WORLD HISTORY

Detailed explanation-1: -Hirohito (1901-1989), known posthumously as Emperor Shōwa, was emperor of Japan during World War II and is Japan’s longest-serving monarch in history. Hirohito was born in Tokyo during the Meiji Period to the son of the reigning emperor.

Detailed explanation-2: -He is the 126th monarch according to Japan’s traditional order of succession. Naruhito was born in Tokyo during the reign of his grandfather Hirohito as the eldest child of Crown Prince Akihito and Crown Princess Michiko.

Detailed explanation-3: -The “retentionists” insisted that promising Hirohito’s continued status as emperor was both essential to obtain the surrender of Japan and to secure the compliance with that surrender by Japan’s armed forces. He could further stabilize postwar Japan and legitimize Japanese officials working with the United States.

Detailed explanation-4: -Hirohito is best remembered for leading his country to a humiliating defeat in World War II. Remarkably, however, he was never removed from power; he was never prosecuted for war crimes. He continued to be the Emperor of Japan until his death in 1989.

Detailed explanation-5: -Japan’s leading war criminal, Emperor Hirohito, escaped prosecution because the government of President Harry S. Truman felt that administration of a defeated Japan would be greatly facilitated if the emperor appeared to be cooperating with the occupying Allied powers.