The Military Rescript Defines Loyalty and Conduct for Soldiers and Sailors

The growth of a national army raised questions of discipline as well as recruitment. In 1878, the government established a General Staff Office under Yamagata Aritomo, separating command planning from the Army Ministry’s administrative work and placing the new office directly under the emperor.

On January 4, 1882, the emperor issued the Military Rescript to soldiers and sailors. It presented military command as an imperial prerogative and declared the emperor their supreme commander. Its five injunctions required loyalty, propriety, courage, good faith and frugality.

The instructions specified relationships inside the ranks. Subordinates were to regard obedience to superior officers as obedience to the emperor; superiors were also instructed to treat their men with care rather than contempt. Courage was distinguished from rash violence. Good faith required examining whether an obligation could properly be fulfilled, and frugality was linked to resistance to corruption.

The rescript told soldiers to avoid being swayed by public opinion or involved in politics. Issued before the constitution and elected Diet, it set out a direct moral relationship between military personnel and the emperor. These were prescribed duties, rather than evidence that every unit or officer consistently obeyed them.