Senjuro Hayashi
Encyclopedia
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...
commander of the Chosen Army of Japan
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 Korea
Korea under Japanese rule
Korea was under Japanese rule as part of Japan's 35-year imperialist expansion . Japanese rule ended in 1945 shortly after the Japanese defeat in World War II....
during the Mukden Incident
Mukden Incident
The Mukden Incident, also known as the Manchurian Incident, was a staged event that was engineered by Japanese military personnel as a pretext for invading the northern part of China known as Manchuria in 1931....
and the invasion of Manchuria, and a Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
ese politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
and the 33rd Prime Minister of Japan
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...
from February 2, 1937 to June 4, 1937.
Biography
Born in Ishikawa PrefectureIshikawa Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region on Honshū island. The capital is Kanazawa.- History :Ishikawa was formed from the merger of Kaga Province and the smaller Noto Province.- Geography :Ishikawa is on the Sea of Japan coast...
, to a samurai
Samurai
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...
-class family formerly in service to Kaga Domain
Kaga Domain
The was a powerful feudal domain in Kaga, Noto and Etchū Provinces of Japan during the Edo period. The domain was founded by Maeda Toshiie and headed by the Maeda clan. Its income rating, over 1,000,000 koku, was the highest in the nation after the Tokugawa shogunate itself...
, Hayashi dropped out of school in July 1894 to enlist in the Imperial Japanese Army at the start of the First Sino-Japanese War
First Sino-Japanese War
The First Sino-Japanese War was fought between Qing Dynasty China and Meiji Japan, primarily over control of Korea...
. After the end of the war, he attended the Imperial Japanese Army Academy, and on graduation in June 1897 was assigned to the IJA 7th Infantry Regiment. in 1903, he graduated from 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....
. With the start 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...
, Hayashi participated in the Siege of Port Arthur
Siege of Port Arthur
The Siege of Port Arthur , 1 August 1904 – 2 January 1905, the deep-water port and Russian naval base at the tip of the Liaotung Peninsula in Manchuria, was the longest and most violent land battle of the Russo-Japanese War....
.
Hayashi's first major command from 1918 to 1920 was as commanding officer of the IJA 57th Infantry Regiment, followed by a time in 1921 attached to the Technical Research Headquarters and as an acting Military Investigator. From 1921 to 1923 he was the head of the Preparatory Course at the Imperial Japanese Army Academy, followed by a time attached to the Inspectorate General of Military Training
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...
. From 1923 to 1924 he was the Japanese Army Representative to the League of Nations
League of Nations
The League of Nations was an intergovernmental organization founded as a result of the Paris Peace Conference that ended the First World War. It was the first permanent international organization whose principal mission was to maintain world peace...
, followed by another stint attached to the Inspectorate General of Military Training from 1924 to 1925.
In 1925, Hayashi became the commanding Officer of the IJA 2nd Infantry Brigade. In 1926 he was made Commandant of the Tokyo Bay Fortress. In 1927, he became the Commandant of the Army Staff College, followed in 1928 as Deputy Inspector-General of Military Training. Finally in 1929 he became the General Officer Commanding the Imperial Guards Division.
In 1930, Lieutenant-General Senjūrō Hayashi, was made Commander in Chief of the Chosen Army, in Korea. On the day after the Mukden Incident
Mukden Incident
The Mukden Incident, also known as the Manchurian Incident, was a staged event that was engineered by Japanese military personnel as a pretext for invading the northern part of China known as Manchuria in 1931....
on September 19th, he ordered the IJA 20th Division to split its force, forming the 39th Mixed Brigade. Acting without authorization by the Emperor
Hirohito
, posthumously in Japan officially called Emperor Shōwa or , was the 124th Emperor of Japan according to the traditional order, reigning from December 25, 1926, until his death in 1989. Although better known outside of Japan by his personal name Hirohito, in Japan he is now referred to...
or central government in Tokyo, Hayashi ordered the 39th Mixed Brigade to cross the Yalu River
Yalu River
The Yalu River or the Amnok River is a river on the border between North Korea and the People's Republic of China....
that same day into 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...
. The Cabinet was forced to concede the point to the military afterwards and the movement of the 39th Mixed Brigade from Korea was authorized on September 22nd.
