Seikanron
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Seikanron (Japanese:征韓論, lit."Debate to conquer Korea") debate was a major political conflagration which occured in Japan in 1873.
Saigō Takamori and his supporters insisted that Japan should go to war with Korea due to Korea's refusal to recognize the legitimacy of the Emperor Meiji as head of state of the Empire of Japan, and insulting treatment meted out to Japanese envoys attempting to establish trade and diplomatic relations. Saigō also saw the issue in Korea to be an ideal opportunity to find meaningful employment for the thousands of out-of-work samurai, who had lost most of their income and social standing in the new Meiji social and economic order. These samurai posed a threat to the government, and (as a samurai himself) Saigō sympathized with their situation.
At one point, Saigo offered to visit Korea in person and to provoke a casus belli by behaving in such an insulting manner that the Koreans would be forced to kill him. However, the other Japanese leaders strongly opposed these plans, partly from budgetary considerations, and partly from realization of the weakness of Japan compared with the western countries from what they had witnessed during the Iwakura Mission.
Saigō and his supporters resigned from all of his government positions in protest and returned to his hometown of Kagoshima. This important political split paved the way for the 1874 Saga rebellion and the 1877 Satsuma rebellion led by Saigo Takamori himself.
