So emperor Hirohito died and lived to his 80s or 90s, why wasn’t he instantly killed or sent to jail after the war ended. Did he get punished at all?
In: 1701
The Japanese people had just surrendered in a war that had projected enormous American casualties if mainland Japan were invaded. The entire Japanese population was expected to fight against Allied landings. That same civilian dedication could have ignited a nation-wide insurgency if the Emperor was harmed.
Macarthur and his staff.
While post war occupation was supposed to be decided by a post war Allied council, Macarthur in practice was shogun of occupied Japan. He and his staff decided keeping the current Emperor alive but clearly humbled will make ruling Japan easier.
Try the book American Shogun for quick starter history on McArthur, Hirohito and post-war Japan
There are several books and at least one movie made about this. #1, we don’t just summarily execute foreign soldiers, let alone foreign leaders. #2, there were war crime trials, #3 there was some bone of contention as to whether the Emperor was merely a figurehead or had any active participation (kinda be like executing queen Elizabeth for stuff Thatcher did.), and #4 there as a very complex political aspect going on.
The 2012 movie Emperor does a pretty decent job with this, and it’s a good movie
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emperor_(2012_film)
During WW2 and prior, the Japanese people largely saw Emperor Hirohito as a literal god. Their soldiers and even civilians had shown an eager willingness to die in pursuit of honoring Japan, even after the war was clearly lost from a strategic sense. Not just some, but like basically every Japanese soldier would have to be killed because nobody surrendered. “Fanatics” was a common term used by American veterans. Americans didn’t want to see any more killings at that point in 1945, they just wanted to strip Japan of any power to fight them any more and start rebuilding. Casualty rates exploded on places important to Japan like Okinawa. And civilian casualties especially (and many suicides). The US didn’t want to have to invade homeland Japan, it’d be a brutal fight. And the firebombings of cities that killed tens of thousands very regularly didn’t make Japan capitulate. Then, 2 nuclear weapons (and the bluffing threat of more soon) did for the Emperor, finally. That said, many Japanese soldiers still believed in the cause after nuclear weapons were used, and there was even a failed coup attempt to try to force Hirohito from surrendering. Thousands of Japanese soldiers continued fighting after the war, a few for years. It’s not hard to believe that if someone who is their living embodiment of a God were executed or taken from Japan, the Japanese people would revolt. America just wanted out of the Pacific war. Europe was over with and wrapping up, and many saw exactly what the Soviet threat turned out to be. It was just so much easier to stop the destruction, get our POWs out, and if that means some of the leadership weren’t held fully accountable, it’s worth it to end the war and stop the ever rising death toll. Finally, WW2 could be over. So who cares if they keep a figurehead, if it helps to support peace and rebuilding.
…because independent countries are a myth, and the elites aren’t really at odds with each other?
His role in ww2 is hotly debated.
However it is established that US went out of their way to make it seem like he wasn’t too much at fault.
This was because the US needed him a a figurehead for their governance of Japan. The people loved him and he gave the US post war plans a lot of legitimacy.
Wrong decision? Maybe on a moral standing. But it was very effective.
Hirohito was loved by Japan during and after the war. Also Hirohito did not actually make any decisions and it was the Japanese Navy that came out on top and decided foreign policy, not Hirohito (even though there is debate on whether Hirohito could have stopped the military takeover from happening)
The Japanese emperor at that time was seen like a god. Anyone correct me if I’m wrong. Killing the emperor after we had won the war would have only radicalized more of the Japanese population. He was more useful alive and on an allied leash.
To the Japanese at that time, and still even to some nowadays, the emperor is holy. He was needed to command the fanatic Japanese troops to surrender.
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