noun
Imperialists; pro-Emperor faction
Historical term for the faction that supported the restoration of imperial rule during the Bakumatsu period. Often contrasted with 佐幕派 (pro-shogunate faction).
尊王党は幕末に天皇を中心とした政治体制を目指した。
The Imperialists aimed for a political system centered on the Emperor at the end of the Edo period.
彼の曽祖父は尊王党の志士だったと聞いている。
I heard that his great-grandfather was a loyalist of the Imperialist faction.
The broader 'Revere the Emperor, expel the barbarians' movement, of which 尊王党 was a part.
Compound of 尊王 (sonnō, 'revere the emperor') and 党 (tō, 'party, faction'). The term emerged in the late Edo period to describe the political group advocating for imperial restoration.