October Incident

This was a full-scale fascist coup d'état masterminded by Hashimoto Kingoro of the Sakurakai Party, which was planned but failed. It is also known as the Kinki Revolution Incident. After the failure of the March Incident in 1931, Hashimoto and others planned a coup d'état to reform the nation in cooperation with the Kwantung Army's Manchurian Plot Plan, and after the outbreak of the Manchurian Incident in September of the same year, they tried to make it a reality. A group of young officers attached to the corps also participated in the plan, as did right-wing forces such as Okawa Shumei, Kita Ikki, Nishida Mitsugi, and Tachibana Kozaburo. The plan was to mobilize the military forces of over a dozen companies led by Sakurakai officers on October 21st, attack cabinet meetings and other places, kill all cabinet ministers, party leaders, and business leaders, declare martial law, and establish a military government headed by Lieutenant General Araki Sadao (Chief of the General Education Inspectorate). However, the plan was discovered in advance, and on October 17th, Hashimoto and about 13 others were arrested by the Military Police, so the coup d'état did not take place. After this, the group of young officers became distrustful of the movement led by the staff officers, and they broke away from them to launch a movement to reform the nation through direct action.

[Katsumi Enomoto]

"Colonel Hashimoto's Memoirs" by Nakano Masao (1963, Misuzu Shobo)" ▽ "My Showa History" by Suematsu Taihei (1963, Misuzu Shobo)" ▽ "Modern History Materials 4, Nationalist Movement 1" edited by Imai Seiichi et al. (1963, Misuzu Shobo)" ▽ "Showa Warlords" by Takahashi Masae (Chuko Shinsho)

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

桜会の橋本欣五郎(きんごろう)が首謀者となり計画、未遂に終わった本格的なファッショ的クーデター事件。錦旗(きんき)革命事件ともいう。1931年（昭和6）三月事件の失敗後、橋本らは関東軍の満州謀略計画と連携した国家改造クーデターを計画していたが、同年9月満州事変勃発(ぼっぱつ)後、それを具体化しようとした。計画には隊付青年将校らのグループも参加し、大川周明(しゅうめい)、北一輝(きたいっき)、西田税(みつぎ)、橘孝三郎(たちばなこうざぶろう)らの右翼勢力も加わった。計画の内容は、10月21日を期して、桜会の将校が率いる十数個中隊の兵力を動員し、閣議の席などを襲撃して全閣僚、政党幹部、財界人を殺害、戒厳令を布告し、荒木貞夫(あらきさだお)中将（教育総監部本部長）を首班とする軍部政権を樹立しようとするものであった。しかし計画は事前に発覚し、10月17日、橋本ら13名前後が憲兵隊に検挙され、クーデターは未発に終わった。以後青年将校グループは、幕僚将校らの運動に不信感をもち、彼らから離脱して直接行動による国家改造運動を展開するようになっていった。

［榎本勝巳］

『中野雅夫著『橋本大佐の手記』（1963・みすず書房）』▽『末松太平著『私の昭和史』（1963・みすず書房）』▽『今井清一他編『現代史資料4　国家主義運動1』（1963・みすず書房）』▽『高橋正衛著『昭和の軍閥』（中公新書）』

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