Emperor Meiji, also known as Meiji the Great, was a Japanese monarch who ruled from February 1867 until his death in July 1912. The 122nd Emperor of Japan according to the traditional order of succession, he reigned over a period in history that has come to be known as the Meiji period, during which the Empire of Japan witnessed a radical transition from an isolationist feudal state to an industrialized world power. When he was born in 1852, Japan was a feudal country without any significant industry. Much of the country’s political and military power was hoarded by the Tokugawa shogunate and the daimyōs, who controlled the country's more than 250 decentralized domains. During his reign, Japan experienced an immense political, economic, and social revolution and became one of the great powers in the world stage. As part of the modern tradition, he received a posthumous name, Emperor Meiji, which was the name of the era coinciding with his reign. He also had a personal name, Mutsuhito, but it was not used in any formal affair. During his lifetime, he was simply referred to as “The Emperor”.