was an unofficial designation given to a generation of elder Japanese statesmen and military officers, all born between the 1830s and 1850s, who served as informal extraconstitutional advisors to the emperor during the Meiji, Taishà Â, and early Shà Âwa eras of Japanese history.
The institution of genrà  originated with the traditional council of elders (Rà Âjà «) common in the Edo period; however, the term genrà  appears to have been coined by a newspaper only in 1892. The term is sometimes confused with the Genrà Âin (Chamber of Elders), a legislative body which existed from 1875âÂÂ1890; however, the genrà  were not related to the establishment of that body or its dissolution.
Experienced leaders of the Meiji Restoration were singled out by the Emperor as , and asked to act as Imperial advisors. With the exception of Saionji Kinmochi, all the genrà  were from medium or lower ranking samurai families, four each from Satsuma and Chà Âshà «, the two former domains that had been instrumental in the overthrow of the former Tokugawa shogunate in the Boshin War of the Meiji Restoration of 1867âÂÂ1868. The genrà  had the right to select and nominate Prime Ministers to the Emperor for approval.
The first seven genrà  were all formerly members of the Sangi (Imperial Council) which was abolished in 1885. They are also sometimes known to historians as the Meiji oligarchy, although not all of the Meiji oligarchs were genrà Â.
The institution expired in 1940, with the death of the last of the genrà Â, Saionji Kinmochi.