The Rise of Militarism in Japan

Part 1: Gordon’s Chapter 11 – The Depression Crisis and Responses

Economic & Social Crisis

What were the two economic policies pursued by PM Hamaguchi throughout the 1920s in a bid to revive the stagnant economy?
1. He forced down domestic prices and encouraged exports by tightening the money supply and cutting govt spending
2. Returned to a fixed exchange rate (i.e. return to the gold standard)
How did the zaibatsu banks take advantage of the government’s move to return to the gold standard in 1930?
1. They sold massive amounts of yen for dollars before the former depreciated any further
2. And when Japan left the gold standard, the value of the yen fell quickly by half against the dollar, that’s when the zaibatsu banks doubled their money by repurchasing the cheaper Japanese currency with their dollars
Explain what Gordon means when he writes that the “zaibatsu banks behaved in a way that was economically smart but politically damaging” (p. 182).
1. They were profitting handsomely by selling out the country during a depression
2. Reinforced the belief that the capitalists and their allies in the political parties were greedy and selfish
How did the economic crisis of the late 1920s/ early 1930s affect i) Japanese farmers, ii) tenant farmers, and iii) urban traders/ workers?
1. Famers – Incomes tumbled as the average price of basic agricultural commodities including rice and barley fell by 43%; small-scale landowners were unable to pay taxes.
2. Tenant farmers – Went on the offensive and demanded rent reductions; disputes over contractual matters rose from 5% in the early 1920s to nearly 50% by the depression years.
3. Urban traders/ workers – Retail traders faced bankruptcy when wage cuts and job losses cut the buying power of their customers; annual rates of failure of Tokyo retail stores doubled from 1926-1930; small-scale manufacturing also failed by the thousands.
Gordon writes that the established political parties had responded rather ineffectively to the economic problems facing the Japanese populace. How did small businessmen react to this inefficiency?
1. Lambasted the Seiyukai and Minseito – “running dogs of big capital”.
2. The Imperial Middle Class Federated Alliance claimed that the established parties had betrayed them by becoming the political lackeys of the capitalist cliques and trampling on the middle class.
3. Believed that Japan needed a “revolution in economic thought”
4. Demanded new policies to guarantee the “prosperity of the mainstay class” of taxpayers
Briefly describe the social crisis that ensued during the depression years.
1. Labour disputes took place in unprecedented numbers and with a new intensity - took placed in small and large factories; more women took part in such disputes (esp in textiles, e.g. Tokyo Muslin textile mills)
2. Organised workers engaged in prolonged disputes which often turned violent. Tried to draw in authorities as mediators so as to win a favourable compromise
  1. The “chimney man” escapade is one significant example of the application of such a tactic
3. Behaviour of women – newly militant factory workers; the flamboyant middle-class “modern girl”; the surge of café waitressing (undermined the social logic of the sexual and moral order)
4. Nation faced a “student thought problem” – govt feared an underground communist movement and a more general attraction to Marxism and other revolutionary ideas; hundreds of university students suspected of communist party membership were arrested in 1928 (Tokyo University New Man Society dissolved by the MOE); wave of student protests broke out in 1930-31 (over national politics).
Gordon writes, “... Japan’s experience of economic depression was actually less severe than that of the United States as measured in statistic for unemployment or industrial output. But the perception of crisis was profound and consequential, among the masses no less than the elites.” What impact did this have on parliamentary rule?
1. Provoked a departure from parliamentary rule.

