Terauti Masatake

Terauti Masatake was born in the principality of Choshu in the family of the samurai from the clan Hagi.

In the war Boshin Terauti fought on the emperor’s side as a soldier, and after that he was promoted to junior lieutenant. During the uprising Saigo Takamori in Satsum, Terauti lost his right arm. However, this injury did not prevent Masatake from making a military and political career.

In 1882, Terauti Masatake became a military attache in France. After that, in 1898 , he was appointed the first chief inspector of combat training . In 1901, he became army minister in the first office of Katsura Taro . He remained in office during the Russo-Japanese War , which brought Japan victory. After the war, he was given the title of baron , and in 1911 - the count .

Terauti became the resident general of Korea on May 30, 1910 , replacing Sone Arasuke on this post. His appointment was largely due to the killing of Ito Hirobumi An Chung-jun at the Harbin station. Terauti Masatake completed the process of joining Korea by signing the Treaty on the Accession of Korea to Japan . From the Korean side, the signature was signed by Prime Minister Li Wanen , authorized by the Emperor of Korea, Sunjon . After the promulgation of the treaty on August 29, 1910, Terauti became the first governor-general of Korea.

The Treaty of Korea’s Accession to Japan was negatively accepted by a significant part of the Koreans. To suppress resistance, Terauti resorted to military measures.

Terauti Masatake believed that Koreans and Japanese had common roots, therefore, according to his order, several thousand schools were opened in Korea, where Japanese and Japanese literature were studied.

Terauti carried out land reform in Korea: a land cadastre was created, but it was created solely on the basis of written documents, while land relations in Korea were often regulated by customary law . This led to the loss of land by a significant part of the Korean peasants.

In 1916, Terauti became the Prime Minister of Japan. In the same year he received the title of marshal . In his office, Terauti combined the posts of Prime Minister, Minister of Finance and Minister of Foreign Affairs .

Terauti Masatake pursued an aggressive foreign policy. He sponsored rival groups in the Chinese government, hoping to use their differences as a pretext for Japanese intervention. He signed an agreement with the United States , which recognized the "special interests of Japan in China." By order of Terauti, Japanese troops captured the German colony of Qingdao , fulfilling allied obligations to the Entente . After the October Revolution in Russia, Japan participated in the intervention in Siberia and supported the White movement .

September 29, 1918 Terauti retired because of the "rice riots" that broke out in Japan because of post-war inflation. On November 3, 1919, Terauti Masatake died.

• Terauti was awarded the Order of the Rising Sun , 1st Degree, and the Order of the Golden Kite , 1st Degree.
• Masatake's son, Terauti Hisaichi , was also a marshal and commanded the Southern Army Group in World War II .

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