Lord Granville's (1815-1891) career in the Foreign Office brough him into close contact with Japan, although he never visited the country himself. He was in office during some key episodes in Japan's attempts to revise the Unequal, or Ansei, Treaties.

This essay charts the controversial life and political career of Inoue Kaoru (1836-1915) of the ChōshÅ« Five and one of the most powerful figures of the Meiji period. A man who epitomized the world of the oligarchs; the immense power wielded by a select few.

Itō Hirobumi (1841-1909) was Japan's first cabinet prime minister, and this essay asseses the influence of his time as a student in Britain on his career in Imperial Japan.

Iwakura Tomomi's (1825-83) tremendous energy and revolutionary zeal made him a central figure in the Meiji regime. This essay recounts his role in bringing about the Meiji period and subsequent task of presenting the state to the outside world, including as Ambassador to the UK.

This portrait charts the political career of Mori Arinori (1847-89), a Meiji statesman whose time in Britain played a significant role in his move from liberalism to conservatism.

This essay details the diplomatic career of Terashima Munenori (1832-1993) in early Meiji Japan, and his mastery of the diplomatic process as it related to Anglo-Japanese relations.

This essay details the diplomatic career of Terashima Munenori (1832-1993) in early Meiji Japan, and his mastery of the diplomatic process as it related to Anglo-Japanese relations.

This biography offers an account of the life of Yamao Yōzō (1937-1917), one of the ChōshÅ« Five and a pioneer of engineering and education in the Meiji period.