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was a general in the Imperial Japanese Army and the commander of the expeditionary force sent to China in 1937. He was convicted of war crimes and executed by the Allies for his involvement in the Nanking Massacre. Born in Nagoya, Matsui chose a military career and served in combat during the Russo-Japanese War (1904–05). Due to his lifelong interest in China, he volunteered for an overseas assignment there shortly after graduating from the Army War College in 1906. As Matsui rose through the ranks, he earned a reputation as the Japanese Army's foremost expert on China, and he was an ardent advocate of pan-Asianism. He played a key role in founding the influential Greater Asia Association. Matsui retired from active duty in 1935 but was called back into service in August 1937 at the start of the Second Sino-Japanese War to lead the Japanese forces engaged in the Battle of Shanghai. After winning the battle Matsui succeeded in convincing Japan's high command to advance on the Chinese capital city of Nanking. The troops under his command who captured Nanking on December 13 were responsible for the notorious Nanking Massacre. Matsui finally retired from the army in 1938. Following Japan's defeat in World War II he was convicted of war crimes at the International Military Tribunal for the Far East (IMTFE) and executed by hanging. He and other convicted war criminals were enshrined at Yasukuni Shrine in 1978, an act that has stirred controversy. == Early life and military career, 1878–1906 == Iwane Matsui was born on July 27, 1878, in Nagoya, Aichi Prefecture.〔Torsten Weber, "The Greater Asia Association and Matsui Iwane," in ''Pan-Asianism: A Documentary History, Volume 2'', eds. Sven Saaler and Christopher Szpilman (Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield, 2011), 140–141. ISBN 9781442206014〕〔Kazutoshi Hando et al., ''歴代陸軍大将全覧: 昭和篇(1)'' (Tokyo: Chūō Kōron Shinsha, 2010), 21–22. ISBN 9784121503374〕 He was the sixth son of Takekuni Matsui, who had been a samurai and a retainer to the daimyo of Owari during the Tokugawa shogunate.〔 After completing elementary school, his parents insisted that he continue his education, but Matsui worried about his father's debts and did not want to burden him financially. Though he was a short, thin, quiet, and often sickly young man, Matsui opted for a career in the Army, because in Japan at that time military schools charged the lowest tuition fees.〔Takashi Hayasaka, ''松井石根と南京事件の真実'' (Tokyo: Bungei Shunjū, 2011), 24–27. ISBN 9784166608171〕〔Masataka Matsuura, ''「大東亜戦争」はなぜ起きたのか'' (Nagoya: Nagoya Daigaku Shuppankai, 2010), 504–505. ISBN 9784815806293〕 Matsui enrolled in the Central Military Preparatory School in 1893 and in 1896 was accepted into the Imperial Japanese Army Academy.〔 Matsui was an excellent student and graduated second in his class in November 1897. His classmates included the future generals Jinzaburō Mazaki, Nobuyuki Abe, Shigeru Honjō, and Sadao Araki.〔 In 1901 Matsui was admitted into the Army War College, an elite institution which accepted only about ten percent of annual applicants.〔Takashi Hayasaka, ''松井石根と南京事件の真実'' (Tokyo: Bungei Shunjū, 2011), 29–30. ISBN 9784166608171〕 Matsui was still taking classes there in February 1904 when the College closed due to the outbreak of the Russo-Japanese War. He was immediately sent overseas where he served in combat in Manchuria as an officer in the 6th Regiment.〔〔 During the Battle of Shoushanpu Matsui was wounded in action and most in his company were killed.〔 After the war Matsui returned to his studies at the Army War College, and graduated at the top of his class in November 1906.〔 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Iwane Matsui」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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