Fumimaro Konoe was a Japanese politician in the Empire of Japan who served as the 34th, 38th and 39th Prime Minister of Japan and founder/leader of the Imperial Rule Assistance Association. He was Prime Minister in the lead-up to Japan entering World War II.
Background
Fumimaro Konoe was born on 12 October 1891 in Tokyo, Japan. He was, the eldest son of one of the most distinguished families of the court nobility, which was descended from the Fujivvara family and also had close connections with the imperial family. His father, Konoe Atsumaro (1863-1904), was head of the Peers’ School, president of the Upper House of the Diet, and a proponent of close cooperation between Japan and the other nations of Asia. He favored a firm policy with regard to Russia, but died just before the outbreak of the Russo-Japanese War.
Education
Fumimaro, after completing the middle school course of the Peers’ School, attended the First High School and then entered the philosophy course of Tokyo Imperial University. He later transferred to the law course of Kyoto Imperial University in order to be able to study under the economist Kawa- kami Hajime, whom he admired. At Kyoto University, he also came under the influence of the philosopher Nishida Kitaro.
Career
In 1916, while still a student, he was given a seat in the Upper House of the Diet because of his title of koshaku (duke or prince). He graduated the following year, and for a time held a nominal post in the Ministry of Home Affairs.
In 1919 Fumimaro Konoe attended the Versailles Peace Conference as a member of the Japanese delegation headed by Saionji Kirnmochi. While in Shanghai on the way to Europe, he met Sun Yat-sen, the leader of the Chinese revolution, and on the way back from tlte conference, he made an inspection tour of Europe and America. In 1921, after his return to Japan, he joined Mori Kaltu of the Seiyukai in organizing an association for the study of constitutions and advocated reform of the regulations pertaining to the Upper House of the Diet. In 1922, he became vice-president of the Toa Dobunkai, a culture organization with political overtones founded by his father (he became president in 1936). In 1926, Fumimaro Konoe was appointed head of the school operated by the organization, the Toa Dobun Shoin.
In 1927 he formed an organization of the upper nobility called the Kayokai, (Tuesday Society). In 1931 Fumimaro Konoe became vice-president of the Upper House, and in 1933 president. During this period, he was in contact with various military and right-wing factions that advocated a program of reform and came to be regarded as a highly promising figure on the political scene. The elder statesman Saionji Kirnmochi, in particular, was said to have held great expectations of him.
In 1936, following the attack on high government officials known as the February 26 Incident, Fumimaro Konoe was recommended to the post of prime minister, but steadfastly refused appointment. In 1937, however, after the Hayashi cabinet fell as a result of defeat in the general election, he accepted the post and formed his first cabinet.
In 1939 Konoe and his cabinet resigned. He was replaced as prime minister by Hiranuma Kiichiro, while he himself became president of the Privy Council.
A monthafter Fumimaro Konoe had assumed the position of prime minster, occurred the Marco Polo Bridge incident, which marked the beginning of prolonged hostilities between Japan and China, and though Konoe attempted to prevent the fighting from spreading, he was unsuccessful. In 1938 he announced that he would no longer deal with the Chiang Kai-shek government, a move that in effect cut off the possibility of a peaceful settlement and all but insured the continuation of the Sino-Japanese conflict.
In 1940 Fumimaro Konoe played a central role in the movement to do away with political parties. He became prime minister once more, forming his second cabinet, and at the same time recommended a reform of the political system. As a result, all political parties were disbanded and replaced by the Taisei Yokusankai (Imperial Rule Assistance Association), of which Konoe was the president.
On the diplomatic front, he strengthened Japan’s ties with the Axis nations, his Foreign Minister Matsuoka Yosuke concluding the Tripartite Pact with Germany and Italy. Developments in Japanese-American relations, however, forced the Konoe cabinet to resign en masse, and Matsuoka withdrew from the scene. In 1941 Konoe set up his third cabinet and proposed a personal meeting with President Roosevelt in order to find some solution to Japanese-American differences, but his efforts were unsuccessful and, unable to restrain the prowar faction headed by War Minister Tojo Hideki, he and his cabinet were once more obliged to resign. The Tojo cabinet that replaced him thereupon commenced hostilities against America and Great Britain. As Japan's position in the war worsened, Konoe became worried that the imperial house would be placed in jeopardy and he accordingly sought an early end to the conflict. In 1944, he and other persons of impotance close to the emperor succeeded in forcing the resignation of the Tojo cabinet.
In February of 1945, Konoe submitted a memorial to the emperor warning of the danger of a Communist revolution. In July of the same year, he was requested by the emperor to go to the Soviet Union as a special envoy to negotiate peace, but the plan was never realized, and the following month Japan announced its surrender. In the Higashikuni-no-miya cabinet that was set up immediately afterward, Konoe was given the status of a deputy prime minister and the post of minister without portfolio. As an official in the office of the Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal, he was urged by General MacArthur to undertake the task of constitutional revision. Occupation headquarters, however, issued an order for his arrest as a possible war criminal. On the last day for his voluntary appearance before the authorities, he took poison and died.
Views
In 1918 Fumimaro Konoe published in the magazine "Nihon oyobi Nihonjin" an article entitled "Ei-Bei hon’i no heiwa shugi o haisu" ("Criticism of British and American Style Pacifism"). In it, he attacked Britain and America for their economic imperialism and called for an end to colonialism and racial discrimination on the part of white people against the yellow race. These were principles that he continued to advocate over the years, culminating in his call in 1938 for a "New Order" in eastern Asia.
Membership
In the Upper House of the Diet, he was appointed in 1922 to the most influential study committee in the Upper House and became a standing member. He left the committee in 1927.