View source for Sadao Araki

{{refimprove|date=May 2021}}
{{Short description|Japanese officer and war criminal (1877–1966)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2014}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| honorific_prefix = [[Kazoku|Baron]]
| name             = Sadao Araki
| native_name      = {{No bold|荒木 貞夫}}
| native_name_lang = ja
| image            = Araki Sadao.jpg
| image_size       = 
| caption          = 
| office           = [[Ministry of Education, Science, Sports and Culture|Minister of Education]]
| primeminister    = {{ubl|[[Fumimaro Konoe]]|[[Kiichirō Hiranuma]]}}
| term_start       = 26 May 1938
| term_end         = 30 August 1939
| predecessor      = [[Kōichi Kido]]
| successor        = [[Kakichi Kawarada]]
| office1          = [[Army Ministry|Minister of the Army]]
| primeminister1   = {{ubl|[[Tsuyoshi Inukai]]|[[Makoto Saitō]]}}
| term_start1      = 13 December 1931
| term_end1        = 23 January 1934
| predecessor1     = [[Jirō Minami]]
| successor1       = [[Senjūrō Hayashi]]
| office2          = Member of the [[Supreme War Council (Japan)|Supreme War Council]]
| monarch2         = [[Hirohito]]
| term_start2      = 23 January 1934
| term_end2        = 6 March 1936
| birth_date       = {{Birth date|1877|5|26|df=y}}
| death_date       = {{Death date and age|1966|11|2|1877|5|26|df=y}}
| birth_place      = [[Komae, Tokyo]], [[Empire of Japan|Japan]]
| death_place      = [[Totsukawa]], [[Nara Prefecture|Nara]], [[Japan]]
| resting_place    = [[Tama Cemetery]]
| allegiance       = {{Flag|Empire of Japan}}
| branch           = {{Army|Empire of Japan}}
| serviceyears     = 1898–1936
| rank             = [[File:帝國陸軍の階級―襟章―大将.svg|35px]] [[General]]
| commands         = [[6th Division (Imperial Japanese Army)|6th Division]]
| unit             = 
| battles          = {{plainlist|
*[[Russo-Japanese War]]
*[[Siberian Intervention]]
}}
| awards           = {{plainlist|
*[[Order of the Sacred Treasures]] (1st class)
*[[Order of the Golden Kite]] (2nd class)
*[[Order of the Rising Sun]] (1st class)
}}
| family           = 
}}

[[Baron]] {{nihongo|''' Sadao Araki '''|荒木 貞夫|Araki Sadao|ARAKEYE|extra= May 26, 1877 – November 2, 1966}} was a [[general]] in the [[Imperial Japanese Army]] before and during [[World War II]]. As one of the principal nationalist [[right-wing]] political theorists in the [[Empire of Japan]], he was regarded as the leader of the [[Kodoha|radical faction]] within the politicized Imperial Japanese Army and served as [[Ministry of War of Japan|Minister of War]] under [[Prime Minister of Japan|Prime Minister]] [[Tsuyoshi Inukai|Inukai]]. He later served as [[Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (Japan)|Minister of Education]] during the [[Fumimaro Konoe|Konoe]] and [[Hiranuma Kiichirō|Hiranuma]] administrations.

After [[World War II]], he was convicted of [[Japanese war crimes|war crimes]] and given a [[life sentence]] but was released in 1955.

==Early life and career==
Araki was born in [[Komae, Tokyo]]; his father was an ex-[[samurai]] retainer of the [[Gosankyō|Hitotsubashi branch]] of the [[Tokugawa family]]. Araki graduated from the [[Imperial Japanese Army Academy]] in November 1897 and was commissioned as a second lieutenant in June of the following year.

Promoted to lieutenant in November 1900 and promoted to captain in June 1904, Araki served as company commander of the [[Imperial Guard of Japan|1st Imperial Regiment]] during the [[Russo-Japanese War]].

After the war, Araki returned to graduate from the [[Army War College (Japan)|Army Staff College]] at the head of his class. He served on the [[Imperial Japanese Army General Staff]] in April 1908 and served as a language officer stationed in Russia from November 1909 to May 1913, when he was made [[military attaché]] to [[Saint Petersburg]] during [[World War I]]. He was promoted to major in November 1909 and to lieutenant colonel in August 1915. He was then assigned to the [[Kwantung Army]].

