Historical Dictionary of United States-Japan ... - Bakumatsu Films

SHIDEHARA, KIJU – RO – • 227
British, American, French, and Italian residents in Shanghai. For this
reason, the Navy General Staff worked on the premise that army
forces were neither desirable nor necessary to conclude the incident.
The Third Fleet was subsequently organized under the command of
Vice Admiral Kichisaburō Nomura, who was respected within
American naval circles.
For reasons of his own, Navy Minister Mineo Ōsumi ignored his
service’s determination to resolve the incident without the army’s intervention
and asked War Minister General Araki Sadao to dispatch
troops. Subsequently, the forces under Nomura and army general
Yoshinori Shirakawa’s command launched a crippling attack against
their Chinese counterparts without at the same time threatening
American, British, French, or Italian lives. Hostilities came to an end
on 3 March. An armistice agreement was signed on 5 May by Japanese,
Chinese, British, American, French, and Italian representatives.
SHIBUSAWA, EIICHI (1841–1931). Sometimes known as the “father
of Japanese business,” Shibusawa supported the Tokugawa shogunate
during its final years but was soon hired by the new Meiji
government because of his knowledge of business and finance. Although
he continued to work closely with the Meiji government, he
left government service in 1873 to devote himself to private business.
He helped establish well over 100 businesses during his career and
was especially noted for adopting Western manufacturing and finance
techniques. Shibusawa also strongly supported education and
international knowledge. See also MEIJI ERA; ZAIBATSU.
SHIDEHARA, KIJU - RO - (1872–1951). An immensely influential
diplomat through the 1920s and early 1930s, Kijūrō Shidehara was
known for his conciliatory policies toward the United States and
China. He also reemerged briefly during Japan’s postwar occupation
as prime minister.
After graduating from Tokyo Imperial University, Shidehara in
1896 entered the Foreign Ministry. In his early career, he served in
China, London, and Antwerp. Between 1904 and 1914, he served in a
variety of Foreign Ministry posts in Tokyo, during which time he was
trained in the finer aspects of diplomacy by Foreign Ministry adviser
Henry W. Denison. After a brief stint in the Netherlands, Shidehara