August 15, 1945, was the day of Japan's surrender. The whole world has experienced many years of anti-fascist wars and finally ushered in the results of victory. Germany had already surrendered, and then the United States and the Soviet Union took decisive action against Japan, prompting Japan to finally decide to end the war by surrender. Although the battle on the battlefield is over, the political struggle is not over. Stalin had a different opinion on the handling of Japan after the war, and he hoped that the Soviet Union would gain more benefits in northern Japan, but this could not be achieved due to the insistence of the United States. Therefore, when the United States informed the countries of the results of the treatment of Japan, Stalin finally had to agree that after the United States and the Soviet Union reached an agreement, the treatment plan for Japan could be considered to be implemented. The plan stipulates that Japan will be surrendered by the United States, which basically determines that Japan is under the control of the United States after the war. As a representative of the United States, MacArthur actually faced a lot of pressure when he first set foot on Japanese soil. However, he used his own means to transform the japanese thinking, and even after humiliating the Japanese emperor, he could still be admired by the Japanese. So what exactly did MacArthur do in Japan? For the Japanese to admire him so much, and even to say goodbye when he left, today let's walk into the story of MacArthur's transformation of Japan after World War II.
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<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="98" > post-war processing</h1>
The fact that the United States managed Japan after the war was not as logical as it seems now, because before Japan's surrender, the Soviet Union had declared war on Japan in order to cultivate its own power in Japan. And on the korean peninsula issue before, Stalin actually made concessions. At that time, the Soviet Red Army was in a strong position on the Korean Peninsula, but because of a request from the United States and the cessation of the continued liberation of the Korean Peninsula, the area south of the 38th Line was almost given to the United States in the form of a white gift.
Stalin
Stalin did not benefit early, and the reason why he made such a concession was so that the United States could cede part of Japan's rights to the Soviet Union in the same way. But the Americans were very resolute, Stalin's active concessions did not achieve any results, and even if war was declared against Japan later, it did not achieve any benefits, so after the failure of the Soviet strategy, the Americans successfully took over post-war Japan.
MacArthur, as the representative of the United States, began a years-long rule over Japan. Japan's surrender was due to a combination of reasons, including the defeat of its ally Germany, the enormous power of the American atomic bomb, and the Soviet Union's declaration of war on Japan, so it was not that Japan lost the ability to resist in the end.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="149" > disadvantageous situation</h1>
When MacArthur first set foot on Japanese soil on August 30, he took only a few thousand American troops with him, but at that time, Japan alone had 300,000 unarmed troops in this part of the Kanto region, and this trip to Japan was doomed from the beginning to be a smooth operation, and MacArthur also began his long reign over Japan.
MacArthur
MacArthur, who had just arrived in Japan, was actually in a more dangerous situation. Japan is a very vengeful country, and the Yamato nation is a very vengeful nation. Shortly before Japan's surrender, MacArthur led U.S. forces to defeat the Japanese Navy in the Pacific Theater. It also created "island-hopping tactics" that accelerated the process of Japan's defeat.
In the Pacific Theater, the US military caused great damage to Japan, countless Japanese soldiers died at the hands of MacArthur, and the gradual approach of the US military to the Japanese mainland was accompanied by the death of Japanese soldiers, and all this was caused by MacArthur in the eyes of the Japanese.
atomic bomb
Not to mention that the United States had dropped two atomic bombs on the Japanese mainland, causing the deaths of hundreds of thousands of Japanese civilians, and this bloody hatred of the Japanese could only be credited to MacArthur, who ruled Japan on behalf of the United States. At that time, Japan from top to bottom, from the government to the civilians, hatred of the Americans can be said to have reached the extreme, Japan's planning for nearly a hundred years of expansion road failed in the hands of the Americans, there is no chance to turn over, there is nothing more than defeat to stimulate the ambitious Japanese, in their eyes will not feel that they are wrong to launch a war, they will only feel that the Americans are in their way.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="151" > exception</h1>
However, after MacArthur arrived in Japan, all the japanese high-level officials, including even many ordinary people, showed great respect for him, which MacArthur did not expect. But in addition to the shock, MacArthur still had a lot of work to do, and the most important thing he had to do was to transform the thinking of the whole of Japan. Use the American concept to completely transform the Japanese people, so that they abandon their original ideas and completely side with the Americans.
