the Japanese navy... Ryoma, was a man transformed. He resolved himself to turn the country upside down...
...the first step, the destruction of the shogunate.
Ryoma and his rounin companions from the Naval academy were picked up by Saigo Kichinosuke (later known as Saigo Takamori, inspiration of
the Last Samurai), who was the general of Satsuma domain. Saigo took them to Nagasaki, where Ryoma and his comrades established the Kameyama-Shachuu, a trading company that would change the course of history.
In Nagasaki, Ryouma made connections with Foreign traders, and made contact with Takasugi Shinsaku-- a brave young leader of Choshu who had created the Kiheitai, the first "modern militia" of Japan. Unlike other military forces, the Kiheitai used men of all classes, not just samurai. Choshu was that desperate for military power, as the full force of Satsuma and the Shogunate bore their fangs during the Choshu Conquest movement.
Takasugi had snuck into Nagasaki to buy guns and ships-- having control of Shimonoseki, a major trade point of Japan, Choshu had plenty of money-- but no trust. Western traders were not apt to trade with the one domain that had fired on Western vessels. Choshu samurai were not even allowed inside Nagasaki. Their quest for weapons ultimately failed.
Ryouma knew that if things were left as they were, Choshu would be destroyed, the French-dependent Shogunate would fall under French influence, and a divided Japan would fall. He also knew that Satsuma was also fearful of Shogunate power, and afraid that if Choshu was destroyed, they might be next.
While the samurai of Satsuma and Choshu were bitter enemies, Ryoma was able--through a miracle of political maneuvering--to convince the leaders of both domains that their best chance of survival, was to work together.
Through Ryoma's negotiations, Saigo Kichinosuke of Satsuma, and Katsura Kogoro of Choshu, eventually met create a military union. Kameyama Shachuu created a trade relationship between the two domains-- foreign ships and weapons were bough using Satsuma's name and Choshu's money in order to reinforce the military might of these two already tremendously powerful domains.
When the military union was established, Satsuma announced that they would not cooperate with the Choshu Conquest, and would in fact defend Choshu if necessary. The Shogunate was in uproar, and went ahead with its military campaign without Satsuma.
However, having lost their Satsuma allies, and their morale, the shogunate's united forced were no match for the battle-hardened militia of Choshu, whose naval strategies were further empowered by the guidance of Ryoma and his companions, who were after all, former students of the shogunate's naval academy. Choshu decimated the shogun's forces, and Tokugawa lost face at the defeat.
Satsuma and Choshu now commanded the momentum, and it looked like a civil war would break out, where Tokugawa would be destroyed by the two united domains. The leaders of Satsuma and Choshu were intent on a war that would exterminate the Shogunate.
...and once again, Ryoma stepped up, in order to search for peace.
In the midst of these events, Tosa was looking to establish relations with Choshu and Satsuma. Having heard this, Ryoma believed he had found the perfect opportunity to avert the civil war. Again, defying all odds, Ryoma made an ally of a former enemy, Goto Shojiro, Yoshida Toya's nephew, the man who oversaw Hanpeita's execution, and who was now one of Tosa's key administers. Ryoma and Goto overcame the hatred of Kashi and Joshi, and shook hands, allied themselves to executing Taisei Houkan-- the voluntary forfeit of the rule of the country by the Shogun-- for Tokugawa to return the title of shogun to the Emperor.
With Goto's help, Ryoma was able to meet Yamauchi Yodo, the lord of Tosa, and try to convince Yamauchi to write a recommendation for Taisei Houkan directly to Tokugawa Yoshinobu, the current shogun (who would eventually be the last shogun).
Ryouma presented his Seifu Gouryou "Plan for Government Reformation" to Yamauchi.
政治綱領 "Plan for Government Reformation"
1. 天下ノ政権ヲ朝廷ニ奉還セシメ、政令宜シク朝廷ヨリ出ヅベキ事（大政奉還）
The power of goverment shall be restored to the Emperoro (Taisei Houkan)
2.上下議政局ヲ設ケ、議員ヲ置キテ万機ヲ参賛セシメ、万機宜シク公議ニ決スベキ事（議会開設）
An upper and lower house of legislation will be established, and under public disclosure, vote on the affairs of state.
3. 有材ノ公卿諸侯及ビ天下ノ人材ヲ顧問ニ備ヘ官爵ヲ賜ヒ、宜シク従来有名無実ノ官ヲ除クベキ事（官制改革）
Representatives will be chosen from the current ruling class, but also from the Japanese population at large.
4. 外国ノ交際広ク公議ヲ採リ、新ニ至当ノ規約ヲ立ツベキ事（条約改正)
Japan will work to establish friendly international relationships, and revise the unfair treaties into fair and proper trading agreements.
5. 古来ノ律令を折衷シ、新ニ無窮ノ大典ヲ撰定スベキ事 （憲法制定）
Traditional practices will be relooked, and a new constitution of Japan and its laws will be established.
6. 海軍宜ク拡張スベキ事（海軍の創設）
A Japanese navy will be established.
7. 御親兵ヲ置キ、帝都ヲ守衛セシムベキ事（陸軍の創設）
An army will also be established for the defense of the capital.
8. 金銀物貨宜シク外国ト平均ノ法ヲ設クベキ事（通貨政策）
A national monetary policy will be established in order to regulate the exchange rates with foreign countries (of gold, silver, and other valuables).
Can you imagine, a mere Ronin, and one whom had deserted his position as a Kashi, lower samurai, presenting this plan for reformation to the lord of Tosa-- the man who had destroyed the loyalist party, put Ryoma's friends to death, and was responsible for the oppression of Ryoma's kin for generations. Yamauchi Yodo, who was one of the most revered lords of the era, confident of the shogun, and daimyo of Tosa domain...
To that Yamauchi Yodo, Ryoma presented the plan to relinquish the Shogun's power, and ultimately, abolish the Shogunate, Daimyo, and entirety of the Samurai class.
An excerpt from Ryoma Den, a historical Drama about Ryoma:
"Are you telling the Shogun and Daimyo to disappear!?"
"Yes. Most likely, the entirety of the bushi (samurai) system."
"Tell me Sakamoto... in the world where Shogun and Daimyo have ceased to be... What shall remain... What will remain!?"
"The Japanese... With the strength to stand shoulder to shoulder with foreign powers... the Japanese people shall remain!"
The removal of division above and below (the elimination of class), the removal of division left and right (the elimination of separate soverein domains), and the birth of united Japanese people... all of this was absolutely blasphemous in the face of centuries of Tokugawa rule. But, Sakamoto Ryoma stood before the lord of Tosa, and begged for his help.
...Yamauchi Yodo, agreed. He recommended to the Shogun, that the rule of Japan be returned to the Emperor. Soon after some internal deliberation, the Shogun agreed. Tokugawa Yoshinobu returned the rule of the country to the Emperor. Satsuma and Choshu's army lost their enemy. In time, Katsu Kaishuu, who had been put in charge of the remaining Tokugawa forces, negotiated with Saigo Takamori for the peaceful surrender of military to the imperial army.
The war, was averted. The Meiji Government, was established.
But Sakamoto Ryoma, had been assassinated (only two years after Abraham Lincoln was assassinated ironically).
Perhaps it is the destiny of a hero, and a tragedy of humanity, that he be hated by the very people he fought to save. Sakamoto Ryoma's life ended all too soon at the age of 31-- but behind him he left a tranformed country, and I think the Japanese people will always remember him as a hero.
