Editing Hokkaido (section)

==History==
{{see also|Historic Sites of Hokkaidō|Zoku-Jōmon period|Satsumon culture|Okhotsk culture}}

=== Early history ===
During the [[Jōmon period|Jomon period]] the local culture and the associated [[hunter-gatherer]] lifestyle flourished in Hokkaidō, beginning over 15,000 years ago. In contrast to the island of Honshu, Hokkaidō saw an absence of conflict during this time period. Jomon beliefs in natural spirits are theorized to be the origins of Ainu spirituality. About 2,000 years ago, the island was colonized by [[Yayoi period|Yayoi]] people, and much of the island's population shifted away from hunting and gathering towards agriculture.<ref name=":0">{{cite web|url=https://www.hkd.mlit.go.jp/ky/ki/renkei/ud49g70000000mki-att/en_all.pdf|title=A Journey into the culture and history of Hokkaidō.|website=hkd.mlit.go.jp|access-date=2019-05-29|archive-date=2020-09-17|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200917161923/https://www.hkd.mlit.go.jp/ky/ki/renkei/ud49g70000000mki-att/en_all.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>

The {{Lang|ja-latn|[[Nihon Shoki]]}}, finished in 720 AD, is often said to be the first mention of Hokkaidō in [[recorded history]]. According to the text, [[Abe no Hirafu]]<ref name="Japan Handbook p760">''Japan Handbook'', p. 760</ref> led a large navy and army to northern areas from 658 to 660 and came into contact with the [[Mishihase]] and [[Emishi]]. One of the places Hirafu went to was called {{nihongo|Watarishima|渡島}}, which is often believed to be present-day Hokkaidō. However, many theories exist concerning the details of this event, including the location of Watarishima and the common belief that the Emishi in Watarishima were the ancestors of the present-day [[Ainu people]].{{Citation needed|date=December 2021}}

During the [[Nara period|Nara]] and [[Heian period]]s (710–1185), people in Hokkaidō conducted trade with [[Dewa Province]], an outpost of the Japanese central government. From the [[Feudal Japan|feudal period]], the people in Hokkaidō began to be called [[Ezo]]. Hokkaidō subsequently became known as {{nihongo|Ezochi|蝦夷地||lit. "Ezo-land"}}<ref>{{cite book|last1=McClain|first1=James L.|title=Japan, A Modern History|date=2002|publisher=W.W. Norton & Company|location=New York, N.Y.|isbn=978-0-393-04156-9|page=[https://archive.org/details/japanmodernhisto00mccl/page/285 285]|edition=First|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/japanmodernhisto00mccl/page/285}}</ref> or {{nihongo|Ezogashima|蝦夷ヶ島||lit. "Island of the Ezo"}}. The Ezo mainly relied upon hunting and fishing and obtained rice and iron through trade with the Japanese.{{Citation needed|date=December 2021}}

=== Feudal Japan ===
[[File:Palace reception near Hakodate in 1751. Ainu bringing gifts.jpg|thumb|300px|Palace reception near [[Hakodate]] in 1751. [[Ainu people|Ainu]] bringing gifts (''cf.'' ''[[omusha]]'')]]

