The Meiji renovation; the consolidation of the Meiji state and the growth of political opposition, 1878-1890;the constitutional experiment and the beginning of compromise politics, 1890-1905; political party consolidation, oligarchic reaction and the emergence of new forces, 1905-1918; party cabinets, radical movements and the collapse of Taisho democracy, 1918-1932; the pursuit of greater national unity and the war state, 1932-1945; the postwar reshaping of Japanese politics, 1945-1952; the "1955 System" and the era of LDP dominance, 1952-1993; the shake-up of Japanese politics, 1993-2000.