The
was an
orderAn order or order of merit is a visible honour, awarded by a government, dynastic house or international organization to an individual, usually in recognition of distinguished service to a nation or to humanity. The distinction between orders and decorations is somewhat vague, except that most...
of the
Empire of JapanThe 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 on 12 February 1890 by
Emperor MeijiThe or was the 122nd emperor of Japan according to the traditional order of succession, reigning from 3 February 1867 until his death...
"in commemoration of
Jimmuwas the first Emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. He is also known as Kamuyamato Iwarebiko and personally as Wakamikenu no Mikoto or Sano no Mikoto....
Tennō, the Romulus of Japan."
Background
The Order of the Golden Kite was an exclusively military award, conferred for bravery, leadership or command in battle.
The order consisted of seven classes. Enlisted rank soldiers were eligible for the 7th - 5th classes, non-commissioned officers were eligible for the 6th - 4th classes, junior officers for the 5th - 3rd classes, field grade officers for the 4th-2nd classes and general officers for the 3rd-1st classes.
A total of 1,067,492 Order of the Golden Kite awards were made over the history of the order, most of them in the two lower 6th and 7th classes. Only 41 of the 1st class and 201 of the 2nd class were awarded.
By conflict:
- First Sino-Japanese War
The First Sino-Japanese War was fought between Qing Dynasty China and Meiji Japan, primarily over control of Korea...
: approx. 2000
- 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...
: approx. 109,600
- World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
: approx. 3000
- Manchurian Incident: approx. 9000
- 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...
: approx. 190,000
- Pacific War
The Pacific War, also sometimes called the Asia-Pacific War refers broadly to the parts of World War II that took place in the Pacific Ocean, its islands, and in East Asia, then called the Far East...
: approx. 630,000
The award came with an annual monetary stipend, fixed in 1916. This was awarded for the lifetime of the recipient, and following his death, it would be awarded to the recipient's family for one year after. If the recipient died within 5 years of receiving the honor, the stipend would be awarded to the family until the end of the 5 year period. In 1939, the stipends stood as follows:
- 1st Class-1500 yen
- 2nd Class-1000 yen
- 3rd Class-700 yen
- 4th Class-500 yen
- 5th Class-350 yen
- 6th Class-250 yen
- 7th Class-150 yen
Since the monthly pay for a
privateA Private is a soldier of the lowest military rank .In modern military parlance, 'Private' is shortened to 'Pte' in the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth countries and to 'Pvt.' in the United States.Notably both Sir Fitzroy MacLean and Enoch Powell are examples of, rare, rapid career...
in the
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...
at the time was 8 Yen, 80 sen, this amounted to a very substantial reward. The monetary stipend was abolished in 1940.
The honor was sometimes awarded individually, sometimes awarded
en masse. In mid-October 1942, posthumous awards were announced following ceremonies at the
Yasukuni Shrineis a Shinto shrine located in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. It is dedicated to the soldiers and others who died fighting on behalf of the Emperor of Japan. Currently, its Symbolic Registry of Divinities lists the names of over 2,466,000 enshrined men and women whose lives were dedicated to the service of...
. Posthumous honorees included 995 who were lost in combat in the far-flung
Pacific WarThe Pacific War, also sometimes called the Asia-Pacific War refers broadly to the parts of World War II that took place in the Pacific Ocean, its islands, and in East Asia, then called the Far East...
battles and 3,031 were lost fighting in
ChinaThe 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...
. In this instance, Tokyo's official radio broadcast of the list of posthumous recipients of the Order of the Golden Kite was monitored by
Allied forcesThe Allies of World War II were the countries that opposed the Axis powers during the Second World War . Former Axis states contributing to the Allied victory are not considered Allied states...
in Asia. The number of honorees was not considered remarkable at the time, but the number of posthumous awards was considered noteworthy by Allied analysts. Specific high ranking naval and army officers were named; and in addition, special mention was given to 55 naval aviators and 9 "members of a special attack flotilla" -- presumably miniature submarines taking part in the
attack on Pearl HarborThe attack on Pearl Harbor was a surprise military strike conducted by the Imperial Japanese Navy against the United States naval base at Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, on the morning of December 7, 1941...
.
The order of the Golden Kite was officially abolished by the
Supreme Commander of the Allied PowersSupreme Commander of the Allied Powers was the title held by General Douglas MacArthur during the Occupation of Japan following World War II...
of
Occupied JapanAt the end of World War II, Japan was occupied by the Allied Powers, led by the United States with contributions also from Australia, India, New Zealand and the United Kingdom. This foreign presence marked the first time in its history that the island nation had been occupied by a foreign power...
in 1947.
