Course Description: Between 1858 and 1878 Japan experienced a dramatic political and social transformation. Under pressure from Western nations and internal discontent, the centuries-old Tokugawa shogunate collapsed, samurai rule came to an end, and a new imperial government launched a bold effort to build a modern nation-state. The transition from feudal to modern Japan was revolutionary. Revolutions are not peaceful; Japan’s was marked by assassinations, naval bombardments, a bloody coup, and a civil war that was fought on land and on the sea. This course examines the turbulent decades that reshaped Japan and set it on a new historical path.

Instructor: Mark Ericson was raised in Japan by missionary parents and has a PhD in Japanese History. He retired after 37 years as a Department of Defense intelligence officer. Dr. Ericson has taught courses focusing on East Asian Civilization for over 40 years, including a number of them for Amelia Lifelong Learning. He is currently an Adjunct Professor of History at the University of Maryland Global Campus.

Schedule: 8 sessions: Mondays, Sept. 28, Oct. 5, 12, 19, 26, Nov. 2, 9, 16; 1:00-3:00pm.

Location: Room 201, St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, 801 Atlantic Ave., Fernandina Beach.

Cost: $50