Makihara Satoru 槙原 覚 | |
---|---|
Born | 1 March 1894 |
Died | 8 May 1942 (aged 48) |
Nationality | Japanese |
Occupation | Industrialist |
Makihara Satoru (槙原 覚) was a Japanese businessman in the period leading up to World War II.
In 1922 he co-translated from German into Japanese the corporate management book Die Unternehmungsformen: mit Einschluß der Genossenschaften und der Sozialisierun by Robert Liefmann. [1]
He was a rival of Takagaki Katsujirō , [2] Mitsubishi's last president before the dissolution of the zaibatsu and first president after its reconstitution.
Having received a scholarship from Iwasaki Hisaya , eldest son of Mitsubishi Corporation's founder Iwasaki Yatarō, [2] Makihara and his wife Haruko [2] went to Hampstead, London in 1927 as head of the Mitsubishi Shoji Kaisha office. [2] [3] Their only child, [2] a son Minoru Makihara was born there in 1930. [2] After some time elsewhere they returned to London in 1937. [3]
On Friday 2 August 1940, Makihara and several others were arrested on suspicion of espionage, and taken to Brixton prison. [3] [4] [5] [6] Thanks to intervention by the Japanophile (and pro-Japanese spy) Lord Sempill [7] and others, he was released a few days later, on Monday 5 August, due to "insufficient evidence". [3] [8]
Mitsubishi closed their London office in October 1940, whereupon Makihara returned to Tokyo, becoming General Manager of the company's Marine Products Division. [3]
In May 1942, he was ordered by the military to travel to Japan's colonies in southeast Asia to aid in reconstruction. [2] While en route, their ship Taiyō Maru was torpedoed (on 8 May 1942) by USS Grenadier near the Danjo islands to the west of Kyūshū, with 800 deaths including Makihara. [2] Many colleagues contributed to a book of reminiscences. [9]
His wife and son were allowed to live in the Kokubunji villa of Iwasaki Hikoyata , eldest son of Hisaya, partly also helped by the fact that Minoru and Hikoyata's son Iwasaki Hiroya had been friends at school. [2] The main building was requisitioned to become the headquarters of the Anglican Church in Japan, and there Minoru met Bishop Kenneth Bayer from Harvard University. [2] As Minoru had twice won the General MacArthur English Speech Contest, Bayer introduced him to St. Paul's School (Concord, New Hampshire), from where he progressed to Harvard. [2] He later went on to become president and chair of Mitsubishi, [3] and married Kikuko, daughter of Hisaya's son Iwasaki Takaya . [10]
Makihara Satoru 槙原 覚 | |
---|---|
Born | 1 March 1894 |
Died | 8 May 1942 (aged 48) |
Nationality | Japanese |
Occupation | Industrialist |
Makihara Satoru (槙原 覚) was a Japanese businessman in the period leading up to World War II.
In 1922 he co-translated from German into Japanese the corporate management book Die Unternehmungsformen: mit Einschluß der Genossenschaften und der Sozialisierun by Robert Liefmann. [1]
He was a rival of Takagaki Katsujirō , [2] Mitsubishi's last president before the dissolution of the zaibatsu and first president after its reconstitution.
Having received a scholarship from Iwasaki Hisaya , eldest son of Mitsubishi Corporation's founder Iwasaki Yatarō, [2] Makihara and his wife Haruko [2] went to Hampstead, London in 1927 as head of the Mitsubishi Shoji Kaisha office. [2] [3] Their only child, [2] a son Minoru Makihara was born there in 1930. [2] After some time elsewhere they returned to London in 1937. [3]
On Friday 2 August 1940, Makihara and several others were arrested on suspicion of espionage, and taken to Brixton prison. [3] [4] [5] [6] Thanks to intervention by the Japanophile (and pro-Japanese spy) Lord Sempill [7] and others, he was released a few days later, on Monday 5 August, due to "insufficient evidence". [3] [8]
Mitsubishi closed their London office in October 1940, whereupon Makihara returned to Tokyo, becoming General Manager of the company's Marine Products Division. [3]
In May 1942, he was ordered by the military to travel to Japan's colonies in southeast Asia to aid in reconstruction. [2] While en route, their ship Taiyō Maru was torpedoed (on 8 May 1942) by USS Grenadier near the Danjo islands to the west of Kyūshū, with 800 deaths including Makihara. [2] Many colleagues contributed to a book of reminiscences. [9]
His wife and son were allowed to live in the Kokubunji villa of Iwasaki Hikoyata , eldest son of Hisaya, partly also helped by the fact that Minoru and Hikoyata's son Iwasaki Hiroya had been friends at school. [2] The main building was requisitioned to become the headquarters of the Anglican Church in Japan, and there Minoru met Bishop Kenneth Bayer from Harvard University. [2] As Minoru had twice won the General MacArthur English Speech Contest, Bayer introduced him to St. Paul's School (Concord, New Hampshire), from where he progressed to Harvard. [2] He later went on to become president and chair of Mitsubishi, [3] and married Kikuko, daughter of Hisaya's son Iwasaki Takaya . [10]