Following his command in Korea, Hayashi was made Inspector-General of Military Training and a member of the Supreme War Council
Supreme War Council (Japan)
The Supreme War Council was established during the development of representative government in Meiji period Japan to further strengthen the authority of the state. Its first leader was Yamagata Aritomo , a Chōshū native who has been credited with the founding of the modern Japanese army and was to...
from 1932 to 1934. In 1932, he was awarded with the Order of the Sacred Treasure
Order of the Sacred Treasure
The is a Japanese Order, established on January 4, 1888 by Emperor Meiji of Japan as the Order of Meiji. It is awarded in eight classes . It is generally awarded for long and/or meritorious service and considered to be the lowest of the Japanese orders of merit...
(1st class) and in 1934, he was awarded the Order of the Rising Sun
Order of the Rising Sun
The is a Japanese order, established in 1875 by Emperor Meiji of Japan. The Order was the first national decoration awarded by the Japanese Government, created on April 10, 1875 by decree of the Council of State. The badge features rays of sunlight from the rising sun...
(1st class). From 1934 to 1935 Hayashi was Army Minister
Ministry of War of Japan
The , more popularly known as the Ministry of War of Japan, was cabinet-level ministry in the Empire of Japan charged with the administrative affairs of the Imperial Japanese Army...
, and from 1935 to 1936 again member of the Supreme War Council.
Politically, Hayashi was a strong supporter of 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...
, along with General Shigeru Honjō
Shigeru Honjo
-Notes:...
who was commander of the Kwantung Army. The Toseiha
Toseiha
' was a political faction in the Imperial Japanese Army, active in the 1920s and 1930s.Led by General Kazushige Ugaki, along with Hajime Sugiyama, Koiso Kuniaki, Yoshijirō Umezu, Tetsuzan Nagata and Hideki Tōjō, the Tōseiha was a grouping of officers united primarily by their opposition to the...
faction within the Imperial Japanese Army scored a victory in January 1934 when General Araki was forced to step down, after the excesses of the Kwantung Army, and Hayashi became his replacement. The struggle between the Toseiha and Imperial Way Faction
Imperial Way Faction
The was a political faction in the Imperial Japanese Army, active in the 1920s and 1930s and largely supported by junior officers aiming to establish a military government, that promoted totalitarian, militarist, and expansionist ideals...
factions continued below the surface of the government; and the war in North China carried on apace until February 1936.
Hayashi also promoted Fumimaro Konoye's doctrines, as a "right-winger" amongst the militarists, who approved of the "fiction" of democracy
Democracy
Democracy is generally defined as a form of government in which all adult citizens have an equal say in the decisions that affect their lives. Ideally, this includes equal participation in the proposal, development and passage of legislation into law...
, and the Emperor's role with an "adviser group", against "left-winger" radical militarists, led by Kingoro Hashimoto
Kingoro Hashimoto
was a soldier in the Imperial Japanese Army and politician.-Early career:Hashimoto was born in Okayama City, and a graduate of the 23rd class of the Imperial Japanese Army Academy in 1911. He subsequently graduated from the Army Staff College in 1920. In April 1922, he was assigned to the Kwangtung...
, wanted a Military Shogunate.
Hayashi served as Prime Minister of Japan
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...
for a brief four month period in 1937. Later from 1940 to 1941, he was a Privy Councillor
Privy Council (Japan)
was an advisory council to the Emperor of Japan that operated from 1888 to 1947.-Functions:Modeled in part upon the Privy Council of the United Kingdom, this body advised the throne on matters of grave importance including:...
. Hayashi suffered from an intracranial hemorrhage
Intracranial hemorrhage
An intracranial hemorrhage is a hemorrhage, or bleeding, within the skull.-Causes:Intracranial bleeding occurs when a blood vessel within the skull is ruptured or leaks. It can result from physical trauma or nontraumatic causes such as a ruptured aneurysm...
in January 1943 and died at his home of February 4 without regaining consciousness. He was posthumously 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:...
(4th class) and the Order of the Paulownia Flowers
Order of the Paulownia Flowers
The ' is an order presented by the Japanese Government. Established in 1888 during the Meiji Restoration as the highest award in the Order of the Rising Sun; however, since 2003 it has been an Order in its own right...
. His grave is at the Tama Reien Cemetery in Fuchū, Tokyo
Fuchu, Tokyo
is a city located in western Tokyo Metropolis, Japan. As of 2010, the city has an estimated population of 255,394 and a population density of 8,700 persons per km². The total area was 29.34 km²...
.