March Incident
Encyclopedia
Coup d'état
A coup d'état state, literally: strike/blow of state)—also known as a coup, putsch, and overthrow—is the sudden, extrajudicial deposition of a government, usually by a small group of the existing state establishment—typically the military—to replace the deposed government with another body; either...
attempt in 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...
, in March 1931, launched by the radical Sakurakai secret society within the Imperial Japanese Army
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...
, aided by civilian ultranationalist groups.
Background and History
The start of the March Incident of 1931 may be traced back to the autumn of 1930, when the foundation of the Sakurakai (Cherry Society) by Imperial Japanese ArmyImperial 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...
Lieutenant Colonel
Lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel is a rank of commissioned officer in the armies and most marine forces and some air forces of the world, typically ranking above a major and below a colonel. The rank of lieutenant colonel is often shortened to simply "colonel" in conversation and in unofficial correspondence...
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...
and Captain Isamu Chō
Isamu Cho
- Notes :...
. The cherry blossom was symbolic of self-sacrifice, and was a symbol used by the military to symbolize the fleeting life of a soldier. The avowed goal of the Sakurakai was political reform through elimination of corrupt party politics
Party Politics
Party Politics is a peer-reviewed academic journal that publishes papers in the field of Political Science. The journal's editors are David M Farrell and Paul Webb...
and the establishment of a totalitarian state socialist government run by the military. The new government would rid the country of corrupt politics, unfair distribution of wealth in the zaibatsu
Zaibatsu
is a Japanese term referring to industrial and financial business conglomerates in the Empire of Japan, whose influence and size allowed for control over significant parts of the Japanese economy from the Meiji period until the end of World War II.-Terminology:...
and perceived degenerative influences corrupting Japan's public morals..
After the attempted assassination of 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...
Osachi Hamaguchi, Prince Kinmochi Saionji (the last genrō
Genro
was an unofficial designation given to certain retired elder Japanese statesmen, considered the "founding fathers" of modern Japan, who served as informal extraconstitutional advisors to the emperor, during the Meiji, Taishō and early Shōwa periods in Japanese history.The institution of genrō...
) and Lord Privy Seal
Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal of Japan
The was an administrative post not of Cabinet rank in the government of the Empire of Japan. The Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal was responsible for keeping the Privy Seal of Japan and State Seal of Japan....
Makino Nobuaki
Makino Nobuaki
Count was a Japanese statesman, active from the Meiji period through the Pacific War.- Biography :Born to a samurai family in Kagoshima, Satsuma domain , Makino was the second son of Ōkubo Toshimichi, but adopted into the Makino family at a very early age.In 1871, at the age of 11, he accompanied...
considered recommending General Kazushige Ugaki to the post of prime minister. However, they later decided that a civilian nominee would be best for Japan at the time. This change incensed the militarist party
Japanese militarism
refers to the ideology in the Empire of Japan that militarism should dominate the political and social life of the nation, and that the strength of the military is equal to the strength of a nation.-Rise of militarism :...
within the Imperial Japanese Army, and several leading generals called on Hashimoto and his Sakurakai to plan a coup d'etat
Coup d'état
A coup d'état state, literally: strike/blow of state)—also known as a coup, putsch, and overthrow—is the sudden, extrajudicial deposition of a government, usually by a small group of the existing state establishment—typically the military—to replace the deposed government with another body; either...
to bring Ugaki into power.
Hashimoto's plan involved a three-phase program :
1. Massive riots would be instigated in Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
, which would force the government to call-out troops and proclaim martial law
Martial law
Martial law is the imposition of military rule by military authorities over designated regions on an emergency basis— only temporary—when the civilian government or civilian authorities fail to function effectively , when there are extensive riots and protests, or when the disobedience of the law...
.
2. The Imperial Japanese Army would execute a coup d'etat
Coup d'état
A coup d'état state, literally: strike/blow of state)—also known as a coup, putsch, and overthrow—is the sudden, extrajudicial deposition of a government, usually by a small group of the existing state establishment—typically the military—to replace the deposed government with another body; either...
and seize power.
3. A new Cabinet
Cabinet (government)
A Cabinet is a body of high ranking government officials, typically representing the executive branch. It can also sometimes be referred to as the Council of Ministers, an Executive Council, or an Executive Committee.- Overview :...
would be formed under the premiership of the then-War Minister, General Kazushige Ugaki.
The project was underwritten by a 200,000 Yen donation by Yoshichika Tokugawa, ultrarightist member of the House of Peers
House of Peers (Japan)
The ' was the upper house of the Imperial Diet as mandated under the Constitution of the Empire of Japan ....
, son of the last daimyo
Daimyo
is a generic term referring to the powerful territorial lords in pre-modern Japan who ruled most of the country from their vast, hereditary land holdings...
of Nagoya, founder of the Tokugawa Art Museum, Nagoya
Tokugawa Art Museum, Nagoya
The is a private art museum, located on the former Ōzone Shimoyashiki compound in Nagoya, central Japan. Its collection contains more than 12,000 items, including swords, armor, Noh costumes and masks, lacquer furniture, Chinese and Japanese ceramics, calligraphy, and paintings from the Chinese...
and Emperor Showa's second cousin.
Ultrarightist civilian organizations led by Kanichiro Kamei and Shūmei Ōkawa, fomented a commotion outside the Diet Building in Tokyo late in February 1931. However, due to logistics difficulties, the disturbance failed to attract enough people, and the hoped-for riot failed to occur. Hashimoto consulted with Ōkawa, who wrote Ugaki on 3 March 1931, explaining the plot and demanding the call-out of troops and action on the general's part. Ugaki, either lukewarm from the start, or having a change in heart after seeing the failure of the riot to take off in February, refused to cooperate. Ugaki had hopes of becoming head of the Rikken Minseito
Rikken Minseito
was one of the main political parties in pre-war Empire of Japan. It was commonly known as the 'Minseitō'.The Minseitō was founded on 1 June 1927, by a merger of the Kenseikai and the Seiyu Hontō political parties. Its leadership included Osachi Hamaguchi, Wakatsuki Reijirō, Yamamoto Tatsuo, ...
party, and thus had a chance of becoming prime minister by legal means, rather than a coup. It is also likely that Ugaki foresaw that a military dictatorship
Military dictatorship
A military dictatorship is a form of government where in the political power resides with the military. It is similar but not identical to a stratocracy, a state ruled directly by the military....
would alienate powerful sectors of the Japanese elite (bureaucrats, court nobles, zaibatsu
Zaibatsu
is a Japanese term referring to industrial and financial business conglomerates in the Empire of Japan, whose influence and size allowed for control over significant parts of the Japanese economy from the Meiji period until the end of World War II.-Terminology:...
industrialists, etc.) whose support he would need in case of 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...
.
The plotters attempted again to start a riot again on 17 March 1931 (two days before the planned coup d'état was to take place), but again the projected 10,000 rioters failed to materialize, and the leaders were this time arrested and the whole affair disintegrated.
Consequences
Ugaki intervened to hush up the whole collapsed affair, and ensured that the plotters received very mild punishments. This had the end result of encouraging more attempts by elements of the military to intervene in politics, and was also to taint Ugaki's bid for the office of prime minister in the future. Undeterred by his failure, Hashimoto attempted to overthrow the government again only seven months later in the Imperial Colors IncidentImperial Colors Incident
The , also known as the , was an abortive coup d'état attempt in Japan, on 21 October 1931, launched by the Sakurakai secret society within the Imperial Japanese Army, aided by civilian ultranationalist groups.-Background and History:...
of October 1931.