Den Kenjirō

Baron was a Japanese politician and cabinet minister in the pre-war government of the Empire of Japan. He was also the 8th Japanese Governor-General of Taiwan from October 1919 to September 1923, and the first civilian to hold that position. Den was also a co-founder of Kaishinsha Motorcar Works, a predecessor to present-day Nissan and the original manufacturer of Datsun automobiles.

Biography Den was born in Tanba-Kaibara Domain, located in Hikami District of Tanba Province (part of the modern-day city of Tanba, Hyōgo), where his father was a village headman (nanushi). After the Meiji Restoration, he sought his fortune in Kumamoto Prefecture (1874), followed by Aichi Prefecture in 1875. Entering service of the police department, he was subsequently assigned to Kōchi Prefecture, Kanagawa Prefecture and Saitama Prefecture. Around 1890, he came to the attention of Communications Minister Gotō Shōjirō, who recruited him into the central bureaucracy of the Meiji government. He rose to the position of vice minister, and concurrently served on the board of governors of the Japanese Government Railways. In 1898, he resigned from government service to accept an appointment as president of the Kansai Railway Company.

He returned to government service in 1900 as Director of the Administration Bureau of the Communications Ministry, but resigned again only a year later to run for election to the Lower House of the Diet of Japan under the sponsorship of Itō Hirobumi and the Rikken Seiyūkai political party. He served for two non-consecutive terms, returning each time to a senior post within the Ministry of Communications. In 1906, he was appointed to the House of Peers, and the following year was made a baron (danshaku) within the kazoku peerage system. In politics, he became closely aligned with the faction under the conservative genrō, Yamagata Aritomo, but later broke with Yamagata over issues pertaining to the Siemens scandal.

Den was also one of the founders of the Kaishinsha Motorcar Works in 1914. The "D" in the company acronym "DAT" was from "Den". Later changed to "Datsun", the company was acquired by the Nissan zaibatsu in the 1930s. page 219

From 1916 to 1918, under Prime Minister Terauchi Masatake, Den was appointed Minister of Communications. During this period, he expressed concerns over the dominance of the United States and Great Britain over the new League of Nations, which contributed to an "encirclement" of Japan. page 234 In 1919, Den was appointed Governor-General of Taiwan, the first civilian to be appointed to that post. As Governor-General, he promoted new policies of social and political assimilation, wherein discriminatory laws in education were repealed. Several major reforms were carried out during Den's tenure, including various administrative reforms, expansion of the public education system, reduction of police involvement in local administration, construction of the Chanan Reservoir, and the legalization of Japanese-Taiwanese intermarriage. Den’s stated goal was that the Taiwanese populace was to eventually enjoy the same political rights as the Japanese in the Home Islands, and that the Taiwanese would be assimilated into normal Japanese society. page 108, 217 Business laws were eased to allow Taiwanese entrepreneurs to complete with Japanese, and several Taiwanese-owned newspapers were established. Under his tenure, then Crown Prince Hirohito made a state visit to Taiwan.

Following the 1923 Great Kantō earthquake, Den was recalled to Tokyo, and asked to take the posts of Minister of Justice and Minister of Agriculture and Commerce in the 2nd Yamamoto Gonnohyōe administration. Together with Home Minister Gotō Shimpei, he laid the foundations for the reconstruction of Tokyo after the disaster. However, along with the rest of the cabinet, he was forced to resign in the aftermath of the Toranomon Incident. After 1926, he served as a member of the Privy Council. Den died of complications following an Intracranial hemorrhage in 1930 at his home in Tamagawa, Tokyo. His grave is at the Tama Cemetery in Fuchū, Tokyo.

Den kept a detailed diary from 1906 to his death in 1930, which forms an important source document for the history of politics during the Taishō period of Japanese history.

Awards and decorations

Japanese Peerages and titles Baron (21 September 1907)Den Kenjirō denki hensankai (1932). Den Kenjirō den (Biography of Den Kenjirō), Appendix to Chronology"Kanpo" No. 7272 "Titles or Investiture and Appointments" (in Japanese) 23 September 1907.