Breaking the Impasse: New Departures Abroad

From whom did the impetus for change come from?
1. Members of the officer corps in the military and their civilian right-wing allies
Identify four things that the above group(s) (as identified in Question 9) was/ were unhappy with.
1. Perceived weakness of the cooperative diplomacy pursued by political parties
2. Cutbacks in military budgets and force size
3. Feared the Chinese Nationalist Party’s challenge to Japanese hegemony in Manchuria and North China
4. Resented the decline of the military’s prestige at home
What was their response to that unhappiness/ resentment?
1. Acts of rebellion and independent military actions (dramatically changed the political landscape)
What did the Kwantung Army hope to achieve by assassinating Zhang Zuolin in 1928?
1. They hoped for PM Tanaka to support a more aggressive policy in Manchuria.
Did they manage to achieve the aim(s) as set out in the answer to Question 12? Why or why not?
1. No. Tanaka refused to take the radical step of using military force to protect Japanese interests in China.
How did Tanaka’s government deal with those responsible for the assassination? What was the significance of their response?
1. He failed to take strong actions against the military; this set an ominous precedent for the more radical elements of the military.
What was the increasing antagonism between Japan and China over Manchuria paralleled by?
1. Heightened tensions between the Japanese, British, and Americans over naval issues (Washington Conference of 1922)
Why did the Navy condemn the 1930 London Naval Treaty as “a betrayal of national interest”?
1. It compromised the security of Japan – Western negotiators had bluntly refused to accept the full Japanese position of increasing Japan’s ratio from 60 to 70% of British and American warship tonnages.
What was the significance of the “treaty controversy”?
1. It weakened the legitimacy of the Minseito in particular, and party rule in general.
Gordon writes, “rhetorical and physical attacks on the political establishment continue unabated”. Give three examples of such attacks between 1930-32.
1. Minseito PM, Hamaguchi Osachi was assassinated by a right-wing youth in Nov 1930
2. Former Finance Minsiter Inoue Jun’nosuke and Mitsui zaibatsu chief Dan Takuma murdered by the League of Blood in 1932
3. Miscarried plots for coup d’etat by young military officers in 1931
How did the Kwantung Army aim to break the “foreign and domestic impasse”?
1. They took bold action in Manchuria – they blew up some track of the southern
2. Manchurian railway at Mukden and blamed it on the Chinese (18 September 1931)
Who is Ishiwara Kanji and what did he believe in?
1. Kwantung Army’s operations officer from 1929-1932. He believed in that a cataclysmic“final war” loomed inevitably between Japan and the USA. And to prepare for a Japanese victory, Japan had to take over Manchuria.
Why was Manchuria considered important to the Japanese/ Kwantung Army?
1. The region was rich in mineral resources
2. Strategic value (allowed Japan to extend its “line of advantage”)
3. Fertile plains à friendly destination for emigrant farmers (this would help relieve population pressures and agrarian poverty at home)
4. It was seen as a laboratory to create a new social order based on the principles of social equality and loyalty to the state, rather than selfish capitalistic profit-seeking.
How did PM Inukai Tsuyoshi and the Seiyukai react to the Manchurian Crisis (1931)?
1. Weakly. They resisted military pressure to annex Manchuria as a formal colony, but allowed the Kwantung Army to install friendly Chinese leaders in a puppet regime.
Why does Gordon write that “the takeover of Manchuria marked a watershed in the history of Japanese foreign and domestic policy”?
1. It initiated a new era of expansionism (Japan left the League of Nations), and was followed by yet another outburst of violence at home.
What happened on 15 May 1932, and what was the significance of that event?
1. Inukai Tsuyoshi was assassinated by a group of young naval officers. Their actions marked the end of parliamentary rule in Japan.
Describe the Kwantung Army’s conquests in China after Japan withdrew from the League of Nations in March 1933.
1. Annexed Jehol in 1933 and made it part of Manchukuo
2. Used border clashes and anti-Japanese activism as grounds to chip away at Nationalist control of China’s northern heartland
3. Forced Nationalist govt to withdraw troops from the region south of the Great Wall (created a buffer between Manchukuo and the Nationalist regime’s territory)
4. Set up puppet govt under Chinese warlord to administer this strategic region
What impact did the Kwantung Army’s actions in China have on Japan’s relations with the Western powers?
1. Increased tensions between Japan and the Western powers – the League condemned the takeover (this was supported by Britain and the US); USA refused to recognise Manchukuo.
“As they developed policies for the new Manchurian state, Japan’s rulers also revised their strategies toward the older colonies of Korea and Taiwan.” Briefly describe these revised strategies.
1. Korea and Taiwan redefined as places where human and material resources should be mobilised to support the expanding Japanese empire
2. Korea – Ugaki Kazushige launched ambitious and harsh economic and social policies
  1. social policies: coercive programme of ethnic assimilation in schools; expanded compulsory Japanese language instruction and limited the teaching of Korean in schools (Korean was banned entirely in the late 1930s)
  2. Economic policies: pushed farmers to plant cotton and raise sheep to supply material to the Japanese industry; Japanese industrialists encouraged to invest in the mining of strategic ore and metals, electric power generation, chemical and fertiliser production, and the production of iron and steel
3. Taiwan
  1. Governor general set up semipublic Taiwan Devt Company (1936) to promote sugar cane production on the island for export to Japan
  2. Authorities cracked down on a political movement for home rule (previously tolerated in the 1920s)

