Nogi Maresuke

Count Nogi Maresuke Senior Second Rank
乃木 希典
Nogi standing before his house in Nogizaka, Tokyo, shortly before his suicide in 1912
Governor General of Taiwan
In office 14 October 1896 – 26 February 1898
Monarch	Meiji
Preceded by	Katsura Tarō
Succeeded by	Kodama Gentarō
Personal details
Born	(1849-12-25)December 25, 1849 Edo, Japan
Died	September 13, 1912(1912-09-13) (aged 62) Tokyo, Japan
Awards	Grand Cordon of the Order of the Rising Sun with Paulownia Flowers Grand Cordon of the Order of the Golden Kite Grand Cordon of the Order of the Sacred Treasure Honorary Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath (UK) Honorary Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order (UK)
Nickname(s)	Kiten Count Nogi
Military service
Allegiance	Empire of Japan
Branch/service	Imperial Japanese Army
Years of service	1871–1908
Rank	General
Battles/wars	Satsuma Rebellion First Sino-Japanese War Russo-Japanese War Siege of Port Arthur
Japanese name
Kanji	乃木 希典
Hiragana	のぎ まれすけ
Transcriptions Romanization Nogi Maresuke

Count Nogi Maresuke (乃木 希典), also known as Kiten, Count Nogi (December 25, 1849 – September 13, 1912), was a Japanese general in the Imperial Japanese Army and a governor-general of Taiwan. He was one of the commanders during the 1894 capture of Port Arthur from China and a prominent figure in the Russo-Japanese War of 1904–05, as commander of the forces which captured Port Arthur from the Russians.

He was a national hero in Imperial Japan as a model of feudal loyalty and self-sacrifice, ultimately to the point of suicide. In the Satsuma Rebellion, he lost a banner of the emperor in battle, for which he tried to atone with suicidal bravery in order to recapture it, until ordered to stop. In the Russo-Japanese War, he captured Port Arthur but he felt that he had lost too many of his soldiers, so requested permission to commit suicide, which the emperor refused. These two events, as well as his desire not to outlive his master, motivated his suicide on the day of the funeral of the Emperor Meiji. His example brought attention to the concept of bushido and the controversial samurai practice of junshi (following the lord in death).^[1]