The _____________ was a period of major political, economic, and cultural change in Japan that lasted from 1868 to 1912. It began with the overthrow of the Tokugawa shogunate in 1868 and the restoration of imperial rule under Emperor Meiji, and ended with the emperor's death in 1912. During this period, Japan underwent a process of modernization and industrialization, transforming itself from a feudal society into a modern nation-state.