Oshima, Takayoshi 大島高精 (1885-1964)

 ^{Header picture of Vanderbilt University's School of Religion's graduating class of 1916 from Family Search} 

Oshima Takayoshi (大島高精) was born on October 17, 1885, in Saiki-Machi Japan ("House of Representatives "List of Members of the 80th Imperial Diet", 1942, p.30.). The 1880s were a period of big change in Japan with the end of the Tokugawa Shogunate and the start of the Meiji Restoration (PBS or Britannica). The Meiji Restoration modernized Japan, was heavily influenced by the West and tried to achieve equality with the West. It was also a time period in which Japan became an Asian powerhouse, which would become a point of conflict for many countries, including Korea, China, and Russia. (Britannica). Because so much emphasis was put on the West, people were encouraged to study abroad. At the same time, because the Japanese government put so much emphasis on outside influence, it were unpopular with the Japanese people.

Takayoshi arrived in Seattle, Washington in September 1913 (Ancestry). From there, he attended Vanderbilt University studying in the School of Religion. He also attended the University of Chicago and Columbia University (NDL Digital Collections). A photo below shows that Oshima registered for the World War I draft in 1917, although it is unclear whether he actually participated in the war.

After he returned to Japan, Takayoshi became a reporter for a newspaper called Manchoho, and he later became the chief editor (NDL Digital Collections). After his time with Manchoho, he worked for the army and navy as a part-time lecturer, and he served part-time in the Kwantung Army , China Expeditionary Force , and North China Expeditionary Force (NDL Digital Collections) .

World War II lasted from 1939 --1945. During this time, Japan entered a state of totalitarianism, ultranationalism and fascism, starting with the Chinese Invasion in 1937 (Wikipedia). Takayoshi was elected to the House of Representatives in 1942 from his hometown in Oita. He also became a member of the Wing Seiseikai Political Research Army Committee (NDL Digital Collections), an extremist right-wing group that thought Japan should be aggressive in spreading its influence in Asia. It was anti-communist as well as anti-democratic. After the war, Takayoshi was expelled from public office for his involvement with the Wing Seiseikai Political Research Army Committee, as well as for being supported by the Imperial Rule Assistance Association (Congressional Newspaper, ed. "Rokusansei Meikan" 1943). He was also briefly detained by the Allied Powers. He did not run for office again, and he died in 1964.

Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "Meiji Restoration". Encyclopedia Britannica, 29 Mar. 2023, https://www.britannica.com/event/Meiji-Restoration. Accessed 19 April 2023.

"Portrait of the Meiji Emperor (Kuichi Uchida 内田九一), 2009-100," Princeton University Art Museums collections online, April 19, 2023, https://artmuseum.princeton.edu/collections/objects/57234.

Ancestry.com

Family Search

NDL Digital Collections

Congressional Newspaper, ed. "Rokusansei Meikan" 1943