Giichi Tanaka
Giichi Tanaka was a Japanese military officer, statesman, and Prime Minister in 1929; cabinet resigned to protest increasing militarization and the assassination of Chang Tso-Lin. While certainly a member of the military, he supported constitutional government.
Early life
He was born in Yamaguchi, from a samurai family. In 1892, he graduated from the Army War College, served in the Sino-Japanese War, and studied in Russia in 1898. During the Russo-Japanese War, he was active as a staff officer of the Manchuria Army. [1]
Middle rank
In 1909, he became chief of Army Affairs Section in the Ministry of War and established the Teikoku Zaigo Gunjinkai (Imperial Military Reserve Association). In 1911, he was promoted to director of the Military Affairs Bureau and recommended setting up two new divisions. In 1915, he became vice-chief of the Army General Staff and was involved in the Siberian Intervention. [1]
He traveled through China and Manchuria in 1917, producing a document called "The Exploitation of Chinese Resources".[2]
High command and cabinet
Afterward, he served as war minister in the Hara cabinet and the second Yamamoto cabinet. In 1921, he became an army general. After retiring from the army, he became president of the Seiyukai (Friends of Constitutional Government Party) and an Imperial nominee to the House of Peers. In 1927, he assumed the office of prime minister and promoted the Shandong Expedition.
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Tanaka, Giichi, National Diet Library
- ↑ Merion and Susie Harris (1991), Soldiers of the Sun: the Rise and Fall of the Imperial Japanese Army, Random House, p. 121