from Azabu to Mitaka Village (now Mitaka City), around 20 km west of Azabu, in
1924, as will be seen in Chap. 3.
2.1.3 Higher Education in Early Meiji Era
In the late Edo period, there were three principal schools for higher education
established by the Tokugawa government: Kaisei Gakko (開成学校, Kaisei School),
which primarily taught foreign languages and science, Igakko (医学校, Medical
school), which taught Chinese medicine (漢方医学), and Shoheiko (昌平黌, Shohei
School), where Japanese and Chinese classics were the main focus.
The Meiji government planned for the first time to establish a comprehensive
university in the Western style. However, this was far from simple. For this purpose,
numerous foreign instructors were hired to conduct a variety of specialized courses.
After some preparation, Kaisei and medical schools were unified into the Imperial
University on April 12, 1877. The Kaisei School became the core of the new
university with its Colleges of Law, Science, and Literature. The medical school
later joined the university as the College of Medicine. Shoheiko was abandoned due
to internal conflicts. At first, the faculties offered 8-year courses divided into 4 years
of preparatory work at the preparatory school and 4 years of specialization at the
university.
In 1897, a new university system was enacted, and the university was renamed
the Tokyo Imperial University, and the Kyoto Imperial University was newly
established. As a preparatory course for the university, a high school system with
3-year courses was established in the same year. This high school system is referred
to as high school (old) throughout this book, in order to distinguish from the high
school in the postwar time (Chap. 8).
The third university was established in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, as Tohoku
Imperial University in 1907, and seven Imperial Universities in total were
established by 1939. Of these, astronomy was promoted at Tokyo, Kyoto, and
Tohoku Imperial Universities. The TAO was attached to Tokyo Imperial University.
2.1.4 Taisho Period (1912–1926)
Emperor Meiji died in July 1912, and Emperor Taisho (1879–1926) acceded to the
throne. The Taisho era, lasting 15 years, may be characterized as a transformative
stage from a clanship state policy to the age of party cabinet. Since the emperor had
been sickly and mentally unstable, society was not in a suitable state. Nevertheless,
modernization of lifestyles penetrated entirely from the upper to the middle classes.
This period is often called the age of Taisho democracy as the Japanese people
enjoyed a climate of political and social liberation (Gordon 2003).
2.1 Meiji-Taisho Period and Background of Astronomy
17
1924, as will be seen in Chap. 3.
2.1.3 Higher Education in Early Meiji Era
In the late Edo period, there were three principal schools for higher education
established by the Tokugawa government: Kaisei Gakko (開成学校, Kaisei School),
which primarily taught foreign languages and science, Igakko (医学校, Medical
school), which taught Chinese medicine (漢方医学), and Shoheiko (昌平黌, Shohei
School), where Japanese and Chinese classics were the main focus.
The Meiji government planned for the first time to establish a comprehensive
university in the Western style. However, this was far from simple. For this purpose,
numerous foreign instructors were hired to conduct a variety of specialized courses.
After some preparation, Kaisei and medical schools were unified into the Imperial
University on April 12, 1877. The Kaisei School became the core of the new
university with its Colleges of Law, Science, and Literature. The medical school
later joined the university as the College of Medicine. Shoheiko was abandoned due
to internal conflicts. At first, the faculties offered 8-year courses divided into 4 years
of preparatory work at the preparatory school and 4 years of specialization at the
university.
In 1897, a new university system was enacted, and the university was renamed
the Tokyo Imperial University, and the Kyoto Imperial University was newly
established. As a preparatory course for the university, a high school system with
3-year courses was established in the same year. This high school system is referred
to as high school (old) throughout this book, in order to distinguish from the high
school in the postwar time (Chap. 8).
The third university was established in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, as Tohoku
Imperial University in 1907, and seven Imperial Universities in total were
established by 1939. Of these, astronomy was promoted at Tokyo, Kyoto, and
Tohoku Imperial Universities. The TAO was attached to Tokyo Imperial University.
2.1.4 Taisho Period (1912–1926)
Emperor Meiji died in July 1912, and Emperor Taisho (1879–1926) acceded to the
throne. The Taisho era, lasting 15 years, may be characterized as a transformative
stage from a clanship state policy to the age of party cabinet. Since the emperor had
been sickly and mentally unstable, society was not in a suitable state. Nevertheless,
modernization of lifestyles penetrated entirely from the upper to the middle classes.
This period is often called the age of Taisho democracy as the Japanese people
enjoyed a climate of political and social liberation (Gordon 2003).
2.1 Meiji-Taisho Period and Background of Astronomy
17