Chiune Sugihara: Righteous Among the Nations

Chiune Sugihara

Not even counting the fact he was born on January 1st, 1900,  Chiune Sugihara was a pretty cool guy. Early in his career, Sugihara served as Deputy Foreign Minister in Manchuria, and during his time there converted to Christianity. He soon resigned from his position there in protest against the Japanese treatment of the Chinese there. In 1939, Sugihara was assigned to be the vice-consul of the Japanese Consulate in Lithuania. The Japanese did not entirely trust their German allies to fulfill all their promises, and so Sugihara was supposed to keep an eye on both them and the Russians, with whom Japan had been at war just a little while before. After Soviet Russia occupied Lithuania in 1940, the exiled Jews of Lithuania and Poland searched at all of the consulates for visas in order to travel safely from these war-torn areas filled with anti-Semitic militants. Initially, in order to help these refugees, Sugihara attempted to go through the proper channels and was denied multiple times by his superiors to issue visas for anyone except those with money or visas to a destination after their trip to Japan. In July or August of 1940, after consulting his family, Sugihara began to grant visas on his own, against his superior's will, which was a big no-no in imperial Japan. After speaking to Soviet officials, he secured the Jews the ability to travel through the country via the Trans-Siberian Railway at five times the standard ticket price. Sugihara continued writing these visas, reportedly spending 18 to 20 hours a day working on them, until September 4th when he had to leave his post before the consulate was closed.  Of the thousands of visas he had granted, many were to heads of households, who were thus permitted to take their families with them on a single visa. On the night of their departure he and his wife continued writing these visas, and according to witnesses he continued writing visas on the transit from his hotel to the train and while on the train, throwing the visas out the windows to the crowds of refugees. As the time of his departure neared, he started throwing out blank pieces of paper with the consulate seal and his signature on them for people to write out their own visas later. Right before he left Sugihara stood and said “Please forgive me. I cannot write anymore. I wish you the best.” And as he bowed deeply to the refugees gathered before him, someone exclaimed, “Sugihara! We’ll never forget you. I’ll surely see you again!” Incredibly he never received any reprimand or notice from the Japanese government. Sugihara himself wondered about the reaction to the thousands of visas he issued. Many years later, he recalled, "No one ever said anything about it. I remember thinking that they probably didn't realize how many I actually issued." It is estimated that Sugihara issued 6,000 visas, many of which were family visas and accounted for multiple people. Because of his actions, an estimated 40,000 descendants of the Jews he saved are alive today, and Sugihara received the honorific of "Righteous Among the Nations" from Israel for his bravery in saving these Jews from the certain death and horrors of the holocaust, and I believe the title is well deserved. 

The Spanish Civil War: The Rise of the Forgotten Fascist

Franco Reviewing His Victorious Troops

While it has been argued whether or not Francisco Franco was actually a fascist, it is undeniable that he was a dictator who appeared to enjoy the characteristics often associated with fascism. He possessed an acute sense of patriotism, little to no tolerance for those who disagreed with his political aims, a strong controlling hand over all aspects of his people's lives, and a deep dislike of communism. Either way, there are two things I wanted to focus on about the Spanish Civil War; the first is it's use as a training ground for German and Italian Troops prior to World War II, and the second is the fact that Franco's nation was almost ignored after the Nazi's defeat. Just 3 years before World War II, in 1936, Spain descended into arguably the worst form of violence, a civil war-brother against brother, father against son. The war was between the leftist elements of the relatively new Spanish Republic and the more traditional Nationalists that were often concentrated in the military. Interestingly the Republic forces were backed by the Soviet Union, making one question whether this was a Republic in name only. The Nationalists were backed by both German and Italian forces as they attempted to add another member to the growing club of European ultra-nationalists. The war started after a partially successful coup left the country split between Nationalist and Republic forces. Franco soon found himself in charge of the Nationalist uprising. This is due mainly to the fact that the other senior officers of the rebellion had had previous experiences that left them appearing slightly untrustworthy to many of the hard-core nationalists, as well as the fact that Hitler promised to send all his military support to Franco, and Franco alone. Throughout the war, Hitler and Mussolini both sent troops and arms in order to help the nationalist movement, and this is why the Spanish Civil War is often called a "dress rehearsal" for World War II. There is still some debate about how useful the combat was in training the Fascist troops, but I would simply reason that there were some lessons learned in the years of intense combat. Stalin, on the other hand, attempted to covertly help the Republican forces mainly with supplies; interestingly the arms he shipped were either broken, outdated, or brand new and effective, go figure. Either way, after three years of bloody fighting, Franco had won, just six months before the outbreak of World War II. Now, some state that Hitler and Mussolini were expecting Franco to return the favor and help them during by joining the Axis powers. However Franco refrained from entering the war, and most probably saved his state. Why did he not join his "buddies" in conquering Europe? Perhaps it was because Spain was recovering from the horrors of the war. Perhaps Franco wished to focus on his domestic policy rather than an international war. Whatever the reasons, Franco was able to govern Spain from 1939 until his death in 1975. After the first decade of his rule, the harsh oppression of opposition decreased as the last of Republic support waned. Interestingly, Franco's regime was often ignored following World War II, with some believing that his dictatorship was more favorable than the growing threat of the U.S.S.R. and global communism. Franco's legacy is still controversial to say the least. Some in Spain seem to wipe away any memory of him; renaming streets, monuments, and tearing down statues that are even reminiscent to his era. Others wish to open up the official archives and truly reveal what occurred during those years of change and uncertainty; when ideologies clashed, were tried and often only fell with those that supported them.