During the [[Muromachi period]] (1336–1573), the Japanese established a settlement at the south of the [[Oshima Peninsula]], with a series of fortified residences such as that of [[Shinoridate]]. As more people moved to the settlement to avoid battles, disputes arose between the Japanese and the Ainu. The disputes eventually developed into war. [[Takeda Nobuhiro]] (1431 – 1494) killed the Ainu leader, Koshamain,<ref name="Japan Handbook p760"/> and [[Koshamain's War|defeated the opposition]] in 1457. Nobuhiro's descendants became the rulers of the [[Matsumae clan|Matsumae-han]], which was granted exclusive trading rights with the Ainu in the [[Azuchi–Momoyama period|Azuchi-Momoyama]] and [[Edo period]]s (1568–1868). The [[Matsumae clan|Matsumae family]]'s economy relied upon trade with the Ainu,{{cn|date=March 2024}} who had extensive trading networks.<ref>
{{cite book
 |last1                = Lie
 |first1               = John
 |author-link1         = John Lie (professor)
 |year                 = 2009
 |orig-date            = 2001
 |title                = Multiethnic Japan
 |url                  = https://books.google.com/books?id=3aGeH0keCGUC
 |edition              = revised
 |publication-place    = Cambridge, Massachusetts
 |publisher            = Harvard University Press
 |pages                = 89–90
 |isbn                 = 9780674040175
 |access-date          = 15 March 2024
 |quote                = By the fifteenth century Ainu people were principally hunter-fisher-gatherers and engaged in far-flung trade with others, ranging from Aleutian islanders to the east, Russians and Chinese to the west, and Shamo (as the Ainu call Wajin, or Japanese people) to the south [....].
}} 
</ref>
The Matsumae held authority over the south of Ezochi until the end of the Edo period.{{Citation needed|date=December 2021}}

[[File:Samurai and Ainu Fuzoku Ema.jpg|thumb|The [[samurai]] and the Ainu, {{circa|1775}}]]

The Matsumae clan rule over the Ainu must be understood{{cn|date=March 2024}} in the context of the expansion of the Japanese feudal state. Medieval military leaders in northern Honshu (ex. [[Northern Fujiwara]], [[Akita clan]]) maintained only tenuous political and cultural ties to the imperial court and its proxies, the [[Kamakura shogunate]] and [[Ashikaga shogunate]]. Feudal strongmen sometimes defined their own roles within the medieval institutional order, taking shogunate titles, while in other times they assumed titles that seemed to give them a non-Japanese identity. In fact, many of the feudal strongmen were descended from [[Emishi]] military leaders who had been assimilated into Japanese society.<ref>Howell, David. "Ainu Ethnicity and the Boundaries of the Early Modern Japanese State", Past and Present 142 (February 1994), p. 142</ref> The Matsumae clan were of [[Yamato people|Yamato]] descent like other ethnic [[Japanese people]], whereas the Emishi of northern Honshu were a distinctive group related to the Ainu. The Emishi were conquered and integrated into the Japanese state dating back as far as the 8th century and as result began to lose their distinctive culture and ethnicity as they became minorities. By the time the Matsumae clan ruled over the Ainu, most of the Emishi were ethnically mixed and physically closer to Japanese than they were to Ainu. From this, the "transformation" theory postulates that native Jōmon peoples changed gradually with the infusion of Yayoi immigrants into the [[Tōhoku region]] of northern Honshu, in contrast to the "replacement" theory that posits the Jōmon was ''replaced'' by the Yayoi.<ref>Ossenberg, Nancy (see reference) has the best evidence of this relationship with the Jōmon. Also, a newer study, Ossenberg, et al., "Ethnogenesis and craniofacial change in Japan from the perspective of nonmetric traits" (''Anthropological Science'' v.114:99–115) is an updated analysis published in 2006 which confirms this finding.</ref>

[[File:Matumae Takahiro.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Matsumae Takahiro]], a [[Matsumae clan|Matsumae lord]] of the late [[Edo period]] (December 10, 1829 – June 9, 1866)]]

There were numerous revolts by the Ainu against feudal rule. The last large-scale resistance was [[Shakushain's revolt]] in 1669–1672. In 1789, a smaller movement known as the [[Menashi–Kunashir rebellion]] was crushed. After that rebellion, the terms "Japanese" and "Ainu" referred to clearly distinguished groups, and the Matsumae were unequivocally Japanese.

