Hideki Tojo
Categories: 1884 births | 1948 deaths | Japanese military leaders | Japanese prime ministers | Executed politicians | World War II political leaders
Hideki Tojo (東條 英機 Tōjō Hideki ▶(?)) (December 30 1884 – December 23 1948) was a General in the Imperial Japanese Army, political right-wing thinker and the 40th Prime Minister of Japan during much of World War II, from October 18 1941 to July 22 1944.
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Military and political life
Tojo was born in Tokyo, Japan in 1884. He was the third son of Hidenori Tojo, a Lieutenant General in the Japanese Army. Tojo's two older brothers died before his birth. By 1909 he married Katsuko Ito, with whom he had three sons and four daughters.
In 1905 he graduated from the Military Academy and entered service as a Second Lieutenant of infantry. He rose through the ranks of the Army, graduating with top grade from the Army college in 1915. After graduation, he taught at the war college and served as an infantry officer. He did occasional duty on the general staff.
During 1920s period Tojo was also member of the Tosei-Ha (Control Group) along with Kazushige Ugaki, Gen Sugiyama,Koiso Kuniaki,Yoshijiro Umezu and Tetsuzan Nagata. They attempted to represent the more conservative moderates in opposition to the radical group Koda-Ha (Imperial Benevolent Rule or Action Group) led by Sadao Araki. Both factions derived from the Double Leaf Society, a 1920s militaristic group with fanatical ultranationalism beliefs.
By 1935, he was a major general commanding the Kempeitai of the Kantogun in the Japanese puppet state of Manchukuo, and by 1937 he was Chief of Staff of that army. In 1938, Tojo served as Vice-Minister of War. From December of 1938 to 1940, Tojo was Inspector-General of Army Aviation. He was also the real commander-in-chief at charge of Japanese Secret Services before and Pacific War period in direct link with Koki Hirota and leading the secret services in Black Dragon Society and other Japanese secret societies.
Tojo and General Honjo (some reconoited Sadao Araki partidaire),during "2-26 Incident" after some initial success, suprisingly acted against the rebels. The Emperor acted with unusual force against the coup and after a brief political crisis and stalling from the military, the rebels were forced to surrender. In the aftermath, many radical officers were retired and the coup leaders were tried and executed.
During his period at the Home Ministry he was leading the Keishicho (Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department) in this period.
He became 24th Infantry Brigade Commander, August 1934; Commanding General, Military Police, Kantogun, September 1935; LtGen, December 1936; Chief of Staff, Kantogun, March 1937; Vice-Minister of War, May 1938 (during first Konoye Cabinet); Inspector General of Army Aviation, December 1938;
He personally lead the Chahar Battle,in July, 1937, the units of the 1st Independent Mixed Brigade. When the China Incident occured,these section stay stationed in Manchukuo moved toHopei and fought near Peking against Chinese forces. Then the Brigade was ordered to participate in the offensive in the Chahar Province. The Brigade marched via Chengde and Dolonnor and reached at Zhangbei in 5 days. The distance of this long march was 700km.
Such unit were dispersed to certain infantry divisions and had not been used concentratively.seeing this use of the armors, Commander Sakai the direct tank commader,was opposed to Major General Tojo who was the highest commander of the Chahar Expeditionary Force;other officer under your leading in same operation was Kitsuju Ayabe.he became the highest commander of all Japanese forces later.
In the late 1930s, Tojo became a member of the military clique (Kodoha Movement)that pushed Japan into the Second World War. Appointed War Minister in 1940, he was instrumental in leading Japan into the Axis Alliance with Germany and Italy. When Prime Minister Fumimaro Konoe was unable to secure an agreement with the United States, Tojo's faction drove him into retirement, and in 1941 Tojo was appointed prime minister by Emperor Hirohito and took command of the entire Japanese military,also leadership in Imperial Way Faction party in time.Though Hirohito remained nominally in charge, the dominance of the Japanese military at the time ensured that Tojo was the nation's effective dictator. At varying times during his premiership, Tojo held the portfolios of Foreign Affairs, Education, Home Affairs, Commerce and Industry, and Munitions. In 1944, Tojo assumed the post of Chief of the Army General Staff.
He was the War Minister, July 1940 in the second Konoye Cabinet and remained as War Minister in third Konoye Cabinet, July 1941; Prime Minister- concurrently Minister of Home Affairs-and Minister of War, October 1941, he was also the supreme leader and thinker in Kodoha party; concurrently Minister of Foreign Affairs(General), September 1942; concurrently Minister of Education, April 1943; concurrently Minister of Commerce and Industry, October 1943; concurrently Munitions Ministry (Japan), November 1943; Chief of Army General Staff, February 1944. He was relieved of all posts in July 1944, since fall of Saipan and retired to first reserve list.
When he was the education minister, he continued the militaristic and nationalist indoctrination in the national education system, along of with reafirmation of right-wing policies in managing of government, in accordace with lines traced by Sadao Araki, his thinking and political precursor.
During World War II, he led Japanese forces in the Pacific War, but after a series of military disasters, he was forced to resign on July 18, 1944, when some of his backers abandoned him in the aftermath of the fall of Saipan. He left government and went into seclusion.
