Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity, and Poverty

by Daron Acemoğlu

Sakamoto Ryūma presented the shogun with an eight-point plan, urging him to resign to avoid civil war. The plan was radical, and though clause 1 stated that “political power of the country should be returned to the Imperial Court, and all decrees issued by the Court,” it included far more than just the restoration of the emperor. Clauses 2, 3, 4, and 5 stated: 2. Two legislative bodies, an Upper and Lower house, should be established, and all government measures should be decided on the basis of general opinion. 3. Men of ability among the lords, nobles and people at large should be employed as councillors, and traditional offices of the past which have lost their purpose should be abolished. 4. Foreign affairs should be carried on according to appropriate regulations worked out on the basis of general opinion. 5. Legislation and regulations of earlier times should be set aside and a new and adequate code should be selected. Shogun Yoshinobu agreed to resign, and on January 3, 1868, the Meiji Restoration was declared;