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The Imperial Rescript on Education is an imperial document published by Japanese government in the name of Meiji Emperor in 1890. It was about admiring and rewarding the ancient Japanese emperor's achievement, and principles of Japanese education. This document improved loyalty of Japanese people for Japanese Emperor and patriotic spirit of Japan. It was distributed to schools throughout Japan and had been read by almost all of Japanese teachers and students until the end of world war Ⅱ.

The historical background of the enactment of the Imperial Rescript on Education

Even before the Meiji period, there existed places that provided individualized educational instruction. However, Kido Takayoshi (木戸孝允) and Okubo Toshimichi (大久保利通), who were among those involved in the Meiji government, felt threatened by the situation in Japan at that time and insisted on the necessity of creating a school education system led by the government. The government also felt the need to develop a leadership figure for the nation. In the early Meiji period, as the first educational policies, Gakusei (学制, school system) was established, which led to the establishment of elementary schools, junior high schools, and large schools throughout Japan. However, it was criticized by people because it merely set up the system and did not consider the financial burden. Later, as a measure to revise Gakusei, Kyouiku Rei (教育令, the Education Decree) was issued, and the school attendance regulations were greatly changed, but this connected the decrease of the school attendance rate. After the promulgation of several revised education decrees, educational reforms were implemented by Mori Arinori (森有礼). Mori implemented systemic reforms for all types of schools and strengthened the system of Normal Schools. Mori thought that loyalty and love for Japan were important for the progress of Japanese civilization and that Japanese government should be shown the way to go before adopting Western culture. He argued that just as European countries have been able to become powerful by uniting their nations through religion and patriotism, so too in Japan, loyalty to the emperor will unite the people. This thought of Mori would later influence the Imperial Rescript on Education.

After the Meiji Restoration, at that time in Meiji Japan, through contracting with western countries by opening, foreign cultures and ideas were streaming into the existing Japanese culture, and the way forward as a nation was not indicated to Japanese people. Motoda Eifu (元田永孚), a Confucian scholars in Japan, claimed that ethical perspectives imported from the Western countries are threatening the Japanese educational community by transforming the Japan's traditional ones. From the late Edo period to the Meiji Restoration, education based on Confucianism was widespread. So he had argued that Japan should take Chinese ancient Confucianism, just as it was studied among the samurai during the Tokugawa period. Inoue Kowashi (井上毅), a Meiji politician, calmly analyzing the shortcomings of the education system, concluded that the Meiji Restoration guaranteed freedom of speech, which allowed many people to widely say their agitation and criticism. He had disagreed with Motoda's attempt to return to the education system of the Tokugawa era and pointed out that we should wait until the new government become familiar with the people. On the other hand, Inoue agreed with Mori's idea, and he inherited it after Mori was executed, which integrated into the Imperial Rescript on Education. In addition, Yamagata Aritomo (山縣有朋) and Japanese military authorities thought that it was important to strengthen military power in response to getting the relationship between Japan and Korea worse. He also wanted to create a military-centric state and to control politics, economy, and so on. Inoue also agreed with Yamagata's perspective, and education was the proper way to foster patriotism in the people.

Drafting project

Yoshikawa Akimasa (芳川顕正), who became Minister of Education in May 1890, was ordered by Meiji Emperor to make a moral education policy document, which led to the creation of the Imperial Rescript on Education. Yamagata Aritomo, Nakamura Masanao (中村正直), Inoue Kowashi and Motoda Eifu also participated in making the document (Mori Arinori was assassinated in 1889, so he was not participated in this project).

In June, the first draft of the Imperial Rescript in Education was submitted by Nakamura Masanao. It was created by combining Confucian thought with Western religious thought, which made Inoue Kowashi very angry. The reason why Inoue become angry is that religious belief is not appropriate to show Japanese residents the way forward. In addition, Inoue complained the Nakamura's thinking of Chu Ko (忠孝, loyalty and filial piety) is similar to religious custom of honoring Christ, not similar to respecting emperor.

After the first draft, Motoda Eihu and Inoue Kowashi each made a draft. Motoda drafted his own, but Inoue was ordered by Yamagata. Motoda wrote a draft that was based on the Confucian philosophy and his policy that politics should be conducted under Confucian control and perspectives imported from western countries should be destroyed. However, although Inoue agreed with Confucian ideas, he disagreed with the rejection of Western ideas that supported Japan's rapid modernization. Inoue believed that modern constitutionalism would enable Japan to prosper, and he considered it necessary to make people comply constitution of Japan, while taking into account Yamagata's militarism and Motoda's respect for Confucian principles. He skillfully blended the two men's ideas with his own and succeeded in incorporating them into the Imperial Rescript on Education. Inoue and Motoda exchanged opinions several times, and revisions were made.

The final draft was submitted in October 1890, and after being elaborated, it was completed in the form of the Imperial Rescript on Education. After Completion of the Imperial Rescript on Education, Yoshikawa distributed copies of the document to each school in Japan and instructed the teachers to follow the spirit of this document. Also, the government ordered to teachers to make students read and memorize the Imperial Rescript on Education in the case of swearing this document in festivals or school events. Inoue Tetsujiro (井上哲次郎) published the manual of the Imperial Rescript called "Kyoiku Engi (教育衍義, Educational Commentary)" next year.

