Yamaguchi Prefecture: 53 people
Daiki Takamatsu (高松 大樹, Takamatsu Daiki; born September 8, 1981) is a former Japanese football player. He played for…
Daiki Takamatsu (高松 大樹, Takamatsu Daiki; born September 8, 1981) is a former Japanese football player. He played for Japan national team.
Masahiro Kōmura (高村正大, Kōmura Masahiro; born 14 November 1970) is a Japanese politician serving as a member of the…
Masahiro Kōmura (高村正大, Kōmura Masahiro; born 14 November 1970) is a Japanese politician serving as a member of the House of Representatives since 2017. He is the son of Masahiko Kōmura.
Yoshihiko Fukuda (福田 良彦, Fukuda Yoshihiko; born 14 June 1970) is a Japanese politician of the Liberal Democratic Party…
Yoshihiko Fukuda (福田 良彦, Fukuda Yoshihiko; born 14 June 1970) is a Japanese politician of the Liberal Democratic Party, who is a former member of the House of Representatives in the Diet. A native of Iwakuni in Yamaguchi Prefecture and graduate of Hosei University, he was elected to the city assembly of Iwakuni in 1999, to the Yamaguchi Prefectural Assembly in 2003, and to the House of Representatives in 2005. In 2008 he was elected the Mayor of Iwakuni.
Yoshimasa Hayashi (林 芳正, Hayashi Yoshimasa; born 19 January 1961) is a Japanese politician who has been serving as…
Yoshimasa Hayashi (林 芳正, Hayashi Yoshimasa; born 19 January 1961) is a Japanese politician who has been serving as Minister for Internal Affairs and Communications since October 2025. Hayashi previously held six cabinet positions: Minister of Defence (August–September 2008), Minister of State for Economic and Fiscal Policy (July–September 2009), Minister of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (December 2012 – September 2014, February–October 2015), Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (August 2017 – October 2018), and Minister of Foreign Affairs (November 2021 – September 2023), and Chief Cabinet Secretary (December 2023 – October 2025). A member of the Liberal Democratic Party, Hayashi was first elected to the House of Councillors in 1995, where he served for five terms until 2021. He resigned from the House to stand in the 2021 general election and has been serving as a member of the House of Representatives, representing the Yamaguchi 3rd district, since October 2021.
Nobuo Kishi (岸 信夫, Kishi Nobuo; born 1 April 1959) is a Japanese politician. He sat in the House of Representatives…
Nobuo Kishi (岸 信夫, Kishi Nobuo; born 1 April 1959) is a Japanese politician. He sat in the House of Representatives from 2012 to 2023 representing Yamaguchi’s 2nd District as a member of the Liberal Democratic Party. From September 2020 to August 2022 he served as the Minister of Defense. He is the younger brother of former Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe.
Kiyoshi Ejima (born April 2, 1957) is a Japanese politician who has served as a member of the House of Councillors of…
Kiyoshi Ejima (born April 2, 1957) is a Japanese politician who has served as a member of the House of Councillors of Japan since 2013. He represents the Yamaguchi at-large district as a member of the Liberal Democratic Party.
Keigo Masuya (桝屋 敬悟, Masuya Keigo; born 3 April 1951) is a former Japanese politician of the New Komeito Party, a…
Keigo Masuya (桝屋 敬悟, Masuya Keigo; born 3 April 1951) is a former Japanese politician of the New Komeito Party, a member of the House of Representatives in the Diet (national legislature). A native of Abu District, Yamaguchi and graduate of the Soka University, he worked at the government of Yamaguchi Prefecture from 1975 to 1992. He was elected to the House of Representatives for the first time in 1993.
Hiromi Yoshida (吉田 博美, Yoshida Hiromi; 17 June 1949 – 26 October 2019) was a Japanese politician of the Liberal…
Hiromi Yoshida (吉田 博美, Yoshida Hiromi; 17 June 1949 – 26 October 2019) was a Japanese politician of the Liberal Democratic Party, a member of the House of Councillors in the Diet (national legislature). A graduate of Waseda University, he was elected to the House of Councillors for the first time in 2001 after serving in the assembly of Nagano Prefecture for five terms since 1983.
