What Were Emperor Hirohitos Accomplishments in World War 2?
Hirohito, while the “God Emperor” to the Japanese people, in reality held very little power during the 2nd World War. The country, and the war, were actually run by the militarists under Tojo. Hirohito’s main contribution was in allowing his name to be used to justify to the Japanese people the aggressions and atrocities performed in his name. The Japanese, for years, had been indoctrinated in the “Code of Bushido”, which, among other things, required the people to submit to unquestioning loyalty to the emperor. While he remained essentially on the sidelines, the militarist government used his name to carry out their war plans in China, Manchuria, SE Asia, and the Pacific islands. One additional fact – Hirohito had never spoken directly to the Japanese people. All communications came from others in the ‘name of the Emperor’. Had he decided to go on the radio and tell the people to do something different, they would have. But this wasn’t in keeping with tradition, and the rest is histor
