Yoshimichi Hasegawa

Japanese: 長谷川好道 - はせがわ・よしみち

Year of death: January 27, 1924
Year of birth: August 26, 1850 (October 1, 1850)
An army officer during the Meiji and Taisho periods. The eldest son of Hasegawa Tojiro, a samurai of Iwakuni Domain (Yamaguchi Prefecture). He participated in the Boshin War as a platoon leader of the domain's Seigi-tai. In 1870 (Meiji 3), he entered the Osaka Military Academy. The following year, he became an infantry captain. He fought in the Satsuma Rebellion (1877) as commander of the 1st Infantry Regiment. In 1893-1894, he was deployed to France. In the Sino-Japanese War (1894-95), he led a mixed brigade and belonged to Oyama Iwao's 2nd Army. He fought in succession in Manchuria (northeastern China) and Shandong, and won the attack on Port Arthur, but the massacre of civilians that occurred immediately afterwards left an indelible stain on his name. He was made a baron for his military achievements, and in 1894 he became a lieutenant general. In the same year, he succeeded Katsura Taro as commander of the 3rd Division. In 1902, he was promoted to general. In the Russo-Japanese War (1904-05), he was commander of the army stationed in Korea. After the war, the Treaty on Protectorate of Korea was signed and Hirobumi Ito became the Resident-General of Korea. The rift between civil and military affairs regarding Manchuria and Korea policy widened, and Ito and Hasegawa came into conflict, which was even reported in foreign newspapers. In 1940, the Japanese government forced the Korean king to abdicate in response to the Hague Secret Envoy Incident, and anti-Japanese movements intensified. He was appointed Chief of the General Staff from 1912 to 1915 (Taisho 4), but he lacked political ability and was considered insufficient to confront the political parties and the navy on issues such as the addition of two divisions. He became a marshal in 1911 and was appointed Governor-General of Korea in 1912, but was unable to cope with the Korean enlightenment movement and economic development, and could only respond to the March 1st Independence Movement (March 1, 1919) with guns and swords. The massacres carried out by the army were criticized around the world, and he resigned in August 1915. <References> Uzaki Sagiki (Kumakichi), "Satsuma's Navy, the Cho's Army"

(Stewart Lawn)

Source: Asahi Japanese Historical Biography: Asahi Shimbun Publications Inc. About Asahi Japanese Historical Biography

Japanese:

没年：大正13.1.27(1924)
生年：嘉永3.8.26(1850.10.1)
明治大正期の陸軍軍人。岩国藩(山口県)藩士長谷川藤次郎の長男。藩の精義隊小隊長として戊辰戦争に参加。明治3(1870)年大阪兵学寮に入学。翌年歩兵大尉。歩兵第1連隊長として西南戦争(1877)で戦う。18～19年,フランスに派遣された。日清戦争(1894～95)では混成旅団を率いて大山巌の第2軍に属した。満州(中国東北部)と山東で連戦し旅順攻撃で勝利を収めたが,その直後の市民大虐殺は拭い難い汚名を残した。戦功により男爵,29年中将。同年桂太郎を継ぎ第3師団長。37年大将に進む。日露戦争(1904～05)では朝鮮駐箚軍司令官。終戦後,朝鮮保護条約が結ばれ,伊藤博文が朝鮮統監になると,満州朝鮮政策に関して文武離隔が広がり,伊藤と長谷川が対立し,外国の新聞にも報道されるに至った。40年,ハーグ密使事件に対して日本政府は朝鮮国王を退位させ,反日運動が激化した。45年から大正4(1915)年の間参謀総長に任命されたが政治能力に欠け,2個師団増設問題などで政党,海軍に対抗するには力不足とみられた。4年元帥となり,5年朝鮮総督に任じられたが,朝鮮啓蒙運動と経済発展に対処できず,3・1独立運動(1919.3.1)に対して銃と剣をもってしか応えられなかった。軍隊による虐殺は世界中から批判され,8年8月辞任した。<参考文献>鵜崎鷺城(熊吉)『薩の海軍長の陸軍』

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