Emperor Meiji[a] (明治天皇, Meiji-tennō, 3 November 1852 – 30 July 1912), also called Meiji the Great (明治大帝, Meiji-taitei), was the 122nd emperor of Japan according to the traditional order of succession. Reigning from 13 February 1867 to his death, he was the first monarch of the Empire of Japan and presided over the Meiji era. He was the figurehead of the Meiji Restoration, a series of rapid changes that witnessed Japan's transformation from an isolationist, feudal state to an industrialized world