[About the Book]

In 1936, the February 26 Incident shook Japan to its core. Why did young army officers attempt to remake the state while shouting the Emperor’s name? This book probes that question in depth, unraveling the truth behind the incident through both historical context and philosophical analysis.

It examines the controversy surrounding the Emperor-as-Organ theory, factional struggles within the military and the ensuing purges, and the growing divide between the real Emperor and the god-like Emperor imagined by the populace. One by one, the book reveals the underlying causes of the uprising, tracing events to their climax in Emperor Shōwa’s uncompromising order to suppress the rebels as “insurgents.”

Blending gripping on-the-ground narratives with the political philosophies of Kant and Hobbes, the author offers a philosophical reading of the moment when law collided with fanaticism. It is also a story of confrontation: between modern constitutionalism and an “Asian-style” mentality of unquestioning obedience.

［Author’s Biography］
Yuta Miura