Makino Nobuaki

Makino Nobuaki

Makino's grave

Makino Nobuaki ( Japanese 牧野 伸 顕 ; born November 24, 1861 in Kagoshima Prefecture ; died January 25, 1949 ) was a Japanese diplomat and politician during the Meiji , Taishō, and early Shōwa periods . - In 1907 he was made a baron , in 1920 a vice count and in 1925 a count .

life and work

Makino Nobuaki was born in Kagoshima, the second son of Ōkubo Toshimichi , then adopted by the Makino clan from the main branch that resided in Nagaoka until the Meiji Restoration in 1868 . In 1871 he was one of around 50 young Japanese who were taken to study in Europe and the USA as part of the Iwakura mission . Makino returned to Japan in 1878 and began working at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1880. He worked in London and then became ambassador to Italy and Austria.

From 1906 to 1908 Makino worked briefly in the 1st Saionji Cabinet as Minister of Education, then from 1911 to 1912 as Minister for Agriculture and Trade in the 2nd Saionji Cabinet and then from 1913 to 1914 as Foreign Minister in the 1st Yamamoto Cabinet . In 1914 he received a seat in the House of Lords and became a member of the Sūmitsu-in .

Makino sat from 1917 in the "Advisory Council for Foreign Relations" (臨時 外交 調査 委員会, Rinji gaikō chōsa iinkai) set up by Prime Minister Terauchi Masatake and was one of the Japanese delegates at the 1919 Paris Peace Conference . - As head of the Imperial Court Office from 1921 to 1925 and as Lord Keeper of the Seal from 1925 to 1935, he played an important role as an "elder statesman". He kept in close contact with Saionji Kimmochi , whom he supported in disputes between the parties, in military matters and in administration. He was also in contact with the Satsuma faction in the Reichstag and was pro-English and pro-American.

In the early 1930s, Makino was criticized for advocating a cooperative rather than an expansive foreign policy. In 1935 he had to withdraw from politics. In the attempted coup on February 26, 1936 , he was on the list of personalities to be killed. Makino, who was in Yugawara , narrowly escaped death when the attack on his home was noticed and he was brought to safety through a back door. He then withdrew from politics. - He was buried in Aoyama Cemetery in Tokyo.

Makino was a good Go player and the first president of the Japanese Go Center, Nihon Kiin, founded in 1924 . He was the father-in-law of Prime Minister Yoshida Shigeru .

literature

• S. Noma (Ed.): Makino Nobuaki . In: Japan. An Illustrated Encyclopedia. Kodansha, 1993, ISBN 4-06-205938-X
• Hunter, Janet: Makino Nobuaki . In: Concise Dictionary of Modern Japanese History. Kodansha International, 1984. ISBN 4-7700-1193-8 .

Web links

Commons : Makino Nobuaki  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Japanese name: As is common in Japan, the family name comes before the first name in this article . Thus Makino is the family name, Nobuaki the first name.