According to John A. Harrison of the [[University of Florida]], prior to 1868 Japan used proximity as its claim to Hokkaido, [[Sakhalin]] and the [[Kuril Islands]]; however, Japan had never thoroughly explored, governed, or exploited the areas, and this claim was invalidated by the movement of Russia into the Northeast Pacific area and by Russian settlements on [[Kamchatka]] (from 1699), [[Sakhalin]] (1850s) and the [[Sea of Okhotsk Coast]] (1640s onwards).<ref>{{Cite journal |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/3740831 |jstor=3740831 |title= The Capron Mission and the Colonization of Hokkaido, 1868-1875 |last1=Harrison |first1=John A. |journal=Agricultural History |year=1951 |volume=25 |issue=3 |pages=135–136}}</ref>

Prior to the [[Meiji Restoration]] of 1868, the Tokugawa shogunate realized the need to prepare northern defenses against a possible Russian invasion and took over control of most of Ezochi in 1855-1858.<ref>Nakamura, Akemi, "[http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2008/07/08/news/japans-last-frontier-took-time-to-tame-cultivate-image/ Japan's last frontier took time to tame, cultivate image] {{Webarchive|url= https://web.archive.org/web/20131104100311/http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2008/07/08/news/japans-last-frontier-took-time-to-tame-cultivate-image/ |date= 2013-11-04 }}", ''[[The Japan Times]]'', 8 July 2008, p. 3.</ref> Many Japanese settlers regarded the Ainu as "inhuman and the inferior descendants of dogs".<ref name="apjjf.org"/><ref>
Compare:
{{cite journal
| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=uu0YAQAAMAAJ
| journal = The American Asian Review
| publisher = Institute of Asian Studies, St. John's University
| publication-place = New York
| publication-date = 1995
| volume = 13
| issue = 1–2
| page = 77
| quote = Using the expressive sound 'ah', and the Japanese copula da ('it is'), wajin encountering an Ainu person would shout out the insulting pun, 'ah, inu da,' 'It's an Ainu' or 'Oh, it's a dog!' 
| access-date = 15 March 2024
}}
</ref>
The Tokugawa irregularly imposed various assimilation programs on the Ainu due to the Tokugawa's perception of a threat from Russia.<ref name="apjjf.org"/> For example, assimilation programs were implemented in response to perceived threats from Russia, which included the {{ill|Laxman expedition|ru|Посольство Адама Лаксмана в Японию}}  of 1793 and the [[Golovnin Incident]] of 1804.<ref name="apjjf.org"/> Once the respective Russian threats appeared to subside, the assimilation programs were halted until 1855.<ref name="apjjf.org"/> However, in 1855, once the [[Treaty of Shimoda]] was signed, which defined the borders between Russian Empire and Tokugawa Japan, the Tokugawa again viewed Russia as a threat to Japanese sovereignty over Hokkaido and reinstated assimilation programs on the Ainu.<ref name="apjjf.org"/>

