New Books on Japan: "Tojo: The Rise and Fall of Japan's Most Controversial World War II General"

Tuesday, July 14, 2026 | 8:30-10:00 PM EDT
Wednesday, July 15, 2026 | 9:30-11:00 AM JST | 10:30 AM-12:00 PM AEST

REGISTER FOR ZOOM

Tojo: The Rise and Fall of Japan's Most Controversial World War II General (Harvard University Press, 2026)

Presenter: Peter Mauch, Senior Lecturer of Asian History, University of Western Sydney

Discussant: Andrew Levidis, Lecturer in Modern Japanese History, Australian National University

Moderator: Simon Avenell, Professor of History, Australian National University

The Modern Japan History Association invites the wider community to a conversation with Peter Mauch (Western Sydney University), who will be speaking about his recent book Tojo: The Rise and Fall of Japan's Most Controversial World War II General (Harvard University Press, 2026). The military general who became Emperor Hirohito’s prime minister, Tojo Hideki is most often remembered as an iron-fisted leader who dragged Japan into World War II and—after spectacular losses—was eventually executed as a war criminal. Yet Tojo was far more than his ignominious end. In fact, as Peter Mauch argues, he was one of the twentieth century’s most accomplished military statesmen. Over a career of some forty years, Tojo successfully launched himself into the highest echelons of political power. He was not only a tactical genius, Mauch shows, but also a savvy administrator, a fierce imperialist, and a deeply loyal advisor to the emperor. Tojo’s career took off with the notorious Kwantung Army in Manchuria, where he played a key role in escalating the Sino-Japanese War during the 1930s. As he rose through the ranks, becoming minister of war and then army chief of staff, he honed the efficiency of the Imperial Army and enhanced its influence within the emperor’s court. All the while, he deftly negotiated the fractious military rivalries that arose wherever he went. Brilliant, ambitious, and often ruthless, Tojo reached political heights that were perhaps matched only by his precipitous fall in the final months of World War II. Andrew Levidis (ANU) will serve as interlocutor.

This event is co-sponsored by the ANU Japan Institute.