Makoto Saito

A naval officer and admiral during the Meiji, Taisho and Showa periods. He was born on October 27, 1858, as the eldest son of Saito Kohei, a samurai of Mizusawa Domain in Mutsu Province (Iwate Prefecture). He graduated from the Naval Academy in 1879 (Meiji 12). In 1884, he studied in the United States and was appointed as a military attaché to the American legation. After returning to Japan in 1888, he worked at the Naval General Staff and the Ministry of the Navy, and then served as an aide-de-camp and the captain of the Akitsushima and Itsukushima. During this time, in 1892, he married the eldest daughter of Nirei Kagenori (Minister of the Navy). In 1898, he was appointed Vice Minister under Yamamoto Gonbei, Minister of the Navy, in the second Yamagata Aritomo cabinet, and served as Vice Minister under Yamamoto Gonbei for the next seven years. He was appointed Minister of the Navy in the first Saionji Kinmochi Cabinet in 1906 (Meiji 39), and served as Minister of the Navy under five cabinets, promoting the expansion of the navy after the Russo-Japanese War. In 1914 (Taisho 3), he resigned as Minister of the Navy due to the Siemens Incident and was transferred to the reserves. In August 1919, he returned to active duty and became Governor-General of Korea. He attempted to calm the rise of the Korean national liberation movement seen in the March 1st Independence Movement, and changed the policy of governing Korea from "military politics" to so-called "civilian politics." In 1925, he became a viscount. In 1927 (Showa 2), he resigned as Governor-General of Korea due to illness. Just before that, he served as the Chief Plenipotentiary of the Geneva Disarmament Conference. After resigning as Governor-General, he served as a Privy Councilor until 1929, and was appointed Governor-General again in the same year, but resigned in 1931. He succeeded the Inukai Tsuyoshi cabinet, which collapsed in the May 15 Incident in 1932, and formed a "national unity cabinet." The Saito cabinet was called an interim cabinet, but by recognizing "Manchukuo" and withdrawing from the League of Nations, it ended up isolating Japan internationally. In July 1934, he resigned en masse in the Teijin Incident. In December 1935, he became Minister of the Interior. In February 1936, he was assassinated in the February 26 Incident.

[Kenichi Yoshii]

"The Life of Viscount Saito Makoto, 4 volumes (1941-1942, Viscount Saito Memorial Society)" ▽ "The Life of Japan's Prime Ministers, Volume 14: Saito Makoto, written by Aritake Shuji and supervised by Hosokawa Takamoto (1986, Jiji Press)" ▽ "The Life of Prime Ministers of Japan, Volume 21: Saito Makoto, supervised by Mikuriya Takashi (2006, Yumani Shobo)"

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

明治・大正・昭和期の海軍軍人、大将。政治家。安政(あんせい)5年10月27日陸奥(むつ)国（岩手県）水沢藩士斎藤耕平の長男として生まれる。1879年（明治12）海軍兵学校卒業。1884年にアメリカ留学、アメリカ公使館付武官に任ぜられた。1888年帰国後、海軍参謀本部、海軍省に勤務、ついで侍従武官、秋津洲(あきつしま)・厳島(いつくしま)艦長を務めた。この間1892年には仁礼景範(にれかげのり)（海相）の長女と結婚。1898年第二次山県有朋(やまがたありとも)内閣において山本権兵衛(やまもとごんべえ)海軍大臣の下で次官に就任、以後7年間同海相の下で次官を務めた。1906年（明治39）第一次西園寺公望(さいおんじきんもち)内閣の海軍大臣に就任以来5代の内閣の下で海相を務め、日露戦後の海軍軍備拡張を推進した。1914年（大正3）シーメンス事件で海相を辞任、予備役に編入された。1919年8月現役に復して朝鮮総督に就任。三・一独立運動にみられた朝鮮民族解放運動の高揚の鎮静化を図って、朝鮮統治政策を「武断政治」からいわゆる「文治政治」へと転換させた。1925年子爵。1927年（昭和2）病気のため朝鮮総督を辞任。その直前にはジュネーブ軍縮会議首席全権を務めた。総督辞任後1929年まで枢密顧問官、同年ふたたび朝鮮総督に就任したが、1931年辞任。1932年五・一五事件で瓦解(がかい)した犬養毅(いぬかいつよし)内閣の後を継いで、「挙国一致内閣」を組織した。斎藤内閣は中間内閣といわれたが、「満州国」を承認し国際連盟から脱退することによって、かえって日本の国際的孤立化を進めてしまった。1934年7月帝人事件で総辞職。1935年12月内大臣に就任。昭和11年2月、二・二六事件で暗殺された。

［芳井研一］

『『子爵斎藤実伝』全4巻（1941～1942・斎藤子爵記念会）』▽『有竹修二著、細川隆元監修『日本宰相列伝14　斎藤実』（1986・時事通信社）』▽『御厨貴監修『歴代総理大臣伝記叢書21　斎藤実』（2006・ゆまに書房）』

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