Powers
After World War II, the world pattern has undergone profound changes, and the European powers have been devastated after World War I and World War II. Having lost their best period of development, they had been completely left behind by the United States, and the European powers, which were relatively scarce in their own resources, had lost the capital that continued to develop rapidly after losing all their colonies.
With insufficient stamina and the loss of the best opportunity, the great powers could no longer catch up with the United States. It even had to form a strategic alliance with the United States and become dependent on the United States. The rising opponent of the United States was the Soviet Union, which belonged to the socialist camp. The Soviet Union made great sacrifices in World War II and created brilliant results in the process of fighting against Germany. Whether it was the several turning points in the European theater of World War II or the final first to invade Berlin, it was the Soviet Red Army.
It was precisely because of this performance that the Soviet Union won a lofty international status, and the Soviet Union used its superiority in the war to win the support of a large number of socialist countries, thus gaining the strength to compete with the United States. Moreover, after the war, the capitalist countries were faced with great tests within themselves, and the people gradually felt the disadvantages of capitalism, especially in the two world wars, which were almost all caused by the shortcomings of capitalism.
Therefore, the socialist movement gained a lot of room for development at that time, and the advantages of European and American countries over the Soviet Union were not as great as imagined. For when a country experiences the superiority of socialism, capitalism loses its room for existence.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="153" > all support</h1>
So the Americans at that time had to win all the support they could in the world, even Japan, which was still alive and well a dozen days ago. As long as he could side with the Americans, MacArthur could immediately move on without blame for the past and set his sights on the longer term.
The first thing MacArthur had to do was the Japanese emperor, who had existed for many years and was the oldest surviving monarchy in the world. Historically, the emperor's power was suspended for a long time, but in 1867 he regained power, which also laid the foundation for the meiji Restoration.
Emperor Hirohito
Since modern times, the power of the Japanese emperor has been continuously reduced, but it has always been the supreme presence in the hearts of the Japanese people. At that time, in order to brainwash the Japanese people, the Japanese military department took advantage of the emperor's mysterious nature to establish the Japanese emperor as an object of unconditional loyalty. In this way, the Japanese people were controlled by the japanese mind, so that they would pay with their lives for the Japanese aggression.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="155" > the first step</h1> plan
After the war, even if Japan ended in surrender, the image of the Japanese emperor in the hearts of the Japanese people was still unbreakable and incomparably noble. So MacArthur's first step in brainwashing the Japanese was to get the Japanese emperor. For this step, MacArthur had already begun preparations when Japan surrendered.
When Japan surrendered, many Japanese high-level officials were ready to be humiliated by the Americans, but MacArthur did not complete the surrender ceremony in a very normal tone and attitude, or even a very tolerant way, as they imagined, which surprised the Japanese, and it was also a meeting gift from MacArthur to Japan.
So after MacArthur's arrival, the Emperor chose to reciprocate by ordering all of Japan to greet MacArthur with respect. This is the root cause of his deep surprise after arriving in Japan. And the Emperor of Japan did this not only to repay MacArthur's kindness, but also for his own benefit.
At that time, the whole of Japan could be said to be man-made knife tricks for fish, and the future and fate were completely in the hands of the Americans or MacArthur, even the emperor himself. Japan's emperor system pushed Japan to launch World War II, and to some extent, the Japanese emperor was also one of the war criminals. It was on this basis that Emperor Hirohito was worried that MacArthur would depose himself after taking over Japan, so for Emperor Hirohito, it was tantamount to the end of the world.
MacArthur and Emperor Hirohito
Not only the emperor himself, but even the Japanese people at the time had the same worries, but after MacArthur arrived in Japan, he quickly reassured them. The emperor system will be preserved, and the whole of Japan will be jubilant as soon as the news comes out. From the attitude of the Japanese, we can see that even after the war, the Japanese people are still in a situation of extreme ignorance and blind obedience, and they have unconditional respect for the Japanese emperor, which is why MacArthur decided to take the next step against the Japanese emperor.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="157" > domineering way</h1>
After first stabilizing the situation with a tolerant attitude, MacArthur began to show the domineering power of an alien ruler. He took over the seat of the Japanese emperor directly, which made it completely impossible for Emperor Hirohito to live. This was almost a persecution method, and the purpose of this was to get the emperor to come forward.
