Hajime Sugiyama

Infobox Military Person
name=Sugiyama Hajime
lived= 1 January 1880 - 12 September 1945
placeofbirth=Kokura, Fukuoka Prefecture
placeofdeath=Tokyo, Japan


caption= Japanese General Sugiyama Hajime
nickname=
allegiance=Empire of Japan
branch=
serviceyears=1901-1945
rank=Field Marshal
commands=
unit=
battles=Russo-Japanese War
World War II
awards=
family=
laterwork=nihongo|Hajime Sugiyama|杉山 元|Sugiyama Hajime / Sugiyama Gen (1 January 1880 - 12 September 1945) was a field marshal who served as successively as chief of the Army General Staff, and minister of war in the Imperial Japanese Army during World War II between 1937 and 1944. As War Minister in 1937, he was one of the principal architects of the China Incident or second Sino-Japanese War. Later, as Army Chief of Staff in 1940 and 1941, he was a leading advocate of expansion into Southeast Asia and later preventive war against the United States.

Biography

Born to a former "samurai" family from Kokura (now part of Kitakyushu City), Fukuoka Prefecture, Sugiyama was commissioned as a lieutenant in the infantry in 1901 after graduation from the 12th class of the Imperial Japanese Army Academy, and served in the Russo-Japanese War. [Budge, The Pacific War Online Encyclopedia ]

After graduating from the 22nd class of he Army Staff College in 1910 and serving on the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff, Sugiyama was posted as military attaché to the Philippines and Singapore in 1912. Promoted to major in 1913, he was posted again as military attaché to British India in 1915. During this time, he also visited Germany, and became acquainted with the use of aircraft in combat in World War I.

On his return, Sugiyama was promoted to lieutenant colonel, and commander of the 2nd Air Battalion in December 1918. He was a strong proponent of military aviation, and after his promotion to colonel in 1921, became the first head of the Imperial Japanese Army Air Service in 1922.

In May 1925, Sugiyama became a major general and acting Vice War Minister in June 1930. In August, he became Vice War Minister and a lieutenant general. [Ammenthorp, The Generals of World War II] He returned to command the expanded Imperial Japanese Army Air Service in March 1933. Sugiyama was promoted to full general in November 1936.

Second Sino-Japanese War

Shortly after the February 26 Incident, Sugiyama became Minister of War. Under his tenure, the situation between Japanese forces in Manchukuo and China became more severe, cumulating with the Marco Polo Bridge Incident and the invasion of Shanxi Province.

Sugiyama briefly accepted a field command as commanding general of North China Area Army and the Mongolia Garrison Army in December 1938.

World War II

On his return to Japan, Sugiyama was briefly appointed head of Yasukuni Shrine in 1939. On 3 September 1940, he succeeded elderly Prince Kan'in Kotohito as Chief of the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff. He was one of the leading Army officers lobbying for war with the West. However, on 5 September 1941, on the verge of the war against the United States and Great Britain, he was severely berated by Emperor Hirohito for having earlier predicted in 1937 that Japanese invasion of China would be completed within three months, and challenged over his confidence in a quick victory over the Western powers. [Bix, Hirohito and the Making of Modern Japan ]

Sugiyama was awarded the honorary rank of field marshal in 1943. As the war fronts collapsed on all sides, Sugiyama was relieved of his post as Chief of the General Staff on 21 February 1944, by General Hideki Tojo (who continued to serve concurrently as Prime Minister).

Sugiyama was appointed to the Inspector-general of Military Training, which was still one of the most prestigious positions in the Army. After Tojo’s ouster in 1944, Sugiyama again became Minister of War. In July 1945, he was asked to take command of the First Theatre Army, which directed defenses of the Japanese mainland against the anticipated Allied invasion. [Frank, Downfall The End of the Japanese Empire ]

Ten days after the surrender of Japan, after finishing preparations for the final dissolution of the Imperial Japanese Army as dictated by the victorious Allied Powers, Sugiyama committed suicide by shooting himself four times in the chest with his revolver while seated at his desk in his office. At home, his wife also killed herself. [Chen, WW2 Database] His grave is at the Tama Cemetery, in Fuchu, Tokyo.

Political career

Although never elected to political office, Sugiyama is regarded as a nationalist politician. He started in the "Toseiha" faction, led by Kazushige Ugaki, with Koiso Kuniaki, Yoshijiro Umezu, Tetsuzan Nagata, and Hideki Tojo. They opposed the radical "Kodaha" faction under Sadao Araki. Later both factions combined in the Imperial Way Faction movement, and Sugiyama became one of its ideological leaders.

References

Books

* cite book
last = Bix
first = Herbert P
year = 2001
title = Hirohito and the Making of Modern Japan
publisher = Harper Perennial
location = New York
id = ISBN 0-06-093130-2
* cite book
last = Dupuy
first = Trevor N.
year = 1992
title = The Harper Encyclopedia of Military Biography
publisher = HarperCollins Publishers Inc
location = New York
id = ISBN 0-7858-0437-4
* cite book
last = Frank
first = Richard B.
authorlink =
year = 1999
title = Downfall: the End of the Imperial Japanese Empire
publisher = Penguin, non-classics
location =
id = ISBN 0-14-100146-1
* cite book
last = Fuller
first = Richard
coauthors =
year = 1992
title = Shokan: Hirohito's Samurai
publisher = Arms and Armor
location = London
id = ISBN 1-85409-151-4
* cite book
last = Hayashi
first = Saburo
coauthors = Cox, Alvin D
year = 1959
title = Kogun: The Japanese Army in the Pacific War
publisher = The Marine Corps Association.
location = Quantico, VA
id =

External links

* cite web
last = Ammenthorp
first = Steen
url = http://www.generals.dk/general/Sugiyama/Hajime/Japan.html
title = Sugoyama Hajime
work = The Generals of World War II
* cite web
last = Budge
first = Kent
url = http://pwencycl.kgbudge.com/S/u/Sugiyama_Gen.htm
title = Sugiyama Gen
work = Pacific War Online Encyclopedia
* cite web
last = Chen
first = Peter
url = http://ww2db.com/person_bio.php?person_id=371&list=Ground
title = Sugiyama Hajima
work = WW2 Database