Episode 2 of 3
Abolition of Domains
- When
- January 1872
- Where
- Tokyo
Former aristocrats moved to Tokyo in January 1872, leading to the reorganization of 302 domains into 72 prefectures.
The han system was replaced with prefectures in 1871, centralizing authority. In January 1872, new aristocrats were ordered to move to Tokyo, separated from their former domains. The 302 domains were formally reorganized into 72 prefectures, undermining hereditary power.
Sources
- Meiji Restoration Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-28
- Meiji era Wikipedia
Machine-drafted from the cited Wikipedia passages and checked by a reviewing model, not by a human editor. Every passage cites the revision it was written from; dates and places follow those passages.