MacArthur did this because he knew that it was the mystery that created the Japanese emperor's honorable position in the hearts of the Japanese people, and the first step in transforming the Japanese people's thinking was to break this mystery and make the Japanese people accept that the emperor was an ordinary person, thus completely crushing their original belief.
Emperor Hirohito appears
Under the persecution of MacArthur, Emperor Hirohito had no choice but to appear in front of the public, and in the name of touring the country, he was actually breaking his own mystery, which was undoubtedly a humiliation to the Japanese emperor. Not only that, but MacArthur also asked people to take pictures and publicize this behavior, so that the whole of Japan could see the truth about Emperor Hirohito.
But even though he was so cooperative with MacArthur's actions, there was no guarantee that he would escape the post-war trial, and in the international situation at that time, it was a more useful way to turn to MacArthur. The Emperor of Japan had told MacArthur that he was at fault and hoped that he would save his life.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="159" > interests</h1>
MacArthur certainly did not turn a blind eye for his pleas for forgiveness, and emperor Hirohito was able to escape trial as a result of a combination of interests. Although Japan had gradually strengthened its understanding of the emperor at that time, the habits of many years had been deeply rooted, and the emperor was still the supreme being, and if MacArthur directly attacked him, it would be tantamount to making enemies of the whole of Japan. You know, at that time, there was still a large part of the japanese army, and if they were forced to rush, the crazy Japanese might do things that ordinary people could not imagine.
And if there is another war, although Japan will definitely lose, the Americans will also need to send troops to continue the battle, which is equivalent to adding unnecessary casualties. Moreover, MacArthur, as the representative of the United States, came here to win Japan into the United States camp, not to provoke war again, and if a riot broke out, MacArthur's mission would be a failure.
The Emperor of Japan was not left because of his plea for forgiveness, but in the final analysis because of the interests of the Americans themselves. At that time, the situation in Japan was also very bad, and the Soviet Union had always wanted to infiltrate the socialist forces into Japan after World War II, and it already had a great influence in Japanese society at that time.
Socialist revolutionaries were staunch materialists who were completely rejecting the concept of "divine right of kings", and if socialists took over the country, emperor Hirohito's position would undoubtedly be insecure, so they also needed MacArthur to help manage Japan and protect their rights.
Marx
Moreover, the Americans and the Japanese shared a common position in dealing with socialism, and they always regarded communism as a flood beast and were extremely wary of Soviet infiltration. If Japan is transformed into a socialist country, the United States will have an extra enemy that cannot be underestimated, and such an outcome is obviously not wanted by the Americans.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="161" > trial</h1>
Although Emperor Hirohito cooperated with MacArthur at every turn and made many concessions, the final judgment would come. Before the trial, MacArthur needed to unveil the final mystery of Emperor Hirohito and make him a normal person completely. On January 1, 1946, the Emperor read out the so-called "Declaration on Earth." Unveiling his own mystery and admitting that he was a normal person, although this made the emperor's mystery disappear, it also played a role in promoting Japan's later democratic construction.
But that's not enough, Japan's political system is still too backward, unlike a modern country. So MacArthur reconstituted the Japanese government the way the Americans did. The most important one was to weaken the role of the emperor in politics and gradually centralize power into the hands of the Japanese cabinet.
International Military Tribunal for the Far East
However, even with such a naked act of power reduction, Emperor Hirohito could not express any dissatisfaction and could only accept it completely. Because his fate was no longer in his own hands at this time, it was very likely that MacArthur's attitude would depend on where he would go in the future. Therefore, faced with the demand that only the power be reduced and the treatment guaranteed, Emperor Hirohito agreed happily.
However, it is also true that Japan launched World War II and caused the sacrifice of countless people around the world, and such a huge mistake must be borne by someone in Japan. Since the Japanese emperor had escaped trial for political reasons, the responsibility fell to Japanese Prime Minister Hideki Tojo.
Hideki Tojo committed numerous crimes in the war. For the Americans, he was especially hated because he was the main mastermind of the attack on Pearl Harbor. Pearl Harbor caused a lot of damage to the United States, many American soldiers were killed in this sneak attack, and the Americans were completely drawn into the war, so MacArthur has always been angry with Hideki Tojo, and now he is finally almost on trial.
