Charter Oath

Also called �Imperial Oath Of Five Articles, �Japanese �Gokajo No Goseimon, � in Japanese history, statement of principle promulgated on April 6, 1868, by the emperor Meiji after the overthrow of the Tokugawa shogunate and the restoration of direct participation in government by the imperial family. The Charter Oath opened the way for the modernization of the country and the introduction of a Western parliamentary constitution. The five articles