Promoted to colonel on July 24, 1918, Araki served as a Staff Officer at Expeditionary Army Headquarters in [[Vladivostok]] in 1918 and 1919 during the Japanese [[Siberian Intervention]] against the [[Bolshevik]] [[Red Army]], and was commander of the 23rd Infantry Regiment. During his time in [[Siberia]], Araki carried out secret missions in the [[Russian Far East]] and in [[Lake Baikal]].

Promoted to [[major general]] on March 17, 1923, Araki was made commander of the 8th Infantry Brigade. He served as [[Provost Marshal]] General from January 1924 to May 1925, wheby he rejoined the Army General Staff as a Bureau Chief. Araki was promoted to [[lieutenant general]] in July 1927 and became Commandant of the Army War College in August 1928.

Araki served as commander of the [[IJA 6th Division]] from 1929 through 1931, when he was appointed Deputy [[Inspectorate General of Military Training|Inspector General of Military Training]], one of the most prestigious posts within the army. He was promoted to the rank of full general in October 1933.<ref>Ammenthorp. The Generals of World War II</ref>

==Cabinet minister==
On 31 December 1931, Araki was appointed [[Ministry of War of Japan|Minister of War]]
in the cabinet of [[Prime Minister of Japan|Prime Minister]] [[Tsuyoshi Inukai]]. However, in 1932, the [[May 15 Incident]] caused Inukai to be assassinated by ultranationalist navy officers for resisting the Army's war demands. Araki praised the assassins and called them "irrepressible patriots."<ref>''Japan at War'', Time-Life, 1980, p. 18</ref> He also supported General [[Shirō Ishii]] and his [[biological warfare]] research project, [[Unit 731]].{{Citation needed|date=July 2024}}

[[Kinmochi Saionji|Prince Saionji]], one of the emperor's closest and strongest advisors, attempted to stop the military takeover of the government. In a compromise, a naval officer, Admiral [[Saitō Makoto|Makoto Saitō]], became prime minister on 26 May. Araki remained as War Minister and made further demands on the new government. Later that month, Japan unveiled its new foreign policy, the [[Statism in Shōwa Japan|Amau doctrine]]. The new policy became a blueprint for [[Japanese expansionism]] in [[Asia]].

In September 1932, Araki started to become more outspoken in promoting [[totalitarianism]], [[militarism]], and [[expansionism]]. In a September 23 news conference, Araki first mentioned the philosophy of ''[[Kodoha]]'' ("The Imperial Way"), which linked the Emperor, the people, land, and morality as one indivisible entity, and he emphasized [[State Shinto]]. Araki also strongly promoted ''Seishin Kyoiku'' (spiritual training) for the army.

Araki became a member of the [[Supreme War Council (Japan)|Supreme War Council]] but on 23 January 1934 resigned as War Minister because of ill health. He was ennobled with the title of [[baron]] (''danshaku'') in 1935 under the ''[[kazoku]]'' peerage system. In 1936, ''Kodoha''-affiliated officers launched another rebellion in the [[February 26 Incident]]. The rebellion failed. However, unlike with previous rebellions, there were serious consequences. Nineteen of the rebel leaders were executed, and another 40 were imprisoned. ''Kodoha'' generals were purged from the Army, including Araki, who was forced to retire in March.

[[Fumimaro Konoe]] became prime minister in 1937. In 1938, Konoe appointed Araki as [[Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (Japan)|Education Minister]], to offset the influence of the ''[[Toseiha]]'' ("Control Faction"). That placed him in an ideal position to promote militarism ideals through the [[Education in the Empire of Japan|national education system]] and in the general populace. Araki proposed the incorporation of the ''[[samurai]]'' code in the national education system. He promoted the use of the official academic text ''[[Kokutai no Hongi]]'' ("Japan's Fundamentals of National Policy"), and the "moral national bible" ''[[Shinmin no Michi]]'' ("The Path of Subjects"), an effective [[catechism]] on national, religious, cultural, social, and ideological topics. Araki continued to serve as Education Minister when Konoe was succeeded as prime minister by [[Hiranuma Kiichirō]]. He then continued to serve as an advisor to the government as a State Councillor.

