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Teijiro ToyodaJapanese politician and statesman
Date of Birth: 07.08.1885
Country:  Japan |
Content:
Early Life and Education
Teijirō Toyoda was born on August 7, 1885, in Wakayama Prefecture, Japan. He graduated from the Imperial Japanese Naval Academy in 1905. Due to his academic achievements, he went on to study at Oxford University from 1911 to 1914.
Naval Career
After completing his studies, Toyoda was promoted to Captain in 1919 and joined the Imperial Japanese Navy Ministry. In 1923, he was sent as a military attaché to Great Britain. Upon his return in 1927, he represented Japan at the Geneva and London disarmament conferences.
In 1931, Toyoda was assigned as Chief of the Naval Affairs Bureau, but he was demoted after making an inappropriate joke about Prince Fushimi Hiroyasu. However, he later proved his administrative abilities as the commander of the Imperial Navy's Air Service.
Political Career
Toyoda's career took a political turn in 1940 when he became Vice Minister of the Navy in Fumimaro Konoe's second cabinet. In April 1941, he was promoted to Admiral and appointed Minister of Commerce and Industry. Later that year, he became Foreign Minister in Konoe's third cabinet.
As Foreign Minister, Toyoda was responsible for negotiations with the United States. However, he was forced to resign due to his pacifist initiatives. Before leaving office, he prevented a Soviet-Japanese war that was being planned by the Kwantung Army in Manchuria.
Industrial Contributions
After 1941, Toyoda was appointed director of Nippon Steel Works. He addressed the labor shortage during World War II by employing women and students. However, the quality of the company's products declined due to resource constraints.
Toyoda later served as an advisor to Hideki Tojo's cabinet and engaged in conflicts with the Imperial Japanese Army over the distribution of steel from Nippon Steel Works.
Postwar Life
In 1945, Toyoda became Minister of War Production, Transportation, and Communications in Kantarō Suzuki's cabinet. He was also elected to the House of Peers. However, after Japan's defeat in World War II, the Allied occupation authorities stripped Toyoda of his titles and banned him from public service.
In 1956, the ban was lifted, and he became the director of the Japanese branch of the Brazilian steel company Usiminas. Teijirō Toyoda passed away on November 21, 1961, at the age of 76 from kidney cancer.
