an organization in the Empire of Japan

Empire of Japan

The Empire of Japan is the name of the state of Japan that existed from the Meiji Restoration on 3 January 1868 to the enactment of the post-World War II Constitution of...

 established as part of the controls on civilian organizations under the National Mobilization Law

National Mobilization Law

was legislated in the Diet of Japan by Prime Minister Fumimaro Konoe on 24 March 1938 to put the national economy of the Empire of Japan on war-time footing after the start of the Second Sino-Japanese War....

 by Prime Minister

Prime Minister of Japan

The is the head of government of Japan. He is appointed by the Emperor of Japan after being designated by the Diet from among its members, and must enjoy the confidence of the House of Representatives to remain in office...

 Fumimaro Konoe

Fumimaro Konoe

Prince was a politician in the Empire of Japan who served as the 34th, 38th and 39th Prime Minister of Japan and founder/leader of the Taisei Yokusankai.- Early life :...

.

Representatives from 74 nationalist organizations were assembled at the Prime Minister’s residence in October 1937, and were told that their organizations were now part of the “Central League of the Spiritual Mobilization Movement”, headed by Admiral Ryokitsu Arima and under the joint supervision of the Ministry of Home Affairs

Home Ministry (Japan)

The ' was a Cabinet-level ministry established under the Meiji Constitution that managed the internal affairs of Empire of Japan from 1873-1947...

 and Ministry of Education. The purpose of the Movement would be to rally the nation for a total war

Total war

Total war is a war in which a belligerent engages in the complete mobilization of fully available resources and population.In the mid-19th century, "total war" was identified by scholars as a separate class of warfare...

 effort against China

China

Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...

 in the Second Sino-Japanese War

Second Sino-Japanese War

The Second Sino-Japanese War was a military conflict fought primarily between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. From 1937 to 1941, China fought Japan with some economic help from Germany , the Soviet Union and the United States...

.

Konoe later ordered another 19 nationalist organizations to join the League. This movement and other policies were part of "New Order" (Shintaisei) which was promulgated on 3 November 1938, a holiday marking emperor Meiji

Emperor Meiji

The or was the 122nd emperor of Japan according to the traditional order of succession, reigning from 3 February 1867 until his death...

's birthday.

Apart from public calls for increased patriotism

Patriotism

Patriotism is a devotion to one's country, excluding differences caused by the dependencies of the term's meaning upon context, geography and philosophy...

, the National Spiritual Mobilization Movement spanned some concrete programs like Boosting Production service to the Nation, Increasing Crops Service to the Nation and Student Volunteers Corps Service to the Nation. It was moreover part of a general move made by the Shōwa

Showa

Shōwa is the name of several places, times, people and things in Japan.* Hirohito , the 124th Emperor of Japan, known posthumously as Emperor Shōwa...

 regime to closely control the information which had begun in 1936 with the establishment of the Cabinet Information Committee which launched two official magazines : the Shūhō (Weekly Report) in November 1936 and the Shashin Shūhō (Photographic Weekly Report). The purpose of these was "to ensure that the content and purport of the policies inaugurated by the Government are widely disseminated to the general citizenry and correctly understood by them".

Konoe's successor, Prime Minister Kiichiro Hiranuma

Kiichiro Hiranuma

Baron was a prominent pre–World War II right-wing Japanese politician and the 35th Prime Minister of Japan from 5 January 1939 to 30 August 1939. The modern Japanese politician, Takeo Hiranuma, is his adopted son.- Early life :...

, turned the movement over to General Sadao Araki

Sadao Araki

Baron was a general in the Imperial Japanese Army before World War II. A charismatic leader and one of the principal nationalist right-wing political theorists in the late Japanese Empire, he was regarded as the leader of the radical faction within the politicized Japanese Army and served as...

 in January 1939, who revitalized it by having it sponsor public rallies, radio programs, printed propaganda

Propaganda

Propaganda is a form of communication that is aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position so as to benefit oneself or one's group....

 and discussion seminars at tonarigumi

Tonarigumi

The was the smallest unit of the national mobilization program established by the Japanese government in World War II. It consisted of units consisting of 10-15 households organized for fire fighting, civil defense and internal security. -History & Development:...

neighborhood associations. Famous public figures were recruited to provide lectures on the virtues of thrift, hygiene and hard work, and to disseminate a sense of national pride in the Japanese kokutai

Kokutai

Kokutai is a politically loaded word in the Japanese language, translatable as "sovereign", "national identity; national essence; national character" or "national polity; body politic; national entity; basis for the Emperor's sovereignty; Japanese constitution". "Sovereign" is perhaps the most...

.

The League was abolished on 20 December 1945 by the American occupation authorities

Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers

Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers was the title held by General Douglas MacArthur during the Occupation of Japan following World War II...

 after the surrender of Japan

Surrender of Japan

The surrender of Japan in 1945 brought hostilities of World War II to a close. By the end of July 1945, the Imperial Japanese Navy was incapable of conducting operations and an Allied invasion of Japan was imminent...

.

See also

• League of Diet Members Believing the Objectives of the Holy War
  League of Diet Members Believing the Objectives of the Holy War
  The League of Diet Members Carry Through the Holy War was set up by a group of the Diet of Japan on March 25, 1940, in support of Japanese Army in pursuing the Second Sino-Japanese War. It was disbanded on June 11, 1940....
  
  
• Imperial Rule Assistance Association
  Taisei Yokusankai
  The was Japan's para-fascist organization created by Prime Minister Fumimaro Konoe on October 12, 1940 to promote the goals of his Shintaisei movement...