==Political career==
[[Image:Sadao Araki on Time cover 1933.jpg|right|200px|thumb|General Araki on [[Time Magazine]] cover (1933)]]
In 1924, Araki founded the ''[[Kokuhonsha]]'' (Society for the Foundation of the State), a [[secret society]] containing some of the most powerful generals, admirals, and civilians dedicated to his [[statism in Shōwa Japan|statist]] philosophy that mixed [[totalitarianism]], [[Japanese militarism|militarism]], [[expansionism]], and [[loyalty]] to the [[tenno|emperor]]. Araki was also theoretician of the even more radical ''[[Sakurakai]]'' (Cherry Blossom Society), which actively attempted to bring about a [[Showa Reformation|Showa Restoration]] by [[coups d'état]].

As a colonel, Araki was the principal proponent of the ''[[Kodoha]]'' political faction (Imperial Benevolent Rule or Action Group) within the Japanese Army, together with [[Jinzaburo Mazaki]], [[Heisuke Yanagawa]], and [[Hideyoshi Obata]]. Their opposition was the ''[[Toseiha]]'' (Control Group), led by General [[Kazushige Ugaki]]. The ''Kodoha'' represented the [[radicalism (historical)|radical]] and [[ultranationalist]] elements within the army. The ''Toseiha'' attempted to represent the more conservative [[moderates]]. Both groups had a common intellectual origin in the [[Double Leaf Society]], a 1920s military thinking group supporting ''[[samurai]]'' ideals.

The groups were later to merge into the [[Imperial Way Faction]] (''Kodoha'') and incorporated a mixture of right-wing and [[national socialist]] ideas, particularly those of [[Kita Ikki]] and the pro-[[fascism|fascist]] philosophies of [[Nakano Seigo]] of which Araki was a leading member.

In January 1939, Araki became involved in the [[National Spiritual Mobilization Movement]] and revitalized it by having it sponsor public rallies, [[radio programs]], printed [[propaganda]], and discussion seminars at ''[[tonarigumi]]'' neighborhood associations.

==Northern Expansion Doctrine==
Within the Army, Araki was a supporter of the Northern Expansion Doctrine (''[[Hokushin-ron]]''), which proposed an attack on the [[Soviet Far East]] and [[Siberia]].

An essential first step in the ''Hokushin-ron'' proposal was for Japan to seize control of [[Manchuria]]. Araki was a supporter of the unauthorized studies of [[China]] and the preparation of war scenarios by radical junior officer cliques within the Army. Through his connections with the ''[[Sakurakai]]'', Araki intensified efforts to take the government away from civilian control, isolate the Emperor ([[Shōwa Restoration|Shōwa Reformation]]), unite the many [[secret societies]], and appoint his close confidant [[Shigeru Honjō]] as commander of the Kwantung Army.

The Kwantung Army had 12,000 men available for the invasion of Manchuria at the time of the [[Mukden Incident]] but needed reinforcements. Araki arranged for another protégé, [[Chosen Army of Japan|Chōsen Army]] commander [[Senjuro Hayashi]], to be briefed to move his forces from [[Korea under Japanese rule|Korea]] northward into Manchuria without permission from Tokyo in support of the Kwantung Army.

The plot to seize Manchuria proceeded as planned, and when presented by the ''fait accompli'', all that Prime Minister [[Reijirō Wakatsuki]] could do was weakly protest and resign with his cabinet. With Araki's encouragement, forces of Japan's Kwantung Army rapidly expanded in Manchuria and Inner Mongolia.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Hotta |first=Eri |title=Pan-Asianism and Japan's War, 1931-1945 |publisher=Palgrave MacMillan |year=2007 |isbn=0-230-60103-0 |location=New York |pages=87}}</ref>   

==Postwar==
[[File:Sadao Araki 2.jpg|thumb|Sadao Araki during the trial for war crimes at [[International Military Tribunal for the Far East]], 1947]]
After [[World War II]], Araki was arrested by the [[Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers|American Occupation authorities]] and brought before the [[International Military Tribunal for the Far East]], where he was tried for Class A [[war crimes]]. He was convicted and sentenced to [[life imprisonment]] for conspiracy to [[crime against peace|wage aggressive war]] but was released from [[Sugamo Prison]] in 1955 for health reasons.<ref>Maga, ''Judgment at Tokyo: The Japanese War Crimes Trials''</ref> Like other Japanese peers, he was stripped of his hereditary [[peerage]] in 1947 upon the abolition of the ''[[Kazoku]]''.

