Akiyama Yoshifuru
Encyclopedia
was a general in the Imperial Japanese Army
, and was considered the father of the modern Japanese cavalry
. Akiyama Yoshifuru was Vice Admiral Akiyama Saneyuki
's older brother.
in the Matsuyama Domain
, Iyo Province
(modern Ehime Prefecture
), Akiyama's family was so poor in his childhood that he was forced to work as a fire stoker and janitor in a local public bathhouse for a pittance each day.
Akiyama entered the Rikugunshikangakkō (the forerunner of the Imperial Japanese Army Academy) in 1877. He went on to attend the Army Staff College
, and was sent as a military attaché
to France
to study cavalry tactics and techniques. He was the only Japanese officer sent to study at the École spéciale militaire de Saint-Cyr
at a time when the rest of the Japanese Army had turned to the Imperial German Army as its model and was being taught by instructors from Germany.
Akiyama had very pale skin and large eyes (for a Japanese in the era). He was often mistaken for a European student by many foreign instructors such as Jakob Meckel
while at the Japanese Army Academy, and developed a reputation as a “ladies' man,” much to the envy of his colleagues during his stay in France, whereas he himself disliked his attractive looks. He was an impartial man who had a bowl of rice with slices of pickles for his meal. However, he spent his money on sake and had a reputation as a heavy drinker.
Akiyama was active in the First Sino-Japanese War
of 1894-1895 as a cavalry regimental commander in the IJA 1st Division, and served with Japanese expeditionary forces in the subsequent Boxer Rebellion
with the IJA 5th Division. In the Russo-Japanese War
of 1904-1905, he led his troops in the Battle of Shaho
, Battle of Sandepu
, and in the Battle of Mukden
against the Cossack
cavalry divisions of the Imperial Russian Army
. In April 1906, he was awarded the Order of the Golden Kite
(2nd class).
Akiyama became commander of the IJA 13th Division in 1913, and after his promotion to full general in 1916, was given command of the Imperial Guards Division
. The following year, he was assigned command of the Chōsen Army
. In 1920, he became Director General for Military Education
.
After he retired from active military service in 1923, declining promotion to Field Marshal. He returned to his native island of Shikoku
and became the principal of the Hokuyō Junior High School (present-day Matsuyama High School). Akiyama died of complications from diabetes at the Army Medical School Hospital in Tokyo in 1930, and his grave is in the city of Matsuyama.
Akiyama is one of main character in Saka no ue no kumo
(Clouds over the slope), a novel by Shiba Ryotaro, which was broadcast as a historical drama
on the Japanese television network NHK
from 2009-2011. Akiyama was portrayed by actor Hiroshi Abe
.
Imperial Japanese Army
-Foundation:During the Meiji Restoration, the military forces loyal to the Emperor were samurai drawn primarily from the loyalist feudal domains of Satsuma and Chōshū...
, and was considered the father of the modern Japanese cavalry
Cavalry
Cavalry or horsemen were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback. Cavalry were historically the third oldest and the most mobile of the combat arms...
. Akiyama Yoshifuru was Vice Admiral Akiyama Saneyuki
Akiyama Saneyuki
was a Meiji-period career officer in the Imperial Japanese Navy. He was famous as a planner of Battle of Tsushima in the Russo-Japanese War. The Japanese general Akiyama Yoshifuru was his elder brother.-Early life and career:...
's older brother.
Early life
Born as the third son to a poor samuraiSamurai
is the term for the military nobility of pre-industrial Japan. According to translator William Scott Wilson: "In Chinese, the character 侍 was originally a verb meaning to wait upon or accompany a person in the upper ranks of society, and this is also true of the original term in Japanese, saburau...
in the Matsuyama Domain
Iyo-Matsuyama Domain
The was a Japanese domain of the Edo period, with its holdings centered in modern-day Matsuyama, Ehime.-History:The Iyo-Matsuyama domain passed through several hands before settling as the fief of a branch of the Hisamatsu-Matsudaira. In the Bakumatsu period, the domain took part in the Tokugawa...
, Iyo Province
Iyo Province
was an old province of Japan in the area that is today Ehime Prefecture on Shikoku. Iyo bordered on Awa, Sanuki, and Tosa Provinces. It was sometimes called ....
(modern Ehime Prefecture
Ehime Prefecture
is a prefecture in northwestern Shikoku, Japan. The capital is Matsuyama.-History:Until the Meiji Restoration, Ehime prefecture was known as Iyo Province...
), Akiyama's family was so poor in his childhood that he was forced to work as a fire stoker and janitor in a local public bathhouse for a pittance each day.
Akiyama entered the Rikugunshikangakkō (the forerunner of the Imperial Japanese Army Academy) in 1877. He went on to attend the Army Staff College
Army War College (Japan)
The ; Short form: of the Empire of Japan was founded in 1882 in Minato, Tokyo to modernize and Westernize the Imperial Japanese Army. Much of the empire's elite including prime ministers during the period of Japanese militarism were graduates of the college....
, and was sent as a military attaché
Military attaché
A military attaché is a military expert who is attached to a diplomatic mission . This post is normally filled by a high-ranking military officer who retains the commission while serving in an embassy...
to France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
to study cavalry tactics and techniques. He was the only Japanese officer sent to study at the École spéciale militaire de Saint-Cyr
École Spéciale Militaire de Saint-Cyr
The École Spéciale Militaire de Saint-Cyr is the foremost French military academy. Its official name is . It is often referred to as Saint-Cyr . Its motto is "Ils s'instruisent pour vaincre": literally "They study to vanquish" or "Training for victory"...
at a time when the rest of the Japanese Army had turned to the Imperial German Army as its model and was being taught by instructors from Germany.
