Saigo Takamori's path from Restoration leader to rebel

Saigo Takamori appears first as the Restoration commander who accepted Edo's surrender from Katsu Kaishu. His later career reversed sharply: after pressing for confrontation with Korea and losing his place in government, he became the central figure of the Satsuma Rebellion. His final campaign ended at Shiroyama, where a severe wound preceded his death. The traditional account involves seppuku and decapitation, although the precise sequence after he was wounded remains uncertain. That later revolt complicates any picture of the Restoration coalition as a permanently united bloc. It also supplies historical context for the popular memory of the last samurai examined later in the video.