Shigeru Yoshida was a Japanese diplomat and politician who served as prime minister of Japan from 1946 to 1947 and from 1948 to 1954.
21 Facts About Shigeru Yoshida
2.
Shigeru Yoshida was born on 22 September 1878, in Kanda-Surugadai, Tokyo, the fifth son of political activist and former samurai Tsuna Takeuchi.
3.
That same year, Kenzo Yoshida died, and Shigeru inherited a substantial fortune from him.
4.
Shigeru Yoshida finished secondary school in 1894, and attended junior high school until 1895, after which he briefly attended business school.
5.
Shigeru Yoshida attended an academy run by the crown prince's ethics tutor in Tokyo, and briefly studied at Keio University and the Tokyo Physics School.
6.
Shortly after Atsumaro's death in 1904, the college became defunct, and Shigeru Yoshida then studied law at Tokyo Imperial University, graduating with a law degree in 1906.
7.
Shigeru Yoshida passed the Foreign Service Entry Exam and entered Japan's diplomatic corps that same year, shortly after Japan's victory against Russia in the Russo-Japanese War.
8.
Shigeru Yoshida has long been regarded as prioritising the economy over defense, but recent years have seen a reevaluation of this viewpoint.
9.
Right before the Pacific War began, Shigeru Yoshida joined Konoe in unsuccessfully attempting to deescalate the situation.
10.
Shigeru Yoshida was retained in three succeeding elections.
11.
Shigeru Yoshida remained in the Diet until his retirement in 1963.
12.
The Shigeru Yoshida Doctrine was a strategy adopted by Japan under Shigeru Yoshida starting in 1951.
13.
Shigeru Yoshida concentrated upon reconstructing Japan's domestic economy while relying heavily on the security alliance with the United States.
14.
The Shigeru Yoshida doctrine was accepted by the United States; the actual term was coined in 1977.
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The Shigeru Yoshida Doctrine shaped Japanese foreign policy into the 21st century.
16.
Shigeru Yoshida later became president of the Japanese Association of Zoos and Aquariums.
17.
Shigeru Yoshida was baptized on his deathbed, having hidden his Catholicism throughout most of his life.
18.
Shigeru Yoshida's funeral was held in St Mary's Cathedral, Tokyo and buried at Aoyama Cemetery.
19.
In 1909, Shigeru Yoshida married Makino Yukiko, the eldest daughter of Makino Nobuaki.
20.
Two of Shigeru Yoshida's grandchildren are Taro Aso, who served as the 92nd prime minister of Japan from 2008 to 2009, and Nobuko Aso, who later married Prince Tomohito of Mikasa, a first cousin of Emperor Akihito.
21.
Shigeru Yoshida's published writings encompass 159 works in 307 publications in 6 languages; His work can be found in the collections of 5,754 libraries worldwide.