Doing research on Yosegaki flags

[Nick Komiya]

Research
General Major Shio Teramoto’s military record is the obvious starting point.

Born: Okayama Prefecture
1936 April 1st: Chief of the Pyongyang (North Korea) branch, Aviation Arsenal
1938 March 1st: Promoted to Colonel, Chief of the 15th Field Repair Aviation Arsenal
1939 July 1st: Chief of Weapons Section Aviation Group
1941 April 10th: Chief Inspector at Army Aviation Headquarters, Ministry of the Army
1941 Oct. 15th: General Major
1943 June 10th: Relieved
1943 June 11th: Entered Reserve status

So the timeframe of the dedication of this flag is between 1941 Oct. 15th and 1943 June 10th while serving as Chief Inspector at Army Aviation Headquarters.

The next clue is the Paratrooper reference, “In the Spirit of the Divine Warriors of the Sky”. In Japanese, it’s “Sora no (of the sky) Shinpei (God Soldiers) Seishin (Spirit)”. The phrase “Sora no Shinpei” was coined in the spring of 1942 as a title of a movie produced by Army Aviation Headquarters, featuring the Army paratroops in training. It was released in theaters in April of 1942 (after the first deployment of the paratroops in Indonesia to capture the oil fields), and the theme song by the same title became a pop hit, which added the phrase to the national vocabulary. The song likened the blooming parachutes against the blue sky to blooming white roses.

So combining the information on the career of the general and the paratrooper reference, the timeframe is now narrowed down to between 1942 April to 1943 June 10.

So far so good, but that is unfortunately where certainty ends. We can be pretty sure that everyone signing was aviation related, though we cannot completely rule out the possibility that all those officers were simply members of Reverend Kuboyama’s church.

Army Aviation Headquarters was responsible for devising long term air warfare strategies and to engage in research and development (including production supervision) of planes and equipment, inspection and approval for adoption, procurement of the hardware, training of flight personnel including running of the flight schools and setting up air divisions, etc. They also supported production of propaganda movies which included the Army Paratroops movie mentioned above. The movie was shot at the Army Tokorozawa Aviation Mechanics School in Saitama Prefecture close to Tokyo, which was run by Army Aviation Headquarters. This is also where the paratroopers went through their basic training.

Because none of the officers provided their first names, it becomes necessary to find what the officers had in common to identify them through association to an organization or a place, but that attempt has so far been unsuccessful. For instance there was a Lt. Kunio Ishida at this time, a flight officer that became a Tokko commander in Nov. 1944 and died a month later in a Tokko attack on Leyte, but Ishida is a common name, so this doesn’t mean anything. The officers may have been any of the following.
1. Staff of Aviation Headquarters
2. Test pilots
3. Staff of flight schools, particularly from the Tokorozawa School where the Paratroops movie was shot.

As to the person who received this flag, Takebayashi, there is a high possibility that he was either an Army NCO volunteering for paratrooper service or already a paratrooper, because of the “Sora no Shinpei” reference. There is no doubt that he was involved in aviation (Sora), but the phrase definitely was inappropriate for a flyer. It could be that he had collaborated with the people from Aviation Headquarters in making the movie and members of Aviation Headquarters or the Tokorozawa School presented him with this flag. Paratroopers were mostly NCO volunteers, and he might have just newly volunteered and received this flag on that occasion. The fact that he is not addressed by any army title supports rather than contradicts this speculation, as the paratroops were long conditioned to address each other without titles due to their top secret status. During their training when they had to use public transport, they even had to disguise themselves as university students, but these student uniforms collected were a second hand mix from various universities, so sometimes a cap from Waseda University got combined with a tunic from Meiji University giving them away as fake students, and getting them beat up by the real students or arrested by the police or MPs.
Circumstantial evidence supports this interesting possibility, but more research is necessary to pin it down as fact. Either way, this could not have been a “going to war” flag for a new recruit.

[Nick Komiya]

7. Army unit flag from September 1940

In exquisite calligraphy the flag says on the right “Nakamura-Gi Butai, Somezawa Tai”.
Once the war broke out, the use of numbers for regiments, battalions, etc. was halted and replaced by “Butai” and “Tai” preceded by the name of the unit commander. Both Butai and Tai simply mean “Unit”, but in the Army, Butai stood for either a regiment or a battalion, and Tai stood for company or platoon. Below the unit name, is the official stamp of the Somezawa-tai reading ”Stamp of commander Somezawa”. Using the commander’s name instead of the normal regiment and company numbers was a security measure introduced on Sept. 1st of 1937, and discontinued on Sept. 10th, 1940 when commanders dying one after another caused the system to collapse. After that each division received a Kanji character as a code identifying the division and components of the division were identified by a 3 to 5 digit number prefixed by the division’s Kanji code. In the case of the Nakamura-Gi Butai, the designation would have changed to “Kawa (river) 3569” at that time.
The second line is the standard slogan “Praying for ever-lasting fortune in battle”, and below that is written “ Principle, Kokuhei Shosha Sugo Ishibe Shrine” with his official stamp of office. Featured on the top right corner is the stamp of the shrine.