Kazunori Tanaka (田中 和徳, Tanaka Kazunori; born 21 January 1949) is a Japanese politician serving in the House of…
Kazunori Tanaka (田中 和徳, Tanaka Kazunori; born 21 January 1949) is a Japanese politician serving in the House of Representatives in the Diet (national legislature) as a member of the Liberal Democratic Party and Minister of Reconstruction. A native of Toyoura District, Yamaguchi and graduate of Hosei University he was elected for the first time in 1996 after serving in local assemblies. Tanaka was general director of the Liberal Democratic Party International bureau in 2015.
Naoto Kan (菅 直人, Kan Naoto; born 10 October 1946) is a Japanese former politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan…
Naoto Kan (菅 直人, Kan Naoto; born 10 October 1946) is a Japanese former politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan and President of the Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) from June 2010 to September 2011. Kan was the first Prime Minister since the resignation of Junichiro Koizumi in 2006 to serve for more than one year, with his predecessors Yukio Hatoyama, Tarō Asō, Yasuo Fukuda, and Shinzo Abe either resigning prematurely or losing an election. On 26 August 2011, Kan announced his resignation. Yoshihiko Noda was elected as his successor. On 1 August 2012, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon announced Kan would be one of the members of the UN high-level panel on the post-2015 development agenda. Kan would announce his retirement from politics in November 2023. In February 2024 he would publish a memoir reflecting on his time in politics titled 'Fifty Years of Citizen Politics' (市民政治50年, Shimin Seiji 50-nen).
Yoshiaki Takaki (高木 義明, Takaki Yoshiaki; born 22 December 1945) is a former Japanese politician who served in the House…
Yoshiaki Takaki (高木 義明, Takaki Yoshiaki; born 22 December 1945) is a former Japanese politician who served in the House of Representatives in the Diet (national legislature) as a member of the Democratic Party of Japan. A native of Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi and high-school graduate he was elected to the Diet for the first time in 1990 after serving in the union executive and local assemblies for 15 years.
Sekinari Nii (二井 関成, Nii Sekinari; born 20 March 1943) is the former governor of Yamaguchi Prefecture in Japan.
Takeo Kawamura (河村 建夫, Kawamura Takeo; born 10 November 1942) is a former Japanese politician from the Liberal…
Takeo Kawamura (河村 建夫, Kawamura Takeo; born 10 November 1942) is a former Japanese politician from the Liberal Democratic Party, who served as Chief Cabinet Secretary from 2008 to 2009, and a member of the House of Representatives from 1990 to 2021, representing the Yamaguchi 3rd district.
Masahiko Kōmura (高村 正彦, Kōmura Masahiko; born 15 March 1942) is a Japanese politician who served as Vice President of…
Masahiko Kōmura (高村 正彦, Kōmura Masahiko; born 15 March 1942) is a Japanese politician who served as Vice President of the Liberal Democratic Party from 2012 to 2018. He served in several cabinet position, including as Minister for Foreign Affairs from 1998 to 1999 and again from 2007 to 2008. He was a member of the House of Representatives from 1980 to 2017.
Koshin Fujitani (藤谷 光信, Fujitani Kōshin; born January 1, 1937) is a Japanese politician of the Democratic Party of…
Koshin Fujitani (藤谷 光信, Fujitani Kōshin; born January 1, 1937) is a Japanese politician of the Democratic Party of Japan, a member of the House of Councillors in the Diet (national legislature). A former member of the assembly of Yamaguchi Prefecture, he was elected to the House of Councillors for the first time in 2007. Fujitani is also an ordained Shin Buddhist priest within Honganji-ha.
Masuo Matsuoka (Japanese: 松岡満寿男 Matsuoka Masua; 4 October 1934 – 9 June 2024) was a Japanese politician. A member of…
Masuo Matsuoka (Japanese: 松岡満寿男 Matsuoka Masua; 4 October 1934 – 9 June 2024) was a Japanese politician. A member of multiple political parties, he served in the House of Councillors from 1983 to 1989 and again from 1998 to 2004. He also served in the House of Representatives from 1993 to 1996. Matsuoka died in Hikari, Yamaguchi Prefecture on 9 June 2024, at the age of 89.