Toward a New Social and Economic Order

“The invasion of Manchuria coincided with, and partly caused, dramatic changes in Japan’s domestic economy.” Give some examples of such changes.
1. Economic recovery
  1. industrial output rose 82% between 1931-34
  2. Volume of exports doubled from 1930-36
  3. Japan became the world’s leading exporter of cotton goods and its economy grew by ~50% from 1930-36 (recovery from the GD was far quicker than the Western economies)
  4. Arisawa Hiromi described the 1930s as a time of “economic miracle”
What were the two main causes of Japan’s “economic leap forward” in the 1930s?
1. Fall in value of the Japanese yen (after Finance Minister, Takahashi, took the nation off the gold standard)
2. Takahashi’s policy of deficit spending (forerunner of Keynesian economics?)
3. Toward a New Political Order
What were two “crucial features of politics in the 1930s”?
1. Continued turbulence within the military
2. Rising power of the army over the bureaucracy, the court and the parties
How were the two trends (i.e. your answer to Question 30) related?
1. One reason for the move away from party cabinets was the belief among the genro that only military leaders could control the hotheads in the ranks.
What happened on 26 February 1936, and what was the significance of that event?
1. 1,500 army troops loyal to the Imperial Way leaders (e.g. Araki) took over central Tokyo; squads sent to murder most of the cabinet, and former PM Saito + FM Takahashi, as well as opponents in the military and amongst high court advisors. They called for a Showa Restoration – to restore Japan’s glory by honouring the emperor, defending the empire and improving the lot of the common people.
2. Significance: Army emerged strong than ever (especially the Control Faction) – bureaucrats and civilians welcomed the promise of a more disciplined army
“It blamed Japan’s social and ideological crisis on Western beliefs ranging from individualism to communism.” What was articulated/ promulgated in place of such ideas?
1. It was asserted that “serving the Emperor and accepting the Emperor’s august will as one’s own” should be the basic principles of social life and morality; exalted loyalty and military spirit as the nation’s core values and the hierarchical family system as its core institution.
Explain the contradiction that existed between Japan’s ideological shift and the social/ material life of ordinary Japanese people.
1. Despite rise of “traditionalism” in the 1930s, popular culture remained cosmopolitan and lively; material culture incorporated new global trends.

Part 2: McClain’s Chapter 12 – A Period of National Emergency

The Manchurian Incident

Who was the leading architect of the Manchurian Incident (1931)?
1. Ishiwara Kanji
“A quixotic and unconventional thinker, Ishiwara painted an apocalyptic view of the future in his lectures...” Explain this “apocalyptic view of the future”.
1. He warned that should another conflict come, it would be “total war” (destruction would be beyond comprehension) and Japan could hope to weather such a holocaust only if it were able to mobilise all its material, human and spiritual resources.
Explain the context that preceded the Kwantung Army’s takeover of Manchuria in 1931.
1. Domestically:
  1. Minseito cabinet was being denounced by critics for failing to overcome the problems brought about by the GD
  2. PM charged with putting the country’s future at risk when he agreed to extend limits on naval armaments during the London Naval Conference
2. internationally:
  1. West was mired in depression
  2. USSR was struggling to complete its Five-Year Plan
  3. Chiang Kai Shek’s Northern Expedition had refocused his efforts on securing unchallenged sway over southern China
  4. i.e. no nation stood prepared to intervene against decisive Japanese action in Manchuria.
How did the Japanese government respond to the eruption of violence in Manchuria?
1. PM Wakatsuki pressed Army Minister Minami to “instruct the commanding officer of the KA not to enlarge the theatre of conflict”
2. Revealed policy of non-expansion of hostilities to the press – ordered KA to maintain present positions and refrain from engaging in further acts of hostility
Give two examples to show how the Japanese government no longer had any control over the actions of the Kwantung Army.
1. Ishiwara dispatched agents to Jilin to instigate disturbances that provided the KA with the pretext for rushing troops into the city
2. Outpouring of public support/ outbursts of popular patriotism for the KA made it difficult for Wakatsuki to repudiate its actions
3. The conversion of Manchuria into an independent state with Emperor Puyi as chief. executive