Symbolism
The badge depicts a
golden kiteKites are raptors with long wings and weak legs which spend a great deal of time soaring. Most feed mainly on carrion but some take various amounts of live prey.They are birds of prey which, along with hawks and eagles, are from the family Accipitridae....
, a messenger of the
kamiis the Japanese word for the spirits, natural forces, or essence in the Shinto faith. Although the word is sometimes translated as "god" or "deity", some Shinto scholars argue that such a translation can cause a misunderstanding of the term...
as described in the ancient Japanese chronicle
Nihon ShokiThe , sometimes translated as The Chronicles of Japan, is the second oldest book of classical Japanese history. It is more elaborate and detailed than the Kojiki, the oldest, and has proven to be an important tool for historians and archaeologists as it includes the most complete extant historical...
, which helped
Emperor Jimmuwas the first Emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. He is also known as Kamuyamato Iwarebiko and personally as Wakamikenu no Mikoto or Sano no Mikoto....
defeat his enemies in battle. The golden kite stands on an eight-pointed star with 32 rays
enameledVitreous enamel, also porcelain enamel in U.S. English, is a material made by fusing powdered glass to a substrate by firing, usually between 750 and 850 °C...
in red. Below the kite are two crossed ancient
samuraiis 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...
shields, enameled blue, with two crossed swords enameled yellow, with
silverSilver is a metallic chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal...
hilts. On one side is a
halberdA halberd is a two-handed pole weapon that came to prominent use during the 14th and 15th centuries. Possibly the word halberd comes from the German words Halm , and Barte - in modern-day German, the weapon is called Hellebarde. The halberd consists of an axe blade topped with a spike mounted on...
(enameled green with white trappings), with the
mitsu tomoeA tomoe or tomoye is a Japanese abstract shape that resembles a comma or the usual form of magatama. It is a common design element in and corporate logos, particularly in triplicate whorls known as . Some view the mitsudomoe as representative of the threefold division at the heart of the...
Shintoor Shintoism, also kami-no-michi, is the indigenous spirituality of Japan and the Japanese people. It is a set of practices, to be carried out diligently, to establish a connection between present day Japan and its ancient past. Shinto practices were first recorded and codified in the written...
symbol on red banners. The reverse side is plain.
The badge was
giltThe term gilding covers a number of decorative techniques for applying fine gold leaf or powder to solid surfaces such as wood, stone, or metal to give a thin coating of gold. A gilded object is described as "gilt"...
for the 1st-5th classes and
silverSilver is a metallic chemical element with the chemical symbol Ag and atomic number 47. A soft, white, lustrous transition metal, it has the highest electrical conductivity of any element and the highest thermal conductivity of any metal...
for the 5th-7th classes. It was suspended on a ribbon in blue-green with a white stripe near the edges, worn as a sash on the right shoulder by the 1st class, as a necklet by the 2nd and 3rd classes, on the left chest by the 4th and 5th classes. The badges for 6th and 7th classes were non-enameled.
The
star of the 1st and 2nd classes was similar to the badge as described above, but with both red and yellow enameled rays. It was worn on the left chest by the 1st class, on the right chest by the 2nd class.
First Class
- Imperial Japanese Army
- Oku Yasukata
(1847–1930).
- Oyama Iwao
(1842–1916).
- Kawamura Kageaki (1850–1926).
- Kuroki Tamemoto
Count was a general in the Imperial Japanese Army. He was the head of the Japanese First Army during the Russo-Japanese War; and his forces enjoyed a series of successes during the Manchurian fighting at the Battle of Yalu River, the Battle of Liaoyang, the Battle of Shaho and the Battle of...
(1844–1923).
- Kodama Gentarō (1852–1906).
- Terauchi Masatake
, GCB was a Japanese military officer and politician. He was a Field Marshal in the Imperial Japanese Army and the 18th Prime Minister of Japan from 9 October 1916 to 29 September 1918.-Early period:...
(1852–1919).
- Nogi Maresuke (1849–1912).
- Nozu Michitsura
-External links:...
(1840–1908).
- Hasegawa Yoshimichi (1850–1924).
- Yamagata Aritomo
Field Marshal Prince , also known as Yamagata Kyōsuke, was a field marshal in the Imperial Japanese Army and twice Prime Minister of Japan. He is considered one of the architects of the military and political foundations of early modern Japan. Yamagata Aritomo can be seen as the father of Japanese...
(1838–1922).
- Yasuji Okamura
(1884–1966).