Shinji Satō (佐藤 信二 Satō Shinji, 8 February 1932 – 3 May 2016) was a Japanese politician who was minister of transport…
Shinji Satō (佐藤 信二 Satō Shinji, 8 February 1932 – 3 May 2016) was a Japanese politician who was minister of transport from 1988 to 1989, and Minister of International Trade and Industry from 1996 to 1997. He was also a member of the House of Councillors from 1974 to 1979, and a member of the House of Representatives from 1979 to 2000 and again from 2003 to 2005. He was member of the Liberal Democratic Party. A member of the Satō-Kishi-Abe family, he was the second son of Prime Minister Eisaku Satō.
Yoshiro Hayashi (林 義郎, Hayashi Yoshirō; 16 June 1927 – 3 February 2017) was a Japanese politician who was Minister of…
Yoshiro Hayashi (林 義郎, Hayashi Yoshirō; 16 June 1927 – 3 February 2017) was a Japanese politician who was Minister of Finance from 1992 to 1993 and Minister of Health and Welfare from 1982 to 1983. He was elected ten times as a member of the House of Representatives since 1969.
Shintaro Abe (安倍 晋太郎, Abe Shintarō; 29 April 1924 – 15 May 1991) was a Japanese politician who served as Minister of…
Shintaro Abe (安倍 晋太郎, Abe Shintarō; 29 April 1924 – 15 May 1991) was a Japanese politician who served as Minister of Foreign Affairs from 1982 to 1986. He was a leading member of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). He was the father of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and part of the Satō–Kishi–Abe family.
Tanaka Tatsuo (Japanese: 田中 龍夫, Tanaka Tatsuo; 20 September 1910 – 30 March 1998) was a Japanese politician and baron…
Tanaka Tatsuo (Japanese: 田中 龍夫, Tanaka Tatsuo; 20 September 1910 – 30 March 1998) was a Japanese politician and baron who served as Minister of Education from 1980 to 1981 and Minister of International Trade and Industry from 1976 to 1977. He was the eldest son of Prime Minister Tanaka Giichi.
Sei Yoshida (Japanese: 吉田セイ; 24 December 1909 – 26 July 1976) was a Japanese politician. She was one of the first group…
Sei Yoshida (Japanese: 吉田セイ; 24 December 1909 – 26 July 1976) was a Japanese politician. She was one of the first group of women elected to the House of Representatives in 1946.
Kenji Miyamoto (宮本 顕治, Miyamoto Kenji; 17 October 1908 – 18 July 2007) was a Japanese communist politician. He was the…
Kenji Miyamoto (宮本 顕治, Miyamoto Kenji; 17 October 1908 – 18 July 2007) was a Japanese communist politician. He was the leader of the Japanese Communist Party (JCP) from 1958 to 1977.
Harue Yamashita (Japanese: 山下春江; 9 August 1901 – 19 March 1985) was a Japanese politician. She was one of the first…
Harue Yamashita (Japanese: 山下春江; 9 August 1901 – 19 March 1985) was a Japanese politician. She was one of the first group of women elected to the House of Representatives in 1946.
