Count Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

was a Japanese diplomat and courtier who served as Grand Chamberlain to the Emperor from 1927 to 1929. During his diplomatic career, he served as ambassador to Germany, the United States and Great Britain. He was a plentipotentiary at the

1919 Paris Peace Conference Events January * January 1 ** The Czechoslovak Legions occupy much of the self-proclaimed "free city" of Bratislava, Pressburg (later Bratislava), enforcing its incorporation into the new republic of Czechoslovakia. ** HMY Iolaire, HMY '' ...

Diplomatic career

He was born 19 January 1857, in

Hirosaki is a Cities of Japan, city located in western Aomori Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 163,639 in 71,044 households, and a population density of . The total area of the city is . Hirosaki developed as a jōkamachi, ca ...

Aomori , officially Aomori City (, ), is the capital Cities of Japan, city of Aomori Prefecture, in the Tōhoku region of Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 264,945 in 136,781 households, and a population density of 321 people per squa ...

. In 1877 he went to study at

DePauw University DePauw University ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Greencastle, Indiana, United States. It was founded in 1837 as Indiana Asbury College and changed its name to DePauw University in 1884. The college has a Methodist heritage and was ...

in the United States. He got his B.A. in 1881, and M.A. in 1884. In 1882 he married, and had one son. From 1890 to 1894, Chinda served as Japanese Consul in

San Francisco, California San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

. In 1897 Chinda was appointed first Japanese Minister Plenipotentiary to

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

, following the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two states in 1895. He served as

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

ese Ambassador to

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

from 1908 to 1911, to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

from 1912 to 1916. Ambassador Chinda Sutemi and his wife Japanese Viscountess Chinda Iwa were two of the diplomats involved with the Japanese gifting of the cherry blossom trees to Washington, D.C. in 1912. As official representatives of Japan, Ambassador Sutemi Chinda and his wife, Japanese Viscountess Iwa Chinda, joined with President Taft's wife, First Lady

Helen Herron Taft Helen Louise Taft (née Herron; June 2, 1861 – May 22, 1943) was First Lady of the United States from 1909 to 1913 as the wife of President William Howard Taft. Born to a politically well-connected Ohio family, she took an early interest ...

on March 27, 1912. Each woman planted one of the recently arrived Yoshino cherry trees in the nation's capital onto the northern bank of the then empty landscape around the Washington, D.C. Tidal Basin, about 125 feet south of what is now Independence Avenue, SW. At the conclusion of the ceremony, the first lady presented a bouquet of "American Beauty" roses to Viscountess Chinda. Washington's renowned National Cherry Blossom Festival grew from this simple ceremony, witnessed by just a few persons. These two original trees still stand several hundred yards west of the John Paul Jones Memorial, located at the terminus of 17th Street, SW. Situated near the bases of the trees is a large bronze plaque which commemorates the occasion. This gift was officially seen as coming from the capital city of Japan, Tokyo, to the capital city of the United States, Washington, D.C. The illustrated biography ''The Art of Peace'' presents Prince Iyesato Tokugawa and his Japanese allies' pivotal involvement in bringing about the gifting of these cherry blossom trees as a means of promoting international goodwill. In 1915, while Count Chinda Sutemi was the Japanese Ambassador to the United States he greeted the visiting Japanese statesmen Baron Eiichi Shibusawa when Shibusawa visited New York City. The 1915 photo illustration to the right presents Chinda at the event honoring the visit of Baron Shibusawa which was attended by two former U.S. Presidents

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. (October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), also known as Teddy or T.R., was the 26th president of the United States, serving from 1901 to 1909. Roosevelt previously was involved in New York (state), New York politics, incl ...

and

William Howard Taft William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857March 8, 1930) served as the 27th president of the United States from 1909 to 1913 and the tenth chief justice of the United States from 1921 to 1930. He is the only person to have held both offices. ...

. Chinda served as ambassador to the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

from 1916 to 1920, during which time he also took part in the Japanese delegation to the

Paris Peace Conference, 1919 Paris () is the capital and largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the fourth-most populous city in the European Union and the 30th most densely pop ...

. He was part of the Commission on Colonial Mandates, which drafted a mandates system that would subject of approval by the League of Nations members. In January 1919, Sutemi wrote to

Chaim Weizmann Chaim Azriel Weizmann ( ; 27 November 1874 – 9 November 1952) was a Russian-born Israeli statesman, biochemist, and Zionist leader who served as president of the World Zionist Organization, Zionist Organization and later as the first pre ...

that, "the Japanese government gladly takes note of the

Zionism Zionism is an Ethnic nationalism, ethnocultural nationalist movement that emerged in History of Europe#From revolution to imperialism (1789–1914), Europe in the late 19th century that aimed to establish and maintain a national home for the ...

aspiration to extend in Palestine a national home for the Jewish people and they look forward with a sympathetic interest to the realization of such desire upon the basis proposed."World Zionist Organization, Central Zionist Archives, Jerusalem, Copy Z4/2039. In 1919, he was a plenipotentiary ambassador for Japan in its delegation to the Paris Peace Conference where he signed the

Treaty of Versailles The Treaty of Versailles was a peace treaty signed on 28 June 1919. As the most important treaty of World War I, it ended the state of war between Germany and most of the Allies of World War I, Allied Powers. It was signed in the Palace ...

and advocated for racial equality. In 1921, Chinda was selected by Imperial Household Minister

Makino Nobuaki Count , was a Japanese politician and imperial court official. As Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal of Japan, Makino served as Emperor Hirohito's chief counselor on the monarch's position in Japanese society and policymaking. After victory in W ...

to serve as Grand Master of Crown Prince

Hirohito , Posthumous name, posthumously honored as , was the 124th emperor of Japan according to the traditional order of succession, from 25 December 1926 until Death and state funeral of Hirohito, his death in 1989. He remains Japan's longest-reigni ...

's Household. When the Crown Prince acceded to the throne in 1926, Chinda was appointed Grand Master of the Empress's Household, before being promoted to Grand Chamberlain to the Emperor in March 1927. He was one of the Emperor's closest advisors during his early reign. Chinda died on 16 January 1929. He was also a Methodist minister.

Honours

''From the Japanese Wikipedia article''

Titles

*Baron (21 September 1907) *Viscount (24 August 1911) *Count (7 September 1920)

Decorations (Japanese)

*Grand Cordon of the

Order of the Sacred Treasure The is a Japanese Order (distinction), order, established on 4 January 1888 by Emperor Meiji as the Order of Meiji. Originally awarded in eight classes (from 8th to 1st, in ascending order of importance), since 2003 it has been awarded in six c ...

(1 April 1906; Third Class: 5 March 1902; Fourth Class: 28 June 1898; Fifth Class: 31 October 1895) *Grand Cordon of the

Order of the Rising Sun The is a Japanese honors system, Japanese order, established in 1875 by Emperor Meiji. The Order was the first national decoration awarded by the Japanese government, created on 10 April 1875 by decree of the Council of State. The badge feat ...

(14 September 1907) *Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun with Paulownia Flowers (7 September 1920)

Court order of precedence

*Seventh rank (27 November 1886) *Sixth rank (21 December 1891) *Senior sixth rank (20 September 1895) *Senior fifth rank (20 August 1897) *Fourth rank (31 January 1901) *Senior fourth rank (20 March 1906) *Third rank (30 April 1909) *Senior third rank (11 May 1914) *Second rank (30 May 1921) *Senior second rank (1 June 1928) *First rank (16 January 1929)

Diplomatic career

Honours

Titles

Decorations (Japanese)

Court order of precedence

See also

References

Further reading