Post-War Japan: The Fall of the Zaibatsu and Restructuring
Leo Miyazawa
HIS 242: Modern Japan
12/07/10
Post-War Japan: The Fall of the Zaibatsu and Restructuring
Post-War Japan: The Fall of the Zaibatsu and Restructuring
As the news of the end of World War II spread around Japan and Emperor Hirohito 's official announcement confirmed Japan 's defeat, the idea of occupation became more than just a shadow in the back of the people 's minds; this was real. The arrival of General MacArthur in early September of 1945 marked the beginning of a new chapter in the history of Japan. Although changes were made to the Japanese culture and government, perhaps the most important changes were the ones made to Japan 's economy. Up until then, the zaibatsu ("financial clique" ) had been largely responsible for mobilizing labor and capital in the country and were the country 's largest and richest oligopolies. These financial giants were the foundation of modern Japanese economy since they played a great part on its stabilization and recovery, eventually leading to a period of unprecedented growth. To understand why this oligopoly was so important and how these giants came to be one must look back at the late 1800 's and early 1900 's. It was in those years where the zaibatsu started to obtain notoriety, the most famous ones being Mitsui, Mitsubishi, Yasuda and Sumitomo. They began by investing in businesses that dealt with transportation, manufacturing, shipping and later on, banking. The four most famous zaibatsu held assets that were equal to just about the entirety of Japan 's economy. In the end, the process of restructuring Japan after the war was an undertaking of herculean proportions that propelled Japan into the top economies of the world. The reason why the Japanese monopolies were unique was that they were not limited to a single industry or line of work: "rather than specialise, as foreign firms by then mostly did, they gained scale through agglomeration, with a family-run holding company typically controlling
HIS 242: Modern Japan
12/07/10
Post-War Japan: The Fall of the Zaibatsu and Restructuring
Post-War Japan: The Fall of the Zaibatsu and Restructuring
As the news of the end of World War II spread around Japan and Emperor Hirohito 's official announcement confirmed Japan 's defeat, the idea of occupation became more than just a shadow in the back of the people 's minds; this was real. The arrival of General MacArthur in early September of 1945 marked the beginning of a new chapter in the history of Japan. Although changes were made to the Japanese culture and government, perhaps the most important changes were the ones made to Japan 's economy. Up until then, the zaibatsu ("financial clique" ) had been largely responsible for mobilizing labor and capital in the country and were the country 's largest and richest oligopolies. These financial giants were the foundation of modern Japanese economy since they played a great part on its stabilization and recovery, eventually leading to a period of unprecedented growth. To understand why this oligopoly was so important and how these giants came to be one must look back at the late 1800 's and early 1900 's. It was in those years where the zaibatsu started to obtain notoriety, the most famous ones being Mitsui, Mitsubishi, Yasuda and Sumitomo. They began by investing in businesses that dealt with transportation, manufacturing, shipping and later on, banking. The four most famous zaibatsu held assets that were equal to just about the entirety of Japan 's economy. In the end, the process of restructuring Japan after the war was an undertaking of herculean proportions that propelled Japan into the top economies of the world. The reason why the Japanese monopolies were unique was that they were not limited to a single industry or line of work: "rather than specialise, as foreign firms by then mostly did, they gained scale through agglomeration, with a family-run holding company typically controlling
Bibliography: * Andrew Gordon, A Modern History of Japan: From Tokugawa times to the Present, (New York, NY: Oxford University Press, 2009) * Mikio Sumiya, A history of Japanese trade and industry policy, (New York, NY: Oxfor University Press, reprinted in 2004) [ 2 ]. The Economist, Millenium Issue: Japan 's zaibatsu, (1999) [ 3 ] [ 6 ]. The Economist, Millenium Issue: Japan 's zaibatsu, (1999) [ 7 ] [ 8 ]. Mikio Sumiya, A history of Japanese trade and industry policy, (New York, NY: Oxfor University Press, reprinted in 2004), 157 [ 9 ]