Eisaku Satō (佐藤 栄作, Satō Eisaku; 27 March 1901 – 3 June 1975) was a Japanese politician who served as prime minister of…
Eisaku Satō (佐藤 栄作, Satō Eisaku; 27 March 1901 – 3 June 1975) was a Japanese politician who served as prime minister of Japan from 1964 to 1972. He was the third longest-serving and longest-uninterrupted–serving Japanese prime minister. Satō is best remembered for securing the return of Okinawa in 1972, and for winning the Nobel Peace Prize in 1974, which stirred controversy. He was a former elite bureaucrat like his elder brother Nobusuke Kishi and a member of the Yoshida school like Hayato Ikeda. Like his predecessor, he also supported Keynesian economic policies. Born in Yamaguchi Prefecture, Satō was a member of the Satō–Kishi–Abe family and the younger brother of prime minister Nobusuke Kishi. Satō graduated from Tokyo Imperial University in 1924 and joined the Ministry of Railways. After the war, he entered the National Diet in 1949 as a member of the Liberal Party, and served in a series of cabinet positions under Shigeru Yoshida, including posts and telecommunications minister from 1951 to 1952, construction minister from 1952 to 1953, and chief cabinet secretary from 1953 to 1954. Satō later joined the Liberal Democratic Party and became finance minister from 1958 to 1960 under Nobusuke Kishi and international trade and industry minister from 1961 to 1962 under Hayato Ikeda. In 1964, Satō succeeded Ikeda as LDP president and prime minister. He had the support of Japanese business and finance, and presided over a period of rapid economic growth. In foreign policy, he oversaw the normalization of diplomatic relations with South Korea and maintained close relations with the United States, allowing the U.S.–Japan Security Treaty to renew in 1970 and arranging for the return of Okinawa to Japan in 1972. In 1967, Satō introduced the "Three Non-Nuclear Principles" (the non-production, non-possession, and non-introduction of nuclear weapons), and in 1968 signed the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, for which he won the Nobel Peace Prize. However, it was later revealed that Satō had made secret agreements with the U.S. to allow violations of the principles. Facing mounting economic problems and falling approval ratings in the early 1970s, Satō resigned in 1972 and was succeeded as prime minister by Kakuei Tanaka, quickly losing his political influence when his protégé Takeo Fukuda did not succeed him.
Yoshio Shiga (志賀 義雄, Shiga Yoshio; 12 January 1901 – 6 March 1989) was a member of the Japanese Communist Party.
Tsuneko Akamatsu (11 August 1897 – 21 July 1965) was a Japanese politician who served in the House of Councillors.
Nobusuke Kishi (岸 信介, Kishi Nobusuke; 13 November 1896 – 7 August 1987) was a Japanese bureaucrat and politician who…
Nobusuke Kishi (岸 信介, Kishi Nobusuke; 13 November 1896 – 7 August 1987) was a Japanese bureaucrat and politician who served as prime minister of Japan from 1957 to 1960. As a prominent reform bureaucrat, he directed the exploitative economic management of the Japanese puppet state of Manchukuo in China in the 1930s, and later served in the wartime cabinet. Following World War II, he was imprisoned as a suspected war criminal. After his release, he helped found the Liberal Democratic Party. As Prime Minister, Kishi forcefully revised the U.S.–Japan Security Treaty, but was compelled to resign following the massive Anpo protests the unpopular treaty had provoked. For his behind-the-scenes role in numerous important events, Kishi retrospectively received the nickname "Yōkai of the Shōwa era" (昭和の妖怪; Shōwa no yōkai). Kishi was the founder of the Satō–Kishi–Abe dynasty in Japanese politics, with his younger brother Eisaku Satō and his grandson Shinzo Abe both later serving as prime ministers of Japan. Born in Yamaguchi Prefecture, Kishi graduated from Tokyo Imperial University in 1920. He rose through the ranks at the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, and during the 1930s led the industrial development of Manchukuo, where he exploited Chinese slave labor. Kishi served in the wartime cabinet of Hideki Tōjō as minister of commerce and industry from 1941 to 1943 and vice minister of munitions from 1943 to 1944. At the end of the war in 1945, Kishi was imprisoned as a suspected Class A war criminal, but U.S. occupation authorities did not charge, try, or convict him, and released him in 1948 during the Reverse Course. At the end of the occupation in 1952, Kishi was de-purged, enabling his election to the National Diet in 1953. With overt and covert U.S. support, he consolidated Japanese conservatives against perceived threats from the Japan Socialist Party, and in 1955 was instrumental in forming the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). Kishi was thus key in establishing the "1955 System" under which the LDP remains Japan's dominant party. Kishi served as the first secretary-general of the LDP and as foreign minister under Prime Minister Tanzan Ishibashi before succeeding Ishibashi in 1957. During his tenure, Kishi had the strong backing of business, and promoted domestic industry and commercial interests in Southeast Asia. In 1958, he introduced a bill which would have granted police vastly expanded powers, but withdrew it under heavy opposition. Kishi's mishandling of the 1960 revision of the U.S.–Japan Security Treaty led to the Anpo protests, the largest protests in Japan's modern history, and he resigned in disgrace. He remained a member of the House of Representatives until 1979 as a staunch anti-communist and conservative with links to right-wing groups.