So the unit name was written by the unit, probably by calling upon the best writer in the unit, then the priest at the shrine added the Fortune in Battle slogan.

This flag came from Kaga-city in Ishikawa Prefecture on the Japan Sea side of Northern Japan, and the Sugo Ishibe Shrine is indeed in Kaga City. This shrine was established in 585 and since old, had enjoyed particular patronage from the Imperial Court and warriors. It was raised to the rank of Kokuhei Shosha in 1896. This meant that the shrine was run on funds from the local lord, which acted on behalf of the imperial court.

In this case, having part of the first name of Nakamura, the commander, helps identify him as Major-General, Gijuro Nakamura. The way the unit is called narrows the timeframe to Sept. 1937 to Sept. 1940. Another hint towards the unit’s identity is that I know of another flag dedicated to the same unit by officials in China. So finding out when Nakamura served as a commander in China for a unit having ties to Kaga City, becomes the challenge.

Nakamura’s career was as follows;
Born: Tochigi Prefecture (nowhere close to Kaga)
Branch of service: Transport
Note: At some time in his career, probably while serving in the Ministry of the Army, he was
stationed in the USA for a while
1920, May 26: Graduated from Military Academy with honors (awarded the coveted silver watch from emperor)
1920, Dec 26: Army Lieutenant
1924, Dec 26: Entered Army College
1927, Dec 6: Graduated
1939, Oct 2: Commanding Officer of 41st Transport Regiment
1940, Aug 1: Colonel
1940, Oct 10: Chief of Resource Section, Economic Mobilization Bureau, Ministry of Army
1941, April 10: Chief of Fuel Section, Economic Mobilization Bureau, Ministry of Army
1944, May 16: Chief of Staff, Southern Army Main Depot
1944, Aug 1 : Major-General
1944, Dec 30: Commanding Officer of 6th Field Transport
1945, Feb 2: Attached to Eastern Army District

He was the chief of the fuel section at a critical turning point in the fate of the nation, when the USA enforced the embargo of oil supply to Japan, which triggered the War with the USA.
An episode involving Nakamura is introduced in a book written by Tateo Takahashi, who was a 2nd Lieutenant serving under Colonel Nakamura at that time. He was a graduate of the University of Tokyo, and was a researcher on artificial fuels, which led him to this job.
On a Monday morning, June 23, 1941, 2nd Lt.Takahashi and his boss, Colonel Nakamura had to brief Tojo on the impact of the oil embargo threat made by the USA. The obvious conclusion was that in the event the USA went ahead with the embargo, the occupation of Indonesia would become necessary. After a moment of silence, Tojo asked quietly, “And?”. Nakamura
replied, “So we need your urgent decision regarding---”. Cutting him off and still in a quiet tone, Tojo said, “So you say we should become thieves?”. Takahashi saw Nakamura falter.
Tojo’s anger was over the fact that the Fuel Section had not anticipated the need of taking the oil fields of Indonesia and rather had hung their hopes on development of an artificial fuel. He continued “You fools! Upon the strong recommendation of you people we have been pouring efforts into the development of artificial fuel, but as we now find ourselves between a rock and a hard place, you have the nerve to tell me, without batting an eye that it would be of no help. You neglect your task and, because you are now in a tight spot, you come to me to recommend thievery, what in the world have you technocrats been doing!”

The flag comes from his time as the Commanding Officer of 41st Transport Regiment, dating between Oct.2,1939 to Oct.10,1940. The 41st Division, which included the 41st Transport Regiment, was established in Yongsan, Korea on June 30th, and Nakamura became commander of its transport regiment exactly when the division was moving out to China to be stationed in Shanxi Province in Northern China under the 1st Army as garrison troops, where it stayed until being shipped out to New Guinea in Nov. 1942. The division mainly drew its replacements from Tochigi (where Nakamura was born), Gunma and Nagano Prefectures, but Somezawa, a company commander under Nakamura had some kind of tie to Ishikawa Prefecture and must have had the flag consecrated when leaving for China in September 1940 (The month when the regulation for new unit coding was announced). As Kaga City is a port city on the Japan Sea side, it is quite likely that Somezawa, perhaps from close-by Nagano Prefecture shipped out to Korea from there and stopped by at the Sugo Ishibe Shrine.

