Tokugawa Yoshinobu - Shogun Yoshinobu (1866)

Shogun Yoshinobu (1866)

After the death of Tokugawa Iemochi in 1866, Yoshinobu was chosen to succeed him, and became the 15th shogun. He was the only Tokugawa shogun to spend his entire tenure outside of Edo; he would never set foot in Edo Castle as shogun. Immediately upon Yoshinobu's ascension as shogun, major changes were initiated. A massive government overhaul was undertaken to initiate reforms that would strengthen the Tokugawa government. In particular, assistance from the Second French Empire was organized, with the construction of the Yokosuka arsenal under Leonce Verny, and the dispatch of a French military mission to modernize the armies of the bakufu.

The national army and navy, which had already been formed under Tokugawa command, were strengthened by the assistance of the French, and military equipment was also purchased from the United States. The outlook among many was that the Tokugawa shogunate was gaining ground towards renewed strength and power; however, it would fall in less than a year.