General Baron was a general in the
Imperial Japanese Army during the early period of the
Second Sino-Japanese War. He was considered an ardent follower of
Sadao Araki's doctrines.
Biography
Honjō was born into a farming family in
Hyōgo prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Hyōgo Prefecture has a population of 5,469,762 () and has a geographic area of . Hyōgo Prefecture borders Kyoto Prefecture to the east, Osaka Prefecture to the southeast, an ...
, and attended military preparatory schools as a youth. He graduated from the 9th class of the
Imperial Japanese Army Academy in 1897, and was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the
infantry. Among his classmates were future
Prime Minister Abe Nobuyuki, and generals
Sadao Araki and
Iwane Matsui. In 1902 he graduated from the 19th class of the
Army Staff College.
Honjō served with distinction during the
Russo-Japanese War in the IJA 20th Infantry Regiment, and was promoted to captain during that conflict. After the war, he was assigned to a number of staff positions with the
Imperial Japanese Army General Staff.
In 1907-1908, Honjō was dispatched to
Beijing and
Shanghai as a
military attaché
A military attaché is a military expert who is attached to a diplomatic mission, often an embassy. This type of attaché post is normally filled by a high-ranking military officer, who retains a commission while serving with an embassy. Opport ...
, and the following year was promoted to
major
Major (commandant in certain jurisdictions) is a military rank of commissioned officer status, with corresponding ranks existing in many military forces throughout the world. When used unhyphenated and in conjunction with no other indicators ...
. After serving more staff positions, including a stint as instructor at the Army Staff College, he was promoted to
lieutenant colonel
Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colone ...
in 1917, and sent to Europe as a military attache in the aftermath of
World War I. In 1919, he accompanied Japanese forces during the
Siberian Intervention against the
Bolshevik Red Army in eastern Russia.
Honjō was the commanding officer of 11th Regiment from 1919 to 1921. He served as adviser to
Chang Tso-lin
Zhang Zuolin (; March 19, 1875 June 4, 1928), courtesy name Yuting (雨亭), nicknamed Zhang Laogang (張老疙瘩), was an influential Chinese bandit, soldier, and warlord during the Warlord Era in China. The warlord of Manchuria from 1916 to ...
, in
Manchuria, from 1921 to 1924. He was promoted to
major general in 1922, and in 1924 was given command of the IJA 4th Infantry Brigade.
In 1927 Honjō was promoted to
lieutenant general and became commander of the
IJA 10th Division in 1928. In 1931 he was made
commander in chief of the
Kwantung Army in Manchuria, commanding the forces during the
Mukden Incident
The Mukden Incident, or Manchurian Incident, known in Chinese as the 9.18 Incident (九・一八), was a false flag event staged by Japanese military personnel as a pretext for the 1931 Japanese invasion of Manchuria.
On September 18, 1931, L ...
and
invasion of Manchuria.
When Honjō was relieved of command in 1932 for insubordination, he returned to Japan as a national hero, and was made a member of the
Supreme War Council
The Supreme War Council was a central command based in Versailles that coordinated the military strategy of the principal Allies of World War I: Britain, France, Italy, the US and Japan. It was founded in 1917 after the Russian revolution and w ...
from 1932 to 1933. He was accorded the highest decorations and honors, and was elevated to the title of ''danshaku'' (
baron
Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knig ...
) under the ''
kazoku'' peerage system.
Honjō later became Chief
aide-de-camp to
Emperor Hirohito until 1936, when his suspected involvement in the
February 26 Incident led to his retirement. He kept an extensive diary during his time as aide-de-camp, which was published by the
University of Tokyo Press in 1983.
Towards the end of
World War II, he emerged from retirement to serve as a
Privy Councilor. After the
surrender of Japan
The surrender of the Empire of Japan in World War II was announced by Emperor Hirohito on 15 August and formally signed on 2 September 1945, bringing the war's hostilities to a close. By the end of July 1945, the Imperial Japanese Navy ...
in 1945 he was accused of
war crimes by
SCAP
SCAP may refer to:
* S.C.A.P., an early French manufacturer of cars and engines
* Security Content Automation Protocol
* ''The Shackled City Adventure Path'', a role-playing game
* SREBP cleavage activating protein
* Supervisory Capital Assessment ...
and arrested; however, he committed suicide before the trial began.
[Dupuy, ''Encyclopedia of Military Biography''] His grave is at the
Tama Cemetery in
Fuchu, Tokyo.
References
Books
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External links
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Notes
{{DEFAULTSORT:Honjo, Shigeru
Imperial Japanese Army generals of World War II
Japanese generals
Japanese colonial governors and administrators
1876 births
1945 deaths
Kazoku
Japanese military personnel of the Russo-Japanese War
Japanese military personnel of World War II
Japanese military personnel who committed suicide
Seppuku from Meiji period to present
Suicides by sharp instrument in Japan
Military personnel from Hyōgo Prefecture
People of the Kwantung Leased Territory
Recipients of the Order of the Rising Sun
Recipients of the Order of the Sacred Treasure
Japanese military attachés