Proclamation of Republic of Ezo

Date: January 27, 1869 • Location: Yūbari, Japan

This milestone marked the outbreak and beginning of this historic period, which spanned 1869.

Former members of the overthrown Tokugawa shogunate proclaimed Japan's second-largest island, Hokkaido, to be the independent Republic of Ezo.

The Tokugawa shogunate, also known as the Edo shogunate, was the military government of Japan during the Edo period from 1603 to 1868.