Court ranks Junior Seventh Rank (23 May 1882) Senior Seventh Rank (8 July 1886)"Kanpo" No. 908 "Investiture and Appointments" (in Japanese) 12 July 1886. Senior Sixth Rank (8 December 1891)"Kanpo" No. 2534 "Investiture and Appointments" (in Japanese) 9 December 1891. Junior Fifth Rank (12 December 1892)"Kanpo" No. 2839 "Investiture and Appointments" (in Japanese) 12 December 1892. Senior Fifth Rank (11 April 1893)"Kanpo" No. 2932 "Investiture and Appointments" (in Japanese) 12 April 1893. Junior Fourth Rank (28 February 1898)"Kanpo" No. 4395 "Investiture and Appointments" (in Japanese) 1 March 1898. Senior Fourth Rank (20 September 1898)"Kanpo" No. 4570 "Investiture and Appointments" (in Japanese) 21 September 1898. Junior Third Rank (30 September 1916)"Kanpo" No. 1252 "Investiture and Appointments" (in Japanese) 2 October 1916. Senior Third Rank (10 November 1922)"Kanpo" No. 3085 "Investiture and Appointments" (in Japanese) 11 November 1922. Junior Second Rank (1 April 1930)"Kanpo" No. 976 "Investiture and Appointments" (in Japanese) 4 April 1930.

Decorations Year awardedRibbonDecorationNotes29 November 1892Order of the Sacred Treasure, 6th class"Kanpo" No. 2701 "Investiture and Appointments" (in Japanese) 30 June 1892.28 December 1893Order of the Sacred Treasure, 5th class"Kanpo" No. 3152 "Investiture and Appointments" (in Japanese) 29 December 1893.5 March 1894Emperor Meiji for 25th Wedding Anniversary Medal21 June 1895Order of the Sacred Treasure, 4th class"Kanpo" No. 3593 "Investiture and Appointments" (in Japanese) 22 June 1895.31 October 1895Order of the Rising Sun, 3rd class"Kanpo" No. 3704 "Investiture and Appointments" (in Japanese) 1 November 1895.18 November 1895First Sino-Japanese War Medal1 April 1906Order of the Rising Sun, 2nd class"Kanpo" Appendix to Extra "Investiture and Appointments" (in Japanese) 31 March 1907.1 April 1906Russo-Japanese War Medal"Kanpo" Appendix to No. 7578 "Appointments" (in Japanese) 28 September 1908.1 August 1912Korean Annexation Commemorative Medal"Kanpo" Appendix to No. 205 "Appointments" (in Japanese) 9 April 1913.10 November 1915Emperor Taishō Enthronement Commemorative Medal"Kanpo" Appendix to No. 1311 "Appointments" (in Japanese) 14 December 1916.25 December 1919Order of the Sacred Treasure, 1st Class"Kanpo" No. 2220 "Investiture and Appointments" (in Japanese) 26 December 1919.1 November 1920Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun"Kanpo" No. 2640 "Investiture and Appointments" (in Japanese) 21 May 1921.2 November 1920First World War Medal (1914–1920)"Kanpo" Appendix to Extra "Investiture and Appointments" (in Japanese) 13 August 1924.1 July 1921First National Census Commemorative Medal"Kanpo" Appendix to No. 2860 "Appointments" (in Japanese) 16 February 1922.10 November 1928Emperor Shōwa Enthronement Commemorative Medal16 November 1930Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun with Paulownia Flowers"Kanpo" No. 1167 "Investiture and Appointments" (in Japanese) 18 November 1930.(posthumous)16 November 1930Imperial Capital Rehabilitation Commemorative Medal"Kanpo" Appendix to No. 1499 "Appointments" (in Japanese) 28 December 1931.(posthumous)

Foreign Year awardedCountryRibbonDecorationNotes12 April 1894 French RepublicOfficer of the Legion d'Honneur"Kanpo" No. 3234 "Investiture and Appointments" (in Japanese) 14 April 1894.20 January 1897 DenmarkKnight Grand Officer of the Order of the Dannebrog"Kanpo" No. 4076 "Investiture and Appointments" (in Japanese) 4 February 1897.28 May 1897 Austria-HungaryOrder of the Iron Crown, 2nd Class"Kanpo" No. 4172 "Investiture and Appointments" (in Japanese) 1 June 1897.26 August 1897 Ottoman EmpireOrder of the Medjidie, 2nd Class"Kanpo" No. 4250 "Investiture and Appointments" (in Japanese) 31 August 1897.16 April 1898 Kingdom of RomaniaCommander of the Order of the Star of Romania"Kanpo" No. 4440 "Investiture and Appointments" (in Japanese) 22 April 1898.

Den Kenjirō

Bron en licentie