Transformation of the Imperial Rescript on Education

*The relationship between the Imperial Rescript on Education and Shushin (修身)

Shushin (修身, moral training) is a discipline created to focus on fostering loyalty to the emperor and patriotism. With the creation of the Imperial Rescript on Education as the change of basic philosophy of education, Shushin rapidly gained importance in Japanese education replaced Western ideas. Also, the Imperial Order in 1872 established Shushin as a class, and it became the top position of subject in Japanese curriculum at that time by the Order of Education in 1880. Shushin textbooks prepared by the government were used in elementary schools, and the concept of Shushin was later to permeate all schools in Japan. All textbooks produced after the creation of the Imperial Rescript on Education were based on the principles of the Imperial Rescript on Education. However, as Japan's overseas invasions progressed, the meaning of the Imperial Rescript on Education and the Shushin changed, and loyalty of Japanese people to Japanese Emperor came to be used to control them in order to maintain power of army.

*Uchimura Kanzo disrespect incident (内村鑑三不敬事件)

On January 9th, 1891, during the Imperial Rescript on Education reading ceremony at the First Higher Secondary School for Ethical Conduct, Kanzo Uchimura, a teacher, failed to give the "Most Respectful Salute," acting to show loyalty to the emperor, which was picked up by the media and became a social issue. Inoue Tetsujiro strongly criticized Uchimura's action in his book "Kyouiku to Syukyo no Syoutotsu (教育と宗教の衝突, The Clash between Education and Religion)", and attacked Christianity because Uchimura was a Christian. This incident happened conflict between Emperor's Supremacy Education and Freedom of Religion, however, as a result, this incident did make education that received Christian ideology to accept the Imperial Rescript on Education.

*Yoshida Kumaji (吉田熊次) and the Imperial Rescript on Education

Yoshida Kumaji, a Japanese pedagogues in the Meiji Era, had been doing research on moral education. He wrote many books on education and contributed to the development of pedagogy, but initially there was little of his explanation of the Imperial Rescript on Education. However, as the educational system was built around the Imperial Rescript on Education, the meaning of national morality shifted to the content of the Imperial Rescript on Education itself. As a result, some scholars at the time, including Yoshida, began to consider education and learning as two separate things and tried to protect the field they were studying.

*The statement of Onishi Hajime (大西祝)

As the Imperial Rescript on Education became more widely known, many scholars began to discuss its meaning. Onishi Hajime, a Japanese philosopher, was researching the usefulness of the Imperial Rescript on Education. He rejected the Imperial Rescript on Education as an ethical theory of values as morality. This was because he believed that it did not specify how a person with loyalty should act in a specific way. He also considered that the meaning of the Imperial Rescript on Education should change with the times, but he feared that the Imperial Rescript on Education possessing ethical meanings would make it impossible. However, the "spirit of loyalty and filial piety" in the Imperial Rescript on Education was perceived in a distorted way and become getting used to suppress thinkers who held ideas against nationalism gradually.

*Introducing the Imperial Rescript on Education to Foreign Countries

The Imperial Rescript on Education has been recognized abroad as an interesting document that enabled the Japanese government to powerfully unite the Japanese people. Kanda Naibu (神田乃武) interpreted the Imperial Rescript on Education in English, and went to Chicago University with both Japanese version of the Imperial Rescript on Education and English version of the Imperial Rescript on Education. He explained how to play a role in daily life in Japan by presentation, and he told that all of Japanese students had to memorize the whole contents of the Imperial Rescript on Education and can recite it when necessary.

*Changes in the interpretation of the Imperial Rescript on Education during the war

As the effects of the war became more severe, the perspective of national morality changed even more. In the National School Order (国民学校令) in 1941, the word "Kokoku no Michi (皇国ノ道, the Imperial Way)" was replaced from national morality. "Kokoku no Michi" was treated as synonymous with "Konomichi" in the Imperial Rescript on Education and the meaning changed extremely that giving one's life for the emperor of Japan would help Japanese nation and the emperor of Japan. This ideology continued to exist until the end of World War 2 and Pacific war in 1945, which led to many victims in Japan regardless of social status like residents and soldiers.

*Disappearance of the Imperial Rescript on Education

After the defeat in World War 2, the necessity of a new educational guidance policy to replace the Imperial Rescript on Education was growing. It was because the education that represented the emperor as an absolute position, and that it was right to act with loyalty, was used militarily as the war began, and because it was inappropriate for a democratic nation. In 1947, the Enactment of the Fundamental Law of Education replaced to Japan's educational policy until the end of the war. In June 19th, 1948, the Imperial Rescript on Education was executed by the Japanese House of Representatives passed a resolution to eliminate the Imperial Rescript on Education and the House of Councilors passed a resolution.

*Modern Japanese politicians' comments on the Imperial Rescript on Education after the end of the war

・In 1974, Tanaka Kakuei (田中角栄), the 65th Japanese prime minister, praised for the part he wrote about filial piety to his parents, which connected criticize himself.

・Mori Yoshiro (森喜朗), the 85th Japanese prime minister, was criticized for saying in public that there were good parts in the Imperial Rescript on Education.

・Tanaka Koutaro (田中耕太郎), the minister of the Ministry of Education in 1946, took the position of defending the Imperial Rescript on Education and argued with other thinkers. He argued that the Imperial Rescript on Education contains moral standards for human life. However, his assertion was criticized for not analyzing the historical background of the Imperial Rescript on Education's establishment and not taking into account the meaning of the Imperial Rescript on Education as a whole.