- Shigeru Honjō
(1876–1945).
- Nobuyoshi Mutō
-External links:*- Notes :...
(1868–1933).
- Hisaichi Terauchi (1879–1946).
- Shunroku Hata (1879–1962).
- Matsui Iwane (1878–1948).
- Hajime Sugiyama (1880–1945).
- Toshizō Nishio
(1881–1960).
- Tomoyuki Yamashita
General was a general of the Japanese Imperial Army during World War II. He was most famous for conquering the British colonies of Malaya and Singapore, earning the nickname "The Tiger of Malaya".- Biography :...
(1885–1946).
- Imperial Japanese Navy
- Masafumi Arima
was an admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy in World War II. A pilot, he is sometimes credited with being the first to use the kamikaze attack, although official accounts may have been invented for propaganda purposes.-Biography:...
(1895–1944).
- Ijuin Goro
(1852–1921)
- Itoh Sukeyuki
(1843–1914)
- Kantarō Suzuki
Baron was an admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy, member and final leader of the Taisei Yokusankai and 42nd Prime Minister of Japan from 7 April-17 August 1945.-Early life:...
(1868–1948)
- Kamimura Hikonojō
Baron was an early admiral of the Imperial Japanese Navy later commanding the IJN 2nd Fleet during the Russo-Japanese War, most notably at the Battle off Ulsan and Tsushima.-Biography:...
(1849–1916).
- Kataoka Shichirō
Baron was an early admiral of the Imperial Japanese Navy.-Early career:Born to a samurai family in the Satsuma domain , Kataoka entered the 3rd class of the Imperial Japanese Naval Academy in 1871, and served as a midshipman on the corvette .Kataoka, accompanied Prince Fushimi Hiroyasu as an...
(1854–1920).
- Mineichi Koga
(1885–1944).
- Chuichi Nagumo
was a Japanese admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II and one time commander of the Kido Butai . He committed suicide during the Battle of Saipan.-Early life:...
(1887–1944).
- Koshirō Oikawa
was an admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy and Naval Minister during World War II.-Biography:Oikawa was born into a wealthy family in rural Koshi County, Niigata Prefecture, but was raised in Morioka city, Iwate prefecture in northern Japan....
(1883–1958).
- Togo Heihachiro
Fleet Admiral Marquis was a Fleet Admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy and one of Japan's greatest naval heroes. He was termed by Western journalists as "the Nelson of the East".-Early life:...
(1848–1934).
- Tamon Yamaguchi (1892–1942)
- Yamamoto Gonnohyoe
, also called Gonnohyōe, was an admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy and the 16th and 22nd Prime Minister of Japan.-Early life:...
(1852–1933).
- Isoroku Yamamoto
was a Japanese Naval Marshal General and the commander-in-chief of the Combined Fleet during World War II, a graduate of the Imperial Japanese Naval Academy and a student of Harvard University ....
(1884–1943).
- Mitsumasa Yonai
was an admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy, and politician. He was the 37th Prime Minister of Japan from 16 January to 22 July 1940.-Early life & Naval career:...
(1880–1948)
Second Class
- Imperial Japanese Army
- Umezawa Michiharu
-External links:* - Notes :...
(1853–1924).
- Hayao Tada
-External links:* - Notes :...
(1882–1948)
- 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...
(1877–1966).
- Jun Ushiroku
(1884–1973).
- Imperial Japanese Navy
- Takeo Takagi
was an admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy during World War II.-Biography:Takagi was a native of Iwaki city, Fukushima prefecture. He was a graduate of the 39th class of the Imperial Japanese Naval Academy, ranking 17th of 148 cadets in 1911...
(1892–1944).
Third Class
- Imperial Japanese Army
- Imperial Japanese Navy
- Kantarō Suzuki
Baron was an admiral in the Imperial Japanese Navy, member and final leader of the Taisei Yokusankai and 42nd Prime Minister of Japan from 7 April-17 August 1945.-Early life:...
(1868–1948)
Unknown Class
- Imperial Japanese Army
- Tateo Kato
was a Japanese ace army aviator, credited with at least 18 aerial victories and who was honored posthumously by an award of the Order of the Golden Kite.-Biography:...
(1903–1942).
- Yasuji Okamura
(1884–1966).
See also
- Kite (bird)
Kites are raptors with long wings and weak legs which spend a great deal of time soaring. Most feed mainly on carrion but some take various amounts of live prey.They are birds of prey which, along with hawks and eagles, are from the family Accipitridae....
-- raptor referenced in Imperial war decoration
External links