Genki Abe (安倍源基, Abe Genki; 14 February 1894 – 8 October 1989) was a lawyer, police bureaucrat and cabinet minister in…
Genki Abe (安倍源基, Abe Genki; 14 February 1894 – 8 October 1989) was a lawyer, police bureaucrat and cabinet minister in early Shōwa era Japan.
Sanzō Nosaka (野坂 参三, Nosaka Sanzō; March 30, 1892 – November 14, 1993) was a Japanese writer, editor, labor organizer…
Sanzō Nosaka (野坂 参三, Nosaka Sanzō; March 30, 1892 – November 14, 1993) was a Japanese writer, editor, labor organizer, communist agent, politician, and university professor and a founder of the Japanese Communist Party (JCP). He was the son of a wealthy Japanese merchant, and attended Keio University. While in university, Nosaka became interested in social movements, and joined a moderate labor organization after graduation, working as a research staff member, and as a writer and editor of the organization's magazine. He traveled to Britain in 1919 to study political economy, where he deepened his studies of Marxism and became a confirmed communist. Nosaka was a founding member of the Communist Party of Great Britain, but his activity within British communist circles led to him being deported from Britain in 1921. After leaving Britain, Nosaka traveled through the Soviet Union (USSR). He returned to Japan in 1922, where he co-founded the Japanese Communist Party (JCP). Nosaka became a labor organizer, but was arrested twice by the Japanese government for his activities. After being released from prison a second time, Nosaka secretly returned to the USSR in 1931, where he became an agent of the Comintern. He traveled to the West Coast of the United States, where he worked as a spy from 1934 to 1938. After leaving the United States, Nosaka worked in China from 1940 to 1945, supporting the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) by encouraging and recruiting captured Japanese soldiers to support and fight for the Chinese communists against the Imperial Japanese Army, and coordinating a spy network that operated throughout Japanese-occupied China. After the end of the Second World War in 1945, Nosaka returned to Japan with hundreds of other Japanese communists, where he led the JCP during the occupation by the Allies. Nosaka attempted to brand the JCP as a "lovable" populist party supporting Japan's peaceful transition to socialism, but his strategy was criticized within the party and within the Soviet Union. During the Korean War the JCP temporarily endorsed violence, and Nosaka disappeared from public life and went underground. He re-emerged to lead the JCP again in 1955, after which he attempted to disrupt the US-Japan Security Treaty by organizing public demonstrations, but he generally supported the JCP's role as a peaceful party. In 1958 Nosaka became Chairman of the JCP, a position he held until retirement at the age of 90, after which he was declared Honorary Chairman. Nosaka joined the faculty of Keio University, and he was widely idolized among left-wing intellectuals until shortly before his death, when the fall of the Soviet Union exposed controversial aspects of his relationship with Joseph Stalin's Communist regime.
Miyagi Tamayo (宮城タマヨ, Miyagi Tamayo; 1 February 1892 – 19 November 1960), née Ueda (植田, Ueda), was a Japanese social…
Miyagi Tamayo (宮城タマヨ, Miyagi Tamayo; 1 February 1892 – 19 November 1960), née Ueda (植田, Ueda), was a Japanese social worker and politician who was a member of the House of Councillors.
Yoshisuke Aikawa (or Gisuke Ayukawa) (鮎川 義介, Aikawa Yoshisuke; 6 November 1880 – 13 February 1967) was a Japanese…
Yoshisuke Aikawa (or Gisuke Ayukawa) (鮎川 義介, Aikawa Yoshisuke; 6 November 1880 – 13 February 1967) was a Japanese entrepreneur, businessman, and politician, noteworthy as the founder and first president of the Nissan zaibatsu, one of Japan's most powerful business conglomerates around the time of the Second World War.
