Takeji Nara | |
|---|---|
 1919Autochrome by Georges Chevalier | |
| Native name | 奈良 武次 |
| Born | April 28, 1868 Tochigi prefecture, Japan |
| Died | December 21, 1962(1962-12-21) (aged 94) |
| Allegiance |  Empire of Japan |
| Branch |  Imperial Japanese Army |
| Years of service | 1889 – 1933 |
| Rank |  General |
| Commands | China Garrison Army |
| Battles / wars | |
| Other work | Aide-de-camp to the Emperor of Japan |
BaronTakeji Nara (奈良 武次,Nara Takeji; April 28, 1868 – December 21, 1962) was a general in theImperial Japanese Army.
Nara was born in what is now part ofKanuma city,Tochigi Prefecture to a farming family. He attended military preparatory schools as a youth, and graduated from the 11th class of theImperial Japanese Army Academy in 1889 as a second lieutenant in the artillery. In 1893, he attended the Army Artillery School, and the participated in theFirst Sino-Japanese War from 1894-1895.
After the war, he returned to theArmy Staff College, graduating from the 13th class in December 1899. He subsequently served in a number of staff positions within theImperial Japanese Army General Staff, and was sent toGermany as amilitary attaché.
During theRusso-Japanese War, Nara was commander of an Independent Heavy Artillery Brigade which operated the siege artillery units attached to theIJA 3rd Army. After the war and another visit to Germany, he rose to beVice Minister of War. Promoted tomajor general in 1914, he served as commander of theJapanese China Garrison Army, and later as chief of staff of Japanese forces inQingdao.
Nara was promoted tolieutenant general in 1918, and attended theVersailles Peace Treaty Conference as part of the Japanese delegation. He also chaired the commission investigating theNikolayevsk Incident.
Nara subsequently served as Chiefaide-de-camp to Crown Prince Hirohito, and then as ChiefAide-de-camp to the Emperor of Japan after Hirohito's coronation, until 1933. At the request of thegenrōYamagata Aritomo, Nara supervised the Crown prince’s education in military affairs through both lectures and active experience. Under his direction, Hirohito mastered horsemanship, and practiced firing live weapons, even to the extent of having a firing range built within the Akasaka Palace.[1] In 1921, he was part of the entourage which accompanied Hirohito on his official visit to Europe.
He was promoted to full general in 1924 and became a member of thePrivy Council. In 1933, he was elevated to the title ofbaron (danshaku) under thekazoku peerage system, retiring from his military career soon afterwards.
In the post war period, he served as Chairman of theDai Nippon Butoku Kai. Nara died in 1962 and his diaries from the period that he was aide-de-camp to Emperor Hirohito shed additional light on the thoughts and role of the Emperor duringWorld War II.
Most of the information in this article was translated from the Japanese Wikipedia site.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Academics | |
| Other | |