[Nick Komiya]

8. Yosegaki flag presented by General Watanabe

The flag features the words “Behave Always as on the Field of Battle” in a bold dynamic script, followed by the dedication “For Tamotsu Nakazato”, then the signature of the writer, “Lt. General Watanabe”. On the top is the slogan “Praying for Ever-lasting Fortune in battle” signed to the left “Colonel Tsunoda”. To the right, in large bold characters written in classic Chinese style is “The inherited wisdom on the essence of soldiering, Avoid not the hardships, Yet forge ahead boldly”, followed by the dedication “For Tamotsu Nakazato” and further in the same hand, “On a fortuitous day in September, 1944” “Writing sincerely dedicated by Army Colonel, Seiichi Sasaki” The slogan below in a powerful style still has to be deciphered, but is signed by “Veterinarian Colonel Ishihara” and joining his signature is another name, Hayakawa
This flag came from Hachinohe City in Aomori Prefecture in Northern Japan. It was also accompanied by a Omamori (Protective Charm) from a Buddhist temple. The envelope reads “Ever-lasting Fortune in Battle, Protective charm priest robe patch, Rakuho Temple” Inside is a cloth patch with the Buddhist mantra “Na Mu Ami Da (Sanscrit)” written over the Pawlownia leaf and flowers woven into the cloth. The Buddhist monk’s robe called the Kesa is supposed to be sewn together from small patches, and thus the little patch inside the envelope represents the holy robe of the monk. Rakuho Temple is located in Yomogita Village, Higashi-Tsugaru County, of the pacific side of Aomori Prefecture.
With the above as hints, we will make the flag tell us its story. First of all, there were 3 Lt. Generals with the family name Watanabe, but only one who had an association with Aomori Prefecture. He was Lt. General Hiroshi Watanabe. He ended the war as the Commanding Officer of the 47th Infantry Division, which was formed in Hirosaki City, Aomori Prefecture in 1943. However, this is not the unit this flag can be attributed to, as he became commander of the division only on 26th Oct. 1944. The flag was signed just the month before he got this assignment. So taking a look at his military record revealed the following career.

Service Record of Hiroshi Watanabe
Born in: Yamaguchi Prefecture (Southern Japan)
Branch of service: Infantry
1915, May 25: Graduation from Military Academy
1915. Dec 25: Lieutenant
1921, Dec 14: Entered Army College
1924, Nov 29: Graduated
1937, March 1: Instructor Army College
1938, March 1: Infantry Colonel
1939, Aug 1: Chief of Staff 1st Infantry Division
1940, Sept 9: Chief of Staff, 4th Army
1941, July 7: Deputy Chief of Staff, 4th Army
1941, Aug 25: Major-general
1941, Dec 1: Chief of Staff, 4th Army
1942, Aug 1: Commanding Officer 12th Infantry Division
1942, Nov 9: Chief of Staff, 2nd Area Army
1943, Oct 29: Chief of Staff, 3rd Area Army
1944. Sept: Lt. General
1944, Oct 26: Commanding Officer 47th Infantry Division
He ended the war in Jinan City, Shandong Province, China

So when he signed the flag, he was just promoted to Lt. General, but still attached to the 3rd Area Army. This Army was formed in October 1943, so it was brand new, when Watanabe joined as Chief of Staff. They kept order in South Manchuria.

Among the units that composed the 3rd Area Army, the 107th and 108th Divisions are originating in Aomori (Hirosaki), and within the former, the commanding officer of the 107th Field Artillery Regiment was a Colonel Fumio Tsunoda, who wrote the slogan on top of the flag. In August of 1945, not having heard the news of Japan’s surrender, the 107th Division continued to fight the Russians until the last week of that month. Thus the division lost as many as 1500 lives after the end of the war to the Russian heavy tanks, etc, further losing 2000 during captivity in Siberia.
On the other hand, Colonel Seiichi Sasaki was found to have ended the war as commander of the Replacement unit for the 4th Signals Regiment belonging to the Northern Japan Military District, which covers Aomori. However, for the final two names, Vet Colonel, Ishihara and Hayakawa, I have not been able to identify their unit affiliations. They must have been part of the 3rd Army and must also have had ties with Aomori.

What about the owner of the flag, Nakazato? He obviously survived the war and settled back in Aomori, but with all the contributors to the flag being Colonels and above, it is not possible that this was a flag for a new recruit. Rather, he must have been a staff officer under Lt. General Watanabe, who was returning to Japan from Manchuria in a reassignment, not a discharge. That explains the phrase dedicated by the General, “Continue to behave like at the front”. To send him off, the Colonels from the same region got together to say goodbyes and presented him this flag in September, 1944.
The 47th Infantry Division was also based in Hirosaki, Aomori Prefecture, so it can also be that Nakazato preceded Watanabe in joining that unit.