Nobumasa Suetsugu (末次 信正, Suetsugu Nobumasa; 30 June 1880 – 29 December 1944) was an admiral in the Imperial Japanese…
Nobumasa Suetsugu (末次 信正, Suetsugu Nobumasa; 30 June 1880 – 29 December 1944) was an admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy, and briefly served as Home Minister in the 1940s.
Yōsuke Matsuoka (松岡 洋右, Matsuoka Yōsuke; March 4, 1880 – June 27, 1946) was a Japanese diplomat and Minister for…
Yōsuke Matsuoka (松岡 洋右, Matsuoka Yōsuke; March 4, 1880 – June 27, 1946) was a Japanese diplomat and Minister for Foreign Affairs of the Empire of Japan during the early stages of World War II. He is best known for his defiant speech at the League of Nations in February 1933, ending Japan's participation in the organization. He was also one of the architects of the Tripartite Pact and the Soviet–Japanese Neutrality Pact in the years immediately prior to the outbreak of war.
Count Hisaichi Terauchi (寺内 寿一, Terauchi Hisaichi; 8 August 1879 – 12 June 1946) was a Gensui (or field marshal) in the…
Count Hisaichi Terauchi (寺内 寿一, Terauchi Hisaichi; 8 August 1879 – 12 June 1946) was a Gensui (or field marshal) in the Imperial Japanese Army, commander of the Southern Expeditionary Army Group during World War II.
Ushimaro Sawada (沢田 牛麿, Sawada Ushimaro; 6 February 1874 – 29 January 1958) was a Japanese bureaucrat and politician…
Ushimaro Sawada (沢田 牛麿, Sawada Ushimaro; 6 February 1874 – 29 January 1958) was a Japanese bureaucrat and politician who served as Governor of Aomori Prefecture, Governor of Saga Prefecture, Governor of Ishikawa Prefecture, Governor of Fukuoka Prefecture, 19th Director-General of the Hokkaidō Agency, and later as a member of the House of Peers.
Kamiyama Mitsunoshin (上山 満之進, 31 October 1869 – 30 July 1938) was the 11th Governor-General of Taiwan (1926–1928). He…
Kamiyama Mitsunoshin (上山 満之進, 31 October 1869 – 30 July 1938) was the 11th Governor-General of Taiwan (1926–1928). He was Governor of Kumamoto Prefecture (1912–1913).
Nakashōji Ren (仲小路 廉; 12 August 1866 – 17 January 1924) was a politician and cabinet minister in the pre-war Empire of…
Nakashōji Ren (仲小路 廉; 12 August 1866 – 17 January 1924) was a politician and cabinet minister in the pre-war Empire of Japan. Nakashōji was a graduate of the Osaka Prefectural Kitano High School. After graduating from the Kaisei Academy, he worked for a period as court-appointed attorney in the lower court system, and subsequently as a legal councilor in the Court of Appeals and assessor in the Administrative Court system. Afterwards, he entered the central government bureaucracy, and served in various capacities within the Ministry of Communications and Home Ministry. He was selected as Minister of Agriculture and Commerce under the Third Katsura Cabinet from 1912 to 1913, and again to the same portfolio under the Terauchi Cabinet from 1916 to 1918. He was later appointed to a seat in the Upper House of the Diet of Japan, and served on the Privy Council.
Baron Tanaka Giichi (Japanese: 田中 義一; IPA: [ta̠na̠ka̠ ɡʲiːt͡ɕi]; 22 June 1864 – 29 September 1929) was a Japanese…
Baron Tanaka Giichi (Japanese: 田中 義一; IPA: [ta̠na̠ka̠ ɡʲiːt͡ɕi]; 22 June 1864 – 29 September 1929) was a Japanese general and politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan from 1927 to 1929. Born to a samurai family in the Chōshū Domain, Tanaka became an officer in the Imperial Japanese Army and rose through the ranks. He served as Minister of the Army under Prime Ministers Hara Takashi and Yamamoto Gonnohyōe. After retiring from active duty he accepted the presidency of the Rikken Seiyūkai, a major conservative party. Following the resignation of the Wakatsuki Cabinet in 1927, Tanaka was appointed Prime Minister. In foreign affairs, he pursued a hawkish policy; in domestic affairs, he sought to suppress communist and socialist movements. Criticised for his handling of the unauthorised assassination of Zhang Zuolin by a Kwangtung Army officer, he resigned in 1929 and died soon afterwards.
