Tanaka Giichi

(1863–1929), Japanese politician. Tanaka Giichi was a soldier and politician from the former feudal domain of Choshu (modern Yamaguchi Prefecture). He started his career in the Imperial Army, later becoming president of Japan's largest party, the Rikken Seiyukai, and prime minister in 1927.

Tanaka was born in 1863, the son of a samurai retainer. He attended the Army Academy and the Army War College. During the Russo-Japanese War (1904–1905) he served as an aide to General Kodama Gentaro (1852–1906), chief of staff of the Manchurian army. In 1906, Tanaka drafted the infamous Imperial Defense Guideline (Teikoku Kokubo Hoshin), a basic document for Japan's foreign and military policy until 1945.

In 1910, Tanaka played a leading part in founding the reservists' association (Teikoku Zaigo Gunjin-kai). He also served as army minister from 1918 until 1921, and again in 1923. Two years later, Tanaka was asked to become president of the Seiyukai party. He accepted, thus starting a new career as a party politician. As the leader of the largest party in the lower house, he was named prime minister in 1927, serving concurrently as foreign minister and minister of colonization. Unable to deal with urgent budgetary problems or to settle Japan's China policy, the cabinet had to resign in July 1929. Tanaka died shortly afterward.

Bamba, Nobuya. (1972) Japanese Diplomacy in a Dilemma. Kyoto, Japan: Minerva Press.

Duus, Peter. (1968) Party Rivalry and Political Change in Taisho Japan. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press. Morton, William F. (1980) Tanaka Giichi and Japan's China Policy. New York: St. Martin's Press.

Smethurst, Richard J. (1974) A Social Basis for Prewar Japanese Militarism: The Army and the Rural Community. Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press.