=== Meiji era ===
==== Colonization of Hokkaido ====
Prior to the Meiji era, the island was called Ezochi, which can be translated as "land of the barbarians" or "the land for people who did not obey the government."<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Siripala |first=Thisanka |date=2020 |title=Far-Right Politics and Indigenous Ainu Activism in Japan |url=https://repository.library.georgetown.edu/bitstream/handle/10822/1059391/GJAA%20Vol.6_Far-Right%20Politics%20and%20Indigenous%20Ainu%20Activism%20in%20Japan.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y |journal=Georgetown Journal of Asian Affairs |volume=6 |pages=36–37}}</ref> Shortly after the [[Boshin War]] in 1868, a group of Tokugawa loyalists led by [[Enomoto Takeaki]] temporarily occupied the island (the [[polity]] is commonly but mistakenly known as the [[Republic of Ezo]]), but the rebellion was defeated in May 1869. Through colonial practices, Ezochi was annexed into Japanese territory.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Siripala |first=Thisanka |date=2020 |title=Far-Right Politics and Indigenous Ainu Activism in Japan |url=https://repository.library.georgetown.edu/bitstream/handle/10822/1059391/GJAA%20Vol.6_Far-Right%20Politics%20and%20Indigenous%20Ainu%20Activism%20in%20Japan.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y |journal=Georgetown Journal of Asian Affairs |volume=6 |pages=36–37}}</ref><ref name="apjjf.org"/><ref name="auto2"/><ref name="auto1"/> Ezochi was subsequently put under control of Hakodate Prefectural Government. When establishing the {{Nihongo|[[Hokkaidō Development Commission|Development Commission]]|開拓使|Kaitakushi}}, the Meiji government introduced a new name. After 1869, the northern Japanese island was known as Hokkaidō, which can be translated to "northern sea route,"<ref name="nussbaum343" /> and regional subdivisions were established, including the provinces of [[Oshima Province|Oshima]], [[Shiribeshi Province|Shiribeshi]], [[Iburi Province|Iburi]], [[Ishikari Province|Ishikari]], [[Teshio Province|Teshio]], [[Kitami Province|Kitami]], [[Hidaka Province|Hidaka]], [[Tokachi Province|Tokachi]], [[Kushiro Province|Kushiro]], [[Nemuro Province|Nemuro]] and [[Chishima Province|Chishima]].<ref>[[Ernest Mason Satow|Satow, Ernest]]. (1882). "The Geography of Japan" in {{Google books|gGYYAAAAYAAJ|''Transactions of the Asiatic Society of Japan'', Vols. 1–2, p. 88.|page=33}}</ref>

The initiative to colonize Ezo, which later became Hokkaido, traces back to 1869, where Japanese proponents argued that the colonization of Ezo would serve as a strategic move to enhance Japan's standing and influence on the global stage, particularly in negotiations with Western powers, specifically Russia.<ref name="M.Mason">{{Cite book| url=http://ndl.ethernet.edu.et/bitstream/123456789/71693/1/29.pdf.pdf|title=Dominant Narratives of Colonial Hokkaido and Imperial Japan: Envisioning the Periphery and the Modern Nation-State | publisher=Palgrave Macmillan| pages=14–15 |year=2012|last1=Mason | first1=Michele | isbn=978-1-349-45025-1}}</ref> The Meiji government invested heavily in colonizing Hokkaido for several reasons.<ref name="JohnHennessey3">{{cite journal|first=John|last=Hennessey|title=Engineering Japanese Settler Colonialism in Hokkaido: A Postcolonial Reevaluation of William Wheeler's Work for the Kaitakushi|url=https://lucris.lub.lu.se/ws/portalfiles/portal/99779409/AIF_ISSUE6_Final_Hennessey.pdf|journal=Asia in Focus|volume=6|issue=6|pages=3|date=2018}}</ref> Firstly, they aimed to assert their control over the region as a buffer against potential Russian advances.<ref name = JohnHennessey3/> Secondly, they were attracted to Hokkaido's rich natural resources, including coal, timber, fish, and fertile land.<ref name = JohnHennessey3/> Lastly, since Western powers viewed colonial expansion as a symbol of prestige, Japan viewed the colonization of Hokkaido as an opportunity to present itself as a modern and respected nation to Western powers.<ref name = JohnHennessey3/>

[[File:Hakodate Goryokaku Panorama 1.JPG|thumb|The [[Goryōkaku]] fort in Hakodate]]
[[File:Ainu old man circa 1930.JPG|thumb|The [[Ainu people|Ainu]], Hokkaidō's indigenous people]]

The primary purpose of the Development Commission was to secure Hokkaidō before the [[Russian Empire|Russians]] extended their control of the Far East beyond [[Vladivostok]]. The Japanese failed to settle in the interior lowlands of the island because of aboriginal resistance.<ref name="auto">{{Cite journal | url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/3740831 | jstor=3740831 | title=The Capron Mission and the Colonization of Hokkaido, 1868-1875 | last1=Harrison | first1=John A. | journal=Agricultural History | year=1951 | volume=25 | issue=3 | pages=135–142 }}</ref> The resistance was eventually destroyed, and the lowlands were under the control of the commission.<ref name="auto"/> The most important goal of the Japanese was to increase the farm population and to create a conducive environment for emigration and settlement.<ref name="auto"/> However, the Japanese did not have expertise in modern agricultural techniques, and only possessed primitive mining and lumbering methods.<ref name="auto"/> [[Kuroda Kiyotaka]] was put in charge of the project, and turned to the United States for help.<ref name="auto"/>

