Shō Tai
The Tokugawa shogunate fell in Japan in 1868, to be replaced by a new Imperial government. Three years later, in which a number of Okinawans, shipwrecked on Taiwan, were killed by natives there developed into disputes between the Japanese Imperial government and that of Qing Dynasty China over sovereignty or suzerainty over Okinawa. After discussions in the Okinawan royal capital of Shuri with Japanese representatives of Satsuma Domain, the Japanese government summoned King Shō Tai to Tokyo to further discuss the political status of the Ryūkyū Kingdom vis-a-vis Japan. So as to not imply his subordination to the Meiji Emperor by appearing before him himself, Shō Tai feigned illness and sent a mission on his behalf, led by his uncle Prince Ie, and by Giwan Chōho.