Akizuki Rebellion The 1876 was one of a number of uprisings by members of the former samurai - class which took place in the early Meiji period in Kyūshū and other parts of western Japan against the new Meiji government . Background . Following the 1868 Meiji Restoration , many members of the former samurai class were disgruntled with the direction the nation had taken . The abolition of their former privileged social status under the feudal order had also eliminated their income , and the establishment of universal military conscription had eliminated much of their raison d ' etre . The very rapid modernization ( Westernization ) of the country was resulting in massive changes to Japanese culture , dress and society , and appeared to many samurai to be a betrayal of the " joi " ( “ Expel the Barbarian ” ) portion of the " Sonnō jōi " justification used to overthrow the former Tokugawa shogunate . The revolt . The Akizuki Rebellion began on 27 October 1876 , in the former Akizuki Domain ( now part of Asakura city Fukuoka Prefecture , in response to a call to action by the leaders of the Shinpūren Rebellion , an attack on Kumamoto castle , three days earlier . The Akizuki rebels were led by a number of former samurai retainers of Akizuki domain who had formed a political society called the " Kanjōtai " . Its leadership included Iso Jun , Toki Kiyoshi , Masuda Shizukata , Imamura Hyakuhachirō and Miyazaki Kurumanosuke . Their main points of contention with the new government were the ban on carrying swords , the government ' s refusal to follow Shimazu Hisamitsu ' s advice to halt the westernization of the country , and especially the outcome of the " Seikanron " debate over invasion of Korea . The " Kanjōtai ' s " strong advocacy of overseas expansionism was rooted in the belief that such a war would restore the former samurai class to its former prominence and prestige . Iso , Miyazaki and the other leaders of the rebellion sought to enlist support from other " shizoku " in the area , and eventually gathered a band of roughly 400 men . However , not all agreed with Miyazaki ' s plan to march to the aid of the " Shinpūren " rebels , and eventually only 200 men set off , under a white banner with the " kanji " . The revolt began with the killing of police officers at their post at Myōgan - ji , a local Buddhist temple ; this was the first time in Japanese history that a member of the modern police force was killed in the line of duty . The rebels meant to rendezvous with a band of " shizoku " from the former Toyotsu Domain under Sugyu Jūrō , and arrived at the rendezvous point on October 29 only to learn that their compatriots had already been arrested and imprisoned . The rebels were then attacked by the Kokura garrison of the Imperial Japanese Army , under the command of Nogi Maresuke . Seventeen rebels were killed , and two government soldiers . The rebels were chased into the hills , where , on October 31 , Iso , Miyazaki , Toki , and four others committed suicide . Meanwhile , Imamura led twenty - six warriors back to Akizuki , where they raided the elementary school and killed two government officials . They then burned down a liquor shop ' s storehouse where rebels had been previously detained , but by November 24 , all the rebels were apprehended . Masuda Shizukata had left for the former Saga Domain in an attempt to raise support among the warriors there , but was apprehended on his way back to Akizuki on October 26 , even before his compatriots began their uprising . The surviving rebels were brought before a temporary military tribunal in Fukuoka on December 3 . Imamura and Masuda were beheaded the same day , and 150 of their compatriots were sentenced to hard labor . Akizuki castle was torn down shortly afterwards .