was a Japanese

Japanese people

The are an ethnic group originating in the Japanese archipelago and are the predominant ethnic group of Japan. Worldwide, approximately 130 million people are of Japanese descent; of these, approximately 127 million are residents of Japan. People of Japanese ancestry who live in other countries...

 ultranationalist political theorist. Pan-Asianist

Pan-Asianism

Pan-Asianism is an ideology or a movement that Asian nations unite and solidify and create a continental identity to defeat the designs of the Western nations to perpetuate hegemony.-Japanese Asianism:...

, and martial artist, active in the pre-war 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...

.

Biography

Uchida was born in Fukuoka prefecture

Fukuoka Prefecture

is a prefecture of Japan located on Kyūshū Island. The capital is the city of Fukuoka.- History :Fukuoka Prefecture includes the former provinces of Chikugo, Chikuzen, and Buzen....

. He was the son of Shinto Muso-ryu

Shinto Muso-ryu

, most commonly known by its practice of jōdō, is a traditional school of the Japanese martial art of jōjutsu, or the art of wielding the short staff . The technical purpose of the art is to learn how to defeat a swordsman in combat using the jō, with an emphasis on proper combative distance,...

practitioner Uchida Ryōgorō

Uchida Ryogoro

Uchida Ryōgorō Shigeyoshi , , was a Japanese jojutsu practitioner, ranked menkyo in the Japanese martial art of Shintō Musō-ryū...

, and from an early age was interested in many forms of Japanese traditional martial arts, including kyudo

Kyudo

, literally meaning "way of the bow", is the Japanese art of archery. It is a modern Japanese martial art and practitioners are known as .It is estimated that there are approximately half a million practitioners of kyudo today....

, kendo

Kendo

, meaning "Way of The Sword", is a modern Japanese martial art of sword-fighting based on traditional Japanese swordsmanship, or kenjutsu.Kendo is a physically and mentally challenging activity that combines strong martial arts values with sport-like physical elements.-Practitioners:Practitioners...

, judo

Judo

is a modern martial art and combat sport created in Japan in 1882 by Jigoro Kano. Its most prominent feature is its competitive element, where the object is to either throw or takedown one's opponent to the ground, immobilize or otherwise subdue one's opponent with a grappling maneuver, or force an...

 and sumo

Sumo

is a competitive full-contact sport where a wrestler attempts to force another wrestler out of a circular ring or to touch the ground with anything other than the soles of the feet. The sport originated in Japan, the only country where it is practiced professionally...

. In 1895, he attended the Toyogo University, where he studied the Russian language

Russian language

Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...

 and in 1897, made a trip to Siberia

Siberia

Siberia is an extensive region constituting almost all of Northern Asia. Comprising the central and eastern portion of the Russian Federation, it was part of the Soviet Union from its beginning, as its predecessor states, the Tsardom of Russia and the Russian Empire, conquered it during the 16th...

.

As a youth, Uchida joined the Genyosha

Genyosha

The ' was an influential ultranationalist group and secret society active in the Empire of Japan.-Foundation as the Koyōsha:Originally founded as the Koyōsha by Hiraoka Kotarō , a wealthy ex-samurai and mine-owner, with mining interests in Manchuria, Toyama Mitsuru, and other former samurai of the...

nationalist group, and soon became the leading disciple of its founder, Toyama Mitsuru

Toyama Mitsuru

was a right-wing political leader in early 20th century Japan and founder of the Genyosha nationalist secret society.-Early life:Tōyama was born to a poor samurai family in Fukuoka City in Kyūshū...

. The Genyosha was active in raising funds and agitating for a more aggressive foreign policy towards the Asian mainland. When the Donghak Rebellion

Donghak Peasant Revolution

The Donghak Peasant Revolution, also known as the Donghak Peasant Movement, was an anti-government, anti-feudal and anti-foreign uprising in 1894 in the southern Korea which was the catalyst for the First Sino-Japanese War....

 began in Korea

Korea

Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...

 in 1894, he went to Korea to help the rebels.

After his return to Japan, in 1901, he founded the Black Dragon Society

Black Dragon Society

The was a prominent paramilitary, ultranationalist right-wing group in Japan.-History:The Kokuryūkai was founded in 1901 by Uchida Ryohei, and was descended from the Genyōsha. Its name is derived from the Amur River, called Heilongjiang or "Black Dragon River" in Chinese , read as Kokuryū-kō in...

, an ultranationalist society which advocated a strong foreign policy towards Russia

Russia

Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

 and Japanese expansionism towards Korea and Manchuria

Manchuria

Manchuria is a historical name given to a large geographic region in northeast Asia. Depending on the definition of its extent, Manchuria usually falls entirely within the People's Republic of China, or is sometimes divided between China and Russia. The region is commonly referred to as Northeast...

. In 1903, he joined the Tairo Doshikai, a political group advocating war against Russia. After the successful conclusion of 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...

, he turned his attention towards advocating the annexation of Korea. He was one of the sponsors of the pro-Japanese Iljinhoe

Iljinhoe

The Iljinhoe was a nation-wide pro-Japan organization in Korea formed on August 8, 1904. A Japanese record states the number of party members was about 800,000, but another survey record by Japanese Resident-General of Korea in 1910 shows the number was about 90,000...

 political party

Political party

A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...

 in Korea in 1907. During the 1920s and 1930s, he was active in attacking liberalism in Japanese society and politics. He was arrested in 1925 on suspection of planning the assassination of Japanese 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...

 Takaaki Kato & the Emperor of Japan, Emperor Yoshihito, but was found innocent.