Danny Posted February 22, 2007 Report Posted February 22, 2007 Greetings to all, I have just added a new article, "Isoroku Yamamoto and the sword-smith Sadayoshi Amada" by Junichiro Watanabe, to the web site. Please take a look if you have any interest. Thanks http://www.nihontocraft.com/japanese_sword_home.html Best regards, Danny Massey
Guest Simon Rowson Posted February 23, 2007 Report Posted February 23, 2007 Fantastic articles Danny! I sent the one about Kanetomo to my friend in the UK as he's lucky enough to own a beautiful katana by this smith. He was amazed and delighted by all the additional information it gave him. Best wsihes, Simon
Danny Posted February 23, 2007 Author Report Posted February 23, 2007 Thanks to all for your positive feedback. We will keep it up :-) Best regards, Danny
kusunokimasahige Posted March 9, 2007 Report Posted March 9, 2007 very good article indeed! I remember myself doing research into the midway invasion plans, and have always had a soft spot for the Admiral. The weird circumstances in which the army counteracted the navy, and the other way around, because of petty feelings of grandeur, seriousely damaging Japan's war effort have always intrigued me. Admiral Yamamoto was right with all of his warnings towards the Army war-mongerors like Tojo and the rest who in a way overthrew the Emperor's power and reinstated a kind of new shogunate, under the veil of a diet.... thus abusing the weaknessess of the Emperor, while carrying out atrocities under his name. however no one would listen. Yamamoto tried his best when fulfilling a sheer impossible task, and he did it out of Giri towards Japan. In a way he is one of the true Japanese heroes, not only because he opposed the war, but also because he tried vehemently to save and secure the lives of those under his command, as well as on the side, and in deepest secret working with those who also opposed the war and wanted peace for Japan. KM
w.y.chan Posted March 9, 2007 Report Posted March 9, 2007 Not sure I agree that Hirohito was weak, I am sure Tojo and his inner circle is powerless without the emperor's approval. Whatever his views might be, at the time I believe that Hirohito was misguided with a self belief of godlike invincibility and destine to rule all of Asia, such as Hitler did in his view over Europe.
kusunokimasahige Posted March 9, 2007 Report Posted March 9, 2007 I have studied this subject extensively, and must disagree with you... Hirohito tried as early as 1943 to end the war with the USA, and his courtiers were trying to set up communications through the Russians, to get to a "satisfactory (for Japan) " truce...... without the knowledge of Tojo and the other military rulers of Japan. when in 1945 the secret "we would like to surrender" messages to the American government were deliberately blocked by Stalin's offices, it was even too late to stop the atomic bomb from dropping. The weird thing is that if the communications had not been blocked by the Russians, and later talks about surrender were not "lost in translation" so to speak, about the position of the emperor and the term "unconditional" there is a valid chance the atomic bomb would never have been dropped. KM
Stephen Posted March 9, 2007 Report Posted March 9, 2007 has strayed from Danny's fine article. I also have a different take on why the bombs were dropped by Truman PM me if you care to discuss, but lets get back on track please.
w.y.chan Posted March 10, 2007 Report Posted March 10, 2007 I do realised there are different takes on history depending on which book you pick up but Hirohito was no puppet of Tojo. Tojo was to the emperor was like Goering to Hitler. After the war the emperor was painted with a different picture by the US to legitmise its occupation and subsequent alliance with Japan on a friendly term to thwart Russian attempt, this continue to this day to contain the "China threat". Sorry Stephen for straying off topic, I wish the comments about Hirohito deitified as a war hero by revisionist historians should not have been made here.
kusunokimasahige Posted March 10, 2007 Report Posted March 10, 2007 i did not say Hirohito was a hero. i said Yamamoto was. BTW i have read these sources in official archives. The Dutch also suffered under Japanese rule, maybe a bit less than the Chinese, but as a Dutchman i also know people who were in Japanese camps, as well as POW's however i am less biassed towards the subject, and more historically interested, so not a revisionist as you say....... i also am VERY angry !!! about the recent comments on comfort-girls by the Japanese government. They did exist! KM
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