Ōkubo Toshimichi
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Ōkubo Toshimichi was a Japanese statesman and samurai of the Satsuma Domain. Regarded as one of the main founders of modern Japan, he was one of the "Three Great Nobles" who led the Meiji Restoration
Ōkubo in 1872
Ōkubo as a young samurai
Ōkubo Toshimichi
Members of the Iwakura Mission in San Francisco, 1872. From left: Kido Takayoshi, Yamaguchi Naoyoshi, Iwakura Tomomi, Itō Hirobumi, and Ōkubo.
Saigō Takamori
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Saigō Takamori was a Japanese samurai and politician who was one of the most influential figures in Japanese history. He played a key role in the Meiji Restoration, which overthrew the Tokugawa shogun
Ōkubo Toshimichi
…one of the main founders of modern Japan, he was one of the "Three Great Nobles" who led the Meiji Restoration in 1868, alongside Kido Takayoshi and Saigō Takamori. His policies, often characterized by realism and a focus on national strength (fukoku kyōhei), has led some historians to compare his role in Japan…
Posthumous portrait by C. Nakagawa
Monument marking Saigō's birthplace in Kagoshima
Shimazu Nariakira
Amami Ōshima, the site of Saigō's first exile from 1859 to 1862