The Revolutionary Right and Terrorism At Home

What was the Cherry Blossom Society and what were its aims?
1. Right-wing radicals organised by Lieutenant Colonel Hashimoto Kingoro (shared Ishiwara’s disdain for the “weak-kneed” China policy pursued by the Minseito cabinets
2. Aimed for a Showa Restoration
What happened on 15 May 1932, and what was the significance of that event?
1. PM Inukai assassinated by a group of young naval officers

Going It Alone

* This section is important as it shows Japan’s increasing isolation from the international community, which reinforced the growing belief that the country’s survival depended upon the creation of a secure hegemony in Asia.

How did the Chinese react to Japan’s actions in Manchuria?
1. Sentiments of anti-Japanese erupted across China
2. Mass demonstrations on 5 October to mark a day of mourning
3. Boycotts against Japanese goods in Shanghai
How did the Western nations react to Japan’s actions in Manchuria?
1. USA:
  1. Secretary of State Henry Stimson refused to acknowledge the legitimacy of Japan’s military conquests (Japan had violated existing treaties)
  2. President Herbert Hoover moved elements of America’s Pacific Fleet from the West Coast to Pearl Harbour
2. How did the League of Nations react to Japan’s actions in Manchuria?
  1. Appointed a commission led by British statesman Lord Lytton to conduct a thorough on-the-spot investigation of the situation
  2. Lytton Report – rejected Japan’s claim that military intervention in Manchuria was a proper and necessary act of self-defense.

Defending Manchukuo, Expanding Hostilities

What is the Japan-Manchukuo Protocol? When and why was it signed?
1. A move by Japan to strengthen ties with its new satellite state (since it was increasingly isolated from the international community) signed in September 1932
2. Extended formal diplomatic recognition to the new nation; made Japan responsible for its internal security and defense – on 1 March 1934, Puyi was made the emperor of Manchukuo
How did Japan secure its grasp on the governing apparatus of Manchuria?
1. Set up a Board of General Affairs (director was always Japanese) to decide all state laws and policies which a People’s Congress then rubber-stamped.
How did China and the Soviet Union react to growing Japanese influence in Manchuria? And how did Japan respond to that?
1. USSR responded by nearly doubling the number of its divisions stationed in the Asian theatre from 8 to 14, and by increasing its number of combat aircraft from ~200 to 940.
2. Vociferous expressions of Chinese nationalism
“Soon... the Kwantung Army discovered that there was no end to the need for new buffer zones.” Explain why this was so, and how it influenced the subsequent actions of the Kwantung Army.
1. The Tanggu Truce established a demilitarised zone stretching from the Great Wall to the Beijing-Tianjin axis, ceded to the Japanese Army control of strategic mountain passes guarding the eastern approaches to Beijing, and stipulated that the Chinese exercise “strict control over anti-Japanese activities, which are the basic cause of Sino-Japanese conflict”.

