• Chief of Staff of the Imperial Japanese Army Yoshijirō Umezu, 1882

 

Umezu was born in Nakatsu (Ōita Prefecture). He graduated from the 15th class of the Imperial Japanese Army Academy in 1903 and served in the infantry. After graduation at the top of the 23rd class of the Army Staff College, he was sent to Europe for further studies in Germany and Denmark. While in Denmark, he was also a military observer from Japan during the course of World War I. From 1919 - 1921, he was appointed as a military attaché to Switzerland.

In 1920s, Umezu was a member of the Tōseiha led by General Kazushige Ugaki along with Gen Sugiyama, Koiso Kuniaki, Tetsuzan Nagata and Hideki Tōjō. They represented a politically moderate line between the armed forces, in opposition to the radical Kōdōha movement guided by Sadao Araki. He served as an instructor at the Army Staff College from 1923 - 1924, and was commander of the IJA 3rd Infantry Regiment from 1924 - 1926.

In the late 1920s and early 1930s, Umezu held a number of staff positions within the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff. He was promoted to major general in August 1930. Umezu returned to the field as a lieutenant general and commander of the Japanese China Garrison Army from 1934 - 1935 and as commander of the IJA 2nd Division from 1935 - 1936.

After being recalled to Japan in 1936, Umezu was appointed Vice Minister of War from 1936 - 1938. He returned to China in 1938 as commander - in - chief of the IJA 1st Army, and subsequently commander - in - chief of the Kwangtung Army from 1939 - 1944. He was promoted to full General in August 1939.

In July 1944, Umezu was appointed as the final Chief of the Imperial Japanese Army General Staff and a member of the Supreme War Council. Along with War Minister Korechika Anami and Soemu Toyoda, Chief of Imperial Japanese Navy General Staff, Umezu opposed surrender in August 1945; he believed that the military should fight on, forcing the Allies to sustain such heavy losses in an invasion of Japan, that Japan negotiate for peace under better terms. He was aware of the planned coup d'état by junior officers opposed to the surrender, but did nothing to either aid or hinder it. He was personally ordered by Emperor Hirohito to sign the instrument of surrender on behalf of the armed forces on 2 September 1945 and thus, was the Army's senior representative during the surrender ceremonies on the battleship USS Missouri at the end of World War II.