His first step was to journey to the United States and recruit [[Horace Capron]], President [[Ulysses S. Grant]]'s commissioner of agriculture. From 1871 to 1873 Capron bent his efforts to expounding Western agriculture and mining, with mixed results. Frustrated with obstacles to his efforts, Capron returned home in 1875. In 1876, [[William S. Clark]] arrived to found an [[Sapporo Agricultural College|agricultural college in Sapporo]]. Although he only remained a year, Clark left a lasting impression on Hokkaidō, inspiring the Japanese with his teachings on agriculture as well as Christianity.<ref>McDougall, Walter A. (1993). ''Let the Sea Make a Noise,'' pp. 355–356.</ref> His parting words, ''"Boys, be ambitious!"'', can be found on public buildings in Hokkaidō to this day. The population of Hokkaidō increased from 58,000 to 240,000 during that decade.<ref>McDougall, p. 357.</ref> 

Kuroda hired Capron for $10,000 per year and paid for all expenses related to the mission. Kuroda and his government were likely intrigued by Capron's previous colonial experience, particularly his involvement in the forced removal of [[Native Americans in the United States|Native Americans]] from Texas to new territories after the [[Mexican–American War]].<ref name = "KatsuyaHiranoEight">{{cite web | url=https://manifold.uhpress.hawaii.edu/read/migrant-ecologies/section/b03b25af-b873-47e5-9417-dce686ed0a37 | title=University of Hawai'i Press - Manifold }}</ref> Capron introduced capital-intensive farming techniques by adopting American methods and tools, importing seeds for Western crops, and bringing in European livestock breeds, which included his favorite [[North Devon cattle]].<ref>{{cite web | url=https://manifold.uhpress.hawaii.edu/read/migrant-ecologies/section/b03b25af-b873-47e5-9417-dce686ed0a37 | title=University of Hawai'i Press - Manifold }}</ref> He founded experimental farms in Hokkaido, conducted surveys to assess mineral deposits and agricultural potential, and advocated for improvements in water access, mills, and roads.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://manifold.uhpress.hawaii.edu/read/migrant-ecologies/section/b03b25af-b873-47e5-9417-dce686ed0a37 | title=University of Hawai'i Press - Manifold }}</ref>

The settler colonization of Hokkaido by the Japanese was organized and supported through collaboration between the Japanese state and American experts and technology.<ref name = KatsuyaHiranoEight/>  From the 1870s to the 1880s, Japanese leaders placed their efforts on settling Hokkaido by systematically migrating former samurai lords, samurai retainers, and common citizens, which included farmers and peasants, providing them with "free" land and financial assistance.<ref name = KatsuyaHiranoEight/> This transformation was facilitated with the expertise of American advisors who introduced various colonization technologies, transforming Hokkaido into land suitable for Japan's capitalist aspirations.<ref name = KatsuyaHiranoEight/> 

