Hirohito[a] (29 April 1901 – 7 January 1989), posthumously honored as Emperor Shōwa,[b] was the 124th emperor of Japan according to the traditional order of succession, reigning from 1926 until his death in 1989. He was one of the longest-reigning monarchs in the world, with his reign of 62 years being the longest of any Japanese emperor.
Hirohito was born in Aoyama, Tokyo, during the reign of his paternal grandfather, Emperor Meiji. He was the first child of Crown Prince Yoshihito and Crown Princess Sadako (later Emperor Taishō and Empress Teimei). As the grandson of Emperor Meiji, Hirohito was raised away from the court, but returned following his caregiver's death. His education emphasized physical health due to his frailty, alongside values of frugality and devotion to duty. Hirohito's early military commissions and education under influential figures shaped his perspective on Japan's divine imperial lineage, and its role in modernization and diplomacy. His father acceded to the throne in 1912 upon the death of his father Emperor Meiji, making the eleven-year-old Prince Hirohito the heir apparent. Proclaimed crown prince in 1916, Hirohito's overseas visits in 1921 to Western Europe marked a significant step towards international diplomacy for Japan, despite domestic opposition. His experiences abroad, particularly in Britain and meeting with European monarchs, influenced his understanding of international relations and Japan's position on the global stage.
Hirohito assumed regency in 1921 due to his father's health issues, navigating Japan through significant treaties, the 1923 Great Kantō earthquake, and an assassination attempt. In January 1924, he married Princess Nagako Kuni, and their marriage further solidified his position within the imperial family and Japanese society. The couple had seven children.
When his father died in December 1926, Hirohito—then 25 years old—became emperor of Japan. Hirohito reigned as a constitutional monarch and was the head of state under the Meiji Constitution during Japanese imperial expansion particularly in China, militarization, and involvement in World War II. During Hirohito's reign, Japan waged a war across Asia in the 1930s and '40s. His involvement in military decisions, particularly in the Second Sino-Japanese War and Pacific Theater of World War II, has been a subject of historical debate regarding his responsibility for war crimes. Despite initial successes, Japan's strategic miscalculations under his reign led to devastating consequences.
After the surrender of Japan, despite it waging the war in the name of Hirohito, he was not prosecuted for war crimes, for General Douglas MacArthur thought that an ostensibly cooperative emperor would help establish a peaceful Allied occupation and the U.S. achieve its postwar objectives.[1] As a result, MacArthur did everything in his power to exclude any possible evidence that would have incriminated Hirohito and his family during the Tokyo War Crimes Tribunal. On 1 January 1946, under pressure from the Allies, the Emperor formally renounced his divinity. Hirohito played a crucial role in recovery of postwar Japan and reintegration into the international community, though his wartime role remained controversial. His legacy is a complex blend of tradition, militarism, and modernization, reflecting the challenges and transformations Japan faced during the 20th century. Hirohito died aged 87 at Fukiage Palace in January 1989, and was succeeded by his eldest son, Akihito. By 1979, Hirohito was the only remaining monarch in the world with the title "Emperor", after Jean-Bédel Bokassa, Emperor of Central Africa, was deposed.
Hirohito was born on 29 April 1901, at Aoyama Palace in Tokyo during the reign of his grandfather, Emperor Meiji,[2] the first son of 21-year-old Crown prince Yoshihito (the future Emperor Taishō) and 16-year-old Crown Princess Sadako, the future Empress Teimei.[3] He was the grandson of Emperor Meiji and Yanagiwara Naruko. His childhood title was Prince Michi.
Ten weeks after he was born, Hirohito was removed from the court and placed in the care of Count Kawamura Sumiyoshi, who raised him as his grandchild. At the age of 3, Hirohito and his brother Yasuhito were returned to court when Kawamura died – first to the imperial mansion in Numazu, Shizuoka, then back to the Aoyama Palace.[4]
In 1908, he began elementary studies at the Gakushūin (Peers School).[5] Emperor Mutsuhito, then appointed General Nogi Maresuke to be the Gakushūin's tenth president as well as the one in-charge on educating his grandson. The main aspect that they focused was on physical education and health, primarily because Hirohito was a sickly child, on par with the impartment or inculcation of values such as frugality, patience, manliness, self-control, and devotion to the duty at hand.[6]
During 1912, at the age of 11, Hirohito was commissioned into the Imperial Japanese Army as a Second Lieutenant and in the Imperial Japanese Navy as an Ensign. He was also bestowed with the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Chrysanthemum.[7] When his grandfather, Emperor Meiji died on 30 July 1912, Yoshihito assumed the throne and his eldest son, Hirohito became heir apparent.
