Who was this person?
A political scientist and educator from the late Edo period to the Taishō era. Born into a family of military instructors in the Izushi domain of Tajima, he studied under Sakuma Shōzan and then learned German at the Bansho Shirabesho. In early Meiji he introduced the theory of natural rights, but later turned to social Darwinism in his New Theory of Human Rights. He served as the first president of Tokyo University and as president of the Imperial University.
| Name | Katō Hiroyuki (加藤弘之) |
|---|---|
| Born–died | 1836 – 1916 |
| Period | Late Edo–Taishō |
| Birthplace | Izushi, Tajima Province |
| Main achievements |
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He was born the eldest son of Katō Masateru, a samurai of the Izushi domain in Tajima, now Toyooka in Hyōgo Prefecture, who taught military science. As a boy he studied at the domain school Kōdōkan and was expected to inherit the family profession of military science. He would later broaden his path greatly into Western learning.
He went to Edo and studied Western-style military science under Sakuma Shōzan, a scholar who urged the active adoption of Western technology and drew many young pupils. Here Hiroyuki became convinced that Western knowledge was indispensable for Japan's future.
He became an assistant instructor at the Bansho Shirabesho, the shogunate's institute for studying Western books. There he began learning German, which hardly anyone studied at the time, and later became a pioneer of German studies in Japan. Reading Western books on politics and law, he was strongly drawn to their systems.
He wrote Tonarigusa, which introduced Western parliaments and constitutional government in the guise of a discussion of Chinese politics. It is regarded as one of the first works to introduce constitutional government to Japan. Out of caution toward the shogunate it did not circulate widely at the time, but it marked the starting point of his thought.
Recognized for his learning, he became a professor at the shogunate's Kaiseisho and was made a direct retainer of the shogunate. The son of a samurai from a small domain had risen to serve the shogunate through scholarship. As the shogunate neared its end, he was valued as a scholar conveying Western institutions.
In the year of the Meiji Restoration he published Rikken Seitai Ryaku, an outline of constitutional government that clearly explained the forms of state: autocratic monarchy, monarchy shared with the people, and rule by the people. It was widely read by those considering the new nation's shape, and he came to serve the new government as well.
He wrote Shinsei Taii, introducing to Japan the theory of natural rights, the idea that all people are born with freedom and rights. He also lectured Emperor Meiji on Western learning. Hiroyuki became known as a leading scholar conveying new Western ideas.
He joined the Meirokusha, a society of scholars formed at Mori Arinori's call. With Fukuzawa Yukichi, Nishi Amane, Nakamura Masanao and others he published opinions in its journal and debated the shape of a new society. The Meirokusha played a major role in spreading the ideas of civilization and enlightenment.
While publishing Kokutai Shinron, he argued against the petition for an elected assembly submitted by Itagaki Taisuke and others, saying the people were not yet educated enough and an assembly would be premature. The debate filled the newspapers and became one of the sparks of the rising Freedom and People's Rights Movement.
When the University of Tokyo was founded, he became sōri, overseeing its faculties of law, science and letters. He managed Japan's first modern university, inviting foreign teachers and organizing the teaching of Western learning. He worked hard to build a place to train many talented people.
He published Jinken Shinsetsu, rejecting the theory of natural rights he himself had once championed, from the standpoint of Social Darwinism, the idea that, as in the natural world, the strong survive in human society. He had already withdrawn his earlier books on natural rights from publication. Advocates of people's rights responded fiercely, sparking a major controversy.
He became the second president of the Imperial University and, the same year, an imperial appointee to the House of Peers. As head of the university he supported the growth of scholarship while also voicing his views in politics. He was later made a baron and served as a privy councilor.
When the Imperial Academy, which gathered leading scholars to advance learning, was reorganized, he became its first president, in recognition of his long years leading Japanese scholarship. He continued research and writing in his later years.
He died in Tokyo. After encountering Western learning at the end of the Edo period and introducing constitutional government and the theory of natural rights to Japan, he later changed course decisively toward Social Darwinism. His path is studied as a mirror of how Meiji Japan received Western thought.
A. A political scientist and educator from the late Edo period to the Taishō era. Born into a family of military instructors in the Izushi domain of Tajima, he studied under Sakuma Shōzan and then learned German at the Bansho Shirabesho. In early Meiji he introduced the theory of natural rights, but later turned to social Darwinism in his New Theory of Human Rights. He served as the first president of Tokyo University and as president of the Imperial University.
A. Period: Late Edo–Taishō. Born in 1836, died in 1916.
A. Katō Hiroyuki was born in Izushi, Tajima Province.
A. Katō first introduced the theory that people are born with natural rights. But after encountering Darwin's theory of evolution and similar ideas, he leaned toward social Darwinism, the idea that the strong survive, and revised his earlier position in his 1882 New Theory of Human Rights. This shift was strongly criticized by the Freedom and People's Rights Movement.
See also: Wikipedia (ja) / Wikipedia (en) / Wikipedia (fr) / Wikipedia (zh) / Wikidata
Follow this life (autoplay)Sakuma ShōzanNishi AmaneNakamura MasanaoFukuzawa YukichiItagaki TaisukeMori Arinori
Prince Arisugawa TaruhitoEnomoto TakeakiGodai TomoatsuInoue KaoruItagaki TaisukeTani TatekiSanjō SanetomiŌkura Kihachirō
People of the Meiji period ・ People by period
Based on facts found in textbooks and biographies. Uncertain points are marked as such.