[Nick Komiya]

The Omamori

[Nick Komiya]

9. Grouping from the Asai brothers

[Nick Komiya]

In the morning of September 10th 1938, at the age of 22, Heiichi Asai, resident of Ariyoshi Village in Kuwana County (close to Nagoya), went to serve in the army for his second tour. 5 tall banners reaching as high as the roof and 5 shorter ones adorned the front of his house, most saying “Banzai for Heiichi Asai”. It was only 5 days ago that Heiichi was “honored” with the pink call-up notice, so his neighbors had to prepare the banners in a rush. The gate-like structure in front of his house, carrying the large wooden plaque with the Asai name carved in it was also dressed up for this morning in ribbons of red and white like a X’mas cane candy. Being his second tour, he was already in a 1930 type army uniform with collar patches in red denoting infantry, and wore his veteran’s badge on his right chest just above the pocket flap, as well as a red sash from his left shoulder.
Present for this solemn occasion was his entire family including younger brother Motoichi 16-years old in his high school uniform and his sister. His Mom, Dad, sister and Grandma chose to wear their Kimonos, but Grandpa having been in the Army himself appeared in his 2nd Lt’s uniform, proudly wearing his Rising Sun order and campaign medals and carrying his saber. Like Heiichi, he also wore his veteran’s badge.

[Nick Komiya]

Heiichi’s unit set off for China on December 11 of that year, landing him in Nanking almost exactly one year after the Massacre. His entire service in the continent was chronicled by him in the form of a campaign flag, starting with the receipt of the call-up notice on September 5th, 1938 until his discharge on February 5th, 1941.

His younger brother Motoichi also followed in his elder brother’s footsteps by being called up in 1942 at the draft age of 20 and being assigned to the 33rd Infantry Regiment. Like his brother, he wore a red sash for his send-off, which said Kuwana County, Ariyoshi Village. Inside the sash was a paper lining, which would carry a Shinto charm for protection like the one his brother wore 4 years earlier.
He chronicled his own childhood to his military days in the form of a photo album, which also features photos of big brother, Heiichi. Starting with a photo that depicted the scene that began this write-up, a photo from his Boy Scout trip to Kyoto and a group photo with his colleagues from the foundry where he worked followed. His unit was obviously good in the swordmanship competitions as group photos show they won citations both in 1942 and 1943. Ironically, the 33rd Infantry Regiment was a unit that had participated in the Nanking Massacre (However, before his time). They were part of the 16th Division and were sent to Leyte in April 1944 and were destroyed in a battle of 23rd Oct. Only a handful of its members survived, so it is questionable whether Motoichi was one of the lucky ones if he had not been discharged before (unlikely). The last photo is dated from September of 1943.

Heiichi going to war and after

[Nick Komiya]

The following are the entries in the campaign flag of Heiichi Asai.

Year Date Action
1938 Sept 5 Gratefully received call-up notice
Sept 10 Reported to base
Dec 11 Departed base
Dec 17 Landed in Nanking
Dec 22 Landed in Meigeng
Dec 27 Landed in Anqing City(Anhui Province) and patrolled city
1939 Feb 1 Arrival in 鳥魚X and patrolling of宗子店
Aug 22 Based in Digang.Partisan fighting in the area of鐘明街　
Oct 8 Based in Tongling City .Partisan fighting in the area of Digang
Oct 20 Close to Anqing. Partisan fighting in the area of　乱石庄
Dec 16 Great winter offensive of enemy. Frantically held曽形山、X坊山
Intense fighting lasts 7 days & nights
Dec 22 Finally, we attack. 23rd : Intensive fighting in沸暁山門X裡Heights、took Qingshan in a night raid. 25th :Attacked and secured X山
1940 Feb ? Attack on Fanchang
Feb 25 Raided 常岡頭
April 22 Landed in 前江口, Start of Operation Wannan
April 25 Passed throughTangshan, Intensive fighting around舗平廣？前
April 27 Fighting to break through the Jiuhua mountains
April 28 Occupation of陵陽鎮
April 29 Attack on Qingyang
April 30 Occupation of Qingyang
April 30 Evening Victory march into walled city
May 7 Occupation of老虎炎、Battle of大毛嶺程河毛嶺
May 15 Occupation of Qingshan
Sept Landed in 前江口, Participation in operationカ
Sept 20 Landed in除村, Participation in operationオ
1941 Jan 15 Received order to return to home unit
Jan 30 Returned to Home unit
Feb 5 Discharged from Service