After learning about the death of his instructor, General Nogi, he along with his brothers were reportedly overcome with emotions. He would later acknowledge the lasting influence of Nogi in his life. At that time he was still two years away from completing primary school, henceforth his education was compensated by Fleet Admiral Togo Heihachiro and Naval Captain Ogasawara Naganari, wherein later on, would become his major opponents with regards to his national defense policy.[8]
Shiratori Kurakichi, one of his middle-school instructors, was one of the personalities who deeply influenced the life of Hirohito. Kurakichi was a trained historian from Germany, imbibing the positivist historiographic trend by Leopold von Ranke. He was the one who inculcated in the mind of the young Hirohito that there is a connection between the divine origin of the imperial line and the aspiration of linking it to the myth of the racial superiority and homogeneity of the Japanese. The emperors were often a driving force in the modernization of their country. He taught Hirohito that the Empire of Japan was created and governed through diplomatic actions (taking into accounts the interests of other nations benevolently and justly).[9]
On 2 November 1916, Hirohito was formally proclaimed crown prince and heir apparent. An investiture ceremony was not required to confirm this status.[10]
From 3 March to 3 September 1921 (Taisho 10), the Crown Prince made official visits to the United Kingdom, France, the Netherlands, Belgium, Italy, Vatican City and Malta (then a protectorate of the British Empire). This was the first visit to Western Europe by the Crown Prince.[c] Despite strong opposition in Japan, this was realized by the efforts of elder Japanese statesmen (Genrō) such as Yamagata Aritomo and Saionji Kinmochi.
The departure of Prince Hirohito was widely reported in newspapers. The Japanese battleship Katori was used, and departed from Yokohama, sailed to Naha, Hong Kong, Singapore, Colombo, Suez, Cairo, and Gibraltar. In April, Hirohito was present in Malta for the opening of the Maltese Parliament.[11] After sailing for two months, the Katori arrived in Portsmouth on 9 May, on the same day reaching the British capital, London. Hirohito was welcomed in the UK as a partner of the Anglo-Japanese Alliance and met with King George V and Prime Minister David Lloyd George.
That evening, a banquet was held at Buckingham Palace, where Hirohito met with George V and Prince Arthur of Connaught. George V said that he treated his father like Hirohito,[clarification needed] who was nervous in an unfamiliar foreign country, and that relieved his tension. The next day, he met Prince Edward (the future Edward VIII) at Windsor Castle, and a banquet was held every day thereafter. In London, he toured the British Museum, the Tower of London, the Bank of England, Lloyd's Marine Insurance, Oxford University, Army University, and the Naval War College. He also enjoyed theater at the New Oxford Theatre and the Delhi Theatre.[12]
At the University of Cambridge, he listened to Professor J. R. Tanner's lecture on "Relationship between the British Royal Family and its People", and was awarded an honorary doctorate degree.[13][14] He visited Edinburgh, Scotland, from 19 to 20 May, and was also awarded an Honorary Doctor of Laws at the University of Edinburgh. He stayed at the residence of John Stewart-Murray, 8th Duke of Atholl, for three days. On his stay with Stuart-Murray, the prince was quoted as saying, "The rise of Bolsheviks won't happen if you live a simple life like Duke Athol."[13]
In Italy, he met with King Vittorio Emanuele III and others, attended official international banquets, and visited places such as the fierce battlefields of World War I.
After returning (from Europe) to Japan, Hirohito became Regent of Japan (Sesshō) on 25 November 1921, in place of his ailing father, who was affected by mental illness.[15][16] In 1923 he was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant-Colonel in the army and Commander in the navy, and army Colonel and Navy Captain in 1925.
Over 12 days in April 1923, Hirohito visited Taiwan, which had been a Japanese colony since 1895.[17] This was a voyage his father, the then Crown Prince Yoshihito had planned in 1911 but never completed.[18]