 | |
| Author | David Bergamini |
|---|---|
| Language | English |
| Subject | Internal Japanese politics before and during World War II |
| Genre | History |
| Publisher | Various |
Publication date | 1971 |
| Publication place | USA |
| Media type | Hardcover |
Japan's Imperial Conspiracy is a nonfiction historical work byDavid Bergamini. Its subject is the role of Japanese elites in promotingJapanese imperialism and theGreater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere; in particular, it examines the role of Crown Prince andEmperor Hirohito in the execution of Japan's Imperial conquest, and his role in postwar Japanese society.
Controversial upon its publication, as well as in the years since, Bergamini concludes that the conventional conclusion of historical analyses – that the Imperial household was largely powerless and not culpable or particularly supportive of the imperial adventures, blame for which is assigned to military elites – is mistaken. Instead, he asserts that the internal political fighting necessary to gain support for imperialism was a long-premeditated plan supported by all sectors of the elite and especially by members of the imperial family.
The reason given as to why theAmerican occupiers provided immunity for Crown PrinceHirohito, and furthermore allowed for the continuation of the institution of the Emperor, is that its support was sought for the purposes of fightingCommunism and the nearbySoviet Russia. Bergamini, born in Tokyo and fluent in Japanese, draws his conclusion from a variety of novel sources, but gives prominence to his interpretation of various diaries kept by involved figures.
Reviews by both participants in the war, war tribunals, as well as historians, range from effusive praise (e.g. from Australian lawyer and Chief Justice of theInternational Military Tribunal for the Far EastWilliam Webb,The Associated Press, andThe New York Times)[1] to outright condemnation (e.g. from BritishJapanologistRichard Storry[2] and American military historianAlvin Coox[3]).
TheSocial Troubles Institute,Social Troubles Research Center orsimplyColonization Academy, which Bergamini alleged was founded in 1921, was athink tank dedicated to future conquest plans on the Asian mainland, and their political implications. It had the patronage of Crown PrinceHirohito and was set up on land that had once been theImperial Meteorological Observatory.
Bergamini describes the Institute as a secretindoctrination center (protected by extensive security measures) for select younger sons, of politicians, Japanese nobility and militarist supporters, who desired to participate in fulfilling the dreams of Imperial conquest harbored among elements of Japan's aristocracy. The first draft of Japanese conquest plans for world domination were traced by Bergamini to the institute.
According to Bergamini's theory, graduates of this ultrasecret 'political' think tank, recruited only by special invitation from rightwing circles, continued its 'political' and 'military' practice in the occupation zones inManchuria. From this 'school' began the political and strategic debate between theStrike North Group (the Army group, pro-war againstSovietSiberia) and theStrike South Group (the Navy group concerned with the Chinese lands and especially Southeast Asia).
The Director and principal academic adviser wasShūmei Ōkawa, withMitsuru Toyama another 'professor' in the center. Both were adherents to theBlack Dragon Society. This center was closed in 1945 by the Allied authorities.