Emperor Hirohito And The Invasion Of Japan

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Hirohito became the emperor of Japan when his father died in 1926. When the Great Depression started, the Allies tried to support their own industries by limiting imports and cut Japan off of its exports. In 1932, a massive failure of rice crop caused famine throughout Japan. Japanese ultranationalists blamed the country’s politicians for the economic crisis, soon a series of political assassinations caused a crisis for the pro-democracy movement. Enraged that the Japanese immigrants were shut out from other countries, like the United States and Canada, they tried to obtain raw materials and markets for Japanese products, Japan then invaded Manchuria in 1931. Ultranationalists worked to rid Japan of democracy and to make the country a one-party state ruled the by the military. The military controlled the Japanese government and Japan was at war with …show more content…

Japanese soldiers invaded the Chinese city of Nanjing, brutally slaughtering and assaulting the Chinese race, about 300 000 civilians died in this massacre. Emperor Hirohito never objected to the Japanese invasion of China, he believed that the country deserved all it needed to expand and rule. Hirohito had also sent out his first imperial order encouraging all Japanese civilians to commit suicide rather than to be taken prisoner by the US. The military leaders brought back traditional warrior values and created a cult around Emperor Hirohito, Emperor Hirohito was worshipped as a demigod. Japan’s educational system was based on The Way of Subjects. Students were being taught to idealize the past, to take pride in their race and culture, and to practise duty and obedience as the highest virtues. The ideals of Nazi Germany were praised, while Western values and cultures were scorned. However, Emperor Hirohito was never prosecuted