The Demise of Party Government

Explain why “the influence of political parties and party politicians declined rapidly following the assassination of Prime Minister Inukai in May 1932”.
1. The assassination, together with the lingering effects of the GD, the Manchurian Incident and other outbursts of political terrorism led the genro to conclude that party cabinets could neither exert effective control over foreign policy nor contain the chaotic domestic situation, let alone lead Japan out of its economic troubles. The only way to surmount the crises of the 1930s was to return to national unity cabinets.
“While the parties rode the seesaw of power downward, military and civilian bureaucrats rose to positions of paramount influence in national affairs. The distribution of cabinet portfolios constituted one important measure of that transition.” Give evidence to show how the distribution of cabinet portfolios had changed between 1924 and 1940.
1. During the era of party govt between 1924 and 1932, there had been 7 cabinets, each headed by a PM selected from one of the two major political parties. In those cabinets the average number of members with party affiliations was 8.7 out of the 12 ministers who made up the cabinet. In contrast, in the 8 cabinets formed between 1932 and 1940, no party politician served as PM and the average number of ministers drawn from the civil and military bureaucracies was 9.9 out of 13 portfolios.
Explain the term “renovationist” as used in this section of your reading. What were some of the views shared by the renovationists of the mid-1930s?
1. “Renovationists” were committed to “renovating” Japan by making bureaucracy the central element in the formation and execution of national policy, and by building up Japan’s economy and war-making capacity
2. They shared suspicions about capitalism, sympathised with the plight of the rural poor, assumed that party politicians lacked the moral fortitude and intellectual expertise to pilot Japan through its period of “national emergency”.
“Although the political initiative was passing to other elites originally empowered by the Meiji Constitution, political parties did not disappear entirely from the scene.” Explain why this was so.
1. Party politicians continued to dominate the Diet in the 1930s
2. They continued to play a role in the nation’s politics as they passed legislation, voted in budgets, debated the pros and cons of national policy and exercised their right to interpellate members of the cabinet and the military and civilian bureaucracies.
3. Used their position to launch criticisms of military and govt policies

Economic Revival and the Business Community

Who is Takahashi Korekiyo?
1. Finance Minister
Explain how he had lifted Japan out of (economic) depression in the early 1930s?
1. By spending its way out of it – Takahashi pursued a programme of deficit spending between 1931 and 1936, and cutting Japan loose from the gold standard (fall in value of the yen led to a surge Japan’s exports)
How did the zaibatsu behave in the same period, and how did the Japanese people respond to their actions?
1. They engaged in an orgy of dollar-buying in 1931 before the govt devalued the yen, and then used those dollars to repurchase yen after Takahashi abandoned the gold standard
2. Japanese public was furious and criticism of zaibatsu mounted and turned violent after the Blood Brotherhood assassinated the MD of Mitsui enterprises in march 1932
Explain the relationship/ link between the zaibatsu and the military in the 1930s.
1. A new alliance between the zaibatsu and the military emerged in the 1930s, in full view in Manchukuo – KA was pushing for rapid industrial devt and the old zaibatsu joined with other companies to invest 1.25 billion yen in Manchukuo

The Two Twenty-Six Incident

What happened on 26 February 1936, and what did its perpetrators hope to achieve?
1. A series of assassinations – FM Takahashi, ex-PM Saito, inspector general of military education.
2. Perpetrators “wished to awaken the people and bring about a Showa Restoration”
Who is Kita Ikki and what did he call for in his polemic, Nihon kaizo hoan taiko (“An Outline for the Reconstruction of Japan, 1923)?
1. A nationalist idealogue
2. Called for a military coup d’etat, suspension of constitution, three years of martial law during which an army-led govt would oust parties from power, nationalise key industries, break up large concentrations of land in order to benefit impoverished tenant farmers and “remove the barriers which have separated the people from the emperor”
What was the significance of the Two Twenty-Six Incident? How was it different from the May 15 Incident (1932)?
1. 2-26 sobered the nation; after 1936, there were no more violent challenges to state authority in Japan. The civilian right wing turned its back on political terrorism and self-glorifying acts of martyrdom, and within the military, the Imperial Way Faction lost ground as the Control Faction came to the fore.
2. Difference between this and the May 15 Incident – army imposed swift and unmerciful justice upon junior officers who led the putsch; their ideolgical mentor, Kita Ikki, also went before the firing squad.