Introduction
In 1995, Japan celebrated the centennial of its introduction of the cabinet system. Exactly one
hundred years previously, as part of a move toward modernization, leaders of Japan’s oligarchy
instituted a cabinet form of government, the first in the nation’s history. The creation of this
cabinet system eventually led to both the enactment of the Meiji Constitution (1889) and the
erection of the national legislature (1890), both of which were significant, as they represented
a conscious political effort and mirrored the view of the Meiji leaders. In the opinion of the
oligarchs, the executive branch embodied the will of the emperor, and the national
administration, as an extension of the imperial will, should be regarded as more critical than its
legislative counterpart. The introduction of the cabinet system of government in 1885 marks an
important watershed in the development of the administrative state in Japan