Iwakura Mission tours the West

1871–1873 · Event

Half the new government's leadership spends eighteen months touring American and European factories, parliaments, schools and shipyards to learn how the modern world works. They come home convinced Japan must industrialise first and renegotiate the treaties later — the blueprint for the Meiji state.

On these timelines: Japan, The Meiji Restoration, Master

More from Japan

Around 1871

Wikipedia ↗

Explore the full Ever-When timeline →