Hirohito
Hirohito (29 April 1901 – 7 January 1989), posthumously honored as Emperor Shōwa, was the 124th emperor of Japan, reigning from 1926 until his death in 1989. His reign of over 62 years is the longest of any historical Japanese emperor and one of the longest-reigning monarchs in the world.
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Formal portrait, 1935 | |||||||||
| Emperor of Japan | |||||||||
| Reign | 25 December 1926 – 7 January 1989 | ||||||||
| Enthronement | 10 November 1928 | ||||||||
| Predecessor | Taishō | ||||||||
| Successor | Akihito | ||||||||
| Regent of Japan | |||||||||
| Regency | 25 November 1921 – 25 December 1926 | ||||||||
| Monarch | Taishō | ||||||||
| Born | Hirohito, Prince Michi (迪宮裕仁親王) 29 April 1901 Tōgū Palace, Aoyama, Tokyo, Empire of Japan | ||||||||
| Died | 7 January 1989 (aged 87) Fukiage Palace, Tokyo, Japan | ||||||||
| Burial | 24 February 1989 Musashi Imperial Graveyard, Hachiōji, Tokyo | ||||||||
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| House | Imperial House of Japan | ||||||||
| Father | Emperor Taishō | ||||||||
| Mother | Sadako Kujō | ||||||||
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Hirohito was born at Aoyama Palace in Tokyo to Crown Prince Yoshihito. He became Regent of Japan in 1921. After his father's death, he became the emperor. He was the head of state under the Meiji Constitution during Japan's imperial expansion, militarization, and involvement in World War II. Under Hirohito, Japan waged a war across Asia in the 1930s and 1940s.
After Japan's surrender, despite Japan waging the war in the name of Hirohito, he was not prosecuted for war crimes, for General Douglas MacArthur thought that an ostensibly cooperative emperor would help establish a peaceful Allied occupation and would help the U.S. achieve its postwar objectives. On 1 January 1946, under pressure from the Allies, the Emperor formally renounced his divinity.
Hirohito and his wife, Nagako, had two sons and five daughters; he was succeeded by his fifth child and eldest son, Akihito. By 1979, Hirohito was the only monarch in the world with the title "Emperor".