Hello and welcome to the History of Japan podcast, episode 464, The Wolves of Mibu.

Just based on the episode name, I imagine a few of you are pretty excited right now, because

for about as long as this podcast has existed, and that's creeping up on 10 years now, so

quite a while, I've had people asking me to talk about the Shinsengumi, and they are an

interesting topic, for sure, but one that I've always hesitated to weigh in on for a simple

reason.

You see, there's a tricky thing at play when we talk about the Shinsengumi, because in reality

we're talking about two separate things.

There's the actual history of the Shinsengumi as an organization, which I do feel like I have a pretty solid handle on.

And then, and really far more importantly, there's what the Shinsengumi has become, not a historical organization, but, for lack of a better term, a fandom, a thing with its own fan subculture.

And how could that happen?

How does a rather odd political artifact if a complicated moment in Japanese history

become the subject of a fan culture?

It's a fascinating question, but of course first there's some context to go through,

because we should make clear first what even was the Shinsengumi.

And so, once again, we must return to that fateful time and fateful place, Kyoto in

the year 1863.

The Tokugawa Shogunate, once secure in its dominance of Japan's political life, is now reeling

from the loss of the Shogun, Tokugawa Iesada in 1858, and the loss of the brilliant, if

ruthless, politician E. Nauke, in 1860.

Now the Shogunate is listless, and without strong leadership, the Shogun himself is a 17-year-old boy, so not exactly the type to inspire confidence,

and there is no clear plan to deal with the pressing issue of the time, the foreign crisis and the unequal treaties imposed by the Western powers.

...