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Hirohito (1901-89)Japanese emperor. Born on 24 April 1901 into the Japanese imperial family, Prince Hirohito was the son of Emperor Yoshihito and the first member of the dynasty to be allowed to travel abroad. In 1921, after attending Gakushuin, the peers' school, he travelled to the United States and then to Europe, where he observed how constitutional monarchies worked. Three months after his return, he became regent when his father fell ill. He survived an assassination attempt in December 1924 and succeeded to the throne in 1926 as the 124th emperor in direct lineage. In the state Shinto religion, he was considered a god. A modest and moderate man, his main interest was marine biology, but he accepted his position as divine ruler. Although he successfully opposed the 26 February Incident, a coup attempt by army officers, the early part of his reign saw Japanese aggression in Manchuria and China. In 1941, he agreed to General Tojo's demands for war against the United States, which led to the surprise attack on Pearl Harbor. But by the time that atom bombs had been dropped on two Japanese cities in 1945 and diehard generals had subsequently refused to surrender, he commanded the acceptance of the Allied demand for unconditional surrender on 15 August 1945. Broadcasting the news the day after, he became the first Japanese ruler to address his subjects directly. After the war, despite calls for his trial as a war criminal, he became an important figurehead, and was seen as essential to making Japanese society more democratic. In his New Year radio message of 1946, Hirohito renounced his divinity and became a constitutional monarch. Later, he paid state visits to a number of Western countries. He became ill in September 1988, died on 9 January 1989, and was succeeded by Crown Prince Akihito. |
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