The monarchy in Japan

The present monarch in Japan (known as the Emperor) is the head of a constitutional monarchy
and now plays a largely symbolic and ceremonial role.

The power of the monarch in Japan has shifted through history. Prior to 1868 the Emperor
exercised little political control, the most powerful figure in Japan during this time was the
shogun, the military leader who ruled over the feudal system. The balance of power changed
during an event called the Meiji Restoration when the power and authority of the emperor was
restored. The Japanese Constitution of 1889 (or the Meiji Constitution) was written to replace
Japan's previous militaristic absolute monarchy system with a form of Western-style liberal
democracy. The emperor gave it to a gift to his people at the time, but in reality he still held
absolute power. However after the defeat of Japan in the Second World War Japan was occupied
by the USA, who helped them write a new constitution. The result was the 1947 constitution
which set up the basis of the constitutional monarchy that exists today.
TASK

These sources show the constitutions of Japan in different times in

history. Discuss the following questions in your group and type
(record) your discussion:
 What does each tell you about the power of the emperor at different
times in history?
1. Explore 3 emperors from 3 different empires in the history.
2. Identify and describe how those 3 emperors applied their power
(towards the people and the government) during their times.
 What are the similarities and differences between the monarchy and
the republic?

https://youtu.be/oUQ_RxPzKMY
DEMOCRACY
How does democracy work ?
Democracy is a system of government where citizens are
allowed to participate in the proposal and creation of laws.
Throughout history, different places have had different forms
of democracy.

Two of the most common forms of democratic government

are direct democracy and representative democracy. In a
direct democracy, citizens are directly involved with creating
laws, and in a representative democracy, citizens elect
representatives who create laws on their behalf.
Case study:

Democracy in Ancient Greece

Democracy first appeared as a form of government in Ancient Greece around 800
B.C.E. In Ancient Greece, all native born males, regardless of how much money
they had or what family they were born into, could vote regarding the government
of the polis, or Greek city-state.

The polis was a tight-knit, small community of citizens who agreed on certain rules
and customs. Usually, a polis was centered on a small town and the countryside that
surrounded it. The low number of citizens allowed Greek voters to vote in person on
any issue involving the government of their town.

This type of democracy is called a direct democracy because citizens have the
ability to vote on an issue in person rather than having an elected representative
who votes on their behalf, as many modern democracies do.
In some places, several poleis would gather together and create leagues of city-
states. Each city-state remained independent in its internal affairs, but they would
band together to fight off invaders.

One of the major problems of the Greek democracy was the extreme
individuality of the each city-state.

Since each polis was unique, it was difficult for a league of city states to remain
united for long.
In addition, it was common for several city-states to battle with one another over
land or other resources. Because each city-state was unique and independent in
its internal affairs, Greek city-states had difficulty with maintaining a cohesive
league of city-states. Without a clear leader, many leagues were ultimately
unsuccessful.
Task (individual):

How have modern democracies

developed?
Create a podcast that describes and explains a significant event in the
evolution of our collective ideas of democracy.

Use the following research questions (RQ) in creating your podcast:

• What were the main historical contexts of the event?

• In what ways did it impact upon lives and perceptions at the
time?
• How has it impacted upon democratic developments into the
modern period?
• What resonances do the events still have on our collective ideas
of democracy?