Empire of Japan
Viewed as insular and anachronistic for much of its history, Japan has repeatedly astonished outsiders with its capacity to master emerging technologies and adapt to changing international climates while retaining its ancient culture and national character. The Empire of Japan suffered devastating losses in the Great War, and withdrew from the rest of the world after the war to support the homeland restoration effort. Eventually, Japan able to secure its place as a Sector of the United Federation of Nations, and its technologies and methods were uniquely innovative and, as history would show, indicative of the paths that space travel and terraforming technology would take in the following era of colonization.
Today the Japanese Sector is one of the most closely integrated regions in the United Federation of Nations, and its advances in public transportation and civic infrastructure have become the standard across not only Earth, but all its colonies. While it possesses a highly diversified economy, it is especially famous for its colonial industries. Nearly every major colony within the United Federation of Nations was built, at least in part, on modular habitats, energy nodes, or water reclamation systems built in the Japanese Sector.
The Empire of Japan was officially founded in 2268 in the aftermath of the Great War. The various clans were reunited under the rule of a self christened Nobunaga Oda.
Structure
Power is held exclusively by the Mikado and his ministerial cabinet. The Mikado has the last word on all decisions, although in recent years he has taken on the role of constitutional monarch rather than active policy initiator.
Culture
Japanese culture has experienced numerous upheavals through its transition into modern empire, but the core characteristics of its national identity remain unchanged. The Mikado is treated with the utmost reverence as both the symbol of the state and the The concept of Bushido, or “The Way of the Warrior” is often exploited to consolidate support for Japanese nationalism and the military.
Military
The Imperial military is a unique blend of Japanese tradition and technology. The Empire maintains its well known discipline and loyalty through the philosophy of bushido and reverence for the ancient warriors known as Samurai.
The Japanese military, as outlined above, is divided into two separate arms: the Imperial Navy of Japan, and the Imperial Japanese Army.
the Imperial Navy began developing its own distinctive style. The use of aircraft carriers became more and more prevalent, but at the same time, the Japanese constructed some of the largest battleships to ever take to the seas of Earth. Technologically advanced, but also numerous, Japanese vessels strike a balance between the scientific excellence of their European counterparts and the numeral superiority of the USSR. Large battleships are still held dear by the INJ, as are light carriers, and the doctrine of bigger is better often trickles into many of the INJ's ships. The Navy's ground forces, the Imperial Navy of Japan Marine Force (or the INMF), is a completely modernized autonomous army. Tanks, APCs, vehicles of all kinds in fact, support troops armed with the best that Navy scientist can provide. They are, of course, less numerous than the Army proper, and their tactics and styling often reflects the Navy. Nomenclature is Naval, Tanks operate in 'squadrons' and soldiers are 'ratings'; uniforms and colorations are Navy white rather than Army khaki; and strategy and tactics often reflect naval predilections: the 'cruiser' and 'battleship' tank are INMF hallmarks.
Unlike the Navy, the Imperia Army is more akin to the massed formations of the USSR than the elite force of the European Union, although a far greater standard of equipment is still in evidence. Elite Imperial Army regiments possess some of the finest weapons amongst the Sectors of Earth, but they are few and far between, with the vast majority of the Empire's soldiers fighting with serviceable machinery that does the job with the least fuss and the least cost. Boots on the ground is the ethos, and IJA officers are never above using human wave tactics to achieve the necessary results.
Religion
Whether Shinto could be considered a "state religion" is questionable, however - Shinto terms and ideas are integral to the current strain of Japanese nationalism, but only in as much as is politically expedient. Often this depends on the type of government. Other religions in Japan include Buddhism, Taoism and Confucianism, although the latter is more often incorporated piecemeal into Shinto. In fact, all are reflections and reactions to the other, and borrow assiduously from each others traditions.
Trade & Transport
The Empire's economy is dominated by large conglomerates and financial cliques known as zaibatsu. These have a dominant influence in a multitude of industries, from shipbuilding, to technical industries and resource extraction.
"八紘爲宇" "All the World Under One Roof"
Type
Geopolitical, Empire
Alternative Names
Empire of the Rising Sun
Training Level
Elite
Veterancy Level
Veteran
Demonym
Japanese
Leader
Head of State
Head of Government
Government System
Monarchy, Constitutional
Power Structure
Semi-autonomous area
Economic System
Market economy
Currency
Credit Standard
Parent Organization
Location
Official Languages
Neighboring Nations
Notable Members
Comments