Katsura Tarō
This article includes a list of general references, but it lacks sufficient corresponding inline citations. (July 2012) |
Prince Katsura Tarō | |
---|---|
桂 太郎 | |
Minister of War | |
In office 12 January 1898 – 23 December 1900 | |
Prime Minister | Itō Hirobumi Yamagata Aritomo Ōkuma Shigenobu |
Preceded by | Takashima Tomonosuke |
Succeeded by | Kodama Gentarō |
Governor General of Taiwan | |
In office 2 June 1896 – 14 October 1896 | |
Monarch | Meiji |
Preceded by | Kabayama Sukenori |
Succeeded by | Nogi Maresuke |
Personal details | |
Born | IJA 3rd Division | 4 January 1848
Battles/wars | Boshin War First Sino-Japanese War |
Prince Katsura Tarō (桂 太郎, 4 January 1848 – 10 October 1913) was a Japanese politician and general of the Imperial Japanese Army who served as the Prime Minister of Japan from 1901 to 1913.
Katsura was a distinguished general of the
Katsura is the second-longest serving Prime Minister of Japan, after Shinzo Abe, and served for 2883 days (7 years and 330 days) over his three terms from 1901 to 1913.
Early life
Katsura was born on 4 January 1848 in Hagi, Nagato Province (present-day Yamaguchi Prefecture) as the eldest son of horse guard Katsura Yoichiemon into a samurai family of the Chōshū Domain. As a youth, Katsura joined the movement against the Tokugawa shogunate and participated in the Boshin War[1] that led to the Meiji Restoration in 1868.
Army career
The new
During the
After the war, he was elevated with the title of shishaku (viscount) under the kazoku peerage system.[2] He was appointed 2nd Governor-General of Taiwan from 2 June 1896, to October 1896.
In successive cabinets from 1898 to 1901, he served as
Prime Minister
Katsura Tarō served as the 11th, 13th and 15th
First administration
Katsura became prime minister for the first time on 2 June 1901, and he retained the office for four and a half years to 7 January 1906, which was then a record in Japan.
In terms of domestic policy, Katsura was a strictly conservative politician who attempted to distance himself from the Imperial Diet and party politics. His political views mirrored that of former prime minister Yamagata Aritomo in that he viewed that his sole responsibility was to the Emperor. He vied for control of the government with the Rikken Seiyūkai, the majority party of the lower house, headed by his archrival, Marquess Saionji Kinmochi.
In January 1906, Katsura resigned the premiership to Saionji Kinmochi over the unpopular Treaty of Portsmouth (1905), ending the war between Japan and Russia. However, his resignation was part of a "back door deal," brokered by Hara Takashi to alternate power between Saionji and Hara.
On 1 April 1906, he was awarded the Grand Cordon of the Supreme Order of the Chrysanthemum.
Second administration
Katsura returned as Prime Minister from 14 July 1908, to 30 August 1911. His second premiership was noteworthy for the
Katsura was increasingly unpopular during his second premiership over public perception that he was using his office to further both his personal fortune and the interests of the military (gunbatsu) over the welfare of the people. [citation needed] He also faced growing public dissatisfaction over the persistence of the hanbatsu domainal based politics.
After his resignation, he became a kōshaku (公爵 = prince), Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal of Japan and one of the genrō.
Third administration
Katsura's brief reappointment as Prime Minister third time from 21 December 1912, to 20 February 1913, sparked widespread riots in what became known as the
However, faced with a
Death
Katsura died of
Honors
From the corresponding article in the Japanese Wikipedia
Titles
- Viscount (20 August 1895)
- Count (27 February 1902)[4]
- Marquess (21 September 1907)
- Prince (21 April 1911)
Decorations
Japanese
- Grand Cordon of the Order of the Sacred Treasure (20 August 1895; Second Class: 11 May 1891)
- Order of the Golden Kite, 3rd class (20 August 1895)
- Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun (27 December 1901; Third Class: 19 November 1885; Fourth Class: 26 May 1880)
- Grand Cordon of the Order of the Paulownia Flowers (10 October 1913; posthumous)
- Collar of the Order of the Chrysanthemum (10 October 1913, Awarded a few hours before his death; Grand Cordon: 1 April 1906)
Foreign
- Russian Empire:
- Knight of the Order of the White Eagle (1 May 1899)
- Knight of the Order of St. Alexander Nevskyin Brilliants (11 November 1911)
- German Empire:
- Grand Cross of the Order of the Red Eagle (4 October 1906; Knight 1st Class: 3 February 1900)
- Knight of the Order of Merit of the Prussian Crown (19 September 1912)
- Duchy of Brunswick: Knight 1st Class of the Order of Henry the Lion (1 July 1910)
- Legion d'Honneur(16 April 1901)
- United Kingdom: Honorary Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath (GCB) (8 July 1905)[5]
- Order of Pius IX(5 June 1906)
- Korean Empire: Grand Cordon of the Order of the Golden Ruler (21 December 1907)
- Qing dynasty: Order of the Double Dragon, Class I Grade II (21 December 1907; Class I Grade III: 18 December 1899)
References
- ^ "明治宰相列伝 : 桂太郎 | 国立公文書館". www.archives.go.jp. Retrieved 19 February 2022.
- ^ a b c d e public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Katsura, Taro, Marquess". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 15 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 697. One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the
- ^ Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1922). "Katsura, Taro". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 31 (12th ed.). London & New York: The Encyclopædia Britannica Company. p. 676.
- ^ "Latest intelligence – Japan". The Times. No. 36703. London. 28 February 1902. p. 3.
- ^ "The London Gazette, 14 July 1905".
- Lone, Stewart (2000). Army, Empire, and Politics in Meiji Japan: The Three Careers of General Katsura Taro. ISBN 0-312-23289-6.
External links
Media related to Katsura Tarō at Wikimedia Commons