Japanese leaders drew inspiration from American settler colonialism during their diplomatic visits to the United States.<ref name = JohnHennessey3/> Japanese colonial officials learned settler colonial techniques from Western imperial powers, particularly the United States. This included declaring large portions of Hokkaido as ownerless land, providing a pretext for the dispossession of the Ainu people.<ref name = JohnHennessey3/><ref name = "Mason">{{Cite book|title=Dominant Narratives of Colonial Hokkaido and Imperial Japan: Envisioning the Periphery and the Modern Nation-State | publisher=Palgrave Macmillan| pages=7–9|year=2012|last1=Mason | first1=Michele | isbn=978-1-349-45025-1}}</ref> Japan established the Hokkaido Colonization Board in 1869, a year after the start of the Meiji era, with the goal of encouraging Japanese settlers to Hokkaido.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Recognition for a People Who Faded as Japan Grew |work=The New York Times |date=3 July 2008 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/03/world/asia/03ainu.html |access-date=2024-04-11 |last1=Onishi |first1=Norimitsu }}</ref> Mainland Japanese settlers began migrating to Hokkaido, leading to Japan's colonization of the island.<ref name="Mason"/>  Motivated by capitalist and industrial goals, the Meiji government forcefully appropriated fertile land and mineral-rich regions throughout Hokkaido, without consideration for their historical Ainu inhabitancy.<ref name="Mason"/> The Meiji government implemented land seizures and enacted land ownership laws that favored Japanese settlers, effectively stripping Ainu people of their customary land rights and traditional means of subsistence.<ref name="Mason"/> The 1899 [[Hokkaido Former Aborigines Protection Act]] further marginalized and impoverished the Ainu people by forcing them to leave their traditional lands and relocating them to the rugged, mountainous regions in the center of the island.<ref name="forgotten-people">{{Cite web |title=Japan's forgotten indigenous people |url=https://www.bbc.com/travel/article/20200519-japans-forgotten-indigenous-people |access-date=2024-04-11 |website=www.bbc.com|date=20 May 2020 }}</ref><ref name=":12">{{Cite journal |last=Siripala |first=Thisanka |date=2020 |title=Far-Right Politics and Indigenous Ainu Activism in Japan |url=https://repository.library.georgetown.edu/bitstream/handle/10822/1059391/GJAA%20Vol.6_Far-Right%20Politics%20and%20Indigenous%20Ainu%20Activism%20in%20Japan.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y |journal=Georgetown Journal of Asian Affairs |volume=6 |pages=37}}</ref> The act prohibited the Ainu from fishing and hunting, which were their main source of subsistence.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Siripala |first=Thisanka |date=2020 |title=Far-Right Politics and Indigenous Ainu Activism in Japan |url=https://repository.library.georgetown.edu/bitstream/handle/10822/1059391/GJAA%20Vol.6_Far-Right%20Politics%20and%20Indigenous%20Ainu%20Activism%20in%20Japan.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y |journal=Georgetown Journal of Asian Affairs |volume=6 |pages=36–38}}</ref> The Ainu were valued primarily as a source of inexpensive manual labor, and discriminatory assimilation policies further entrenched their sense of inferiority as well as worsened poverty and disease within Ainu communities.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Siripala |first=Thisanka |date=2020 |title=Far-Right Politics and Indigenous Ainu Activism in Japan |url=https://repository.library.georgetown.edu/bitstream/handle/10822/1059391/GJAA%20Vol.6_Far-Right%20Politics%20and%20Indigenous%20Ainu%20Activism%20in%20Japan.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y |journal=Georgetown Journal of Asian Affairs |volume=6 |pages=38}}</ref> These policies exacerbated diasporic trends among the Ainu population, as many sought employment with the government or private enterprises, often earning meager wages that barely sustained their families.<ref name="Mason"/>  

The Meiji government embarked on assimilation campaigns aimed not only at assimilating the Ainu but also eradicating their language and culture entirely.<ref name="Mason"/> They were forced to take on Japanese names and language, and gradually saw their culture and traditions eroded.<ref name="forgotten-people"/> The Ainu were forbidden to speak their own language and taught only Japanese at school.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Recognition for a People Who Faded as Japan Grew |work=The New York Times |date=3 July 2008 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/07/03/world/asia/03ainu.html |access-date=2024-04-11 |last1=Onishi |first1=Norimitsu }}</ref> Facing pervasive stigma, many Ainu concealed their heritage.<ref name="forgotten-people"/> [[UNESCO]] has recognized the [[Ainu language]] as critically endangered.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://minorityrights.org/communities/ainu/ |title=Ainu in Japan |publisher=Minority Rights Group |access-date=22 January 2025}}</ref> Given the Meiji state's full political control over the island, the subsequent subjugation of its indigenous inhabitants, aggressive economic exploitation, and ambitious permanent settlement endeavors, Hokkaido emerged as the sole successful [[settler colony]] of Japan.<ref name="Mason"/> 

