<Articles>The Development of Satsuma-Choshu Alliance : The Conclusion of the Six-Article Pledge

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  • <論説>薩長同盟の展開 : 六ヶ条盟約の成立
  • 薩長同盟の展開--六ヶ条盟約の成立
  • サッチョウ ドウメイ ノ テンカイ 6カジョウ メイヤク ノ セイリツ

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The six-article pledge which Choshu contracted with Satsuma in the first month of the second year of the Keio era (1866) is usually called the "Satsuma-Choshu Alliance." It has been regarded as the starting point of the political and military tie-up that aimed to "overthrow the bakufu" 倒幕. However, the alliance had already been concluded in the first year of Keio (1865). Therefore, the six-article pledge was only one step in the development of the alliance. In September of 1865, a second punitive expedition against Choshu was given imperial sanction. Satsuma opted to buildup its military strength in order to prevent it. However, the bakufu 幕府 did not attack. The situation was opaque and Kido Takayoshi and Saigo Takamori and others met in Kyoto in the first month of the next year to consult about revising their strategy. Since it appeared to include a halt to military operations, Saigo recommended acceptance of a punitive order from the bakufu. But, Kido stubbornly refused to do so. This forceful response was contradictory to the policy of the lord of the domain, the hanshu 藩主, and was not acceptable to other domains, han 藩, either. It was due to the fact that Kido had transformed himself from a local bureaucrat concerned primarily with his own domain into a politician who stood for a nation in which the domains might play the part of mere pawns. In the end, the pledge was concluded through the good offices of Sakamoto Ryoma. As a part of the pledge, Satsuma recognized the Choshu's stance of total rejection and vowed to participate in the decisive battle against all Tokugawa military forces if, as it appeared increasingly likely, war was to begin over the refusal of Choshu. The political alliance between Satsuma and Choshu was thus imbued with a military character from the time of its formation.

Journal

  • 史林

    史林 88 (4), 511-545, 2005-07-01

    THE SHIGAKU KENKYUKAI (The Society of Historical Research), Kyoto University

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