Akiyama had very pale skin and large eyes (for a Japanese in the era). He was often mistaken for a European student by many foreign instructors such as Jakob Meckel
Jakob Meckel
Klemens Wilhelm Jacob Meckel was a general in the Prussian army and foreign advisor to the government of Meiji period Japan.-Biography:...
while at the Japanese Army Academy, and developed a reputation as a “ladies' man,” much to the envy of his colleagues during his stay in France, whereas he himself disliked his attractive looks. He was an impartial man who had a bowl of rice with slices of pickles for his meal. However, he spent his money on sake and had a reputation as a heavy drinker.
Military career
First Sino-Japanese War
The First Sino-Japanese War was fought between Qing Dynasty China and Meiji Japan, primarily over control of Korea...
of 1894-1895 as a cavalry regimental commander in the IJA 1st Division, and served with Japanese expeditionary forces in the subsequent Boxer Rebellion
Boxer Rebellion
The Boxer Rebellion, also called the Boxer Uprising by some historians or the Righteous Harmony Society Movement in northern China, was a proto-nationalist movement by the "Righteous Harmony Society" , or "Righteous Fists of Harmony" or "Society of Righteous and Harmonious Fists" , in China between...
with the IJA 5th Division. In the Russo-Japanese War
Russo-Japanese War
The Russo-Japanese War was "the first great war of the 20th century." It grew out of rival imperial ambitions of the Russian Empire and Japanese Empire over Manchuria and Korea...
of 1904-1905, he led his troops in the Battle of Shaho
Battle of Shaho
The Battle of Shaho was a land battle of the Russo-Japanese War fought along a front centered at the Sha River on the Mukden–Port Arthur spur of the China Far East Railway just north of Liaoyang, Manchuria.-Background:...
, Battle of Sandepu
Battle of Sandepu
The Battle of Sandepu, was a major land battle of the Russo-Japanese War. It was fought within a group of villages about 36 miles southwest of Mukden, Manchuria.-Background:...
, and in the Battle of Mukden
Battle of Mukden
One of the largest land battles to be fought before World War I, the , the last major land battle of the Russo-Japanese War, was fought from 20 February to 10 March 1905 between Japan and Russia near Mukden in Manchuria...
against the Cossack
Cossack
Cossacks are a group of predominantly East Slavic people who originally were members of democratic, semi-military communities in what is today Ukraine and Southern Russia inhabiting sparsely populated areas and islands in the lower Dnieper and Don basins and who played an important role in the...
cavalry divisions of the Imperial Russian Army
Imperial Russian Army
The Imperial Russian Army was the land armed force of the Russian Empire, active from around 1721 to the Russian Revolution of 1917. In the early 1850s, the Russian army consisted of around 938,731 regular soldiers and 245,850 irregulars . Until the time of military reform of Dmitry Milyutin in...
. In April 1906, he was awarded the Order of the Golden Kite
Order of the Golden Kite
The ' was an order of the Empire of Japan, established on 12 February 1890 by Emperor Meiji "in commemoration of Jimmu Tennō, the Romulus of Japan."-Background:...
(2nd class).
Akiyama became commander of the IJA 13th Division in 1913, and after his promotion to full general in 1916, was given command of the Imperial Guards Division
Imperial Guard of Japan
The Japanese is an organization which is dedicated to protection of the Emperor of Japan and his family, palaces and other imperial properties. Following the end of World War II the traditional Guard, which also served as a unit in the Imperial Japanese Army, was dissolved and in 1947 a civil...
. The following year, he was assigned command of the Chōsen Army
Chosen Army of Japan
The was an army of the Imperial Japanese Army, forming a garrison force in Korea under Japanese rule.-History:Japanese forces occupied large portions of the Empire of Korea during the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-1905, and a substantial was established in Seoul to protect the Japanese embassy and...
. In 1920, he became Director General for Military Education
Inspectorate General of Military Training
The was responsible for all non-military aviation training of the Imperial Japanese Army. It was headed by an Inspector general who was responsible for overseeing technical and tactical training, and who reported directly to the Emperor of Japan via the Imperial General Headquarters rather than to...
.
After he retired from active military service in 1923, declining promotion to Field Marshal. He returned to his native island of Shikoku
Shikoku
is the smallest and least populous of the four main islands of Japan, located south of Honshū and east of the island of Kyūshū. Its ancient names include Iyo-no-futana-shima , Iyo-shima , and Futana-shima...
and became the principal of the Hokuyō Junior High School (present-day Matsuyama High School). Akiyama died of complications from diabetes at the Army Medical School Hospital in Tokyo in 1930, and his grave is in the city of Matsuyama.
Akiyama is one of main character in Saka no ue no kumo
Saka no ue no kumo
, "Cloud over the slope," is a popular Japanese historical novel by Shiba Ryōtarō originally published serially from 1968 to 1972 in eight volumes...
(Clouds over the slope), a novel by Shiba Ryotaro, which was broadcast as a historical drama
Taiga drama
is the name NHK gives to the annual, year-long historical fiction television series it broadcasts in Japan. Beginning in 1963 with the black-and-white Hana no Shōgai, starring kabuki actor Onoe Shōroku and Takarazuka star Awashima Chikage, the network has hired a producer, director, writer, music...
on the Japanese television network NHK
NHK
NHK is Japan's national public broadcasting organization. NHK, which has always identified itself to its audiences by the English pronunciation of its initials, is a publicly owned corporation funded by viewers' payments of a television license fee....
from 2009-2011. Akiyama was portrayed by actor Hiroshi Abe
Hiroshi Abe (actor)
is a Japanese model and actor.He began his career as a model, but he successfully made the transition to acting, becoming one of the most regularly visible presences in Japanese media. He is a 1988 graduate of Chuo University.-Career:...
.