Tojo's nickname was "the razor (kamisori)".
Military Service
2dLt (Infantry), April 1905; was graduated from War College, December 1915; official duty, Switzerland, August 1919; Major, August 1920; official duty, Germany, July 1921; LtCol, August 1924; Colonel, August 1918; Regimental Commander, 1st Infantry, August 1929; MajGen, March 1933; Commandant,"Rikugun Shikan Gakko" (Military Academy), March 1934;
Rise to prime ministership
In those days, the Japanese army was strongly pushing to begin the war because Germany was winning. Tojo was one of these advocates of war. However, Hirohito did not want to start the war and preferred to keep negotiating with the U.S. in order to find a way out of the conflict. However, the prevailing opinion within the Japanese Army at that time was that continued negotiations could be dangerous. In addition, the US cut off Japan's oil supply. Hirohito thought that he might be able to control extreme opinions in the army by using Tojo since he was charismatic and had many connections within the military. Actually, at that time, Tojo was said to be the only person who could control the army. Also, Tojo was a loyal retainer of the emperor as Hirohito said later. Therefore, Hirohito called Tojo to come to the Imperial Palace one day before Tojo's took office. Tojo wrote in his diary, "I thought I was called because the emperor was really angry at my opinion."
After arrival, Tojo given one order from the emperor: that was to keep negotiating no matter what. The emperor of Showa said from Japanese record, "keep negotiating even if the U.S requires Japan to retreat its soldiers from China to Manchuria." Tojo accepted this order, and pledged to obey it because he was respecting the emperor. With that,Tojo then became the Prime Minister.
However, from the U.S. perspective, the new prime minister looked like as if Japan decided to begin the war because the person who strongly stated to begin the war became the prime minister. This misconception became one of the reasons to show the Hull Note to Japan.
Tojo did his best to keep negotiating. However, the results were not good for the Japanese side. Japan then made the final decision to begin the war after seeing the Hull Note. The night of December 7th (The U.S was 6th), Tojo was said to have sat on a futon (Japanese bed)with his back straight and his knees together, sobbing. He might have regretted his act, or might have been apologizing to the emperor.
In addition, the Japanese fleet which attacked the Pearl Harbor was ordered by admiral Isoroku Yamamoto that if the negotiation did not succeed immediately before the attack, the fleet must return to Japan without the air raid on Pearl Harbor.
Numerous theories about political forces at work during this process include conspiracy theories about a concerted effort within the military-industrial complex of Japan and the right wing to derail negotiations and forge ahead with plans for colonialism and war.
Prime Minister Tojo and Navy Plan to Australian Invasion
Prime Minister Tojo,as he believed that there were no contingency plans considered for Yamamoto's Invasion Plan to Australia. General Tojo was concerned that the Japanese merchant and transport fleets was extended to its limit and the Americans could readily divert their B-17 Flying Fortresses to Sydney to destroy the invading forces.
Emperor Hirohito decided to postpone the Invasion Plan until Japanese forces had taken Burma and joined forces with the rebel Indian Nationalists.The outcomes of the Battles of the Coral Sea and Midway ensured the Invasion Plan for Australia was never revised.
General Tojo,was ardent partner of North Strike Group and your declared intention to realizing operations from Manchukuo and nearest areas,along Kwantung Army againts Russians in Soviet Far East,Outer Mongolia and Siberian lands.he if fanatical anticomunist,since your period in leading Kempeitai force in Manchukuo and support such plans.
Postwar legacy
After Japan surrendered in 1945 Tojo shot himself in the chest in a suicide attempt. He survived and was arrested a short time later. He recovered from his injuries at a hospital.
He then was tried by the International Military Tribunal for the Far East for war crimes. He was found guilty of the following crimes:
- count 1 (waging wars of aggression, and war or wars in violation of international law)
- count 27 (waging unprovoked war against China)
- count 29 (waging aggressive war against the United States)
- count 31 (waging aggressive war against the British Commonwealth)
- count 32 (waging aggressive war against the Netherlands (Indonesia))
- count 33 (waging aggressive war against France (Indochina))
- count 54 (ordering, authorizing, and permitting inhumane treatment of Prisoners of War (POWs) and others)
He was sentenced to death on November 12, 1948 and executed by hanging. He is the only head of government to date to be executed for war crimes.
Because of the crimes committed under his authority, Tojo is often considered responsible for the murder of tens of thousands of Allied POWs and more than 10 million civilians in China, Korea, Philippines, Indochina, and in the other Pacific island nations, as well as for the approval of government-sanctioned biological experiments on POWs and ordinary Chinese civilians. There is some controversy over the extent of his responsibility, as he often claimed to be working on the orders of Emperor Hirohito, who was granted immunity from war crimes prosecution. As a result, some believe that Tojo and many other convicted war criminals ultimately became martyrs for the Emperor.
Tojo's commemorating tomb is located in a shrine in Hazu, Aichi. He was survived by a number of his descendants, including his granddaughter, Yuko Tojo, a right-wing activist, and his second son, Teruo Tojo, who designed fighter and passenger aircraft during and after the war and eventually served as an executive at Mitsubishi Heavy Industries.
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