The Heritage of Japanese Civilization

In 1854, Commodore Matthew Perry and the U.S. Navy arrived near Edo, requesting that Japan open its ports to the United States. The superior military force of the United States left Japan almost no choice but to comply with the U.S.. A year later, the U.S. Navy forced the shogun to ratify the Treaty of Peace and Amity. The encounter and treaty with the United States marked the beginning of the path towards a new, democratic Japan that would attempt to adopt elements of Western civilization and combine them with Japan's traditions and morality. The steps that ...