"That most unfortunate war, which I deeply deplore"
Hirohito
Hirohito
April 29, 1901 - Jan. 7, 1989 |
Japan's Emperor Hirohito 1926(8) - 1989 (See: Militarism) Hirohito's time line: November 1928 - Hirohito was officially crowned the Emperor of Japan, even though he had been the head of state since his father Emperor Taisho's passing on 25 Dec 1926 August 1937 - Hirohito ordered that Chinese prisoners of war would not receive the treatment demanded upon by international law September 1941 – Hirohito agreed with the proposal that, unless peace could be achieved by 10 Oct 1941, Japan was to prepare for war November 1941 - Hirohito agreed with the proposal that, unless peace could be achieved by 10 Oct 1941, Japan was to prepare for war December 1941 - At an Imperial Conference held in Tokyo, Japan, the decision was taken to go to war with the United States. According to Prime Minister Hideki Tojo, Emperor Hirohito, did not utter a single word in response. June 1944 – Hirohito gave approval "in principle" to the use of special attacks January 1946 - Emperor Hirohito of Japan renounced his divinity Hirohito as a leader: Hirohito (1901-1989), following the Japanese custom, was raised by military officials and later attended a school where he was taught tough, rigorous, militaristic, and religious matters. He was an emperor of Japan from 1926 to 1989. Shortly after he took over, Japan started to turn toward militarism. During his early ruling, he appointed a number of prime ministers all which were assassinated. Hirohito realized that his efforts were pointless and nominated a military official for the post. However, domestic military aggression continued and in 1936 several high ranking politicians were murdered and their positions were also replaced with military representatives. It is stipulated that during the Chinese war, Hirohito allowed the terror and massacre over Chinese citizens due to the fear of being forced by military to abdicate. In addition, Hirohito gave permission to conduct military actions against USA at Pearl Harbor. Despite his self-portrait as a powerless monarch many scholars now believe that he did play an active role during the war. In the months to follow Japan was at war with all of its neighbors. The Japanese military leaders continued the war efforts, despite the turning point of the Pacific conflict. It was not until the atomic bombs were dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki that Hirohito made an official announcement of surrender. |