Hideki Tojo, who was put on trial
On January 19, 1946, the Allies announced the creation of the International Military Tribunal for the Far East, which was primarily used to try those who had committed crimes in the war, of which Hideki Tojo was the chief war criminal. After a lengthy trial, Hideki Tojo was executed, and the former prime minister became a scapegoat.
The trial is over for the time being, but the transformation of Japan is far from over. After tearing down the mystery of the Japanese emperor, MacArthur still had a lot of work to do. First of all, in terms of law, the previous Japanese Constitution had many irrationalities, which had become out of date after the war and had to be amended.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="163" > new law</h1>
So MacArthur revised the new statutes with reference to U.S. law. In this constitution, the equality of the status of the people was emphasized, especially the absence of subordination between men and women, which liberated Japanese women to a certain extent and guaranteed human rights. During World War II, Japan's militarist ideology was very popular, and militarist thought was actually a means of controlling people's hearts, and the important content of it was that the status of Japanese women was extremely low, which had a deep relationship with the ideas of feudal society. So after the new law was introduced, MacArthur quickly won the support of the people at the bottom, especially women.
Japanese militarist education
Another area in post-war Japan that urgently needs to change is at the level of education. During the war, the Japanese military was extremely radical in Japanese education in order to train more killing machines and serve their wars. Even the purpose of education is to cultivate people who are loyal to the emperor and can sacrifice themselves for the emperor at any time, and this kind of education is undoubtedly very deformed, and there is also a great danger.
If we continue to use this method of education, it is difficult to guarantee that one day Japan's militarist ideology will not rise again, causing great harm to the United States and even the whole world. So MacArthur issued a series of new rules on education, just to reverse this situation, so that normal education can be implemented.
More importantly, it is to help Japan recover its economy. Before the war, Japan was a developed industrial country, and although its own resources were relatively scarce, Japan's level of modernization was still at the forefront of the world. However, the war was enough to destroy everything, and after a long period of conquest, the defeated Japan was already devastated, and there was no pre-war prosperity at all.
Post-World War II Japan
Many people were starved, displaced, and, together with two American atomic bombs, nearly leveled Hiroshima and Nagasaki. A poorLy situated Japan is not what the United States wants to see, and what the United States wants is a developed but obedient Japan in order to maximize Japan's role while ensuring U.S. interests.
<h1 class="pgc-h-arrow-right" data-track="165" > aid</h1>
Based on this situation, the United States decided to provide economic assistance to Japan and restore Japan's economy as soon as possible. However, the way of economic assistance is somewhat different, not directly giving loans or gifts as the Marshall Plan of the United States did to Europe, but using productivity to revitalize the Japanese economy.
Marshall Plan
In the early years after World War II, Japan's economy grew at a slower pace, but this changed dramatically after the outbreak of the Korean War. After the Americans intervened in the war, they handed over many orders for military supplies to Japan, which was produced and produced by Japan, and the advantage of this was that Japan was close to the Korean battlefield, which could ensure the delivery time of materials to the greatest extent, and in this way, Japan's economy would soon be able to achieve great development, much better than direct loans.
A typical example of this plan is Toyota Motor Corporation, which was not in a very good state before the start of the Korean War, and it is no exaggeration to say that it is on the verge of closure. But at the beginning of the Korean War, they received more than a dozen times the order, and the entire company came back to life in an instant. Toyota was a typical example of U.S. aid to Japan at the time, and in this way, the United States quickly pulled japan's economy up.
After MacArthur implemented this series of policies, it can be said that it won the love of the whole of Japan, and the Japanese people already worshipped the strong, and this strong man brought tangible benefits to Japan, so it is understandable that Japan worshiped MacArthur.
Toyota Corporation
A few years later, the five-star general was about to leave, and hundreds of thousands of people volunteered to send him off, which shows how successful MacArthur was. As an outsider, MacArthur defeated them and humiliated their supreme leader, but in the end he was sought after by the locals, which has to be said to be a strange thing.
That's all for this article, if you have any opinions on this, feel free to leave a comment in the comments section.
Video link
After World War II, MacArthur ruled Japan for 6 years, what did he do to make the Japanese worship?