Araki died in 1966, and his grave is at [[Tama Cemetery]], in [[Fuchū, Tokyo|Fuchū]] in [[Tokyo]].

== References ==
=== Citations ===
{{Reflist|30em}}

=== Sources ===
; Books
* {{cite book
 | last = Beasley
 | first = W.G.
 | year = 2007
 | title = The Rise of Modern Japan, 3rd Edition: Political, Economic, and Social Change since 1850
 | publisher = Palgrave Macmillan
 | location = 
 | isbn = 978-0-312-23373-0
 | url-access = registration
 | url = https://archive.org/details/riseofmodernjapa00beas_0
 }}
* {{cite book
 | last = Samuels
 | first = Richard
 | author-link =
 | year = 2007
 | title = Securing Japan: Tokyo's Grand Strategy and the Future of East Asia
 | publisher = Cornell University Press
 | location =
 | isbn = 978-0-8014-4612-2
}}
* {{cite book
 | last = Maga
 | first = Timothy P.
 | author-link =
 | year = 2001
 | title = Judgment at Tokyo: The Japanese War Crimes Trials
 | publisher = University Press of Kentucky
 | location =
 | isbn = 0-8131-2177-9
}}
* {{cite book
 | last = Young
 | first = Louise
 | author-link =
 | year = 2001
 | title = Japan's Total Empire: Manchuria and the Culture of Wartime Imperialism (Twentieth Century Japan: the Emergence of a World Power)
 | publisher = University of California Press
 | location =
 | isbn = 0-520-21934-1
}}

== External links ==
{{commons category}}
{{wikiquote}}
*{{cite web
| last = Ammenthorp
| first = Steen
| url = http://www.generals.dk/general/Araki/Sadao_Baron/Japan.html
| title = Sadao, Araki
| work = The Generals of World War II
}}
*{{cite web
| last = National Diet Library
| author-link = National Diet Library
| url = http://ndl.go.jp/portrait/e/datas/227.html?c=0
| title = Sadao, Araki
| work = Portraits of Modern Historical Figures
}}
* {{PM20|FID=pe/000581}}

{{s-start}}
{{s-off}}
{{succession box | before=[[Kōichi Kido]] | title = [[Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology|Education Minister]] |years=May 1938 – Aug 1939 |after=[[Kakichi Kawarada]]}}
{{succession box | title=[[Minister of War of Japan|Minister of War]] |before=[[Jirō Minami]] |after=[[Senjūrō Hayashi]] |years=13 Dec. 1931 – 23 Jan. 1934 }}
{{s-break}}
{{s-mil}}
{{succession box | before=[[Senjuro Hayashi]] | title=[[Army War College (Japan)|Commandant, Army War College]] | years=Aug 1928 – Aug 1929 | after=[[Jirō Tamon]]}}
{{s-end}}

{{Fascism}}
{{Shōwa nationalism}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Araki, Sadao}}
[[Category:1877 births]]
[[Category:1966 deaths]]
[[Category:People from Komae, Tokyo]]
[[Category:Japanese military personnel of the Russo-Japanese War]]
[[Category:Kazoku]]
[[Category:Military personnel from Tokyo]]
[[Category:Kokkashugi]]
[[Category:Japanese fascists]]
[[Category:Grand Cordons of the Order of the Rising Sun]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Order of the Sacred Treasure, 1st class]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Order of the Golden Kite]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Order of St. Anna, 2nd class]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Order of St. Vladimir, 4th class]]
[[Category:Recipients of the Croix de Guerre 1914–1918 (France)]]
[[Category:Grand Crosses of the Order of the Sun of Peru]]
[[Category:Ministers of the Imperial Japanese Army]]
[[Category:Government ministers of Japan]]
[[Category:Japanese people convicted of the international crime of aggression]]
[[Category:People convicted by the International Military Tribunal for the Far East]]
[[Category:Japanese prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment]]
[[Category:Prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment by international courts and tribunals]]
[[Category:Japanese politicians convicted of crimes]]
[[Category:Imperial Japanese Army generals of World War II]]
[[Category:People paroled from life sentence]]
[[Category:Burials at Tama Cemetery]]