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Republic of Ezo ← 1868 – 1869 → Flag Leaders of the Republic of Ezo, with the President Enomoto Takeaki, front right (1869). Capital Hakodate Language(s) Japanese, Ainu Government Republic President Enomoto Takeaki Vice President Matsudaira Taro History  - Established 15 December 1868  - Surrender 17 May 1869  - Disestablished 27 June 1869

The Republic of Ezo (蝦夷共和国, Ezo Kyōwakoku^?) was a short-lived state formed by former Tokugawa retainers in what is now known as Hokkaidō, the northernmost, large but sparsely populated island in modern Japan.

After the defeat of the forces of the Tokugawa Shogunate in the Boshin War (1868–1869), a part of the Shogun's navy led by Admiral Enomoto Takeaki (1836–1908) fled to the northern island of Ezo (now known as Hokkaidō), together with several thousand soldiers and a handful of French military advisors and their leader, Jules Brunet.

On December 15, 1868 the independent "Republic of Ezo," based on the American model, was set up, with Enomoto elected as its first sosai. This was the first election ever held in Japan, where a feudal empire, military warlords, or shogunates were the norm. Through Hakodate Magistrate Nagai Naoyuki, they tried to reach out to foreign legations present in Hakodate, such as the Americans, French, and Russians, but were unable to garner any international support for their new government.

The governmental hall of the Republic of Ezo, inside the fortress of Goryokaku.

The Republic had its own flag, a chrysanthemum on a sky-blue background (symbol of Imperial rule) and a red star with seven points (symbol of the new Republic). The financial wherewithal was provided in part by 180,000 gold ryo coins Enomoto retrieved from Osaka Castle following Tokugawa Yoshinobu's departure in early 1868. ^[1]

During winter they fortified the defences around the southern peninsula of Hakodate, with the new fortress of Goryokaku at the center. The troops were organized under a joint Franco-Japanese command, the commander-in-chief Otori Keisuke being seconded by the French captain Jules Brunet, and divided into four brigades, each commanded by a French officer (Fortant, Marlin, Cazeneuve, and Bouffier). The brigades were themselves divided into eight half-brigades, each under Japanese command.

Brunet demanded - and received - a signed personal pledge of loyalty from all officers and insisted they assimilate French ideas. An anonymous French officer wrote that he had taken charge of everything, "...customs, municipality, fortifications, army; everything passed through his hands. The simple Japanese are puppets whom he manipulates with great skill..." [and that] "...he has carried out a veritable 1789 French Revolution in this brave new Japan; the election of leaders and the determination of rank by merit and not birth - these are fabulous things for this country, and he has been able to do things very well, considering the seriousness of the situation..."^[2]

Imperial troops soon consolidated their hold on mainland Japan, and in April 1869 dispatched a fleet and an infantry force of 7,000 to Ezo. The Imperial forces progressed swiftly and won the Battle of Hakodate, until the fortress of Goryokaku was surrounded with 800 remaining men. Enomoto decided to surrender on May 17, turning the Goryokaku over to Satsuma staff officer Kuroda Kiyotaka on May 18, 1869. ^[3] Kuroda is said to have been deeply impressed by Enomoto's dedication in combat, and is remembered as the one who spared the latter's life from execution. As per the arrangements for the surrender, the Republic ceased to exist on 27 June 1869. On August 15 of the same year, the island was given its present name, Hokkaidō ("Northern Sea District").^[4]

The Naval Battle of Hakodate Bay, May 1869; in the foreground, Kasuga and Kotetsu of the Imperial Japanese Navy.

While later history texts were to refer to May of 1869 as being when Enomoto accepted the Meiji Emperor's rule, the Imperial rule was never in question for the Ezo Republic, as is evidenced by part of Enomoto's message to the Dajōkan (太政官, Dajōkan^?) (the Imperial governing council) at the time of his arrival in Hakodate:

The French military advisors and their Japanese allies. Front row, second from left: Jules Brunet, besides Matsudaira Taro, vice-president of the Ezo Republic.

Thus from Enomoto's perspective, the efforts to establish a government in Hokkaidō were not only for the sake of providing for the Tokugawa house on the one hand (burdened as it was with an enormous amount of redundant retainers and employees), but also as developing Ezo for the sake of defense for the rest of the country, something which had been a topic of concern for some time. Recent scholarship has noted that for centuries, Ezo was not considered a part of Japan the same way that the other "main" islands of modern Japan were, so the creation of the Ezo Republic, in a contemporary mindset, was not an act of secession, but rather of "bringing" the politico-social entity of "Japan" formally to Ezo.^[6]

Enomoto was sentenced to a brief prison sentence, but was freed in 1872 and accepted a post as a government official in the newly renamed Hokkaido Land Agency. He later became ambassador to Russia, and held several ministerial positions in the Meiji Government.

Enomoto Takeaki, president.

Otori Keisuke, Commander-in-Chief.

Arai Ikunosuke, Commander of the Navy.

Hijikata Toshizo, Commander of the Shinsengumi.

• Ballard C.B., Vice-Admiral G.A. The Influence of the Sea on the Political History of Japan. London: John Murray, 1921.
• Black, John R. Young Japan: Yokohama and Yedo, Vol. II. London: Trubner & Co., 1881.
• Onodera Eikō, Boshin Nanboku Senso to Tohoku Seiken. Sendai: Kita no Sha, 2004.
• Suzuki, Tessa Morris. Re-Inventing Japan: Time Space Nation. New York: M.E. Sharpe, 1998.
• Yamaguchi, Ken. Kinsé shiriaku A history of Japan, from the first visit of Commodore Perry in 1853 to the capture of Hakodate by the Mikado's forces in 1869. Trans. Sir Ernest Satow. Wilmington, Del., Scholarly Resources 1973

• WorldStatesmen – Japan (incomplete)