So, what unit did Heiichi serve in? Infantry regiments composed of personnel from this area were, the 33rd, 151st and the 133rd . After checking unit histories, the campaigns that Heiichi fought in, exactly matches the unit history of the 133rd Infantry Regiment. Known also as the “Arashi (Storm) 6214 butai”, they were established in May 1938, and as part of the 116th Division left for China in June. They kept their headquarters in Tongling City, Anhui Province and in the fall of 1938, took part in the capture of Wukan (Hubei Province) by marching as far as Hanyang. In the 3 day battle from Oct 15th, the regiment suffered 21 deaths, including 2 officers, and 89 wounded. Heiichi must have been shipped out as a replacement. If you trace the campaigns covered in his flag on a map, you see that he is basically traveling down the Yangtze River in a South Westerly direction from Nanking.
The unit continued its fight in China after Heiichi’s discharge and in April of 1945, the 133rd Regiment, along with the 116 Division joined forces with the 47 division led by Lt. General Watanabe (see Watanabe flag) to destroy a series of Chinese air bases, but suffered heavily against crack Chinese troops and broke off the operation, retreating to Shaoyang, Hunan Province in May to hold that city to the last man, where the war ended for them.　

[Nick Komiya]

Photos

[Nick Komiya]

10. Yosegaki flag signed by a Who’s Who of Japan’s power elite

This flag must have been signed sometime in the summer of 1943, most likely in Hiroshima, probably for the son of a prominent local politician or military officer. Signatures include a post war Prime Minister, two Navy Rear Admirals, the “Don” of Japan’s postwar underworld, a former chief of Tokko (Japan’s GESTAPO), an Army major general who earned notoriety in the history of the Japanese Constitution and anti-Tojo conspirators, representing intriguing episodes of history.
During the war, a general election for parliament was held only once, on April 30, 1942.. The last election was in 1937 but the term for the MPs was extended for one year in 1941. In the meanwhile, as war with the Allies had begun, there were those who pressed for further extension of the term in office for fear of anti-establishment elements grabbing seats in congress, which would also give the allies a propaganda opportunity to claim the decline of popular support and weakening of national unity. In the end, the opposite view that it rather served as an ideal opportunity to consolidate support for the war effort prevailed and the 21st general election of the House of Representatives went ahead.
Since 1940, all political parties were forced to put aside their differences and merge into the Taisei Yokusankai (Imperial Rule Assistance Association), a pro-military organization; so chances of winning a seat in this election without being nominated by the Yokusankai were slim. Nonetheless among the anti-war and neutral politicians, comparatively mild elements were allowed to run as non-partisans.
At the time of the election, the Imperial Army was still winning most of its battles, so the result of the election was a landslide victory for the Taisei Yokusankai, which took 381 seats out of the 466. However, from the 85 seats that went to the often anti-Tojo, non-partisan minority would come the post-war leadership of Japan. Out of these 85 would emerge three Prime Ministers. One was Ichiro Hatoyama (Prime Minister from 1954 to 1956), the Grandfather of Kunio Hatoyama, current Minister of Justice, and of Yukio Hatoyama, current Secretary General of the Democratic Party of Japan.
At least 4 others from the 85 that won seats in the 1942 election joined him in signing this flag, but Hatoyama and Mitamura were ousted in 1943 for opposing Tojo. Hatoyama spent the rest of the war in the country farming, and Mitamura in prison (arrested on Sept. 6). On the other hand, Seno is signing as Navy Vice Admiral, which he became on May 1st, 1943, which narrows the time frame of the signing between May 1st and Sept. 6th 1943.
At the top is the slogan, “Ever-lasting Fortune in Battle” done in the hand of Ichiro Hatoyama, and on the left is “Absolute Dedication to Serve the Country” in the hand of Vice Admiral Seno.
Of the 19 names found on this flag, 3 names are unfortunately illegible and 1 name did not reveal who he was. I only have a list of 32 names out of the 85 non-Yokusankai winners, so a complete list may identify a few more of the signatories. This flag came out of Okayama prefecture, neighboring Hiroshima (note that 4 names have ties with Hiroshima). A biographical summary of 14 of the signers follow.

[Nick Komiya]