Gaishi Nagaoka (長岡 外史, Nagaoka Gaishi; June 23, 1858 – April 21, 1933) was a Japanese military officer. He served in…
Gaishi Nagaoka (長岡 外史, Nagaoka Gaishi; June 23, 1858 – April 21, 1933) was a Japanese military officer. He served in the First Sino-Japanese War and was Vice Chief of the General Staff in Japan during the Russo-Japanese War. He became a member of the House of Representatives in 1924. He was also an avid supporter of early military and civilian aviation in Japan.
Egi Kazuyuki (江木 千之, Kazuyuki Egi; 21 May 1853 – 23 August 1932) was a Japanese bureaucrat and politician in Meiji and…
Egi Kazuyuki (江木 千之, Kazuyuki Egi; 21 May 1853 – 23 August 1932) was a Japanese bureaucrat and politician in Meiji and Taishō period.
Viscount Kodama Gentarō (兒玉 源太郎; 16 March 1852 – 23 July 1906) was a Japanese general in the Imperial Japanese Army and…
Viscount Kodama Gentarō (兒玉 源太郎; 16 March 1852 – 23 July 1906) was a Japanese general in the Imperial Japanese Army and a government minister during the Meiji period. He was instrumental in establishing the modern Imperial Japanese military.
Count Terauchi Masatake (寺内 正毅; 5 February 1852 – 3 November 1919) was a Japanese military officer and politician who…
Count Terauchi Masatake (寺内 正毅; 5 February 1852 – 3 November 1919) was a Japanese military officer and politician who served as prime minister of Japan from 1916 to 1918. He was a Gensui (or Marshal) in the Imperial Japanese Army.
Prince Katsura Tarō (桂 太郎; 4 January 1848 – 10 October 1913) was a Japanese statesman and general who served as prime…
Prince Katsura Tarō (桂 太郎; 4 January 1848 – 10 October 1913) was a Japanese statesman and general who served as prime minister of Japan from 1901 to 1906, from 1908 to 1911, and from 1912 to 1913. He was a genrō, or senior statesman who helped dictate policy during the Meiji era, and is the second-longest serving Japanese prime minister after Shinzo Abe, serving for a combined total of 7 years and 330 days. Born in the Choshu Domain to a samurai family, Katsura participated in the Boshin War that led to the Meiji Restoration in 1868. He spent several years studying military science in Germany, and became a protégé of Yamagata Aritomo. He distinguished himself in the First Sino-Japanese War, then served as governor-general of Taiwan and later as minister of war from 1898 to 1901, when he was appointed prime minister. Katsura's relatively stable tenure saw Japan's victory in the Russo-Japanese War before he was forced to resign in 1906 amid public outrage at the government's failure to secure an indemnity from Russia. He returned as premier in 1908, and showed authoritarian tendencies in the crackdown on the High Treason Incident of 1910, which saw the mass arrest of leftists and which was followed by the establishment of the Special Higher Police in 1911. In 1910, Korea was annexed by Japan. After Emperor Meiji's death in 1912, Katsura became prime minister again, which triggered the Taisho Political Crisis. He resigned three months later after a vote of no confidence.
Count Yamada Akiyoshi (山田 顕義; November 18, 1844 – November 11, 1892) was a Japanese politician, samurai, and one of the…
Count Yamada Akiyoshi (山田 顕義; November 18, 1844 – November 11, 1892) was a Japanese politician, samurai, and one of the early leaders of the Meiji Restoration. He served as Minister of Justice from 1885 to 1891. In his youth he was commonly known as Yamada Ichinojō; however, he changed his name frequently during the Bakumatsu period.
Viscount Shinagawa Yajirō (品川 弥二郎; 20 November 1843 – 26 February 1900) was a Japanese samurai of the Chōshū Domain and…
Viscount Shinagawa Yajirō (品川 弥二郎; 20 November 1843 – 26 February 1900) was a Japanese samurai of the Chōshū Domain and politician who became Home Minister in the early Meiji period.
