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When Emperor Meiji began his rule, in 1867, Japan was a splintered empire, dominated by the shogun and the daimyos, who ruled over the country’s more than 250 decentralized domains and who were, in the main, cut off from the outside world, staunchly antiforeign, and committed to the traditions of the past. Before long, the shogun surrendered to the emperor, a new constitution was adopted, and Japan emerged as a modern, industrialized state.
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Early Japanese Railways 1853-1914: Engineering Triumphs That Transformed Meiji-era Japan
Early Japanese Railways 1853-1914 is a cultural and engineering history of railway building in Japan during the Meiji era. The 19th century was the first age of sustained, comprehensive contact between Asia and the West. This book describes the history of Japanese social adaptation to railway development, with many details never-before-published in English.
In addition, Early Japanese Railways 1853-1914 details the often overlooked American efforts to build the first railways in Japan. This richly illustrated account also takes a look at long disused corporate logos, locomotive data and headlamp marker codes. Many of the photos and illustrations, all pulled from the author’s private collection, are quite rare and are not widely known, even in Japan.
Appealing to more than just railroad fans, this fascinating account of early Japanese efforts to build railways also paints a clear picture of the Meiji era and the historical, cultural and social ramifications of the railway in Japan.
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