1. Ichiro Hatoyama (1883-1959)
Post-war Prime Minister of Japan, first leader of the Liberal Democrat Party. Born in Tokyo, and a graduate of Tokyo University. Starts career as a lawyer in his father’s practice in 1907. In 1912, upon the death of his father, who was a member of the National Parliament as well as the Council of Tokyo, he won the election to take his father’s seat in the Tokyo Council, further entering the House of Representatives in 1915. 1931, Minister of Education in the Inukai Cabinet, continuing in the same role into the Saito Cabinet until 1934, when he fell victim to a malicious plot to frame him in a scandal and had to resign. Won back his seat in the House of Representatives in 1942 as a non-partisan (non-Taisei Yokusankai) candidate, but was forced to retreat from politics in 1943 as a result of opposing the Tojo Cabinet regarding the war-time contingency revision to the criminal code. He returned to Tokyo from his refuge in 1945 to form the current Liberal Democrat Party, and when they became the leading party in 1946 was to become prime minister, when ill fate intervened and he was expelled from public office by the GHQ. This was because, back in 1930, during the Arms reduction negotiations in London, he claimed that for the cabinet to discuss disarmament violated the emperor’s supreme authority over military affairs, which undermined the possibility of civilian control of the military and allowed them to gain full power. Just before being rehabilitated, misfortune struck again when he suffered a stroke in 1951. In 1954, he finally became Prime Minister, when Shigeru Yoshida stepped down. He served 3 terms from Dec 10, 1954 to Dec. 23, 1956. In contrast to Yoshida’s foreign policy that focused only on relations with the USA, his main achievement was to conclude a treaty with the Soviet Union in Oct.1956, ending the state of war that existed since August 1945. He was bestowed the Grand Cordon of the Order of the Chrysanthemum at the time of his death on 7th March 1959. His descendants are prominent politicians to this day.
Reference;
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ichir%C5%8D_Hatoyama
http://www.time.com/time/covers/0,16...550314,00.html



2. Ryoichi Sasagawa (1899-1995)
Colorful right-winger often called the “Don” of Japan’s politics and finance. He repeatedly referred to himself, in a 1974 interview with Time magazine, as “The world’s richest Fascist”. Born in Osaka to a sake producer, he entered politics in 1925 by becoming member of the village council. While running an entertainment agency he made a fortune in the stock market and developed connections in the military by donating planes and airfields. Being an ardent admirer of Mussolini, he forms a rightist group in 1930 and made them wear black shirts. In 1939, allegedly aided by Admiral Yamamoto, he managed to meet his idol, the Duce in person. Despite such leanings, he voiced caution against entering into war and was known to voice strong opposition against the Tojo Cabinet on some issues. Thus he did not join the Taisei Yokusankai and was one of the few to gain a seat in the 1942 House of Representatives’ election as a non-partisan candidate.
Though his war time activities were not of war criminal nature, he was determined to be held responsible for the war and did everything possible to provoke the allies into designating him as a war criminal and when he was finally admitted into Sugamo Prison as a class A war criminal on 11th December 1945 he made a great show of marching through the gates to the accompaniment of the blaring tunes of the Naval Battleship March. His famous Sugamo diary vividly depicts the personalities of his fellow inmates and repeats his conviction for the need of Japan to ally itself with America to oppose Communism; that the people of Japan must be saved from starvation and that peace must be made to prevail. He also demanded improvement of conditions for the inmates and the release of those wrongly incarcerated. He was released 3 years later when US policy changed to exploit pro-US anti-communists in preparation for the Cold War. After his release, he was one of a handful that gave support to the families of the war criminals, an act considered to be dangerously provocative. A photo of a motor boat in a copy of Life magazine he saw in Sugamo sparked his interest in motor boat racing, which launched his post war empire built on gambling revenue from the sport he established in Japan. He used his clout with right-wing organizations and the Japanese Mafia (Yakuza) to pressure the government to pass laws and to gain full control over commercial rights. What Bernie Ecclestone is to F1 Racing, Sasagawa was to Motorboat racing in Japan. Having built a vast fortune in this way through the 50s and 60s, he turned to philanthropic activities. True to his word that he intended to use up every penny of his fortune for the betterment of the world and mankind, he heavily donated to the World Health Organization’s fight against small pox and Hansen’s disease, hunger in Africa, etc. In spite of his staunch anti-communist stance and his record as a war criminal, he also contributed large sums of his motorboat revenue to support China once diplomatic relations were reestablished, which won him VIP status there. Outside Japan, he is primarily known for such philanthropy, which led to the United Nations Peace Prize in 1982, as well as many high-class Orders from countries such as France, Ghana, Chile, China, Korea and the Japanese First Class Order of the Rising Sun. Rumors also persist that he was the lover of Yoshiko Kawashima, or the “Matahari of the Orient”, female spy for the Japanese Army of “Last Emperor” fame.
Reference:
http://www.bookrags.com/research/sas...yoichi-ema-05/
http://www.geocities.co.jp/WallStree...sskw/index.htm

3. Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tadahiko Okada (1878-1958)
After serving as mayor of Saitama, Kumamoto and Nagano Prefectures became head of all police organizations including the Secret Police which was a position within the Ministry of the Interior. However, as a result of the Toranomon Incident of Dec. 27 1923 , an assassination attempt on Hirohito, still a Prince at the time, he resigned his post with other police officials and ran for a seat in the Diet and served 7 terms in the House of Representatives, where he served as Speaker between 1942 (May 27)-1945 (June 9 ). He also served as Minister of Welfare in the Suzuki Cabinet in 1945 (April-August). After the surrender, the US regime expelled him from public office, but he later returned as Diet member in 1952.