Baron Utsumi Tadakatsu (内海 忠勝; 12 September 1843 – 20 January 1905) was a Japanese bureaucrat, statesman and cabinet…
Baron Utsumi Tadakatsu (内海 忠勝; 12 September 1843 – 20 January 1905) was a Japanese bureaucrat, statesman and cabinet minister, active in Meiji period Empire of Japan.
Baron Arichi Shinanojō (有地 品之允; 15 March 1843 – 17 January 1919) was an admiral in the early Imperial Japanese Navy…
Baron Arichi Shinanojō (有地 品之允; 15 March 1843 – 17 January 1919) was an admiral in the early Imperial Japanese Navy, and served as Chief of the Imperial Japanese Navy General Staff in the late 19th century.
Prince Yamagata Aritomo (Japanese: 山縣 有朋; 14 June 1838 – 1 February 1922) was a Japanese statesman and general who…
Prince Yamagata Aritomo (Japanese: 山縣 有朋; 14 June 1838 – 1 February 1922) was a Japanese statesman and general who twice served as prime minister of Japan, in 1889–1891 and 1898–1900. He was a leading member of the genrō, a group of senior courtiers and statesmen who dominated the politics of Japan during the Meiji era. As the Imperial Japanese Army's inaugural Chief of Staff, he was the chief architect of its nationalist and reactionary ideology, which has led some historians to consider him the "father" of Japanese militarism. Born to a low-ranking samurai family in the Chōshū Domain, Yamagata became a leader in the loyalist movement to overthrow the Tokugawa shogunate. As a commander in the Boshin War, he helped lead the military forces of the Satsuma–Chōshū Alliance to victory in the Meiji Restoration. Following the Restoration, he traveled to Europe to study Western military systems and returned to become the central figure in the creation of the modern Imperial Japanese Army, implementing a nationwide conscription system. He led the new conscript army to victory over the Satsuma Rebellion in 1877, which validated his military reforms and destroyed the last vestiges of the samurai class, including the right to bear swords. He further secured the army's independence from civilian control by creating an autonomous Imperial Army General Staff which reported directly to the Emperor of Japan. Entering civilian government, Yamagata served as Home Minister, where he established an efficient, centralized police and local government system. As Prime Minister from 1889 to 1891, he oversaw the opening of the first Imperial Diet under the new Meiji Constitution. Thereafter, he engaged in a protracted political contest with Itō Hirobumi over the nature of constitutional government. Whereas Itō grew to favor a system of compromise with the political parties, Yamagata remained a staunch advocate of a "transcendental" government where the cabinet would be composed of non-partisan bureaucrats accountable only to the emperor. After the First Sino-Japanese War of 1894–1895, he served a second term as Prime Minister from 1898 to 1900, during which he passed laws to prevent political party members from holding key bureaucratic posts. From the outset of the 1900s, Yamagata vied against Itō for supremacy among the Meiji oligarchy. Upon Ito's assassination on 26 October 1909, he consolidated power to become the dominant figure in the Emperor's court. However, a political scandal that involved his meddling in Crown Prince Hirohito's engagement led to him losing power shortly before his death in February 1922.
Viscount Yamao Yōzō (山尾 庸三; 5 November 1837 – 21 December 1917) was a Japanese samurai of the late Edo period who…
Viscount Yamao Yōzō (山尾 庸三; 5 November 1837 – 21 December 1917) was a Japanese samurai of the late Edo period who became an influential member of the Meiji era government of Japan.
Marquess Inoue Kaoru (井上 馨; 16 January 1836 – 1 September 1915) was a Japanese politician and a prominent member of the…
Marquess Inoue Kaoru (井上 馨; 16 January 1836 – 1 September 1915) was a Japanese politician and a prominent member of the Meiji oligarchy during the Meiji period of the Empire of Japan. As one of the senior statesmen (Genrō) in Japan during that period, he had a tremendous influence on the selection of the nation's leaders and formation of its policies.