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Yoshihito, Emperor Taishō (大正天皇 Taishō-tennō, 31 August 1879 – 25 December 1926) was the 123rd Emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession, reigning from 30 July 1912 until his death.
Yoshihito was a sickly man, which prompted the shift in political power from the old oligarchic group of elder statesmen (or genrō) to the Imperial Diet of Japan (parliament) and the democratic parties. Thus, the era is considered the time of the liberal movement known as the "Taishō democracy" in Japan; it is usually distinguished from the preceding chaotic Meiji period and the following militaristic-driven first part of the Shōwa period.
Under Taisho, Japan continued to expand its reach into Asia and the world, joining the victorious Allies in World War I and the League of Nations in 1919. However, external and internal pressures soon left the country's democratic reforms vulnerable to the militarism that marked the reign of Yoshihito's son, Hirohito.
Taisho in Southern Victory[]
Yoshihito ruled Japan during the Great War, when the Empire made substantial territorial gains despite not being on the winning side. In the years after the war, Indochina and the East Indies were brought into the Empire.
Literary comment[]
"The Emperor" during the Great War is never named. The fact that his son Hirohito is confirmed to be Emperor in The Center Cannot Hold, suggests that Yoshihito's reign followed the same chronology as in OTL.
| Royal offices (OTL) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Mutsuhito, Emperor Meiji |
Emperor of Japan 1912-1926 |
Succeeded by Hirohito, Emperor Showa |