4. Navy Vice Admiral, Tomoyuki Senoo (1891-1984)
Born in Hiroshima, Dec. 1, 1913 Navy Ensign, Dec 13, 1915 Sub Lt. Served on “Kouchi” and “Hiuga”, Dec. 1, 1918 Lt.. staff of training fleet, instructor & adjutant at torpedo school, Dec.1,1924, Lt Commander , Staff Yokosuka Naval Station, Ministry of the Navy telecommunication section, June 15 1929, sent to the UK, Nov 30, 1929 Commander , Sept 19, 1930 returned from UK, instructor at Naval College, Sept 15, 1932 sent to Canada, Nov.15,1933 Captain, March 17,1934 Military Attaché at embassy in Canada, Nov.15, 1935 returned to Japan, Staff Kure Naval Station, General Affairs Admin in Fleet HQ, Nov.15, 1939 Rear Admiral, chief of Hikari Arsenal, May 1, 1943 Vice Admiral, Ministry of Transport & Communications, Ministry of Armament, May 1, 1945 Chief of Kure Arsenal.

5. Member of House of Representatives, General Major, Genkuro Eto (1879-1957)
Born in Saga Prefecture, he became commander of the 38th Infantry Regiment in 1925, then on 26th July, 1927 promoted to General Major attached to the 6th Division. At the end of the same year he entered reserve status. He later entered politics, winning seats in the House of Representatives 4 times since 1932. He is most famous for his attack on Tatsukichi Minobe, scholar of constitutional and administrative law and member of the House of Peers, who expounded the emperor-as-organ theory (Tennno Kikansetsu). Eto’s attack developed into a national debate, which led in 1935 to Minobe being charged with lese majesty for what was considered subversive of the national polity, forcing him to resign from parliament. Eto’s words of disgust in witnessing the behavior of the Army in 1937 Shanghai are often cited in association with the Nanking Massacre.
Reference;
http://content.cdlib.org/xtf/view?do...2&brand=eschol


6. Takeo Mitamura(1899-1964)
Born in Gifu in1927, became a police official within the Ministry of the Interior and was responsible for monitoring communist subversive activities. He became Member of the House of Representatives in 1937, also winning again a non-partisan seat in the 1942 election. However, on 6th Sept. 1943 he was arrested for his anti-Tojo activities and spent the rest of the war in prison. After the war, he returned to congress in the 1955 election from the Liberal Democratic Party and served 3 terms.

7. Shichiro Kihara (1884-1951)
Born in Hiroshima, and a graduate of Waseda University, he becomes member of the prefectural parliament in 1911 and further House of Representatives in 1930 to serve 3 terms. Elected as the 19th Mayor of Hiroshima City, serving in office from Oct ’45 until March ’47, when the GHQ expelled him from public office for the fact that he was a MP supported by the Taisei Yokusankai. He died of illness in Dec.1951.

8. Noboru Okuhisa
Former Deputy Mayor of Hiroshima (March 30, 1932 to Nov.24, 1933), he led rescue efforts in the wake of the Hiroshima A-bomb, further served as head of the education commission.

9. Rikizo Hirano (1898-1981)
Born in Gifu and a 1923 graduate of Waseda University, he championed farmer’s rights and his farmer’s party joined hands with the veteran’s organization to form Koudoukai in 1932. In the House of Representatives’ election of 1936, he won a seat in the Diet and served a total of 7 terms. After the war he became a founding member of the Socialist Party, which came to power in the 1947 election, establishing the Socialist, Katayama administration in which he served as Minister of Agriculture, but his earlier involvement with the rightist group, Koudoukai became a liability that forced him to resign. This led to expulsion from public office in 1948, but with the end of occupation, he returned and formed the Social Democrat Party in ’52. In the 70s, he obtained declassified GHQ documents from the US National Archives and petitioned President Carter to restore his honor over the wrongful expulsion from public office by the GHQ, which led to the Upper House resolution to restore his honor and an apology from the President.
Reference:
http://search.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-b...0071220w1.html


10. Sumio Matsunaga (1888-1955)
Navy Rear Admiral. Dec 15, 1910, Ensign served on “Kurama”, Dec. 1, 1912, Sub Lt served on “Hashidate”, “Okishima”, “Yugure”, Dec. 13, 1915, Lt. Yokosuka Flight School instructor, Dec. 1, 1921, Lt Commander, Kasumigaura Flight School instructor, Yokosuka Naval Base staff, Dec 1, 1926, Commander, Dec.1 1927, sent on a 9-month tour of Europe & USA, Dec. 1,1930,Captain, April 1, 1933 Commander of “Ryujo”, Nov.15,1935, Commander of “Akagi”, Dec 1,1936, Navy Rear Admiral, went into reserve on 21st of same month. Nov.25 1938, Aviation HQ, Sept.25, 1940, Ministry of the Navy.

