, was bureaucrat and politician in the

Empire of Japan The also known as the Japanese Empire or Imperial Japan, was a historical nation-state and great power that existed from the Meiji Restoration in 1868 until the enactment of the post-World War II Constitution of Japan, 1947 constitu ...

, serving as a member of the

Upper House An upper house is one of two chambers of a bicameral legislature, the other chamber being the lower house.''Bicameralism'' (1997) by George Tsebelis The house formally designated as the upper house is usually smaller and often has more restric ...

of the Diet of Japan, Chief Cabinet Secretary, governor of

Fukuoka Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Fukuoka Prefecture has a population of 5,109,323 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of 4,986 Square kilometre, km2 (1,925 sq mi). Fukuoka Prefecture borders S ...

and twice as a cabinet minister.

Biography

Yoshida was born in what is now part of the city of

Usuki, Ōita is a Cities of Japan, city located on the east coast of Ōita Prefecture, Japan. It is famous for its Usuki Stone Buddhas, a national treasure, and its soy sauce production. Recently it has become known for having the look and feel of a Jap ...

, where his father worked as an official of the Bank of Japan. He graduated from the Law Department of

Tokyo Imperial University , abbreviated as or UTokyo, is a public research university located in Bunkyō, Tokyo, Japan. Established in 1877, the university was the first Imperial University and is currently a Top Type university of the Top Global University Project by ...

in 1911, and also passed the highest level of the civil service examinations. In late 1911, he entered the

Home Ministry An interior ministry (sometimes called a ministry of internal affairs or ministry of home affairs) is a government department that is responsible for internal affairs. Lists of current ministries of internal affairs Named "ministry" * Ministr ...

, serving as Deputy Mayor of Tokyo in 1923. Following the Great Kantō earthquake, he was assigned to the Reconstruction Bureau within the Home Ministry, and later to the bureau in charge of regulating

Shinto shrines A is a structure whose main purpose is to house ("enshrine") one or more ''kami'', the deities of the Shinto religion. Overview Structurally, a Shinto shrine typically comprises several buildings. The '' honden''Also called (本殿, meani ...

under State Shintoism. From October 1934 to May 1935, Yoshida served as Chief Cabinet Secretary under the Okada administration and was also appointed to a seat on the

Planning Board An urban planner (also known as town planner) is a professional who practices in the field of town planning, urban planning or city planning. An urban planner may focus on a specific area of practice and have a title such as city planner, town ...

. In 1937, he was appointed to the

of the Diet of Japan. He was asked to become Minister of Welfare under the Yonai administration from January to July 1940, and was appointed governor of

in July 1943 by Prime Minister

Hideki Tōjō Hideki Tojo (, ', December 30, 1884 – December 23, 1948) was a Japanese politician, general of the Imperial Japanese Army (IJA), and convicted war criminal who served as prime minister of Japan and president of the Imperial Rule Assista ...

. Under Tōjō’s successor, Kuniaki Koiso, Yoshida was recalled to Tokyo to serve as

Minister of Munitions The Minister of Munitions was a British government position created during the First World War to oversee and co-ordinate the production and distribution of munitions for the war effort. The position was created in response to the Shell Crisis o ...

from December 1944 to April 1945. As Munitions Minister, he attempted to construct underground armament-manufacturing facilities to protect them from aerial bombing."Industry Hide-Out Sped," New York Times, January 28, 1945 Following the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, Yoshida, along with all other members of the former Japanese government was purged from public office by the

Supreme Commander of the Allied Powers was the title held by General Douglas MacArthur during the United States-led Allied occupation of Japan following World War II. It issued SCAP Directives (alias SCAPIN, SCAP Index Number) to the Japanese government, aiming to suppress its "milit ...

, but was not arrested. In 1953, a year after the end of the Occupation of Japan, he became head of the

Association of Shinto Shrines The is a religious administrative organisation that oversees about 80,000 Shinto shrines in Japan. These shrines take the Ise Grand Shrine as the foundation of their belief. It is the largest Shrine Shinto organization in existence. Descriptio ...

Another Yoshida

The bureaucrat Shigeru Yoshida was often confused with another politician of similar age with exactly the same name.

Shigeru Yoshida (22 September 1878 – 20 October 1967) was a Japanese diplomat and politician who served as prime minister of Japan from 1946 to 1947 and from 1948 to 1954. Yoshida was one of the longest-serving Japanese prime ministers, and is the third-long ...

served as post-war Foreign Minister and

Prime Minister of Japan The prime minister of Japan (Japanese: 内閣総理大臣, Hepburn: ''Naikaku Sōri-Daijin'') is the head of government of Japan. The prime minister chairs the Cabinet of Japan and has the ability to select and dismiss its Ministers of Sta ...

. The bureaucrat Shigeru Yoshida was often referred to as "Mejiro Yoshida" from the location of his residence in

Mejiro, Tokyo is a residential district of Toshima, Tokyo, Japan, centered at Mejiro Station of Yamanote Line. The district's name is after ''Mejiro Fudō'', which is one of the ''Goshiki Fudō''. Mejiro is home to the prestigious Gakushuin University. Th ...

, whereas the other Yoshida was referred to as "Ōiso Yoshida" after the location of his summer villa in Ōiso, Kanagawa.

References

1885 births 1954 deaths People from Ōita Prefecture Members of the House of Peers (Japan) Government ministers of Japan University of Tokyo alumni {{Japan-politician-stub