After the Meiji colonization of Hokkaido, Meiji Japan depended on prison labour to accelerate the colonization process.<ref name="apjjf.org"/> The Japanese built three prisons and rendered Hokkaido a prison island, where political prisoners were incarcerated and used as prison labour.<ref name="apjjf.org"/> During the opening ceremony of the first prison, the Ainu name “Shibetsuputo” was replaced with the Japanese name “Tsukigata,” as an attempt to “Japanize” Hokkaido's geography.<ref name="apjjf.org"/> The second prison opened near the [[Hokutan Horonai coal mine]], where Ainu people were  forced to work.<ref name="apjjf.org"/> Cheap prison labour played an important role in coal and sulphur mining, as well as road construction in Hokkaido.<ref name="apjjf.org"/> Eventually, several types of indentured labour, Korean labour, child labour and women labour replaced convict labour in Hokkaido.<ref name="apjjf.org"/> Working conditions were difficult and dangerous.<ref name="apjjf.org"/> Japan's transition to capitalism depended heavily on the growth of the coal mining sector in Hokkaidō.<ref name="apjjf.org"/> The importance of coal from Hokkaidō increased throughout the First World War, and the mines required a large amount of labourers.<ref name="apjjf.org"/>

=== World War II ===
In mid-July 1945, various shipping ports, cities, and military facilities in Hokkaidō were attacked by the [[United States Navy]]'s [[Fast Carrier Task Force|Task Force 38]]. On 14–15 July, aircraft operating from the task force's aircraft carriers sank and damaged a large number of ships in ports along Hokkaidō's southern coastline as well as in northern Honshu. In addition, on 15 July a force of three battleships and two light cruisers [[Allied naval bombardments of Japan during World War II#Muroran|bombarded the city of Muroran]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Chapter VII: 1945|url=http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USN/USN-Chron/USN-Chron-1945.html|work=The Official Chronology of the US Navy in World War II|publisher=Hyperwar|access-date=20 September 2011|archive-date=2 October 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201002213903/http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/USN/USN-Chron/USN-Chron-1945.html|url-status=live}}</ref> Before the [[Surrender of Japan|Japanese surrender]] was formalized, the Soviet Union made preparations for an [[Proposed Soviet invasion of Hokkaido|invasion of Hokkaidō]], but U.S. President [[Harry S. Truman|Harry Truman]] made it clear that the surrender of all of the [[Japanese archipelago|Japanese home islands]] would be accepted by General [[Douglas MacArthur]] per the [[1943 Cairo Declaration]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Translation of Message from Harry S. Truman to Joseph Stalin |url=https://digitalarchive.wilsoncenter.org/document/translation-message-harry-s-truman-joseph-stalin |access-date=2024-04-11}}</ref>

=== Present ===
Hokkaidō became equal with other prefectures in 1947, when the revised [[Local Autonomy Act]] became effective. The Japanese central government established the {{Nihongo|Hokkaidō Development Agency|北海道開発庁|Hokkaidō Kaihatsuchō}} as an agency of the [[Prime Minister of Japan|Prime Minister]]'s Office in 1949 to maintain its executive power in Hokkaidō. The agency was absorbed by the [[Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism|Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport]] in 2001. {{Nihongo|The Hokkaidō Bureau|北海道局|Hokkaidō-kyoku}} and the {{Nihongo|Hokkaidō Regional Development Bureau|北海道開発局|Hokkaidō Kaihatsukyoku}} of the ministry still have a strong influence on public construction projects in Hokkaidō.