The Merry Wives of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha

George V Sweeping Out His German Titles

During the turbulent days of World War I, anger towards the enemy and anything that could be familiarized with it was common. This seems to be a natural reaction in times of war, when people are bent upon the domination of their foes by force, any semblance of their enemies at home is usually treated with hostility. It was such motivation that led to the creation of the House of Windsor, which still rules today in Britain through Queen Elizabeth II. Anti-German sentiment was on the rise in England, especially after the introduction of a new heavy German bomber in 1917, that was capable of crossing the channel and attacking London directly. Then king, George V was cousin to his German enemy Kaiser Wilhelm II through their grandparents Queen Victoria and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Their first daughter became the mother of Kaiser Wilhelm, while their first son became the father of King George. This meant that George V inherited the title of House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha through the male line as was tradition. Now here he was, leading his country in the fight against his German cousin, the "Hun", in the name of England, while he himself held a German title! So, George felt he needed to be English, not just in reality only, but also in name. An official proclamation was made, and the House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha became the House of Windsor, possibly chosen for its ties to Windsor Castle a famous royal residence. Upon hearing of his cousins' name-change, Kaiser Wilhelm II is reported to have quipped that he planned to see "The Merry Wives of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha."

Archduke Franz Ferdinand

Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife, Sophie

One hundred years ago, the assassination of the heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne lit the fuse that caused the world to descend into the "Great War." There wasn't much great about the conflict that cost the lives of over 15 million people. While the growing armament and resentment of the pre-war era is heavily discussed, not many talk about the actual murder of the man and wife whose deaths were used almost as an excuse for the war. The Archduke was heir to the throne of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, a fairly large state that controlled what is now Austria, Hungary, the Czech Republic, and more. In late June of 1914, Franz was on a diplomatic trip to meet with the governor of Bosnia-Herzegovina. Now, there was a lot of ethnic tension in these areas at the time. Nationalism was strong and many of these minorities felt that the Austrians were their unrightful rulers. In this particular area, many of the Serbians in the area felt much closer ties to their Serbian, and even Russian, neighbors than their Austrian governors. One of these Serbians was Gravilo Princip. He was a member of the Black Hand, an organization that basically wanted to unify all Serbians under a single state. They had already been part of assassination attempts before, even attempting to kill the emperor in 1911. On the 28th of June, Princip, along with other Black Hand members, attempted to kill the Archduke and his wife on their way into Sarajevo. One member threw a grenade at their car while they entered the city, but missed, and hit one of the cars behind them, hurting many of the bystanders. The man who threw the grenade ate a cyanide pill and jumped into the river Milijacka in an attempt to avoid capture. However, the cyanide pill was expired and simply made him sick, and the river was only a few inches deep and didn't kill him, and he was soon captured. The other assassins did not have another chance to attack as the car carrying Franz and his wife sped by. After having dinner with the governor and other officials, the Archduke and Sophie decided to visit those wounded in the explosion at the hospital. Unfortunately everyone forgot to tell the driver, who assumed they were still on schedule. Eventually one of the passengers figured out they were going the wrong way and told the driver to turn around. Now Princip, having avoided capture, went to a bar which had a large window that looked out onto the street. He glanced up from his beer and saw the Archduke's car turning around. Seizing the opportunity, he walked outside crossed to the car, and shot both Franz and Sophie. He attempted to take cyanide, but it too was expired; and when that didn't work he tried to shoot himself, but the cyanide made him vomit, allowing the police to subdue him. The Archduke's last words were reported to be "Sophie dear! Don't die! Stay alive for our children!" Unfortunately, Sophie and Franz both died shortly thereafter, as they were being rushed to help. After the assassination, much rumor occurred about the incident. Austria-Hungary and Serbia were already at odds, and the murder by the Serbian nationalists did anything but help. A month after the incident, an ultimatum was delivered to the Serbians. Franz and Sophie, the young parents were arguably the first causalities of this, the Great War.