They concentrated on industrial development. To achieve this, the Japanese built many
industries such as shipyards, iron works and smelters to develop their infrastructure. This is to catch with contemporary societies
in the West. Modernization not only
enabled Japan to have equal status with Western powers but also allowed her to
keep her independence.
Japan’s economy expanded trade with Western nations and industrialized rapidly.
This period in known as the Meiji Restoration began in 1868. Shogun rule was ended and the emperor was restored to full power over the country. The new emperor took the name "Meiji" meaning "enlightened rule." It was under the reign of Emperor Meiji, which lasted till 1912, that Japan did much modernizing and westernizing.