11. Nobuya Uchida (1880-1971)
Shipping tycoon-come politician, he was born in Ibaragi Prefecture, and a graduate of Hitotsubashi University. Entered politics in 1924 as a member of House of Representatives, further serving as Parliamentary Vice-Minister of the Navy and then Minister of Rail Roads (1934-1936). He entered the Tojo Cabinet on 19th Feb. 1944, as Minister of Agriculture and Commerce, later to become a member of the House of Peers. Though a minister in the Tojo Cabinet, he joined the plot of Shigeru Yoshida’s (first post-war Prime Minister) faction to end the war quickly, but failed.
He was banned from public office after the war by the GHQ, but upon ending of the occupation, returned to the House of Representatives in 1952. He served the 5th Yoshida Cabinet as Minister of Forestry and Agriculture. He died in ’71 at the age of 90.
Reference
http://www.meiji-group.com/history/establish.html

12. Member of House of Representatives, Jojiro Matsuyama (1884-1961)
Born in Wakayama Prefecture, upon graduation from Tokyo University, he trained as a bridge-building engineer in Kansas, USA between 1908 and 1910. In 1915, he moved to Korea to engage in large scale rice cultivation projects. Wins seat in parliament for first time with Hyogo as his constituency in 1920. In 1924, wins again representing his Wakayama Prefecture and continues to be reelected until banned from public office in 1946.
In 1936, he served the Hirota Cabinet in Foreign Affairs and further the Yoneuchi Cabinet, in 1940 as Parliamentary Vice-Minister of the Navy. Being a devout Christian, he organized a Christian peace mission to the USA in 1941 in an attempt to prevent the outbreak of war. Expelled from public office by the GHQ for his involvement with the Navy in 1946, ended his 24-year career as a Member of Parliament.
Photo www.kudoyama.ed.jp/kudoe/yumeijin/yumeijin8.htm


13. Chozaburo Mizutani (1897-1960)
Born in Kyoto, he was a graduate of Kyoto University. After graduation starts a law practice and develops interest in Marxism. Becomes Member of Parliament in 1928 and serves a total of 12 terms. After the war he became a founding member of the Socialist Party, which came to power in the 1947 election, establishing the Socialist, Katayama administration in which he served as Minister of Commerce and Industry. He continued in the same post in the next Ashida Cabinet as well (’47-’48). Died Dec. 1960 at age of 63
Reference;
http://www.ndl.go.jp/constitution/e/...047shoshi.html

14. Jiichiro Matsumoto (1887-1966)
He played a significant role in the political history of Japan in the twentieth century. He was born into a Burakumin outcaste community and in the 1920s he became the leader of the Suiheisha movement which sought to liberate Burakumin from centuries of status discrimination. In 1936 he was elected to parliament and remained active in politics throughout the war. In 1945 he played a key role in the formation of the Japan Socialist Party (JSP) and served as Deputy Speaker in the newly created House of Councillors from 1947 until he was ‘purged’ from politics in January 1949. He was permitted to resume political activity in 1951 and thereafter seems to have played a key role representing the JSP overseas and was a prime mover in the post-war reconstitution of the movement which sought to liberate Burakumin.
Reference:
http://www.routledgeasianstudies.com...n9780415390828
http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G1-14567860.html
http://www.bll.gr.jp/siryositu/s-ta-matum.html



11. Tradition lives on
Finally, here is something from last October, when our team was racing in Japan. Before the race a group of fans visited us in Germany and presented our team a Yosegaki Flag. We promised to take it with us to the race and put it up where everyone could see. Originally there were only a few messages, but when I saw it after we had it up in our Atrium at the paddock I was staggered to see that it was now filled with best wish messages. This attracted attention from the press and soon the Honda Team was having their own flag up for people to sign.

[GeorgeP]

Wow! This information is absolutely fascinating! So much history to be uncovered with just one flag, and you have several flags to boot! Thanks for sharing!



George

[zachb]

Wow Nick, thank you for sharing all of this information. This is a great "article." Nice flags...

Zach

[Edokko]

Sugoi !!!! All my hats off now and forever on this fantastic research by Nick. This is beyond most anything I've ever seen or read on the history of the Yosegaki.

[Jareth]

Fantastic Nick! What a great read! I really enjoyed the presentation! Thanks so much for posting!